Crazy Smartphone – Part One

Lin Feng was so angry his teeth itched, wishing he could punch a sandbag to vent his frustration. He skipped dinner, locked himself in his bedroom, and threw himself onto the bed. What a world, where doing a good deed gets you nothing but ridicule. He cursed everyone he thought deserved it, which somewhat relieved his anger. He grabbed the trouble-causing phone, thinking about how to fix it and maybe sell it in the second-hand market for some internet money. But the phone was in such bad shape – the case was broken, the screen shattered, and the buttons didn’t work at all. After a few moments of trying, he lost all motivation. “Screw you!” The phone drew a beautiful arc in the air, hit the wall, and then fell to the floor with a ‘snap’, bouncing a few times before settling down. “Lin Lin, what are you doing in there? Why all the noise?” Lin Feng quickly rolled out of bed, picked up the phone now in two pieces, and stuffed it into his pocket. Just as he finished, his mom had already opened the door. “Lin Lin, what are you doing all sweaty?” “Mom, nothing, I was doing push-ups! Go back to what you were doing!” Lin Feng was most afraid of his mother’s nagging. If she saw the extra phone and started questioning him about skipping school to hang out in internet cafes, he wouldn’t get any peace tonight. She’d nag him with a basket full of life lessons until dawn. “You child! Don’t go messing up your health!” Lin Feng’s mom warned, then glanced at his bed, which looked like a pigsty, and shook her head. “Lin Lin, the college entrance exam is coming up, you need to focus on studying. When you’re tired of reading, rest, don’t mess around. Your dad is working hard outside, you mustn’t go astray…” “Mom, I know, I’m going to sleep, goodnight!” Lin Feng half-pushed his mom out, quickly locked the door, and breathed a sigh of relief. His mom was great, but her nagging was unbearable. He was glad he reacted quickly enough to hide the phone. His mom was worried about him getting into trouble, especially after a TV report about how video games could corrupt kids. She not only cut his allowance to prevent him from playing games but also forbade him from anything related to online gaming. One reason: she feared he’d turn bad playing games!