“Mom! Who told you to touch that cupcake? That was for Ms. Emily! Today’s her birthday!”
Swallowing my disappointment, I apologized,
“I’m sorry, Ethan. I didn’t know. I only tasted a bit of the frosting, it won’t stop you from giving it to Ms. Emily…”
But Ethan shrieked in disgust,
“I don’t want it anymore! You already ate it, and you even posted it on Facebook! So gross!”
“I don’t want to give Ms. Emily such a dirty cupcake!”
At the time, I was angry and hurt. When he came home from school, I couldn’t help but scold him a little, telling him it was rude to speak to his mom like that—that it made me sad.
He pouted in silence, and I thought the matter had passed.
But he had held onto it, brooding, even branding me as shameless and greedy.
The tense atmosphere was interrupted by Jason’s phone ringing. It was a video call from Emily.
Just a moment ago Jason’s face had been full of anger, but now he instantly softened as he answered warmly,
“Hi, Ms. Emily?”
On the screen, Emily’s syrupy voice chimed in,
“Ethan’s dad, I hope I’m not disturbing your dinner? It’s just that the birthday gift Ethan gave me a few days ago—I really loved it. To thank him, I bought three tickets to the Broadway show Castle in the Sky this afternoon, and I’d like to invite you and Ethan to join me. Do you have time?”
Jason’s smile was practically spilling over.
“Oh, Ms. Emily, you’re too kind. Really, you shouldn’t have gone to the trouble!”
The moment Ethan heard the invitation, he cheered excitedly,
“Yay! A Broadway show—with Ms. Emily!”
Just then, Emily noticed me briefly appear on the screen.
She froze for a second, her face flashing with a hint of awkwardness.
“Oh, Ethan’s mom is home too? But Ethan told me you had gone back to Miami to visit your family—that’s why I only bought three tickets.”
“How about this, I’ll see if I can get one more right now…”
As she pretended to fiddle with her phone, my heart sank.
I had never said I was going back to Miami. Clearly, Ethan had made up that lie to get rid of me in front of her.
I was about to refuse this fake display of kindness when Ethan impatiently cut me off,
“No need, Ms. Emily!”
“My mom is just a housewife who doesn’t know anything. She only ever hangs around the kitchen! A Broadway show is way too classy for her—she wouldn’t understand it. Buying her a ticket would just be a waste of money!”
My whole body stiffened, the blood draining from my face.