Downstairs, Dad looked up and was paralyzed.
You look exactly like your mother.
For a second, I thought I finally understood.
Then Shirley called from the kitchen.
“I hope I don’t spend the whole night crying like her.
Dad shuddered.
I stared at it.
“Say something.
He barely managed to say, “Shirley, please.
That was it.
When Gary arrived, he looked at me and smiled.
“You are beautiful.
At graduation, I finally started to relax.
Friends filled the dress.
When I told them that my mother had, her expressions softened.
Gary offered me a punch cup.V
I would be proud of you.
Then the doors were opened for the accompanying parents.
I looked for Dad.
Instead, I saw Shirley.
My cup slipped from my hand.
I was wearing my mother’s dress.
Not the original, but an almost perfect copy.
The same powdered pink fabric.
The same tight bodice.
The same handmade-looking flowers.
The only thing missing was Mom’s little blue K.
Someone whispered, “Is that Delilah’s mother?”
Another student replied, “No. That’s his stepmother.
