My Mom

ZuriBy the time I made it back inside, the party had thinned down to a handful of stragglers and the cleanup crew already folding tables in the dark, and I found my mum out on the upstairs balcony, feet propped on the railing, a blanket draped over her shoulders against the night chill."Sweetheart." She patted the cushion beside her without opening her eyes. "I was starting to wonder if you'd run off entirely.""Needed some air." I settled down next to her, pulling my knees up, the quiet of the balcony a welcome relief after the noise of the evening."I saw what happened. With that girl." My mum's voice stayed gentle, but her eyes opened, sharp and focused on me now. "Gabriela, was it?"Heat crept up my neck. "You saw that.""Enough of it." She reached over, tucking a strand of hair behind my ear the way she'd done since I was small. "I recognized the pattern the second she opened her mouth. I've been there myself, baby. Girls like that always find the softest spot and press."

The Accusation

AudricI found Gabriela in my room after the party wound down, still in the red dress, sitting on the edge of the bed scrolling through her phone like nothing about tonight had happened at all. Like she hadn't stood in front of half my family and told Zuri she was too fat for a dress that fit her perfectly."We need to talk.""About what?" She didn't even look up."I want you gone by morning."That got her attention. She set the phone down slowly, staring at me like I'd spoken a language she didn't understand. "Excuse me?""You heard me." I kept my voice level, even though everything in me had been building toward this exact moment since the garden. "This isn't working. It was never real to begin with, and we both know it.""You're breaking up with me." Her voice climbed, disbelief curdling fast into fury. "At your parents' anniversary. In their house.""I should have ended it before we even got here."She grabbed the nearest thing within reach, a ceramic lamp off the dresser

The Expose

ZuriGabriela sat curled in the corner of the couch, a jacket wrapped around her shoulders like a shield. Her eyes were red. Her hands shook around the edges of the fabric.I watched from the doorway, and something about the whole scene felt wrong. I just couldn't name it yet.Alexander closed the distance in three strides. He grabbed Audric by the collar and slapped him. Once. Twice. The sound cracked through the room. Nobody moved.That came as a shock to everyone, including Audric, whose hand was on his cheek, which looked red from the impact."I didn't raise a son who doesn't know to stop when a woman says no," he said, his eyes burning with hot rage.Ethan spoke first, his voice hard. "How could you believe what Gabriela said?" He didn't even look at her. "We all know who Gabriela is. We went to school with her. You're going to take her word over your own son's?"Chris shook his head. "Gabriela is a liar. She doesn't have a single truth in her." He looked straight at his father.

Dialogue

ZuriMy dads led me into the small study off the main hallway and shut the door behind us, and the second it clicked shut, Jackson started pacing, one hand dragging through his hair over and over. Brandon stood by the window with his hands shoved deep in his pockets, quiet in a way that felt worse than shouting.I sat on the edge of the couch, staring at my own hands, shame burning hot enough that I couldn't bring myself to look at either of them."You are in a lot of trouble, Zuri Sterling." Jackson stopped pacing long enough to face me directly. "Starting right now, you're going to explain yourself.""Dad, I'm sorry.""Don't apologize." Brandon's voice stayed level, though I could hear the effort it took to keep it that way. "What was that? Sneaking around with Audric?""I love him."Neither of them said anything right away, both of them just looking at me like they genuinely didn't know what to do with that sentence."He had a girlfriend, Zuri." Brandon finally said. "You c

Ultimatum

ZuriI found my mum sitting on the edge of the guest bed, hands folded in her lap, staring at nothing when I knocked and let myself in. She'd changed out of her party dress, hair still half pinned from earlier, and the quiet, controlled stillness of her was somehow worse than if she'd been crying.She didn't look up.I knelt in front of her instead of taking the chair across the room, needing to be at her level, needing her to actually look at me. The floor was hard against my knees, but it felt right somehow, smaller than her, deserving of it after everything I'd let unfold tonight without warning her once."Mum. I'm sorry."Nothing. She kept her eyes fixed somewhere past my shoulder, jaw set, the silence stretching long enough that I felt it settle heavy in my chest."Are you still not talking to me?" My voice cracked. "I can't get through this without you. I need you.""You don't need me, Zuri." Her voice finally came, quiet and precise, each word landing like something she'd been

Family Confrontation

AudricMy mother didn't raise her voice often. When she did, the whole house seemed to hold its breath."You Jezebel." She had Gabriela by the front hall, coat already shoved into her arms, voice cracking through the foyer loud enough that I heard it from the stairs. "Get out of my house. Trying to destroy my son's life with a lie you cooked up because you couldn't stand losing him.""Mrs. Cole, please—""I should call the police and have you charged for what you just tried to pull in there." My mother's finger jabbed toward the living room behind her. "Accusations like that ruin lives, Gabriela. I could throw you in a cell tonight for it. I'm letting you walk out of here instead, because despite everything, I am still someone's mother, and I imagine yours would be devastated to see how you've turned out."Gabriela's composure finally cracked completely, tears streaming as she clutched the coat to her chest. "Audric, I'm sorry. I love you. I love you so much. I only did it because I w