Neptune

Chapter 9 | The Broken Doll

C A S S I E

Age 13

My heart thumped in excitement when I heard the front door being opened that Friday night. I'd been waiting for Morgan to come home from work since I finished school in the afternoon.

When she closed the door behind her, taking off her heels, I rushed to her.

"Are we really going to watch the ballet performance tonight?" I was breathless at the end of my sentence because there was so much anticipation building up inside me.

Morgan smiled.

"Of course we are. I bought you a new dress so that you can wear it for the event later." She handed me a shopping bag, surprising me. "It will be a huge performance, so it would be good for you to wear something formal and elegant."

I squealed in delight, taking out a midnight blue dress from the shopping bag. A loud gasp escaped from my mouth. The dress was so pretty. "This is beautiful. Thank you. I love it so much."

Morgan smiled. "It's your birthday present, Cassie."

My heart was filled with so much joy that I felt like it could explode out of my chest. I'd been anticipating this day for a month. Morgan had promised to watch the ballet together on my birthday, and we could finally do it tonight after she came back from work.

I rushed into my room to change, while she walked into her room to get ready herself.

When I walked out of my room to meet Morgan in the foyer, a horrible feeling stirred inside me. I was already dressed in the new dress that Morgan had just bought for me.

It was the prettiest dress that I'd ever worn, but there was one problem. I couldn't zip the side of the dress fully—it was too small and tight for me.

I wonder whether Morgan had mistakenly chosen a size for a 10-year-old, because there was no way that this dress would fit a middle schooler like me.

I began to panic and looked at her in horror. She was already dressed up too, clutching her bag, ready to leave. "I think something is wrong with this dress. The size doesn't fit me. It's too small."

She smiled down at me, but there was something about it that made me shudder. Her smile was beautiful, but her eyes were so cold that it felt like a sarcastic smile instead.

She stared down at the zipper at the side of my dress and tried to help me close it but to no avail. A knowing sigh left her lips.

"There's nothing wrong with the dress. But there's definitely something wrong with your body. Did you just gain weight?" she asked curtly.

I froze. I bet that Morgan could see that my face paled.

I hadn't checked my weight again recently, but I'd eaten some chocolate that a guy from my class had given me this week. Was it because of that?

Anger crossed Morgan's expression. "You foolish girl. Didn't I tell you to stop eating chocolate? Of course this beautiful dress is not going to fit you if you've turned into a pig."

Her words stabbed my heart like a knife.

"You're not going to come with me to watch the ballet," she stated, her voice firm. "You're just going to embarrass me in front of my friends."

I grabbed her arm, but she pushed me away.

"No, please," I begged, fear engulfing me. I'd been dying to go with her since the moment she told me about this plan, and I didn't want her to leave me just like that. "I want to come with you. Please, take me with you. I promise I won't eat the whole day tomorrow. I'm sorry. I've made a mistake."