My Mother Chose a Man Over Me: How She Betrayed Me for a Stranger
My name is Emily, Im 17, and I come from Birmingham. Ive carried this story inside me for a long time, silently, but now Im ready to tell it. Maybe someone will see themselves in it. Maybe someone will rethink their actions. Or perhaps at least one mother will think twice before betraying her own child, like mine did.
My parents divorced when I was ten. I cant say we were a happy family beforethe arguments, the blame, the distance between them were obvious even when I didnt fully understand. But after the divorce, it got worse. My mum and dad seemed to fight over my attention, not out of love, but obligation. I was shuffled between flats like an unwanted suitcase. At my dads, it was cramped but peaceful. With my mum, there was space, but each year, the tension grew thicker.
Everything fell apart when a new man entered Mums life. His name was Daniel. He was in his thirties, nearly a decade younger than her, and he immediately acted like he owned the place, while I was just an inconvenience. At first, he wore a polite smile, pretending to care. But soon, the mask slipped. He didnt like me living with Mum. He didnt like her spending money on me. He had no qualms saying loud enough that my dad was useless, that I was a burden, and that I shouldve “grown up by now.”
He manipulated her, took money from her, convinced her she didnt need a teenage daughterthat she needed freedom, a fresh start. And Mum she listened. She stopped noticing my tears at night. How Id quietly grab my books from the kitchen just to avoid them. How Id lock myself in the bathroom for an hour just to sit in silence.
The final straw came one night when I heard them shouting again. The walls shook. I stepped out, trying to shield MumI was afraid he might hit her. But it went differently. He turned on me with such rage my chest tightened. I yelled, “Stop it! Dont shout at her!”and then, pain. A real, sharp blow. He struck me so hard I fell, slamming into the wardrobe. Everything blurred. I just remember Mum screaming then silence.
I thought hed leave. That shed throw him out, hold me close, call a doctor, say she loved me. I hoped. I searched her eyeslooking for rescue. But she only whispered, “You ruined everything.” An hour later, she told me I had to go live with Dad.
I packed in silence, my heart ripped from its roots. No tears. No shouts. I just left, realising I no longer had a home.
Now Im with Dad. He tries his best, but we dont have that closeness I desperately wanted with Mum. I dont hope for her calls or apologies anymore. Though deep down, Im still that little girl waiting for her to open the door and say, “Forgive me, love.” But it wont happen. She chose himthe man who struck her child.
I dont wish her harm. But I know one day, hell leave. Hell find someone younger, prettier, easier. And maybe then, shell remember me. But I wont be the one who forgives everything. A mothers betrayal is a wound that never heals.
To all parents: dont have children if you wont put them first. We didnt ask to be born. But if you choose to bring us into this worlddont betray us.
Mum, if you ever read this I survived. I got back up. Im strong. But Ill never run to you crying again. Youre not my mum anymore. Youre just the woman who gave birth to me.
