「故事·听力」I Use Online Translator To Speak To My Dad

I Use Online Translator To Speak To My Dad

Hello everyone. My name is Jia and I am thirteen. We all know that our parents are the first people who teach us to talk in our life. But what if I tell you that I had to use an online translator to speak to my own father?

The thing is, I was actually born in China, but I moved to America many years ago, after my father tragically died in a car accident. My mom married an American, so she took me to Los Angeles where we were all a happy family together. My mom always tried to avoid any talks concerning my dad. She basically put all that behind her. This is the story that I was told until that day.

Even though I was only three years old when I saw my father for the last time, I remembered him really well and I missed him. One day, when I walked out of school, I saw a man standing at the gates. He looked confused and it seemed like he was looking out for somebody. I don't know what happened to me, but my heart started to beat faster. I got up closer and our eyes met. I had no doubts at all. That was my dad!  But how? And I saw that he recognized me as well! It didn't take long for me to just hang onto him. I asked him like a million questions, but he just looked at me and smiled. And then I realized that he didn't understand what I was saying. He handed me a big box and said something in Chinese, but I didn't understand a word. My mother spoke very little Chinese to me after we moved to America, so I had forgotten my native language almost completely! It was so ridiculous! 

My father and I haven't seen each other for so many years and when we finally met, we weren't even able to talk to each other?!  Anyway, we tried to communicate with hand gestures and a translator on my phone. My broken Chinese didn't help much. What I have managed to get so far was this: My father never got into a car accident. My mother fell in love with another man, my stepfather, ran away to America, and took me with her without even letting my dad know about it. He has been trying to find us for years and finally made this long trip from China to see me. He tried to contact my mother, but she just threatened him with the police. This bitter truth knocked me out completely. My father and I exchanged phone numbers and we agreed to meet again soon.

When I got home I had a complete meltdown. I asked my mother point blank why she had done that to our family. But It turned out that she was already aware that my dad had come to see me. She looked very nervous and serious. Her voice was trembling, but she said that she had done it for my own good. Mom said that my father was not a worthy man. When they lived in China, he used to spend every evening gambling. Finally, he lost his job and that was the final straw for her. She wanted to protect me and to give me a better life and she also begged me not to see him again. End of conversation! I was furious! My father's mistakes of the past didn't justify my mother's lies. I went to my room and shut the door. I opened the box my dad had given to me. There were old pictures of all of us in China. My mom, my dad, my grandma, and myself. We all looked so happy... I burst into tears. 

I lied in my bed and couldn't sleep. Then I texted my dad in Chinese: "I am coming to you now." I jumped out of bed and started packing. I didn't actually realize what I was doing, but then I snuck out of the window and headed to the hotel where my father was staying. When I got there, my dad was very surprised to see me. He was really worried that I had made my way there at night, all alone. After an hour of trying to break the language barrier, my father told me that he had met my mom. She offered him money to leave America and never show up again, but he had refused. He confessed that he had been neither a good father, nor a proper head of our family, but he just wanted to have the right to see his daughter, to see me.

My heart sank. I never expected my mother to stoop so low and I was sure I was making the right decision. I asked my father if we could run away to China together. I wanted to see my motherland and my grandma. I was so happy when my father agreed. But we couldn't go to China by plane, because we would get caught at the airport immediately. That's why we decided to run through Mexico. But it was more than just risky, it was completely insane! My mother could find out I wasn't home at any minute and go to the police, so we had to leave as quickly as possible. We changed our clothes. I put on my father's hoodie and sunglasses, just in case, and we set off on the road. It was like something out of a movie!

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