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“You neverher

This time, Elena was conscious of E too

“Well, let’s be honest,” she said, “you were never very interested”

Elena willed herself to remain calm “I just returned the favor”

“Meaning what?” Eether

“Meaning that none of you exactly supportedher efforts to remain unconcerned

“Really, Elena,” Bridget’s voice was annoyingly stoic, “there’s no need to take that tone, or to throarranted accusations in our faces”

“They’re not exactly unwarranted, Mother,” Elena insisted “You and Dad didn’t even attend raduation”

“We were in Florida, Elena,” Louis said, as though that excuse was valid

“I don’t care where you were,” Elena spat, “you should have done whatever it took to be there You et it, you were trying to send e You’ve always been ashamed of me”

Bridget shook her head “You’ve always been so dramatic”

Elena stood abruptly She looked around at all three faces There was no understanding there She wondered how she could be so different from all of them

“Excuseto spend the rest of the evening in my room”

There were slight protests, but Elena ignored them She walked out and upstairs, into her rooh it had personally offended her After a while, she closed her eyes and tried to think things through logically She had a big decision to make and this trip to see her parents had been a part of the decision- process

Her parents were not bad people Elena knew that They had been raised a certain way and that had shaped their thinking They were people of habit and tradition There were things they expected; forerow up to live the lives they themselves had lived Emily had complied with this desire, but Elena had been unable to conform