Chapter 5: The Apology I Never Expected To Hear
I didn’t know what to think.
Mia?
The same person who had destroyed my dress had spent the night repairing it?
It didn’t make sense.
I ran my fingers over the stitching.
The cuts were still visible.
The dress would never be exactly the same.
But someone had tried.
Someone had sat there and carefully put pieces back together.
My father watched my reaction.
“I know it doesn’t erase what happened.””
I nodded.
“It doesn’t.””
“But it means something.””
I looked toward the stairs.
Mia was standing there.
She looked exhausted.
Her hair was messy.
Her eyes were swollen from crying.
For the first time since I met her, she didn’t look confident.
She looked vulnerable.
“I know it’s not enough,” she said.
I didn’t answer.
She walked closer.
“I know fixing a dress doesn’t fix everything.””
Still, I stayed silent.
Because I didn’t want to forgive too quickly.
Not because I wanted revenge.
Because my pain deserved to be acknowledged.
Mia stopped in front of me.
“I was horrible to you.””
The honesty surprised me.
She looked down.
“I kept telling myself you were the reason I felt forgotten.””
A tear fell.
“But you weren’t.””
I looked at her.
“You were just trying to be loved too.””
That sentence hurt.
Because it was true.
We were both just trying to find our place.
The difference was…
I never destroyed her to feel important.
“I was jealous of you,” Mia admitted.
I frowned.
“Of me?””
She nodded.
“Everyone thinks I have everything.””
She gave a bitter laugh.
“But they don’t see what it’s like.””
I waited.
“My mom left. Dad married Linda. I kept pretending I didn’t care.””
Her voice became quieter.
“But every time I saw Dad happy with you, I felt like I was being replaced.””
I looked away.
“I lost my mom too.””
“I know.””
“No,” I said softly.
“I don’t think you did.””
Mia looked at me.
“You lost someone who left.””
I touched my chest.
“I lost someone who died.””
The words silenced the room.
“I know both things hurt,” I continued.
“But you acted like your pain was the only pain that mattered.””
Mia nodded slowly.
“I know.””
For once, she didn’t argue.
She didn’t defend herself.
She accepted it.
And somehow, that made me angrier and sadder at the same time.
Because I realized how long we had both been carrying wounds.
My father sat beside me.
“I think our family forgot something important.””
We looked at him.
“Being hurt doesn’t give us permission to hurt others.””
Nobody spoke.
Because there was nothing to argue with.
Later that day, Mia handed me an envelope.
“What is this?””
“Money.””
I looked confused.
“I saved some.””
I opened it.
Inside was enough to cover the cost of the dress.
“I don’t want it,” I said.
She looked surprised.
“Why?””
“Because I don’t want you to think paying for it means everything is okay.””
Mia nodded.
“I know.””
“Then why?””
She looked at the floor.
“Because it was yours.””
That answer caught me off guard.
She continued.
“I took something from you because I wanted you to feel small.””
Her voice cracked.
“And I hate that I became someone who could do that.””
I didn’t know what to say.
Because this was the first real apology I had ever received from her.
Not excuses.
Not “I’m sorry you felt that way.””
A real apology.
That evening, my father surprised me.
He had made arrangements for me to return to the boutique where I bought the dress.
“I thought maybe they could restore it professionally.””
I smiled slightly.
“Dad, you don’t have to keep fixing everything.””
He smiled sadly.
“I know.””
Then he paused.
“But I spent too much time watching you fix everything alone.””
That sentence stayed with me.
The next few weeks were strange.
Not perfect.
Not magically healed.
Mia and I didn’t suddenly become best friends.
There were still awkward moments.
There were still conversations we needed to have.
But something changed.
She stopped competing with me.
And I stopped expecting her to attack me.
Then one evening, while I was studying, Mia walked into my room.
“I found something.””
She held a small box.
I recognized it immediately.
My old jewelry box.
“What is that?””
She opened it.
Inside was a necklace.
My mother’s necklace.
My heart stopped.
“I thought it was lost.””
Mia looked uncomfortable.
“I found it months ago.””
My expression changed.
“You had it?””
She nodded.
“I was going to keep it.””
The disappointment returned instantly.
“But I couldn’t.””
She handed it to me.
“Because I realized something.””
“What?””
She looked at the necklace.
“I wasn’t just hurting you.””
She swallowed.
“I was hurting the last pieces of your mom you had left.””
I took the necklace.
My hands shook.
And for the first time…
I saw Mia differently.
Not as my enemy.
But as someone who finally understood the damage she had caused.
However, before we could move forward…
May you like
Someone else decided to bring the past back.
And this time, it wasn’t Mia.
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