The respondingsilence is a heavy weight as I shift in my seat.
“What do you mean?” I ask, unable to wrap my head around her simple admission.
Mom blinks, her eyebrows pulling together. “What do you not understand, sweetie? Allan and I eloped. We’ve been thinking about it for a while, and since we’d already planned this trip, we decided to just go for it.”
“Just go for it…” I shudder as anger sinks into my bones. “How about talking to your kids first? Did you consider we might have something to say?—”
“Mia.” Matt nudges me with his leg. “Stop it.”
I whip my head to the side and glare at him. “Stop it? Are you for real? She went and got married without even talking to us!”
Eyebrows pinched together, my brother holds my gaze. He wants me to shut up, but I’m too agitated for that, and honestly? Screw her!
Practically seeing red, I focus on my mom again. “I shouldn’t be surprised, since you started fucking Dad’s best friend the moment?—”
“That’s enough,” Allan snaps. His booming voice goes right through me, and I shrink in my seat. “Mia, I know you’re upset, but that doesn’t give you the right to disrespect your mom.”
Angry tears well in my eyes as I gnaw on my bottom lip. There was a time when I loved this man like family, when I loved the friendship he had with my parents and admired the love he had for his son. I’d always been impressed with how close he and Dominic were, with how he raised his son alone after his wife died only a year after she gave birth.
All I feel now is resentment.
And hurt.
“Go to your room,” Mom grits through her teeth.
With anger bubbling inside me, I push my chair back.
“Oh,” she continues, “and you’re grounded for a month. After school, you will come straight home. No extracurricular stuff, and no hanging out with friends.”
What? My heart plummets. Auditions forAlice in Wonderlandstart next week. How can I land a role if I can’t try out?
“I’m helping with the school play. I’m going to audition…”
Mom shrugs, her expression almost…pleased? “Not anymore.”
“This isn’t fair!” Matt yelps. “All she did?—”
“Matthew, last I checked, I’m the parent here, not you,” she says. She gives him a quick, stern look then turns back to me. “Am I clear?”
I stand, nearly knocking my chair over, and dart up to my bedroom. Cursing, I slam the door and slide to the floor, pulling at the roots of my hair. “Fuck.”
This can’t be happening.
Not only did my mom ruin my life by marrying Allan, but now, she took away the only thing that brings me any joy these days: drama club.
I scan my room, the instinct to run hitting me in the face like an ocean wave in a storm. I don’t want to be here. I don’t want to be in this house, not with my mother and her new family.
I need my dad.
Closing my eyes, I take a few deep breaths. When the edges of my anger fade, I haul myself up and pack my backpack.
If she thinks I’ll listen to her, she’s delusional.
I flip the light off and climb onto my bed. In the darkness, I lie on my back, staring at the ceiling. After a while, Matthew knocks on the door. I tell him to leave me alone. He’s not to blame for tonight, but it hurts to see how unbothered he was by their announcement. I don’t want to think of him as a traitor, and if I let him in, I’m afraid of what I might say in anger. I need some time to cool off.
As I expected, Mom doesn’t come to check on me. That’s okay. I was hoping she wouldn’t. At midnight, I silently ease my door open and tiptoe down the stairs. The first floor is dark and quiet, but I carefully creep through it anyway.
The moment I step outside, I sigh in relief. The first part of my plan is complete. I run down the porch steps, my backpack smacking me with each step. At the bottom, I pull up short.
