When Mia was 10, her mother died in a sudden car accident, leaving a void no one could fill. Her father, Jeff, shut down emotionally, and a year later, he brought Judy into their lives—a picture-perfect woman with lemon bars, scented candles, and a plan to “move on.” But moving on for Judy meant erasing Amelia, Mia’s mom. Her belongings were boxed up, memories silenced, and even Mia’s necklace—a sapphire heart her mom gave her before passing—became a point of tension,
For years, Mia swallowed her grief in silence, her memories slowly overwritten by Judy’s curated life. The final straw came at a family dinner when Mia lovingly mentioned her mom’s necklace, and Judy coldly declared, “Technically, I’m your mom now. I’ve done more mothering in the past few years than she did in ten.” Mia stood up,