Yes, you are going out dressed like this!

You are mature enough to dress yourself! Your dad is always saying you’re entering the stage of your life where you have to make your own choices, and this is one of those choices! Nikki is gonna flip when she sees this top! And hopefully Ricky will too.

You’ve agreed to change.

If this will shut him up, fine, you’ll change into one of your blouses with a conservative neckline. You’ve also promised to take Colleen with you along to Nikki’s party. God, this is humiliating.

You’ve agreed to put on a sweater.

Your dad thinks this is a hard-won victory, but deep down he must know how hollow it is. The second you get to Nikki’s, you’re ditching this stuffy thing. Ricky is going to fall all over himself trying to dance with you. But who needs Ricky? This is your night to shine in your new outfit, because you look incredible. The only thing that could make this night any better is if Mom were still alive.

Why don’t you just stay home and watch “The King’s Speech” with Dad?

You can wait to be a mature young woman one night longer. During your argument, you saw your father plainly as a lonely human being. One that just wants to spend time with you, especially since you remind him of Mom. Given how her siblings have treated Dad over the past five years, you are his only link to the past. A past when he was young and hopeful, and when the world was filled with love. When you look back on your life, you won't remember parties or high school crushes; you’ll remember watching a movie with your dad, the man who needs his daughter. And you need him.