My Daughter Shaving Her Sister’s Head Before Prom Was The Best Thing She Ever Did

The Morning Everything Changed

My daughter shaving her sister’s head in her sleep the night before prom was the best thing she ever did. I woke up to my teenage daughter Kayla’s piercing screams.

I ran into her bedroom and couldn’t believe what I saw. She was completely bald, her blonde hair scattered across her pillowcase.

She was sobbing, telling me her little sister Ree must have shaved her head while she was sleeping. She stumbled to the bathroom mirror and started screaming even louder when she saw her reflection.

Prom was in eight hours, and she was supposed to be a shoe-in for queen. Now it was ruined.

“Where’s Reese?” I demanded.

My husband found her sitting on her own bed in her unicorn pajamas with his electric razor on her nightstand.

“Re, what did you do?” I asked, trying not to scream while Kayla sobbed in the bathroom.

“I had to stop her from going to prom,” Ree said in that small voice she uses when she knows she’s in trouble but thinks she did the right thing.

This was my baby who still crawled into Kayla’s bed during thunderstorms. The same little girl who Kayla taught to ride a bike last summer.

The one who followed her big sister everywhere, asking endless questions about everything. I couldn’t believe she would sabotage her sister’s big night like this.

Before I could respond, the doorbell rang. Kayla’s boyfriend, Steven, let himself in like he always did on Saturday mornings.

He came upstairs calling about corsage colors and stopped dead when he saw Kayla’s bald head.

“What the hell happened to your hair?” He asked, then quickly rearranged his face into concern.

“Baby, don’t cry. We can fix this. Maybe get you a nice wig. You’ll still be the prettiest girl there.” Kayla was crying harder now.

Steven pulled her against him while glaring at me like this was my fault.

“Did Reese do this? I always said that kid was weird. This is assault, Mrs. Adams.” Reese appeared in the bathroom doorway, still in her unicorn pajamas.

“I cut off all her hair so she couldn’t go to prom with you because you’re mean to her.” “Reese!” I yelled.

A Recording of Malice

But she kept talking in that determined little kid voice.

“You hurt my sister all the time. I see the purple marks on her arms where you grab her too hard.” The bathroom went silent.

Steven laughed, but it sounded forced.

“Kids make up crazy stories, Mrs. Adams. Tell her, Kayla. Tell your mom how good I am to you.” Kayla wouldn’t look at anyone.

I felt ice spreading through my chest.

“I took pictures on Mommy’s phone when Kayla was sleeping,” Ree said, her voice getting stronger.

“You push her into walls. You hit her tummy where nobody can see. Then you buy her presents after so she won’t tell.” I pulled out my phone with shaking hands and opened my photos.

There they were. Close-ups of Kayla’s arms with finger-shaped bruises.

Her ribs with dark purple marks. I felt my stomach drop.

“Oh my god,” I whispered.

“Kayla, is this true?” Steven’s face was getting red.

“Those could be from anything. She plays sports. This is insane. I spent hundreds on her. I’m taking her to prom in a limo.” My husband appeared in the doorway.

His whole body was tense as he looked over my shoulder at the photos on my phone.

“Kayla, baby, why didn’t you tell me?” I asked.

My voice was breaking completely. Steven’s grip on Kayla tightened visibly.

“We’re leaving right now. This is completely ridiculous. Get dressed, Kayla.” “She can’t go anywhere if she’s too embarrassed about her hair,” Ree said simply.

“That’s why I shaved it all off while she was sleeping, so she’d have to stay home safe.” Steven tried switching tactics.

His voice went artificially sweet.

“Ree, sometimes me and Kayla play rough when we’re fooling around. It’s not abuse; it’s just passion. You’re too young to understand boyfriend-girlfriend stuff.” My husband stepped fully into the bathroom.

“Let go of my daughter right now.” “But then you did this, mister,” Reese said.

Everyone turned to look at her again. She pulled out her little pink tape recorder that she used for making pretend radio shows and pressed play.

Steven’s voice came through tiny but clear. She said it was from yesterday when he was waiting in our living room for Kayla to get ready.

“Yeah, tomorrow night after prom,” His voice rang out.

“I’m going to get her completely wasted at Jake’s afterparty and make sure she can’t say no this time. Already got the stuff to put in her drink from my brother. Time to lock that down before college. You know nothing keeps a girl around like getting her pregnant.”