“Emily, are you coming over today?”
“Good morning, Mom. I wasn’t planning to. What happened? We only saw each other yesterday.”
“Something happened. There’s no food in the house.”
“I left five hundred dollars in an envelope for you yesterday. Go to the store and buy what you need.”
“It’s gone already. Michael called this morning. He was short of money for Chloe’s phone, so I had to send him a little more.”
For the first time, Emily felt real anger toward her mother.
“You gave him everything? Fine, Mom. It was your birthday money. Spend it however you want. But I don’t have anything else. I’ve already spent my entire paycheck on you this month.”
“Then take money from your husband. What good is he to you otherwise?”
A fresh wave of fury swept over Emily. For one brief moment, she wanted to end the call and never answer Margaret again. Her mother’s shamelessness was becoming unbearable.
“He certainly isn’t here to support you,” Emily said sharply before hanging up.
Margaret was furious.
She went to the phone several times, expecting her daughter to call back, apologize, and bring groceries. But Emily had no intention of calling.
Instead, she dialed Daniel.
“Daniel, I need your help,” she said, and then unexpectedly burst into tears. “I don’t want to keep supporting Mom anymore. I’m sorry. You were right.”
A few days later, Emily went to Margaret’s house.
“Surprise,” she announced from the doorway, trying not to show how hurt she still felt. “Here we are.”
“Did I invite you?” Margaret hissed angrily. “You left me without a penny!”
“I didn’t have any money either,” Emily said with a shrug.
Speaking so coldly to her mother felt unnatural and painful, but she forced herself to follow the plan she and Daniel had made.
“Then why did you come? Did you suddenly get money? And where are the groceries?”
“Mom, I brought you a much better surprise. Get dressed. Daniel and I decided to give you a real birthday present. We’re taking you to Michael.”
“They’re celebrating Sophie’s birthday today. I saw the photos and posts online. Our arrival will be a surprise for them too.”
“What do you mean?” Margaret looked confused. “You can’t just show up without being invited. I don’t even have a proper gift…”
Emily had expected exactly that reaction. She reached into her bag and pulled out a small, beautifully wrapped box.
“There are new wireless headphones inside. They’re made for an iPhone.”
Margaret nodded approvingly and immediately went to get dressed.
“It’s about a three-hour drive, Mom,” Emily urged her. “Hurry, or we’ll be late.”
Margaret dressed quickly, took the present, and soon they were on the road.
The journey really did take a long time. Daniel deliberately spent most of it asking his mother-in-law about Michael, his job, and the way he lived.
“They don’t have much money, of course,” Margaret explained willingly. “Sometimes they can barely afford groceries. But that’s understandable. A child is expensive.”
“Sophie always needs something—good clothes, new electronics, phones. They live in a two-bedroom apartment they own. I took out one loan to help with the down payment, and later I borrowed more for the renovation.”
“No bank would have helped them back then. They were very young. I was still working and could afford to support them.”
Emily listened, growing more stunned with every word.
She remembered that Michael had left for another city roughly fifteen years earlier. He rarely came to visit, but he regularly asked their mother for money.
Emily had never imagined how much Margaret was actually sending him.
But she clearly remembered what her mother had told her over and over again.
“Emily, I don’t have any money. There won’t be a graduation party.”
Or:
“Don’t even think about going to college. I can’t pay for your education.”
And now Emily was learning that, all those years, her mother had been helping Michael buy a two-bedroom apartment in a major city.
“He works at a factory,” Margaret continued. “He doesn’t earn much, but his job is secure. And stability is the most important thing in life.”
“They don’t have high salaries. His wife is temporarily unemployed too. She was recently fired from a job with a private employer, so things are difficult for them.”
“That’s why they even postponed Sophie’s birthday celebration. They were going to buy a small cake, stay home, and invite a couple of her friends.”
Daniel nodded sympathetically and arranged his face into an expression of concern, as though he genuinely felt sorry for Michael and his family.
“Yes, times are difficult,” he said. “Michael is very lucky to have you, Margaret.”
The three-hour drive passed almost unnoticed.
Daniel followed the directions on his phone and finally stopped beside a large, elegant house.
“We’re at the wrong address,” Margaret said at once. “You made a mistake. I’ll call Michael.”
But Emily quickly took the phone from her hand.
“Mom, this is the right place. We’re going in. Don’t forget the gift. And the cake.”