My Stepbrother's Dirty Little Secret novel Chapter 304

Chapter 304

“I didn’t go through anything,” Gianna snapped.

She kept her gaze locked onto her mother’s face, but I could see the sheer panic vibrating in her tight shoulders. She was holding herself back, squeezing her lips together after she spoke. I could tell she wanted to scream, wanted to argue and fight back like she usually did, but she was keeping a tight lid on it. Her eyes flicked toward the closet for a fraction of a second, before she snapped her gaze back to Hazel.

She was trying so hard not to say too much. She knew I was standing right there in the dark, listening to every single word.

“Don’t lie to me,” Hazel said softly, her weak left arm trembled against her side, and she had to lean slightly against the edge of the vanity table to keep her balance, “I was there, Gianna. I saw what it did to you. I saw how you couldn’t even—”

“I said I’m fine, Mom!” Gianna cut her off. She took a step closer to her mother, trying to physically guide her away from the center of the room, “I don’t need the pills. I don’t want to talk about this right now. Please. Just drop it.”

A single tear escaped Hazel’s eye, sliding slowly down her pale cheek. Her lower lip began to tremble, and she didn’t even have the strength to wipe the wetness away.

What the fuck was going on?

“It’s for the stress, Gianna,” Hazel cried, “You know what happens when the stress gets too much. You need to control yourself under the pressure, or you will… you will break again. You will shatter, and I can’t… I can’t watch you go through that a second time.”

What kind of stress? What kind of breaking was her mother talking about? I wanted to step out of the dark, grab Gianna by the shoulders, and force the answers out of her. But I kept my body locked in place, my eyes glued to her.

“I am fine, Mom,” Gianna said, her voice flat, devoid of any emotion, “I’m not going to break. I don’t need the medicine. I don’t need anyone!”

“No, you aren’t fine,” Hazel sobbed, more tears spilling over her eyelashes, her slurred words becoming even harder to understand through her weeping. She took another clumsy, shuffling step forward, her weak left leg dragging heavily on the floor, “You are hiding it. You are always hiding it from me.”

Hazel reached out and grabbed the soft terry cloth of Gianna’s bathrobe sleeve.

“Show me,” Hazel begged, “Show me, Gianna! If you are fine, then show me!”

“I said no, Mom!” She took a step back, her eyes flashing with anger, “Stop doing this. I am not a child, and I am not showing you anything. Just leave me alone!”

But Hazel didn’t back down. The desperation inside her seemed to override the weakness in her muscles.

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