Let's hear Mia out, shall we?
36.
Mia took a deep breath and let it out slowly. She had her hands clasped in her lap and her head down. She then shook her head and laughed humorlessly.
"This is so hard. We've never fought like this before."
I sipped my coffee, now ice cold, which gave me the chance to do something aside from fidgeting.
"I understand why you're mad, Rose. You're absolutely right; I should've told you about the article."
"What I don't get is why you didn't ask, Mia. I'd have said yes! I wouldn't have like it, and I might've whined a bit, but I would've done it for you."
"I know!" she wailed, shocking me with her reaction. "I'm so sorry! I guess I panicked. You were already having a hard time doing the whole makeover thing in the first place, and adding more pressure by making it public… I just wanted you to enjoy the experience. I swear I wouldn't have printed any of the photos without your consent. I swear!"
She sniffed and wiped her tears with a paper napkin.
I stood up and sat on the coffee table in front of her. I grabbed her hands and squeezed them. "I forgive you, Mia. But you do understand that it will take time to build up my trust in you again?"
"I know and that just kills me. I'm no better than those skanks who hurt you back in college!"
I winced of the memory of the worst years of my life, but shook it off. Yes, I'd been hurt back then, but what Mia did wasn't even a third of what they did to me.
And I had to let her know that. I couldn't let Mia think that she was as low as those girls.
Betaed by Little-Clementine