My Failed Comedian Mother Mocked My Suicide Attempt At My Engagement Party. I Decided To “Roast” Her In Front Of Her Entire Circle. Did I Go Too Far?

Chapter 16: Wedding Day

I wondered if I’d gone too far or if she’d finally understand what it felt like to be humiliated in front of people you cared about. The morning of the wedding I was standing in my bathroom trying to fix my makeup when someone knocked on my apartment door. Luke wasn’t supposed to pick me up for another two hours and the wedding planner had my schedule down to the minute.

I opened the door and found Gina standing there with my letter in her hand. Her eyes red, but not in her usual dramatic way. She looked smaller somehow, like she’d been deflated. She asked if she could come in and I almost said no but I stepped aside and let her walk past me into the living room.

She sat on my couch and held up the letter, her hands shaking slightly. She told me she’d read it four times and she understood what I was saying. That she’d spent her whole life using comedy to avoid dealing with real feelings.

Her voice cracked when she said she was going to start actual therapy, not the kind where she performed for the therapist or turned her sessions into bits. She said she didn’t expect me to forgive her or trust her. But she wanted to try to be better even if it was too late for us to have a normal mother-daughter relationship.

I stood there by the door not knowing what to say because this was the first time Gina had ever apologized without making excuses or turning it into a joke. She wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and said she was proud of me for setting boundaries, that she wished someone had taught her how to do that when she was young.

I told her she needed to leave so I could finish getting ready and she nodded and walked to the door. Before she left she turned and said she’d be sitting quietly in the third row with Lucy who’d agreed to be her support person for the day.

Chapter 17: A New Beginning

The wedding ceremony happened at a garden venue Luke’s parents had picked out with white chairs set up in rows facing an arch covered in flowers. I stood in the bridal suite with my bridesmaids while the coordinator gave everyone their cues. My stomach doing flips every time I thought about Gina sitting out there in the audience.

Luke’s mother had barely spoken to me during the rehearsal dinner and his father kept giving me these worried looks like he expected chaos to break out at any moment. The music started and I walked down the aisle focusing on Luke’s face instead of looking at the guests.

Gina sat in the third row exactly where she said she’d be, wearing a simple blue dress instead of the white sequined thing she’d bought months ago. Lucy sat next to her with her hand on Gina’s arm and Gina’s face was wet with tears but she stayed completely still and quiet.

The ceremony was beautiful in a way I hadn’t let myself hope for, with Luke saying his vows and me saying mine without any interruptions or performances. At the reception I watched Gina from across the room as she approached Luke’s parents at their table.

I couldn’t hear what she was saying but I saw her talking without any of her usual animated gestures or attempts at humor. Luke’s mother’s face stayed cold and tight but she nodded when Gina finished and said something brief in response. Luke’s father shook Gina’s hand in a formal way that made it clear they weren’t suddenly friends but at least they were being civil.

I felt something loosen in my chest. Not forgiveness exactly, but maybe the beginning of being able to breathe without constantly waiting for the next disaster.

Chapter 18: Moving Forward

6 weeks after the wedding, Gina and I started meeting for coffee every Thursday morning at a place halfway between our apartments. The first few meetings were awkward and stilted with both of us being too careful about what we said.

I’d made a list of topics that were off limits, things she couldn’t ask about or turn into comedy material, and she actually followed the rules without complaining. She told me about her therapy sessions in a real way, not performing or exaggerating for effect, just talking about what she was learning about herself.

She admitted her therapist had pointed out that she’d used comedy as a weapon to keep people at a distance, that if she made them laugh or shocked them first she didn’t have to risk real connection. I listened and didn’t offer forgiveness or reassurance. Just let her talk and process without making it about me.

She asked about the wedding and I told her the parts that felt safe to share and she didn’t interrupt or make jokes. Our relationship would never be normal or easy. The damage was too deep and went back too far. But I was learning that protecting myself didn’t mean I had to completely destroy her. That I could have boundaries without needing revenge.

Luke and I were building our life together in our new apartment, making plans for the future without the constant fear hanging over everything. I still flinched sometimes when my phone rang and I saw Gina’s name, still worried she’d slip back into her old patterns.

But for now, having coffee once a week with clear rules felt manageable. And that was enough. I was finally free from waking up every day wondering when I’d become her next punchline. And that freedom was worth more than any apology she could give.