Grandma wanted to celebrate her birthday with a quiet dinner, but our family insisted on going all out. But they didn’t just steal her birthday, they left her at the table when they brought the bill! No one messes with my grandmother, not even relatives!
My grandma always has freshly baked biscuits at the ready, never forgets a birthday, and somehow makes every family gathering feel like home. If anyone deserves the perfect birthday dinner, it’s her.
So when she mentioned that she would like to have ‘just a small dinner’ this year, I was in total agreement.
It’s her 85th birthday this year, and it’s a big deal. A quiet evening with good food and her favourite people? Absolutely. But of course, the rest of the family had other plans.
‘Grandma deserves something spectacular,’ Aunt Linda declared in our family chat. ‘Not some boring dinner.’
The rest of the family insisted on taking Grandma to the nicest restaurant in town, which might have seemed like a nice gesture if they weren’t doing everything for themselves.
Our weekly Sunday turned into a circus. I went outside for a little distraction, and then I heard my cousin Katie scheming with her brother Mark.
‘Seriously, Jade wouldn’t say no,’ Katie whispered. ‘She works at the bank! She has a lot of money. Lives alone. No kids. What else does she spend her money on?’
Mark snorted. ‘Exactly. We just have to stay calm until the bill comes due. Then we’ll play dumb and she’ll pick it up.’
I froze in place. Oh, so that was the plan. Blow Grandma’s birthday into a grand event and let me pay the bill while they sit there and make a fool of themselves.
‘What about Grandma?’ asked Mark. ‘Should we tell her to bring her wallet too? You know, for backup?’
Kathy laughed. ‘Please. She’ll insist on paying anyway. She always does. But dear cousin will jump in and save the day because she’s such a hero.’
I felt my face flush with anger. That’s how to use Grandma? On her birthday?
I would have gladly paid to give Grandma the night of her dreams. But to be played with like an open purse? No way.
All right. (chuckles) Let’s see what happens, I thought, retreating inside.
In the evening, I picked up Grandma and we drove to the nicest steakhouse in town. Grandma clutched her little purse in her hands and smiled like it was the best day of her year.
Meanwhile, the rest of us acted like we were at a celebrity party. Katie took non-stop photos ‘for aesthetics’, posing with every drink and appetiser.
Mark sampled every expensive whiskey on the menu, loudly proclaiming himself as a ‘connoisseur’ to our server Miguel, who earned a medal for his patience.
Aunt Linda loudly recommended the most expensive options to anyone who would listen. Grandma glowed at this.
‘This is marvellous,’ she whispered to me. ‘I wasn’t expecting such a fuss.’
‘I’m glad you’re having a good time, Grandma.’ I smiled and gave her hand a brief squeeze. I hoped that the joy she was feeling now could somehow make up for the betrayal I knew was coming.
Meanwhile, I watched my family order bottles of wine rather than glasses, the most expensive cuts of meat and all the side dishes on the menu.
I watched the bill grow with each order, mentally calculating their scheme. I ordered modestly, a simple filet and a glass of house wine. Grandma did the same.
‘Are you sure that’s all you want?’ pressed Uncle Joe. ‘This is a special occasion! Live a little!’
I smiled strainedly. ‘It’s perfect for me.’
Then came the inspection.
Grandma had just gone to the bathroom, and immediately the show began.
‘Uh-oh, wow,’ Aunt Linda said, staring at the bill as if it were written in a foreign language. ‘Look at that amount… I’d help, but, you know, we’re still paying off that timeshare from two years ago.’
Katie shook her head, suddenly engrossed in her manicure. ‘I spent all my savings on concert tickets. You know how important live music is to my mental health.’
Mark sighed dramatically, like he was auditioning for a soap opera. ‘My dog has stomach problems and the vet bills are crazy. I’m practically broke.’
Uncle Joe stretched out his arms and grinned, his gold watch gleaming in the light.
‘We all figured you’d be up to the task, Jade. You’re almost paid off the house, right? And you have the best job out of all of us. You know how to get things done. We’ll support you…emotionally.’
And then Aunt Linda had the courage to throw in a rebuke.
‘Come on…it’s for Grandma. It’s her big day. We might not have any left, you know that.’
I looked around the table. So much confidence. All the assumptions. The total came to over $800, and they had $650 to spare.
My blood boiled, but then Grandma came back from the bathroom. I wasn’t going to ruin her dinner by fighting over the bill in front of her.
I said: ‘Now I’m going to take care of something and we’ll get back to our conversation.’
So I left, heading towards the manager’s office.
I came out about 15 minutes later and went back to the table.
Grandma was sitting there alone, clutching her purse in her hands and looking around the room with wide, frightened eyes. The rest of my family was nowhere to be seen.
I knew they were planning on not paying the bill, but to stoop so low as to abandon my grandmother on her birthday! It was just cruel.
‘Grandma, are you okay?’ I asked, sinking down into my seat.
‘There you are!’ said Grandma, relief spilling over her face as I joined her. ‘Everyone just got up and left. They said something about getting the car ready, but it’s been ten minutes.’
She leaned over and spoke in a serious whisper. ‘Are we all right, Jade? Is everything paid for? I can pay for something if I need to, honey… I don’t have a lot of money with me, but I’ve been saving up…’
I put my arm around her shoulders, rage rising in my chest that they had left her confused and worried on her special night.
‘Don’t worry, Grandma. Everything is under control.’
We took our time finishing up while the staff took care of the rest of the chores. Miguel brought a complimentary dessert for Grandma – a beautiful chocolate cake with a single candle. The whole staff sang for her.
Grandma still looked a little worried, but I promised her that everything would be taken care of.
‘What about the others?’ – She asked as I drove her home and the stars twinkled above us.
‘They probably needed somewhere else to be,’ I said, keeping my tone light. ‘It’s a shame, but I have to admit I’m glad I got to spend most of the evening with you, Grandma. You had a nice holiday dinner, didn’t you?’
She nodded, but I could see she was offended. That made me even more angry.
When the angry phone calls started the next morning, I was ready to gloat over my selfish and frivolous family who thought they could get away with offending Grandma.
The first call I answered was from Aunt Linda. She was screaming that the restaurant was ‘harassing’ their account.
‘They’ve called three times already! How dare they! It’s your fault, isn’t it?’
Kathy left me a three-minute voicemail note accusing me of ‘ruining the mood’ at my grandmother’s birthday party. ‘We were just about to pick up the car! We were going to come back! You’re being so dramatic!’
Mark wrote that I was a traitor for snitching on the family. Each day his subsequent messages became more and more panicked.
Uncle Joe wanted to know if this was some kind of joke, because now the restaurant was threatening a lawsuit. ‘Fix this! Now!’
Ah, yes. I forgot to mention.
Turns out the manager of this steakhouse was my old college buddy Eric.
As they made their dramatic exit through the kitchen door (clearly visible on the security cameras), I made sure Eric had all of their contact information. Full names, phone numbers, addresses.
He only charged me for my and my grandmother’s share of dinner. And the rest? Oh, yeah. He’ll charge them directly, with interest, if they continue to avoid his services.
Grandma called later to thank me again for the evening.
‘I just wish your cousins hadn’t disappeared like that,’ she said. ‘It was such a nice dinner while…well…’
I just smiled, imagining Katie’s face when she got the official demand for payment.
‘Don’t think about it, Grandma. They won’t do anything like that again.’
And next year? Grandma and I will celebrate her birthday somewhere very nice and quiet. Just the two of us.
And I’ll leave my phone on silent.
