The dress was never just a dress. To Delilah, it was the last piece of her mother she could still hold, a dusty rose prom gown stitched by hand during the final months of her mother’s life.
Her mother had been battling cancer, and even as her strength faded, she kept working on the gown. Each flower, seam, and detail carried more than craftsmanship. It carried time, love, and a promise that Delilah would not have to walk into prom feeling alone.
Eight days after the final flower was finished, her mother died.
The house changed quickly after that. Six months later, Delilah’s father married Linda, who had once been described as her mother’s best friend. For Delilah, the marriage felt less like a new beginning and more like another loss.