Her voice changed when she talked about it.
Brighter.
Lighter.
Like someone remembering a language they used to speak fluently.
But those moments always faded the moment my father returned home.
And when he criticized me—which happened often—my mother would quietly say the same thing.
“Your father only wants what’s best for you.”
It took me years to understand that sometimes people say that not because it’s true, but because it’s easier than confronting the truth.
The Afternoon Everything Changed
The turning point came during the spring of my junior year in high school.
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