Kate looked out the window, holding his latest letter in her hand.
He had insisted upon using the old form of communication- post. She had not refused, just
smiled and nodded. Why? Because she never intended to write back- a clean break. Life was
different with her.
Everything that he had written seemed like such a dream to her. The busy, crowded streets of
Los Angeles appealed to her in ways that disgusted him.
He had written that he yearned to come back to peaceful, boring Hong Kong, and she wanted
to scream at him. Hong Kong? Are you crazy? I want to be in America but I’m stuck in Hong Kong
just because you’re rich and I’m dirt poor!
Life is unfair. She knew it from the minute he walked into her life, flashing his Macbook and
iPhone in her face. Instead of being jealous, she gladly accepted him into her door because he was
all she ever wanted to be. Rich, handsome and sociable.
She looked at his letter again.
I just wish I was back in Hong Kong. I miss it so much. I miss you.
The streets are always so busy here and there are no cabs waiting around for you. The
transportation is terrible, and when you’re not in the city, you might as well be nowhere because
there’s just grass and no cars are nearby to get you out of there.
I hate trees. They bring so many insects into the house and they’re absolutely useless. I miss
the days when I could just go downstairs and there would be plenty of restaurants and shops. It’s so
inconvenient. I mean, I can’t even get ice cream at night because all the supermarkets are closed.
I wish I was back in Hong Kong.
Kate’s teeth sunk into her bottom lip in desperation, almost drawing blood.
How dare he complain about his perfect life when she was stuck here in Hong Kong practically
breathing polluted air? Hong Kong was like the Gobi desert compared to America. It was not only
because of the hot temperature and dry weather.
Money dried up like plants, all thanks to the brilliant but cruel sun- namely the billionaires
who thought it was fine to take advantage of the poor. Are we not all humans? Why should they
be allowed to live in beautiful mansions and earn hundreds of million dollars every year doing
nothing, while we peasants work our lives away earning as little as a measly 30 dollars an hour?
Her previous thought echoed in her brain: we humans- we’re self-destructive. We don’t only ruin
ourselves, but we bring others down with us whenever we can.
No life grows here- everyone here are like robots. People speak what the government wants
them to say, instead of going against them and taking what is rightfully theirs. The education
system turns us into little drones- we go to school learning how to write exams, how to answer
papers instead of learning real knowledge.
Picking up her pen, she made to scribble on his thoughtless letter, but only found herself re-
writing his letter into something better- something more thoughtful and perfect.
Dear Kate,
I love it here in America. I wish you were here with me, I know you’d love it as much as I do.
The streets in the urban areas are so busy and it’s fascinating. You get to watch as beautiful
and colourful Lamborghinis and Mercedes cruise down the street, colouring the otherwise dull
grey streets with the colours of the rainbow.
Where I live is in the countryside, so the view is absolutely amazing. There are trees
everywhere, and when you breathe, the smell of rain and grass enters your nostrils, sending you
