“What the hell are you doing?” he demanded. “People keep asking if Christmas is canceled at Mom’s. Did you tell them that?”
“I told them Mom wanted something smaller,” I replied calmly. “Which is true. She doesn’t want me there. Remember?”
“You’re twisting things,” he snapped. “She just wanted less chaos.”
“Then she got exactly what she asked for,” I said. “Less people, less chaos, less me.”
His jaw tightened.
“You’re taking this too far, Olivia. This is family. You can’t just sabotage Christmas.”
“Funny,” I said, “because she had no problem sabotaging my future the day she signed away my college fund.”
For once, he had no quick comeback.
He stared at me.
“You don’t understand everything that happened,” he muttered.
“Maybe I don’t,” I agreed. “But she’s about to.”
I ended the call before he could answer.
Sometimes the strongest thing you can do is stop explaining yourself to people who never listen.
If your family was built around a lie you never consented to, how far would you go to make everyone finally see the truth?
Two days before Christmas, the mask finally slipped.
My phone rang again.
This time it was my mother.
Not texting.
Not hiding behind Ryan.
A full old-fashioned call.
I let it ring long enough to make a point, then answered.
“Yes,” I said.
No “Hi, Mom.”
