Angry Water Cup

     I came home from work and lay listlessly on the sofa, not wanting to move anymore. Another six months have passed, and things have become tense, busy, and noisy. Making a living in this monotonous work environment seems to be the only routine task of each day. Although it was already evening, the sun was still blazing down, showing no sign of setting. Even if you wanted to remind it that sunset was imminent, it would be pointless. Let it shine; sunshine is always good. Everyone longs to see the sunrise each day, but how many people are swept away by darkness while lingering in the bright sunlight? Compared to them, we are lucky. A few elderly women were gathered in the yard, discussing someone's misfortune, sometimes arguing heatedly. I see the same scene every day when I come home, and I genuinely think they are happy, innocent and adorable like children.

    After lying on the sofa for a while, I felt thirsty, so I got up and poured myself a glass of cold water. While pouring water from the teapot, I accidentally overflowed the glass, making a mess of the table. I grabbed a towel and started wiping the cup, muttering to myself, "This cup is so small, it can't even hold a tiny bit of water..." After wiping it, I picked it up and continued lying on the sofa, drinking water and watching TV. Despite its small size, I realized it held quite a lot of water. After a couple of sips, I felt less thirsty, and seeing that more than half the water was still left, I felt it was a waste. I muttered again, "Why is this cup so big? Why does it hold so much water? It's a waste if I can't finish it." Later, I lay there and eventually fell asleep.

    While I was sound asleep, I suddenly felt someone calling me. I squinted and looked around. Who was it? No one was there, and I wanted to go back to sleep. The voice came again. I looked up and saw a tall, stick-like figure in the corner calling me. I said, "Who are you?"

    He said, "I'm the cup, the one you were using."

    I glanced at him sideways and asked, "What do you want?"

    "Yes."

    "What is it? Tell me, I was just about to go to sleep," I said, a little annoyed.

    The man straightened up and cleared his throat, saying to me, "Excuse me, what's a cup used for?"

    I was taken aback, paused, and replied, "To hold water."

    "I can't hold water?"

    "Of course you can, why not?"

    "Then why are you dissatisfied with me?"

    "Well... how could I be satisfied with you? Look at your performance just now, it was terrible."

    "You need a big cup?"

    "That's right."

    "Who was it that said I was too big, too wasteful?"

    I was momentarily speechless, feeling a bit unable to answer, and stammered, "Wrong, I need a small cup." The cup continued, "You think I'm not small enough?"

    Now I could speak with conviction; I had just criticized it for not being small enough. I replied, "Of course, look, I only took two sips, and there's still so much left."

    The cup, upon hearing this, became displeased and raised its voice, saying to me, "Who was it that said it was too small, that it soaked the table?"

    It seemed like I had said that too, and I was speechless again.

    The cup continued, "Do you want it big or small? You don't even know what you want, so why did you buy a cup?"

    I lowered my head and thought for a while, finally coming up with an idea. "I want it to be big when it needs to be big, and small when it needs to be small."

    "How much did you pay for me?"

    "Uh... two yuan and fifty cents."

    "Two yuan and fifty cents to buy Superman?"

    "What Superman? What are you talking about?"

    "Didn't you want it to be big when it needs to be big, and small when it needs to be small? Who else but Superman can do that? You think you can buy Superman for two yuan and fifty cents?" The cup seemed a little agitated, raising its voice. It continued, "When you bought it for two yuan and fifty cents, wasn't I the best on the market?"

    "Yes, at that price, you were the best," I replied.

    "You've already picked the best, and you're still not satisfied? What do you want?"

    "I..." I didn't know what to say for a moment.

    The cup continued, "From the day I came to your house, I've worked diligently, serving you hot water, cold water, making you coffee, making you tea. And what have you ever done for me? Not only do you never wash me, but you also yell at me all the time, constantly dropping me or bumping into me. Now you want me to become Superman? Isn't that blatant bullying? You bought me for two dollars and fifty cents, haven't you done enough?"

    I realized something was wrong. You think you can rebel against something I paid for? I said, "You're just a water-filling cup, why are you talking so much? Just do your job."

    The cup got agitated: "I'm telling you, my service period is over, my warranty has expired, I'm going on strike! I'd rather break than bend! I'll destroy myself..." It then slammed its head against the wall. I cried out

    , "No, no, no! I still need you! What will I use if you break?" In my panic, I jumped up from the sofa.

    Ah, it was all just a dream.

    The cup still sat quietly on the table, half-filled with cooled boiled water. I stared at it silently, never having found it so endearing, never realizing it could be so wonderful.

    My dear cup.