14 YEARS TOGETHER.

I heard the key enter the lock and the glass cubicle door open and a woman’s fingers came towards me. I could feel another set of fingers coming towards me and heard the voice of the owner of those fingers say that they wanted me as an all-rounder. I had many features that they liked.

My story began in China, around fourteen years ago, after my grandfather, who was Japanese, married a Chinese woman, and they had a child, who was my father, and he married my mother, and my Japanese DNA came into my features. I had Chinese eyes on me as I was making my entry into this world, and then I saw Japanese eyes on me checking to make sure that I was a healthy specimen.

After that, I was given to a Thai woman, and from there, I began a journey in a truck from which I could hear the chattering of a diesel engine and smell the sulfuric fumes of diesel. Following a journey that saw me being carefully handled, I found my place on the shelf in the cubicle where I sat, wondering who would want me.

The person who wanted me talked of a man they once knew who had their silver version of me which they paired with blue and grey and a gold version of me, which they paired with green, cream, purple or brown. This person said that I could be paired with everything.

So, it was on this day, 14 years ago, that this person was excited to have me and after my release was negotiated, they took me home and we have been together ever since. Even though I can go in the water, they don’t like letting me have a swim, not that I want one, either. They rely upon me to know when they have to do things, and we frequently have rides in the car, or just hang around at home.

I have since been joined by a stablemate, who is of a similar set up and also has a Japanese grandfather and two Chinese grandmothers and a Chinese grandfather. I spend the bulk of my time with this other, and my stablemate gets taken out for special occasions, like once every three weeks, when they want to be with them, or on certain days when the car insurance is paid.

I am glad that we have been together for 14 years and hope that I can manage another 14, which should be possible as they care about me. I guess you could say I’m a loyal Citizen.

(From when I was in high school, I remembered my Year Twelve Economics and Modern History had a silver watch and a gold watch. He used to wear the silver watch when he wore grey or blue and the gold watch when he wore cream, green, brown or purple. His gold watch was a Citizen, and it was analogue/digital combination. I thought, when I was older, that I wanted an analogue/digital combination watch, and I have this one. It has silver and gold.

My autism diagnosis and the Glow Up Gold caused me to want to have a gold watch, and an analogue/digital combination one at that, as well as reaching gold membership of the club with which my car is insured, after 25 years. So, on the days that my insurance premiums are debited and when I see people who are autism friendly, and in the month of April, I have the gold watch, and for the rest of the time, the analogue/digital silver with a little gold watch, which I’ve had for 15 years.)