My mom always found a way to ruin my happiest moments. This time was no different. However, I made sure that she never did it again with my revenge.

Five years ago, I was beyond excited for my senior prom. I went shopping for a dress with my best friend, and we found a gorgeous pink mermaid-style gown. When I got home, I showed it to my mom. She didn’t have any noticeable reaction. Later, she took it to her friend for hemming, but when I got it back, it was ruined. She had remade it into a bag-like dress.

“I was ashamed to be seen with you in the dress,” my mom said. I was devastated and furious. On prom day, I got my revenge by remaking my mom’s favorite dress into my prom dress.

“Grace, what have you done?! That’s my favorite dress!” my mom gasped.

“Just like my prom dress was important to me. But you didn’t care about that, did you?” I replied.

My mom apologized, saying, “I didn’t realize how much it meant to you. I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have done that.”

Our relationship was strained for a while, but eventually, we started having more open conversations. “I was wrong to try and control you,” she admitted. “I thought I was protecting you, but I see now that I was just being selfish.”

“I need you to trust me and support me,” I replied, holding back tears.

It took time and patience, but we rebuilt our trust. Looking back, I realize that incident was a turning point. It taught us the importance of respect and understanding in our relationship.