Perfection always comes at a cost...

So Sick of Pretty

Isabela wanted to scream. You would think after sixteen years of practicing to be perfect; she would be able to do it without thought. Well, some of it she could, but now it was getting harder to maintain. Abuela announced that Isabela wanted to marry Mariano Guzman because like a fool she'd gone along with it. When Dolores heard about it, she said nothing but Isabela saw the hurt she'd caused. That betrayal of her promise to Dolores was where her pain stemmed from. So, why couldn't she just say it. She did not want to marry Mariano. She thought it all day, avoided him whenever possible.

But still, it was coming, like an avalanche she could not avoid. No, the real reason was because she was a coward at heart. Afraid to speak her truth, she found herself lashing out at her little sister. Not because she was mad at her, but because Mirabel was an easy target. It wasn't fair that her sister could do whatever she wanted, whenever she wanted, and she was stuck. Trapped in a lavender gown they would probably bury her in. She looked up at the curtain of flowers that surrounded her bed and said to no one, "You're a pretty bird stuck in a cage, Isabela Madrigal, but you want to fly…and you can't. Your wings have been clipped, and you held the knife."

Tomorrow she would have to put on that pretty show for Antonio's Gift ceremony. She knew if she didn't there would be a lecture that would go on forever. There was a part of her that wanted it to fail, so Antonio could be free too.

Isa was just so tired; would she have to wait for Abuela to die?