On my 17th birthday, my stepmom Monica, who has always been self-centered, gave me a gift that left me in shock. I had little expectation for the day, but when I reached into the bag she handed me, I pulled out a funerary urn. At first, I thought it was a joke, but Monica’s cold smile told me otherwise. She told me that my dad and she had decided to use my college fund for her hair salon, deeming business investments more “real” than college, which she called a “gamble.”
The sting of her words hit hard, as I had worked so hard to build a future through education, dreaming of college. Holding the urn, I felt an overwhelming mix of rage, betrayal, and heartbreak. My dad had let this happen, and it was a crushing moment in my life. But the worst part was, it wasn’t the end of the story.
