Chapter 9

For the rest of the day, the mother and daughter avoided each other by staying inside their respective bedrooms with the doors closed. They only came out to use the toilet, and go back in again. However, by evening, hunger overcame them and they were forced to leave the safety of the bedroom and go into the kitchen in search of food.

That was how they came to be together finally after the day of drama that had just passed. Both women were tired, and both were drained emotionally; the anger and the confrontation had left them feeling empty. But at least the hostility was not Jane’s automatic reaction when she saw her mother looking in the fridge for something to eat. It was Sunday evening, so Cherry did not have to go to the bar to sing. That also meant that she would not go to the Love Hotel with any unknown man. Those were the thoughts that idly ran through Jane’s mind. Suddenly, she had a thought that made her become worried. If Cherry was fucking so many unknown men, was it possible that she could be seriously injured or even killed in that hotel?

Jane had a sudden vision of her mother lying sick in a hospital bed, and that frightened her.

“Mama,” she began. “Mama, we need to talk. I ... I’m worried about you. You could have been seriously hurt last night...” Jane’s voice trailed off.

Cherry was relieved at the concern she could hear in Jane’s voice. She had been afraid that Jane would begin to shout at her again, but now she could see that Jane and she needed to have a talk without anger.

“Let me make you some noodles, and we can talk, ok?” she suggested to Jane. Jane nodded her agreement and went to take a packet of her favorite seafood flavor noodles from the store cupboard. When the noodles had been cooked and ladled into bowls, Cherry and Jane sat opposite each other at the kitchen table.

They ate in silence, but as soon as they had finished, Cherry spoke first. “What do you want to talk about, Jane?”

Jane hesitated before trying to put her thoughts in words. “Mama, I saw you in the hospital, and I saw what that man did to you. You looked so awful, so alone and vulnerable. I have just had a thought, what if someone else tries to beat you and this time he doesn’t stop? What if he injures you so badly that you have to be admitted to hospital? What if...?” And again, Jane’s voice lapsed into silence.

Cherry was touched at the concern for her safety that Jane had shown, and she had to agree that there was some truth in what Jane had said. Perhaps she should stop fucking strangers from the bar. The Love Hotel was not interested in who rented the rooms for an hour or so, and although the reception was supposed to ask for ID, many guys ignored this by tipping the receptionist by adding a little extra to the cost of the room. These guys were probably married and didn’t want any hint of scandal to get out. But they could also be extreme sadists who might be intent on causing serious harm to the woman they took to the room.

“Jane, I ... I ... I can’t stop meeting men. We need the money if we want to continue living here, and you continue studying. And...” Cherry paused before continuing. “And I need it. It’s like a drug that if I don’t get used, I feel desperate and it is constantly on my mind, making me feel so needy all week. I don’t expect you to understand, but this is my nature. I’m a submissive woman who craves to be used in order to feel satisfied.”