Initially, Jane tried to be a good stepmother and even tried to include me in her and Amy’s nail appointments. But the older we got, the closer they became — shutting me out completely. “Maybe Amy’s just going through something,” my father said when we went for ice cream, and I confessed. “Maybe she just needs extra time with her mom.” I learned to live with it, getting used to the fact that even though Jane called me her daughter, I wasn’t going to be. Then, we entered our final year at school, and prom quickly became the highlight of the social calendar. I didn’t want to admit it to my father, but I was excited for prom — Mason and I were finally dating, and I knew that the day was going to be magical. I also knew that while my father would pay for my dream dress, I wanted to work for it myself. If Dad buys yours, he will have to buy Amy’s too, I thought to myself. So, I took extra shifts at the diner I worked at — anything to add to my dress fund. A few weeks leading up to prom, I added babysitting to my schedule. Finally, I had enough for my dream dress. Dad drove me to the store and waited patiently while I tried it on. When I stepped out, he beamed at me. “Oh, Elsa,” he said. “You look beautiful, darling.” That was all I needed from him. “Are you sure you want to pay for it yourself?” Dad asked when we were at the till. “Because I’ll do it in a heartbeat.” I refused and paid for the dress.

“But you can buy me a waffle,” I grinned. Then, my picture-perfect dream shattered. A few hours later, I walked into the house after my shift at the diner. Amy and Jane were sitting in the living room, wiping my grandmother’s silver teapot. With pieces from my dress. I shrieked. “Honey,” Jane asked, the picture of concern. “What’s wrong?” “That’s my dress!” I said, picking up a piece. Oh!” Jane exclaimed. “It was your prom dress?” “You did this?” I asked, unable to breathe properly. “Well, yes,” Jane said smugly. “But I thought that I was cutting up some secondhand dress. It didn’t look prom-worthy. So, I thought I’d use it to polish the silver and the windows.” I couldn’t take it any longer. I burst out crying — the tears dropping fast onto my clothes. i heard Dad’s heavy footsteps from somewhere in the house, but it was clear that Jane didn’t. Because she stood up, walking closer to me. “Now, now, Elsa,” she said.