Ah Lim's Chicken Rice, #01-08A

[AH LIM'S CHICKEN RICE, #01-08A]<title| [[Start|scene4]] [[Content Warnings|cw]] [[Credits|credits]]

[[You bow before the altar in your home.|scene3]]

[Your daughter's framed photo smiles back at you.]<c1| []<c2| (click:?c1)[(replace:?c2)[You hope she's in a better place. You insert your joss sticks into the urn, pray one more time with your hands, and [[get ready for the day.|scene1]]]]

There are already early birds at the hawker center: Ah Tan nods at you as he pulls up the shutters of his char kway teow stall. Ah Ling passes you on her way to her drink stall. Aditi and Hisham grin at you as they prepare their nasi padang. [[It's time to start the day.|scene5]]

After pulling up the shutters, you grab what you need from the fridge. You cut the ginger and the leafy part of the scallion (click-append:"You cut the ginger and the leafy part of the scallion")[ to put in the pot full of water for poaching the chicken. Then, you put the remains of the chicken and stock into the pot before [[turning the heat on.|scene6]]]

Now for the actual chicken. [You gently pad the chicken with salt]<c1|[]<c2| (click:?c1)[(replace:?c2)[[[ while you let its fat render on a pan.|scene61]]]]

As you wait for the chicken to cook, [[you make some chili sauce with garlic and ginger.|scene71]]

After ten minutes passed, you lift the holder and hang the chicken in the front of your stall. One brush of sesame oil later, [[Ah Lim's Chicken Rice is now open for business.|scene9]]

As you prepare your next batch of chicken, your first customer arrives: a businessman who keeps looking at his watch while calling out for you. You call back and [[start cooking the rice with some chicken fat and stock|scene10]].

You serve the chicken rice in a takeout box and he pays you promptly. After depositing the bills into the cashier, [[you go straight back to cooking.|scene11]]

As you dip another chicken into the bucket, you hear children laughing in the distance. A tinge of sadness envelops you. You always wonder why they're here. Where are their parents? [[You sigh as you hang the chicken to dry.|scene12]]

"Ah Lim, I want the usual!" You glance back to see a jiangshi. They smile at you and hop their way to a chair near the stall. Their garments always look out of place in this stuffy hawker center. "How you've been, Ah Lim?" [[You focus on carving the chicken.|scene13]]

"As for me, I checked out Paris. It's a really nice place." You serve his chicken and [[go back to prepwork.|scene14]]

You are cutting a new chicken when the jiangshi return their plate to you. "Thanks for the meal, I need to get back to work. The farm manager asked me for a day shift right after I came back from vacation. Jeez." You nod as you receive their payment and [[watch them hop out of the hawker center.|scene15]]

As lunchtime approaches, the (cycling-link:"gui", "ghosts", "spirits") line up. (cycling-link:"The torch-mouth ghost asks you for extra chili.", "You warn the needle-haired ghost not to scratch the glass protector.", "The drought ghost orders three helpings.", "The businessman who you saw this morning is yelling on the phone and holding up the line. Servant ghosts are always annoying like that.", "[[A woman orders a chicken rice with no special requests.|scene16]]")

[You notice that she is watching you intently.]<c1| []<c2| (click:?c1)[(replace:?c2)[Even after finishing her meal, she's still at the table watching your cooking. [[You ignore her.|scene17]]]]

You cook and cook until it's evening. She's still there. You wipe off and [pull the shutters.]<c1| []<c2| (click:?c1)[(replace:?c2)[The woman stands up and says, [["Papa, it's me."|scene18]]]]

You blink. (cycling-link:"Aubrey.", "She's not five years old anymore.", "[[Aubrey is here.|scene19]]")

"Alamak," you say, "why are you here?!" For the first time in a long time, you are angry. All those long hours working your poor heart out to pay for her liver transplant have come to nothing. You grit your teeth. "I know, I know, I'm sorry, I'm sorry..." But seeing her grow into a fine adult also makes you happy. [[You just wish she wasn't here so soon.|scene20]]

You can tell she wants to say more, but her lips are trembling. She's on the verge of tears too. "Okay, we can talk later. Do you have a place to stay?" [[Aubrey shakes her head.|scene21]]

You try to do your best fatherly smile and say, [["You can stay with me then."|scene22]]

For the next few months, Aubrey helps you with the stall. She's a hit with the regulars, and her charisma and beauty attract new people as well. Some of the ghosts even propose marriage to her and for the first time, [[you tell them to scram.|scene23]]

The both of you are also making up for lost time. Aubrey has gone to college and studied law. She also has a keen interest in her family tree -- you mention that your great-grandfather lives across the street as a teacher -- and loves to listen to you ramble about the history and politics of the underworld. [["I'm glad that I remember where you worked, Papa."|scene24]]

You are carrying in the laundry when she serves you a plate of chicken rice. "I still remember Papa's stall and I've always dreamed of helping you." You laugh and say, "Well, now you know how to cook chicken rice the Ah Lim way now." [[She smiles.|scene25]]

[["I'm glad that we can stay together from now on."|scene26]]

[Aubrey begins to cry.]<c1| []<c2| (click:?c1)[(replace:?c2)["Mama kept stalking me and my girlfriend. She told me that I was going to hell because I had sinned and that Papa would be so disgraced. The shame got to me and I tried to end my life." [[She buries her face in the table.|scene27]]]]

"Sorry for taking so long to tell you this. I didn't want to upset you." [[You clench your fist.|scene28]]

"Alamak, I keep telling Ah Mei to stop being so prejudiced." Aubrey glances up in confusion. "When you go back, you tell Ah Mei that I will haunt her if she keeps doing that. Tell her I remember when she broke a Ming Dynasty vase in the museum. She'll believe you because I'm the only person who knows that." [["What?"|scene29]]

"Aiya, you went into a coma because of this. I should've picked a better wife." ["A coma?"]<c1| []<c2| (click:?c1)[(replace:?c2)[You put down your utensils and say, "I talked to the doctor the night you came in. He confirmed my suspicions. Your skin isn't pale like ours. Nothing is wrong with you." [["I haven't died yet?"|scene30]]]]

You hold her hands and say, "I don't know when you are leaving, but it will happen." Her tears roll down her cheeks. [["But I am happy that I got to spend time with you."|scene31]]

(cycling-link: "She embraces you.", "[[You hug her back.|scene32]]")

[["I love you, Papa."|scene33]]

[[Months go by, with no change in your routine. You and Aubrey have a wonderful time together.|scene34]]

Then, one morning, she's gone. There's [[a letter|scene35]] on the table.

You can read the letter later. It's almost time to open up the shop. You go to [[the altar|scene36]].

You light your joss sticks and look at the framed picture. It's a picture of you and her working together in the stall. [[You pray for her wellbeing.|credits]]

[Credits]<title| This is a submission for ECTOCOMP, an annual competition for interactive fiction celebrating Halloween and other spooky festivals. This entry is for the La Petite Mort where the game must be written and coded in four hours. The game is inspired by: * *Xanthippe's Last Night with Socrates* by Victor Gijsbers * *A City of Sadness* by Hou Hsiao-hsien * *Yi Yi* by Edward Yang * *Will Never Let You Go* by Stephen Granade [[Return to Title Screen|scene1]] [[Start from the intro|scene2]]

This game mentions suicide, queerphobia, and death. [[Return to Title Screen|scene1]]

You go back to the chicken (click-append:"You go back to the chicken")[ and place it in a bucket of iced water with salt. [[You clear your throat.|scene8]]]

After making sure the water in the pot isn't bubbling, you turn off the heat, hang the chicken on a holder, and dip it into the water. [[You rub the sweat off with your sleeves.|scene7]]