Chapter 5
Mom stared at her reflection in the mirror–her scalp now as patchy and stubbled as mine–and pounded the bathroom counter in disbelief.
I leaned against the doorframe, arms crossed, smiling at her breakdown.
The satisfaction was incredible.
My roommates, awakened by the commotion, were startled at first by Mom’s appearance, then scrambled to take photos of her bald head.
In her panic, Mom caught my smiling gaze. Instantly understanding, she lunged at me with tears streaming down her face, hand raised to slap me.
“You little bitch! Do you know how important today’s interview is? How dare you do this to your own mother?!”
I easily dodged the slap, letting her hand swing through empty air.
“Mom, what’s wrong? I did this for your own good! The weather’s so hot, and you have to get up early for your interview. Washing and drying hair takes so much time and effort! This is much
better–clean, practical, and time–saving.”
‘Riley, you did this on purpose! Do you think I’m like you? So shameless! Walking around with a bald head in public!”
Her momentum from the missed slap caused her to spin and fall to the floor. Sitting there, she became even more hysterical, pointing at me and twisting everything around.
‘Mom, didn’t you say a buzzcut is the best hairstyle for a woman? Men won’t get inappropriate deas! Besides, for such a capable woman like yourself, what does success have to do with hair? The company values your abilities–they’d promote you even if you had open sores on your head!”
I mimicked her shocked expression from days earlier, covering my mouth dramatically.
‘Oh my god! Mom, you care so much about your hair–are you trying to seduce
“Mom! Being a homewrecker is immoral!”
your boss?”
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Before my mom could respond, I started making video calls to our relatives, one by one, as she
watched in shock.
With each call that connected, I sobbed dramatically:
“Auntie, please talk some sense into Mom! She shouldn’t become her male boss’s mistress! Breaking up someone’s family is wrong!”
“Uncle, my parents have been married for twenty years! If she cheats now, how can I face Dad?”
After my tearful accusations, relatives bombarded Mom’s phone with calls, one after another.
She was trapped–answering would be bad, ignoring them would be worse.
Within minutes, Mom completely fell apart.
She couldn’t even gather the courage to attend her interview that day and slunk away on the
afternoon train back home.
I later discovered the truth about her “promotion opportunity.”
The position had already been filled. My mom and her colleagues were just going through the
motions–no one else took the interview seriously.
No one except Mom.
She’d been meticulously preparing, treating it like her big break. Always ambitious, she couldn’t stand being a nobody at some tiny branch office forever.
She’d seized this chance to get noticed by management, hoping that somehow, against all odds, her
managerial dreams might come true.
Mom’s meltdown over her shaved head wasn’t just about her damaged appearance. It was because I’d accidentally hit the nail on the head about her real intentions.
After Mom left, no one interfered with my life anymore. My college experience finally began for real!
Without her constant harassment, I started growing my hair out again and rebuilt my reputation
with classmates and the dean.
With my campus counselor’s support and encouragement, I realized I was never the problem–my mother was. For years, she’d been psychologically manipulating me, and every time I gave in, she
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escalated her control. She enjoyed dominating me without any regard for my mental wellbeing. Her psychological issues were far worse than anything I’d experienced.
Gradually, I became more confident. Even though my hair hadn’t grown to my preferred length yet, 1 carried myself with assurance. I walked boldly across campus without hiding under hats. Some really cool girls even added me on Instagram, messaging me privately that they thought I looked
badass even with a shaved head.
The dean noticed my transformation. One day, he took a photo of me smiling brightly and, with my permission, posted it on the school forum with the caption: “No obstacle is insurmountable. Smile and embrace your new life, my dear Riley.”
My roommates later confessed they’d spotted Mom’s disturbing behavior immediately but feared she might retaliate in the middle of the hight if they reported her. They’d been quietly monitoring my situation, also counting down that painful week before they could properly get to know the real
- me.
Everything seemed to be heading in a positive direction.
However…
My mother, competitive and prideful her entire life, couldn’t stomach such humiliation.
She was already planning her counterattack.
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