The Games that Play Us Pt. 01

"I have a favour I need to ask you, sis."

Here we go, I thought, I was so used to my older sister coming to me to fix all of her problems, that this wasn't entirely unexpected when I saw her name pop up on my phone when it began ringing. Despite being the younger of us, I was far more successful in terms of my career and living situation. I'd dedicated myself to my studies and chosen profession. Stacey, meanwhile, had found herself pregnant early into her twenties and the father had disappeared shortly after the birth; some Russian asshat that had pissed off back to Moscow. My sister had even named her child after his mother in the hopes he'd stick around: he didn't. She'd struggled along ever since, and, I found myself as being her go-to when she needed some money and help. Our parents had passed away long ago and we only had each other. She was my sister, of course, so I always did my best, but the constant requests did irk me some, especially with me being the younger of us. "What is it this time?" I asked, perhaps a bit too impatiently.

"I don't want to be a bother. It's just...I can't think of anyone better to help."

I rolled my eyes and breathed down the phone. Of course, there was no one else she could think of, because I was always the first person her mind went to. "Just spit it out," I said.

"It's Natalya," she said in a whisper. "I need help with Natalya."

"Oh..." My thoughts drifted to my niece, who in all honesty, had never before been a problem. She'd just turned eighteen and as far as I knew, she was an unproblematic daughter for my sister. There had been no adventurous excursions into the worlds of alcohol, drugs or boys. Natalya was more of a tomboyish sort that preferred staying in her room and playing video games, rather than glamming up and going out. "What's the problem?"

"She's idle," she said with a sigh.

"Right?" I asked while a little confused. "Why's that a problem?"

"She won't do anything. She won't go to college and she won't get a job. She just wants to stay in her room playing her video games all day long. She won't listen to a word I say. Every time I try to get her to do something; she just tells me to shut up and go away."

"Okay. Well, that isn't nice." Evidently, perhaps some of the asshole within her father had been inherited by my beloved niece. I was still a little confused though. I mean, I'm her aunt, but what did I really know about raising a daughter? The closest I'd had to a daughter was taking on some young interns at my company. Even with regards to Natalya, I'd hardly been an involved aunt. In all honesty, I hardly knew the girl, so it was odd that Stacey was reaching out to me in regards to what to do about my niece. "What can I do?"

"Well, you work in recruitment and that, right? Could you find her a job?"

I nodded my head. "Well, yes, I mean, if she's willing to actually look and she wants to start a job, yes, I could point her in the right direction. But, you know, we live in different states, so--"

"I was thinking she could come and live with you for a while. You could help her get her life together." There was a clear desperation in my sister's voice and I sensed she was at the end of her tether. Perhaps the grown-up Natalya had become more of a problem than I realised.

Though, if that was the case, why the hell did I want to get involved? I grimaced while clutching the phone to my ear. "That doesn't sound like a good idea at all. I really don't have the time--"

"But you have such a big house with all those spare rooms, and it's just you there, right? What's the harm in her coming to stay for a while and you finding her a job or something? She needs to get her life together and I don't want these years passing her by while she just plays games all day. It could be like a bonding session between aunt and niece."

"I get that," I said, while slightly annoyed with where this conversation was going. I was Natalya's aunt, yes, but this really wasn't my responsibility. I was busy enough with my company and I didn't really have the time to be dealing with an idle teenager, especially one that was evidently a pain in the ass. "But, this is not really my problem, is it?"

"Come on," my sister said. "Don't be like that. She looks up to you so much and I'm just asking you to be a good aunt and help me out with this. I'm at the end of my wits with her. I've tried everything, but she just grunts, rolls her eyes and goes back to her video games. Besides, you've never really shown much of an interest in her, and this might be a chance to make amends. You're always so good with motivating people and getting them into work."

Despite being annoyed, I couldn't help but smile at that compliment, especially considering it was the truth. "Fine," I said. "I'll try, but she can't stay for long, okay?"

"You're a lifesaver," my sister said. "You won't believe how much this means to me. I just need a little break, then she can come back."

"It's all good," I said, some ideas were already rolling around my head in regards to how I could find a position for my niece. I reckoned I could get her lined up with something suitable within a week. She'd be back with my sister in no time, or perhaps, I'd even lead her out into the world on her own, finally a self-sufficient adult. Stacey would be impressed no doubt. "I'm sure I'll soon whip her into shape. Just let me know when you want her to get here and I'll make sure the guest room is ready."

A couple of days later, a cab arrived outside my house and I put on my best smile before coming to the door. It had been years since I'd seen my niece. She must have only been fifteen years old when I went to visit a few Christmases' ago. As the cab door opened, what immediately struck me was how much she had grown. She was taller than I remembered and more filled out. Her dark hair was tied in a ponytail, with a couple of strands hanging loosely across her forehead. There was a pinkish tinge to her cheeks, whereas her hazel eyes were buried beneath thick, black eyeliner. As usual, she was wearing a loose hoodie along with a pair of jeans that were fraying at the bottom; the cotton strands of denim sitting atop a pair of dirty, old converse. She had a small backpack pulled over one shoulder, which I thought was odd as she seemed to have brought no extra luggage.

"Hi, dear," I said, while waving and offering a smile.

I expected a smile back, but instead I was greeted only with a curling of her lip and rolling of her eyes. "Do we really need to be doing this?"

"What do you mean?" I was caught a little bit by the evident misery of her. I knew she was a tomboy and a bit of an introvert, but still, there was no need to be rude, especially since we were family and hadn't seen each other in a while.

She held out a hand, her black-painted fingers spraying out as she gestured towards my house. "This. Do I really need to be here? This is all a waste of time."

I shrugged my shoulders and attempted the same smile. "Well, give it a chance, you never know: you might enjoy yourself."

Another roll of her eyes followed as she neared me. "I really doubt that."

I struggled to hold onto my smile, but I was determined to not let her miserable attitude bring me down to her level. However, what was immediately noticeable was that my sister had been totally correct about my niece's attitude; she had become quite a rude and agitated young girl. Frankly, in the few minutes since our reunion, I wouldn't be out of line by labelling her a bitch.

Natalya stopped right in front of me and looked me in the eyes. "I just want you to know I am only here because I am being forced."

"Happy to see you again too," I said sarcastically, before swinging the door open and directing her in with an outstretched arm. My patience was already wearing thin with her; I too didn't want her here as well. I was the responsible adult, however, and I couldn't exactly get into a slanging match with her right on my doorstep.

Natalya let out a loud, heavy sigh in response. "Whatever," she said while brushing passed me and I was left merely tutting in response.

Upon waltzing into my living area, Natalya seemed to perk up as she caught sight of my large television. "Nice," she said while walking over and running her finger along the top of the screen's edge. "This is way bigger than Mom's."

I smiled at her finally acting positive about something. "Yes, it's great for watching movies. I've had a whole surround sound system fitted."

Natalya spun and noted the speakers in the corner of the room. Again, she nodded in approval. "Is it any good for games?" she asked while eyeing me curiously. "I reckon this would be awesome for Fortnite or Call of Duty."

I rolled my eyes and jiggled my shoulders while taking a step towards her. "Well, I don't know what any of that means, but this television is for me to relax after work, not playing games all day." It made sense to set the boundaries right from the get go. After everything my sister had been going through with Natalya's idle behaviour, I knew I had to push back against any attempt at her immediately slipping into similar ways.

"Whatevs," she said with a glare of repulsion at my attempt to exert authority. "So, where's my room?"

"Up the stairs. Second door on the left."

"Fine."

I followed her up while she made a scene of stomping as she ascended each step. I found it rude that she hadn't removed her dirty sneakers at the front door and I would no doubt have to clean up the dust, but Natalya didn't seem to care at all. She even walked straight into the carpeted bedroom without paying her dirty shoes any mind.

I'd made sure the guest room had a large bed, and I spent some time before her arrival ensuring everything was clean and organised. I'd even folded some fresh towels on the bed and made sure the adjacent ensuite bathroom was fully stocked. Hopefully she'd settle straight in, because the room was comparable to some of the finest hotels.

"There's no TV," Natalya said while completely ignoring all of the effort I'd put in for her. She turned and looked at me dumbfounded. "How am I supposed to play my games with no TV?"

I stared back at her blankly, waiting to see if she would figure it out herself. However, Natalya expectantly waited for a response, shrugging out her palm to the air impatiently. I nodded at her confusion, and spoke very slowly so that she could understand, "There will not be any video games in this house, dear. You're here to try and turn your life around, not waste your time playing games."

"Fuck this," she said abruptly, which sent a shock through me. "I didn't agree to this." She had already barged past me before I had a chance to stop her.

"Where are you going?"

"Home," she said without turning back. "I'm not living in this prison."

"But I've already agreed with your mother that you will be staying here."

She turned and shrugged. "Good for you, but I'm eighteen, and I'll do whatever the fuck I want."

Once again, her profanity sent a shockwave through me and I wasn't sure how to respond. None of my employees would ever speak to me with such disdain and disrespect and I'd taken on the role of being a knowledgeable overseer. My subordinates adhered to my will because I was paying them and because I was experienced and successful in my role. I realised as Natalya stared back at me defiantly, that though I was adept at being a boss, I had little experience when it came to authority in a parental capacity. As a result, I wasn't prepared for dealing with such a hostile confrontation. I took a deep breath, then attempted to be amicable, "This is how it is going to go. You'll be staying here, as your mother wishes. There will be no video games during this time, and together, we are going to find you suitable employment so that you can make something of yourself in the world."

Natalya tilted her head and rolled her eyes while she was listening. "Well, that all sounds wonderful, for you, however, it sounds fucking dreadful from where I'm standing so it's not going to happen."

I blinked, gulped, then attempted to assert my position once more. "This is how things will play out."

Natalya shrugged her shoulders and dipped her head so that she was glaring at me through her eyebrows. "No, they won't."

"Ugh, yes...ummm...yes they will," I said. "I'm your aunt and--"

"I don't give a fuck who you are," Natalya said in a raised voice. "You're not the boss of me. You might be a big deal in your shitty company but you can't tell me to do anything." With that, she abruptly flipped me off, tossed her bag over her shoulder and stomped her way back down the stairs.

Part of me just wanted to let her leave, as frankly the entire exchange had me a little rattled. My usual authoritative tone was simply having no effect on my niece, and whereas I usually commanded obedience with ease; I was coming up against a brick wall with her. I honestly didn't need the stress or hostility in my house, but, I had promised my sister. After experiencing what a bad attitude my niece had in person, my sympathy for her mother had dramatically risen. I couldn't just let this monster go back to my poor sister. Though she earned nowhere near as much as me, Stacey was certainly a hard worker, and having to juggle her job and this vile attitude of her daughter; it was understandable why she'd sounded so exhausted and desperate on the phone.

"You can't leave," I shouted after Natalya as she attempted to flag the cab down before it drove off. "I promised your mother that I would help."

"I don't need your help," Natalya spat back. "I'm perfectly happy with the way things are. I only agreed to come here because I figured you couldn't be as much as a drag as my mom, but apparently, you're even more of a nagging bitch."

The shock jolted through me once more, and I glanced towards the cab driver who was listening with the window down. His eyes widened at Natalya's language, then he awkwardly looked ahead and pretended he wasn't involved.

"Could you just come inside so we can discuss this?" I asked desperately, not wanting this scene to occur on my front door step. It was extremely embarrassing to be spoken to in this way by someone so young. "Let's have a talk in private." I took a step towards her with a hand outstretched, my entire demeanour crouched and shrinking beneath the weight of embarrassment. I glared at her over my hand and willed her to take it and follow me in.

Natalya looked at my hand, then she turned and looked towards the cab before shrugging. "Like I give a fuck. Either you agree to let me use your television, right now, or I'm out of here."

The cab driver's eyes were darting all over the place, looking for anything to focus on other than us. He was pretending to whistle while his fingers anxiously tapped on the steering wheel. He almost seemed as unnerved by the situation as I was, and I simply wanted this all to be over with.

"Fine, come inside, you can use the television," I said through a choked breath, my cheeks pretty much ignited under the heat of the situation Natalya was creating.

Natalya didn't even bother smiling that I'd agreed to her demand. Instead she simply nodded and turned to the driver. "You're not needed," she said arrogantly, before she made her way back into my house.

"I'm so sorry," I said to the cab driver while sinking beneath the waves of embarrassment.

"No bother," he said with a pensive expression, before adding, "Good luck." He couldn't have hit the gas pedal any harder as he skidded away from my yard.

"Was there any need for that scene?" I asked Natalya once back inside. "That was so embarrassing."

She was busy unpacking her backpack onto my coffee table, and instead of replying she made a show of letting out a frustrated gasp. "Do you ever stop going on?" She removed a video game console from the bag and placed it on the stand beneath the television.

"What are you doing?" I asked while taking a step towards her. "You heard what I said before, right?"

"What does it look like I'm doing?" She looked at the ceiling and rolled her eyes. "I'm setting up my system."

I blinked at her arrogance. "I already told you there will be no games in this house."

"You just said I could use the television," she said defiantly, while reaching behind and plugging in a cable. "So, I'm using the television."

"To watch it," I said annoyed. "Not to play games on it."

"You didn't say anything about that."

"Natalya," I said in a louder, impatient tone. "I don't have time to be playing these games."

She didn't even bother to look away from what she was doing, instead her focus was entirely on plugging in another cable from her games system to my television. "But I have plenty of time to play my games, so why don't you stop with all your whining?"

I was beyond shocked at her attitude. What had happened to that cute little girl that I used to know? With the big hazel eyes and the straight brown hair. "What's got into you? You never used to be like this?"

Natalya turned from the television and rolled her eyes. "What? Because I have a backbone now? I'm fed up of being told what to do, so now I just do whatever I want."

"But...you can't," I said in surprise. "You can't go through life with this attitude?"

She looked at me curiously with a raised eyebrow. "Why not? It works just fine for me."

"Because....because..." I wasn't entirely sure what to say under the circumstances. "Because that's just not how decent people behave." My throat was already drying out from all of the raised voices and my arms were twitching from the adrenaline that arguments inevitably draw.

She plugged the computer into the mains and switched on the television. "Great, I can play online," she said while connecting the machine to my WiFi. "What's the password?"

Finally, I had an opportunity to stop this whole thing in its tracks. I stood defiantly and crossed my arms. "Why should I tell you?"

Natalya rolled her eyes, then she turned the modem and read off the key from the back. She typed it in and seconds later she'd connected to the WiFi. She let out a snort. "Figures you wouldn't have changed the default one," she looked me up and down and rolled her eyes again. "Typical boomer."

I dropped my arms to my side, completely blown away by her audacity. The venom with which she spoke to me; it left me speechless. I simply didn't have a clue what to say. No reasoning or compromises seemed to work; if Natalya didn't get what she wanted, then I was met with the brutality of her insults and disdain. She reminded me of my old high school bully, a girl who was now languishing in some fast food outlet whereas I was the owner of a successful and prospering business. Is that the future Natalya wanted, acting a bully and ultimately ending up a failure in life?

She hopped into my recliner and, using the accompanying control pad, she loaded up some game that I didn't fully understand. Moments later, she was smiling to herself while navigating some character through a digital world. I stood by, in my own living area, baffled that my will had been so brazenly defied. I'd set out to bring my unruly niece in line, and barely minutes after her arrival, she'd steamrolled through my authority and seemed intent on doing as she pleased.

I looked towards my prized television set at the game she was playing. I'd said no video games would be played in my house. My decision was firm and resolute, yet here I stood, while my niece kicked back in my favourite recliner and played a video game. Such was my failure at enforcing my authority as her aunt, that I didn't know how to proceed. If she was an employee I would have already fired her for her attitude, but that wasn't an option. I couldn't even kick her out because she seemed completely comfortable leaving. What could I do? Attempt to bend her over my knee and spank her ass? That wasn't even an option considering she'd grown taller than me in the years since I'd last seen her. All I had were my words, and they were seemingly useless against her intent to defy me.