Everyone at a birthday party mocked a poorly dressed girl and her mother until the ruckus caught the attention of a wealthy man. Madison Lando brought her daughter Trudy up all by herself. The 33-year-old woman had been married to a miner named Joe Lando until he died in a mysterious mining accident along with some of his colleagues.
She had loved the stubborn man for most of her adult life, having been in love with him since their high school days. The pair welcomed their daughter, Trudy, out of wedlock but immediately tied the knot to avoid problems with their conventional parents. Madison never liked her husband’s mining job, a transition he made after losing his job as an archaeologist.
She found mining too dangerous and often argued with him about it. But her husband would win the arguments by pointing out that the pay was better than having nothing at all. When he passed away, Madison was mad at him for a long time.
“I warned you to stop doing it,” she would say whenever she thought about him. The accident happened two years before, and their daughter, three at the time, had to grow up without a father. But even after all those years, Madison remained single, focusing on surviving with her child.
It was not easy for them, especially after the little money her husband saved for emergencies ran out. Affording a simple meal became a struggle, yet Madison somehow managed to provide for herself and her daughter. That’s how they lived, until one day, fate changed their lives.
During this period, Trudy had completed kindergarten, and a very wealthy classmate of hers extended an invitation to the entire class for her birthday party, as announced by her butler. “Miss Bella La Fontaine will be holding a custom birthday party to celebrate a new year for herself. You are all cordially invited to this event but there is a condition,” he added after the cheers died down.
“All dresses to be allowed must be bought at the Fontaine clothing store, and of course, there will be discounts.”
When Madison got home that day, she told her mother about the party. “Mom, everyone will be there. I have to go!” the girl said, excited.
“We need to get to the store to pick my dress.”
“Yes, yes, let’s go,” her mom said with feigned excitement. She did not really have a lot of money aside from the $100 tip she had received at the restaurant where she worked during morning hours. “It will be just fine,” she told herself as she followed her daughter.
However, as soon as she set eyes on the price tag attached to the clothes, Madison knew that the money she held was never going to be enough. Each dress cost nothing less than five times what she had. They quietly left the store while those who could afford the dresses bought them.
Madison was unhappy with what was happening, so she went down to a fabric store, picked out a similar fabric as the dress in Fontaine, and took it home to sew. “Just you wait baby, you’ll have a dress soon,” she said. It took her all night to sew the dress, but the end product was perfect.
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