Chapter 13 - The Dress Was Part of It
I wanted to call Mia a liar.
It would have been easier.
But she showed me the messages.
Lauren:
If Claire doesn't go, nobody can embarrass us with questions today.
Mia:
What am I supposed to do?
Lauren:
I don't care. Make her not want to leave her room.
Mia had responded with a scissors emoji.
Lauren sent back:
Don't be stupid.
That was not a direct instruction to destroy the dress.
It was worse in a different way.
Lauren created the goal and let a jealous teenager choose the method.
Mia stared at the grass.
"I thought if you missed graduation, Dad would stop talking about you for one day."
I did not know what to say.
Then she whispered, "I hate who I am around Mom."
That was not absolution.
It was information.
"Then stop doing what she tells you."
"Where am I supposed to go?"
Mia's biological father had not contacted her in years.
Lauren's parents lived in Arizona and wanted no involvement.
Dad was her stepfather, not legal guardian after the divorce unless arrangements changed.
The girl who had spent years acting like she owned the house suddenly had nowhere stable to land.
I felt compassion.
I also remembered my dress.
Both could be true.
"Talk to Dad," I said.
She looked shocked.
"After the bag?"
"He regrets the bag. He doesn't regret protecting me."
That evening, Mia asked Dad if she could stay with him temporarily if Lauren agreed.
Dad said yes, with conditions.
Therapy.
No access to my financial information.
A repayment plan for the credit-card charges when she started working.
And one more condition.
"You apologize to Claire without asking her to forgive you."
Mia nodded.
Lauren did not.
When she heard, she exploded.
Then she threatened to report Dad for "stealing" her daughter.
The next day, she called the Harper Foundation again.
This time, the committee chair recorded the voicemail.
May you like
And Lauren said something she could not take back.
"If Claire gets that scholarship, I'll make sure the foundation regrets it.
