And in their place, rows of unfamiliar feminine hygiene products lined neatly on the counter.
The door swung open, slamming against the wall, and the metal hook at the top struck the back of my head.
A sharp, searing pain exploded through my skull. My vision blurred, stars bursting before my eyes.
“Audrey, could you wait a bit? Let me finish washing these clothes first.”
On the other side, Ava had already started scrubbing soap into her underwear, her movements slow and deliberate. When she caught sight of my pained expression, a flicker of amusement danced in her eyes, barely concealed beneath her feigned innocence.
“Audrey, you’re too careless. Lucky for you, I reacted quickly. Otherwise, you could’ve been seriously hurt.”
With a light remark, she effortlessly shifted all blame away from herself while subtly making me seem at fault.
A slow burn settled in my chest. I gritted my teeth through the pain, stepped forward, and met her gaze head-on. My voice was clear, unwavering.
“You bumped into me. Apologize.”
Ava hadn’t expected me to confront her so directly. Her lips trembled, and in the next instant, tears welled up in her eyes, shimmering like a practiced performance.
“Audrey, do you not like me?” she murmured, her voice trembling with grievance. “Why do you always pick on me? If I did something wrong, just tell me. I’ll change. Isn’t that enough?”
I frowned. She was the one who had hurt me, yet somehow, she twisted the moment into one where she was the victim, and I was the aggressor.
I’d had enough. My patience snapped.
“It’s just the two of us here,” I said flatly. “You can drop the act. I’m not buying it.”
Just as the words left my lips, the bathroom door swung open.
Hugo stepped inside, and right behind him, Jasper rushed in. The moment he spotted Ava’s tear-streaked face, he ran to her, standing protectively in front of her like a tiny shield.
“Mom, I won’t let you bully Aunt Ava! You’re a bad woman!”
A bad woman?
For a moment, I thought I’d misheard. My son, the child I had cherished and raised, was looking at me with nothing but hostility.
What did I do wrong?
I was the one who had been hurt, yet even Hugo’s gaze held disappointment as if I were the one truly at fault.
“I understand that you don’t like Ava, but you can’t keep looking for chances to bully her.”