« For the dress? »
« For the dress, Mom. »
« Good. »
« But your treatments come first. »
« For the dress, Mom. »
She tapped the table. « Kelly, that girl has spent her whole life hearing what we can’t afford. Let her have one night where money doesn’t get the final say. »
So I saved, skipped takeout, stretched groceries, and worked until my feet throbbed.
When the dress was ready, I laid it across Ava’s bed and called her upstairs.
She walked in and stopped.
« Mom. »