Today was the day that I finally got her attention. “Freak”. That’s what April, who had been my friend for so long, called me before the concert when I asked her why we weren’t friends anymore. At that moment, she reminded me so much of my mother, who is always looking for ways to portray me as a freak. I had to do something drastic. Something that would leave a humiliating mark on her character. For years, she has treated my desires like they’re stupid because they’re different from her own. She wants me to fit into a mould that was created by her long ago. She wants me to live up to her own stereotype, blatantly ignoring anything she does not want to hear. I had to finally break free. Knowing that they were eager to video my performance, I didn’t play a single note. I just sat there waiting to give my own little show. When the perfect moment arrived, I swung my head around, and locked eyes with my mother. “NOT YOUR PUPPET”. That’s what she, and probably the whole auditorium glaringly saw. I could hear a few gasps here and there but the one I cared most about was that expression of shock on my mother’s face when she registered my behaviour. My message had, undoubtedly, gotten through. I don’t expect things to change anytime soon and I know that I will get punished for it, but hopefully my mother can realize that I am not her, and I don’t even want to be. I want to be different.