Chapter 10– I'm Not Nothing 

The next afternoon, Luna stood across the street from the new house.

She had never seen it before.

Her father had moved the family after everything that happened, and from the outside, the place looked nothing like the small home she remembered growing up in.

It was bigger.

Cleaner.

Expensive.

There was a new car parked in the driveway, and flowers lined the entrance.Luna stared at the house for a long moment.She was staying with Marcus now, but she couldn't stop thinking about what had happened.

She had been taken to the hospital.

She had nearly been left for dead.

Her landlord had thrown her belongings into the rain.

And not one person from her family had come looking for her.

Not her father.

Not Aurora.

Not even her mother.

She needed to know whether they had heard.

Maybe they hadn't.

Maybe someone had told them and they simply didn't care.

Luna crossed the street.She walked up to the front door and knocked.

A few seconds later, the door opened.Her mother stood there.

Mrs. Vance stared at her.For a moment, neither of them spoke then her mother's expression changed.

“What are you doing here?”

Luna swallowed.

“I came to ask you something.”Her mother looked her up and down.Her eyes stopped briefly on Luna's scar before she stepped back.

“Come in.”

Luna entered.

The house was warm and beautifully decorated.Everything looked new.There were expensive paintings on the walls and polished furniture throughout the room.

She couldn't help noticing that there wasn't a single picture of her.

Not one.

She looked at her mother.

“Did you hear about the accident?”

Her mother frowned.

“What accident?”

“The accident that sent me to the hospital.”

Her mother's expression barely changed.

“You were in an accident?”

Luna stared at her.

“Yes.”

“When?”

“A few days ago.”

“And you're alive.”Luna's mouth fell slightly open.

“That is all you have to say?”Her mother crossed her arms.

“What exactly do you want me to say?”

“I thought maybe someone would tell you.”

“Why would anyone tell me?”

“Because I'm your daughter.”The words came out quietly.

Her mother laughed.

It wasn't a warm laugh.

It was short and bitter.

“Don't start that again.”

Luna's eyes hardened.

“Again?”

“You always come here expecting sympathy.”

“I wasn't asking for sympathy.”

“Then what were you asking for?”Luna struggled to keep her voice steady.

“I wanted to know if you cared.”Her mother's face tightened.

“Luna, you need to stop making everything about yourself.”

“I was attacked.”

“You brought that on yourself.”

Luna froze.

“What?”

Her mother shook her head.

“You should have listened to those men.”

Luna's face went pale.

“You knew about them?”

“I heard what happened.”

“And you still say I should have listened?”

“Yes.”

Luna stared at her in disbelief.

“They attacked me.”

“And if you had simply cooperated, none of this would have happened.”

“They were trying to hurt me!”

Her mother raised her voice.

“And what did fighting them accomplish?”Luna's hands curled into fists.

“I got hurt because I fought back?”

“Yes.”

Her mother's voice remained cold.

“You could have allowed them to do whatever they wanted and they would have left. Instead, you caused a scene, fought them, and brought the police into everything.”

Luna felt something inside her break.

“The police?”

“Yes. Do you know how much trouble that phone call caused?”

Luna stared at her.

“I was lying there injured.”

“And we were receiving calls from the police.”

Her mother's face twisted with irritation.

“They wanted answers. They wanted to know what happened. They wanted information about you.”

She shook her head.

“You should have thought about the consequences before making trouble.”

Luna's eyes burned.

“I was trying to protect myself.”

“You always think you're the victim.”

“I was the victim!”

Her voice echoed through the room.For the first time, her mother looked startled.

Luna breathed heavily.

“You're my mother. I was hurt, and your first concern is that the police called you?”

Her mother didn't answer.Luna stepped closer.

“Did you even come to the hospital?”

“No.”

“Did you call?”

“No.”

“Did you ask whether I was alive?”

Her mother looked away,that silence was enough.

Luna nodded slowly.

“I understand.”Her mother sighed.

“You need to stop behaving as if you're entitled to this family.”

Luna's eyes narrowed.

“This family?”

“Yes.”

“I was born into this family.”

Her mother laughed again.

“You think that makes you special?”Luna said nothing.LHer mother's expression became colder.

“You were never the daughter we wanted.”

Luna's breath caught.

“You embarrass us.”

Her mother's eyes moved toward the scar on Luna's neck.

“Look at you and that stupid scar. You have always made everything difficult.”

Luna's eyes filled with tears, but she refused to let them fall.

“You're my mother.”

“And?”

The single word hurt more than everything else.Luna stared at her.All the years she had spent hoping for a different answer suddenly felt foolish.

She had come here expecting anger.

Maybe disappointment.

Maybe even a little concern.

But not this.

Not indifference.Her mother walked toward the door.

“You should leave.”

Luna didn't move.

“Where am I supposed to go?”

Her mother opened the door.

“That isn't my problem.”Luna looked at her for a long moment then she nodded.

“Fine.”

She walked toward the door.Just before she stepped outside, her mother spoke again.

“Run back to your gutter, Luna.”

Luna stopped.Her mother's lips curved into a cruel smile.

“That's where you belong.”

Luna stood completely still.

Her heart hurt.

Her throat burned.

But she didn't cry.

She slowly turned around.

For once, she didn't see her mother as the person she had spent years trying to please.She saw a woman who had already made her choice.

Luna wiped the corner of her eye before the tear could fall.

“You're wrong.”

Her mother raised an eyebrow.Luna's voice was quiet, but steady.

“I'm not nothing.”

Her mother laughed as turned around and walked away.

The laughter followed her down the steps.

She kept walking.

She didn't look back.

When she reached the street, the noise of passing cars swallowed the sound behind her.

Luna stopped at the corner.She had no idea where she was going.Marcus had given her a place to sleep, but she couldn't spend the rest of her life depending on his kindness.

Her family didn't want her.

Her home was gone.

The man she had once believed would find her had found someone else.For years, Luna had survived by making herself small.

By staying quiet.

By accepting whatever people gave her.

By convincing herself that maybe one day someone would notice her.

She looked ahead.

Something inside her was different now.She didn't know what her future looked like.She didn't know where she would sleep tomorrow or how she would rebuild her life.

But for the first time, she wasn't going to spend another day begging people to see her.

If they wanted to overlook her, they could.

If they wanted to believe she was nothing, they could.

Luna kept walking.

She was done being invisible.