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“Now a silent rule had been broken. The possibility of a real conversation loomed—the unspoken envy and resentment that had simmered all these years, the fact that yes, every morning since she had fallen ill, Ma had asked for Natalie, and they were forced to lie, to say that she had gone out to the market and would be back in a few hours, just to calm Ma until she forgot again. The sisters looked at one another, examined their nails, then finally met Natalie's gaze. "No," they said. "She doesn't talk about you" (Heng 261).” — Rachel Heng
Now a silent rule had been broken. The possibility of a real conversation loomed—the unspoken envy and resentment that had simmered all these years, the fact that yes, every morning since she had fallen ill, Ma had asked for Natalie, and they were forced to lie, to say that she had gone out to the market and would be back in a few hours, just to calm Ma until she forgot again. The sisters looked at one another, examined their nails, then finally met Natalie's gaze.
"No," they said. "She doesn't talk about you" (Heng 261).