A young boy beings to set the table as he hears the tv droning on in another room. His mother, younger sister, and two older brothers are all working to get the house ready. Tonight was a special night. Guests were coming over for dinner, and they had to be the ideal family the boy’s mother had always wanted. The only one who wasn’t helping was the young boy’s father. He enjoyed what his wife deemed “incessant chatter” from the television set.

“Have you put out the silverware yet?” the boy’s mother asks. The boy had barely finished setting down the plates. “Why isn’t the silverware on the table yet?” His mother growled. Before the boy could respond she was out of the room to complete other tasks. The boy finished setting the table in fear his mother would start yelling at him again.

Having finished his tasks, the boy made his way into the living room and sprawled himself on the couch. Just when he thought he would be able to relax, his mother caught sight of him. “What do you think you’re doing?” She asked him. He knew she would start barking orders at him again. All she did was bark and growl, and for a moment all the boy could see his mother as was a dog. But the boy knew better than to keep his mother waiting; this dog knew how to bite.

“What do you need, mother?” The boy inquired as he jumped up from the couch, ready and at her service. She counted off task after task she needed done. He simply nodded and was off to complete each and every one.

Almost an hour later he had finished all his tasks. Not so much as a minute after, the doorbell rang. The boy’s mother rushed to the door and opened it wide. A man and his wife stood in the doorway and his mother greeted them with a big, fake smile. You could never expect a real, warm smile from her. To smile means to be happy, and you didn’t have to be smart to tell she never was.