Chapter Thirteen: Itch

"Is there going to be a honeymoon?"

Mum asks when she finds me by the ocean, away from the party.

It’s evening now, and there is a diamond ring on my finger; it’s weird that even though he doesn’t know my tastes, it fits me perfectly.

"Didn't you give him your blessing? Shouldn't you know best?"

I reply over the music coming from the dance hall, and her warm smile fades.

"Elizabeth-"

"You have never been a mother. You have been a boss, a tyrant, and a control freak, but you have never been a mother, so tell me why you were the one who gave me away when I practically had to raise myself?"

I shouldn't yell.

I shouldn't have expected her to take my side. But it's hard to understand how anyone can make you feel disappointed when you already have low expectations.

"Raise yourself? Do you realise that you have never kept a job for longer than three months? Even the one your sister practically handed to you, you had to behave like a criminal and-!"

"That’s only because you want everything to