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("Just trust me, you'll be fine" - Joe Keery)
My mom hadn't said much since the hospital, just a few comments about me needing rest. But her silence was loud. Deafening.
I sat on my bed, folding laundry with shaky hands, but the question burned in my throat, threatening to burst out. I couldn't hold it in any longer.
"Why did you say no when they asked to press charges?" The words tumbled out before I could stop them, sharper than I intended.
She didn't even flinch. Instead, she continued folding, calm and composed like we were talking about something mundane, like school or chores. "Because nothing really happened, Rory."
I froze, staring at her. Nothing really happened? Was she serious? My chest tightened, and I dropped the shirt I was holding, my voice trembling. "Mom... they kidnapped me. I was kidnapped. They tied me up, they tried to make me kill a cat! How can you say nothing happened?"
She sighed, folding another shirt, never bothering to look at me. "Look, Rory, that's what happens when you party all night. You put yourself in bad situations."
Party? Is that really what she thought happened? That I had just been out having fun, like none of it mattered?
"I wasn't partying," I shot back, frustration boiling over. "I was hanging out with Alison, Lydia, Stiles, and Scott. We were just—"
"And yet, you're the only one who got 'kidnapped,' Rory. Doesn't that seem strange to you?" Her tone was cool, dismissive, like she had already made up her mind about what really happened.
I blinked, disbelief washing over me. "What are you even saying? How is it strange? It's not like I chose for this to happen!" My voice was rising, and I didn't care anymore. How could she be so... indifferent?
She finally turned to me, exasperation clear on her face. "You expect me to believe that out of all of them, you were the one who was taken? That none of your friends were involved? It doesn't make sense, Rory. You don't get into situations like this by accident."
I stood up, my fists clenched at my sides. "This wasn't an accident! They wanted me. They were after me for some reason, and I don't even know why! You weren't there, you don't know what it was like. They could have killed me, and you're acting like it's no big deal!"
Her face hardened. "It is a big deal, but not in the way you're making it. You were out late, doing who knows what, and now this happened. Maybe if you were more responsible, you wouldn't be in these messes."
I stared at her in disbelief, my heart pounding in my chest. "Responsible? You think this is my fault? That I got myself kidnapped because I wasn't being responsible?"
