Outside the Williams house. Zoe and her family are setting up for a braai. The teenagers are all outside on their phones and the twins are playing in the sand. The adults are inside prepping food while Zoe sits on a chair next to her grandmother.
Wilma: So, Cruz, how’s school going?
Zoe: OK, I guess.
Wilma: You’re in Grade 9 now, right?
Zoe: Yeah.
Shane: How come you don’t have your dad’s last name?
Daphne: Shane, not every woman takes their husband’s name.
Shane: Yeah but—but Zoe’s his kid so…
Fred: Shane, drop it, dude.
Zoe: Dad said he wanted me to take my mom’s name. They don’t really talk about it.
Shane: So then shouldn’t your dad have taken your mom’s name?
Zoe: I don’t know.
The adults come outside.
Martha: Hmmm, John doesn’t like his name. He hasn’t liked it since that silly fight. Silly Johnny.
Annie: Mom, let’s not get into that now.
Johnny: Silly fight, huh? Must be nice to not remember.
Lena: We talking about that night you stormed out?
Annie: OK, lets just start the braai.
Johnny: I stormed out?
Marcus: Well, what else would you call leaving home?
Johnny gets upset and walks away. Marcy follows.
Marcy: Johnny, wait.
Annie follows them.
Marcus: Sheesh. He’s always so angry.
Lena: He’s always been dramatic. I mean, he was the night he left, remember?
Zoe: My dad was a little older than me when he left home, right?
Marcus: Yeah, he was about Fred’s age. Always wanting to be Mr Tough Guy, so it’s no wonder he enlisted.
Zoe: My dad joined the ARMY?
Marcus laughs.
Marcus: Your aunt Lena and I were much younger when it happened. Apparently it didn’t go down too well with your grandparents.
Tell us: Can you relate to being surprised by the things your parents did before they had you? How does it make you feel to imagine their lives before parenthood?