And for one bleak second, I think I’ve made a huge mistake. I flashback to Savannah, to Dani, to everyone who gave methat look, and dread washes cold over me.
But Poppy gives a slow shake of her head. “Not a big deal?” she echoes incredulously. “That’s huge, Iris. Wow.”
Violet reaches for my hand. “One of our contractors has it, and she says it can be really hard. I had no idea.”
Daisy leans in, compassion lining her brow. “How do you feel? Have you spoken to anyone about it?”
Emotion rushes up inside me, and I inhale slowly, trying to contain it. Ofcoursethey’re nice about this. Why did I doubt them?
“I’m… okay,” I say at last, reaching for my cupcake with shaky hands. “Still processing. Reading a lot about it. I need to get a proper diagnosis, but… yeah. It pretty much explains my entire life.”
“That must be a relief, I’d imagine?” Poppy says, and I give her a crooked smile. She gets it. Somehow, theyallget it.
“How did you figure it out?” Violet asks.
My smile vanishes, because that’s the part I’m still struggling with. The part I don’t even want to think about.
“It’s… complicated,” I mumble.
Poppy shrugs. “We’ve got time. If you want to talk about it,” she adds, touching my arm. “No pressure.”
I swipe a finger through the frosting of my cupcake, realizing Idowant to talk about it. I want to tell someone what Aidan did, how blindsided I felt. That even though it hurt me, I miss him like crazy, and I can’t figure out how both can be true at once.
“Aidan.” I peel the cupcake slowly, thinking of the day we met. My heart aches. “I overheard him telling my father.” Betrayal flares inside me, and I ball the cupcake wrapper in my fist. “The entire office heard.”
Violet’s brows crash together. “Oof. That’s not good.”
I give a grim nod. It’s not.
“Hang on.” Daisy watches me crush the cupcake wrapper with a frown. “Are you saying he justannouncedit to your dad in front of everyone?”
“Well, no. It was in Dad’s office, and I overheard through the door.”
“So why did he say it? What was the context?”
I force myself to think back over the fragments of conversation I caught. Dad was speaking, saying something about how I can’t stick to deadlines, how I’m always getting distracted. What he’s said a thousand times before. I’m so used to hearing him criticize me, it was easy for that to fade under the shock of what Aidan said, but now that I stop to really think about it, a clearer picture emerges.
“He was responding to something Dad said,” I tell them.
Poppy’s lips form a thin line. “What was it?”
“He said…” I swallow, forcing the words out my mouth. “He said I was a liability. That I couldn’t manage basic tasks. He said…” I think back to my father’s exact words, throat growing tight as I repeat them. “That girl wouldn’t know hard work if it smacked her between the eyes.”
The words hang in the air between us, and for the first time, I really hear them. I hear the man who is supposed to love me and support me, but doesn’t. The man who never took the time to really see me, to understand me.
“Jesus Christ,” Violet mutters under her breath. “I’m surprised Aidan didn’t punch him.”
Daisy puts a hand on her arm to quiet her, gaze locked on me. “And what did Aidan say in response?”
My eyes fill as I think of Aidan, the way his voice shook with anger, the way he exploded in a way I’ve never heard before.
“He said,” I continue, voice cracking, “For fuck’s sake. She’s not failing, she’s struggling. She has ADHD.”
“Oh, Iris.” Daisy presses a hand to her heart.
“He was defending you,” Poppy says, eyes shining.
I nod, a tear escaping down my cheek. Ofcoursehe was defending me. Protecting me. Caring for me. That’s all he ever wants to do.
