Forbidden Love

    Kim sat among all of her relatives for Chinese New Year dinner.  Twenty family members bustled about the small house of her grandfather.  The New Year dinner was always held at her grandfather's because he was the eldest member of the family.  Her cousins, aunts, uncles, little brother, and mother and father all mingled with each other, trading hugs, kisses, and wishes for prosperity.
    In time the family gathered in a broken line leading into the kitchen to eat.  Kim forced a smile whenever spoken to and from time to time went out of her way to tease her brother or one of her cousins, but it was all a show.  Her heart was full of anxiety and the desire to see Jerry again.  She had managed to sneak away to the other side of the city the night before, far away from the Chinese district.  Late into the night she sat with Jerry in his car and talked.  Now and then he pulled her close and kissed her thin lips with a passion that made Kim's knees weak, and she felt the same jittery sensation even while standing in the kitchen thinking of him.  She filled her plate absent mindedly as her thoughts drifted past the red lanterns adorning the windows, and she hoped those thoughts found Jerry and kept him pascified until she found her way back to him the next day.
 
  Jerry sat on the hood of his car, smoking a cigarette in the cold February night air.  He was on top of the hill that overlooked both sides of the city, but his gaze was pointed to Chinatown.  The soft red glow of paper lanterns blanketed the city.  Faint pops of firecrackers filled his ears and the smell of fish, stuffed dumplings, and mandarin oranges drifted to his nose with the breeze and tickled his appetite.  But the strongest of his hunger was that of his heart, and in the quietness he thought of her.
    He had fallen in love with Kim the first time they met.  He told his father about her but his reaction was the same as Kim's parents when she told them about Jerry: they were forbidden to see each other.  Jerry's father was racist and refused to allow his son to be with a girl of Chinese descent, and Kim's parents, though not racist, refused to let their daughter date a boy from the area of the city that Jerry was from.  The two eighteen year olds instead had to keep their relationship hidden.  Kim found various excuses to leave the house and met Jerry on the very hill he sat upon in the darkness, with Chinese New Year going on below him and Valentine's day being celebrated in the rest of the city behind him.
    The two lovers refused to be kept apart.  For months they hid on the hill, laying out beneath the stars on a blanket or cuddled close inside his car.  Finally, the night before, they came up with a plan where they could be together without interference.  As Jerry thought of the idea he rubbed his jean pocket, which was fat with every bit of money he had.  Lighting another cigarette he smiled and caressed a picture of her.

    Early in the morning Kim rose from bed, dressed, and gathered with her brother and parents in the living room.  She shook with anticipation.  Little did her parents realize that the traditional New Year's gift they were about to give their daughter would be all she needed in order to be with Jerry.  With a smile across his face Kim's father handed her a red envelope.  Kim's trembling hands opened it and retrieved 300 dollars from inside.  With a huge smile and a racing heart she hugged both of her parents.
   
    Kim made her way up the hill with the suitcase she hid in the garage the night before in her hand.  Jerry stepped out of his car and watched her approach, mesmerized by her long dark hair blowing softly back across the shoulders of her red blouse.  He took the suitcase from her and pressed his lips tightly to hers.  After what seemed like hours he threw the case in the back seat and they both got inside.  Jerry fired up the engine.  They looked at each other,smiling, and finally Jerry broke the silence.
    "I love you."
    "I love you too," Kim replied.
    Jerry put the car in drive, and with a little over 800 dollars between them they drove off, passing the city limit for the last time.