My Future MIL Handed Me a List of Gifts I ‘Owed’ Her to Be Accepted into the Family – So I Taught Her a Lesson She’ll Never Forget
Layla’s prospective mother-in-law sees dollar signs when her inheritance arrives and gives her a list of the things she “owes” the family. However, Layla has a lesson to impart of her own. As love breaks down and treachery occurs, she gives them a parting present they won’t soon forget.
I believed that Jake and I had the ideal relationship.
Until his mother revealed herself to me.
We had been dating for three years when Jake proposed, and I was ecstatic. Together, we led a lovely little existence. We had a cat named Cami, a comfortable apartment, an unbreakable love, and aspirations of creating something even bigger together in the future.
After that, my grandma died.
It was devastating.
When I grew up, I wanted to be just like my grandmother. The loss was profound because she had essentially raised me. However, she had consistently expressed her desire to see to my well-being.
“Layla, my child,” she said to me. “You will always hold a special place in my heart among all of my grandchildren. I knew you would be my miniature version of myself from the moment you were born. My girl, you have my undying care. even after I pass away.”
She also did.
She bequeathed me $500,000.
I didn’t anticipate it. Obviously not. I wasn’t prepared for that at all.
To be honest, I had no idea what to do with that amount of cash. But when Denise, my future mother-in-law, learned?
All of a sudden she was full of ideas. And I wasn’t involved in any of them.
A week had passed since Jake had informed his family of my inheritance when it occurred.
Denise, wearing her typical kind but calculating smile, took me aside while we were at his parents’ house for Sunday dinner.
“My dear, I have a present for you. I am aware that grieving your grandmother’s passing has been challenging. But now is the time to move on. She handed me an envelope and crooned, “The sun keeps shining, Layla.”
I grinned, hoping for a sentimental letter or a family artifact of some sort. Really, something heartfelt.
Rather?
It was a list.
Not just any list. A list of demands.
Presents As Jake’s fiancée, I was supposed to buy. I had to be “fully accepted” into their family before that.
My gut churned as I glanced at each crazy request on the page.
A $10,000 Cartier bracelet: to show my mother-in-law how much I seem to love and value her.
Jake’s younger sister will receive a brand-new car since “family supports each other, and you know, Elena needs a car.”
Jake’s parents received a gift (loan) of $20,000 so they could remodel their kitchen before to our wedding.
For my father-in-law, a Rolex.
A ten-person family vacation that is fully paid for. Included are first-class flights.
$2,000 per month as a “family contribution” to demonstrate my “commitment to the well-being of the family.”
My face was burning.
As Denise started to eat the pecan pie for supper, I gave a little, stifled laugh. Elena was removing ice cream with a scoop. Jake was adding more wine to the glass. My dad was looking around for a toothpick.
“Are you kidding me? Is this a single, large-scale prank?
Denise’s smile never wavered as she cocked her head.
“Oh, sweetheart. This is exactly what you’re supposed to do. We look out for one another, and you’re going to marry into this family. You’re fortunate to have this chance.
Fortunate?
Grandma was no longer with us. And this woman was behaving as though I had won the lottery?
What on earth was going on?
Then she made a statement that would end her life.
“If you really love my son, you’ll do this.”
I refrained from arguing. I didn’t leave all at once.
I made an effort to grin as sweetly as I could instead.
“Oh, Denise,” I exclaimed. “I completely understand. You’re correct. Family looks out for family. I would adore doing this. For you… for everybody. For Jake, I might even include a pair of gold cufflinks.
Unmasked avarice shone in her eyes.
“I knew you’d understand, sweetheart,” she replied. Layla, here’s a piece of pie. Have fun!”
We all sat in silence while I took the pie. Denise mentioned car models that she believed Elena might find appealing. She promised to provide me links to the jewelry she was interested in.
I just smiled the whole time.
Later that evening, I sat in our small apartment across from Jake, the envelope leaning on the coffee table between us like a loaded rifle. Cami was comfortable and happy as she napped on the carpet.
I had agreed to Denise’s list of demented people. grinned. Nodded. Pretended that everything made great sense. But within?
I felt furious within.
and in pain.
since my family, including my grandma, had recently passed away. I was meant to be grieving for her, paying tribute to her memory, and learning to live without her.
Rather than losing the only person who actually loved me without conditions, I was sitting there with a demand list as if I had won the lottery.
I felt like crying.
It proved something I didn’t want to acknowledge, not simply because of the list.
I wasn’t considered family by them.
Not at all.
They wouldn’t be attempting to profit off my loss if they did. They wouldn’t be using my sorrow as a source of income.
I pressed my fingers to my temples and swallowed hard.
“I said yes,” I murmured in a hollow voice. “I promised to do it to your mom. You simply ate pie while sitting there.
Jake gave me a blink as if he hadn’t anticipated that.
“Oh. Well, that’s good, isn’t it?
“Is it?” I laughed bitterly and breathily.
“You understand my mom’s personality, baby. More than anything, it’s merely a gesture,” he scowled.
I looked up into his eyes. A motion.
“That’s what she called it too,” I kept to myself. “A sign that I’m deserving of your marriage. An indication that I take “family” seriously. A gesture that coincidentally amounts to over a hundred thousand dollars.
Like I was being tough, Jake sighed and rubbed the back of his neck. As if I were the issue.
“Look,” he remarked in an enragedly composed tone. “It wasn’t meant negatively. My parents are struggling, and all of a sudden you have this money, and…”
I winced.
“They’re not struggling, Jake,” I replied. “Do you think I don’t get nauseous every time I think about the source of this money? That I wouldn’t give up every penny to spend an additional day with my grandmother?”
Jake had the grace to appear uneasy.
I continued.
“I wouldn’t have thought twice about helping your family if they had treated me like a daughter. I would have been happy to use my inheritance for worthwhile endeavors. Renovating your kitchen is not difficult.
Jake simply gazed at the ceiling.
However, Jake, that was not the case. I didn’t receive love from your mother. She brought a list.
Jake shook his head and released a breath.
“You’re overanalyzing this, baby. She’s simply outdated. She wants to confirm your dedication to the family.
My anger and despair swirled into something piercing as I stared at him for a long time.
“You know what?” I muttered.
“What?”
“You’re correct. I think too much about it.
“See?” he let out a sigh of relief. “It’s not a big deal.”
I gave a nod.
“I’m heading to bed. You give Cami some fresh water and fill her dish.
I was already making plans in my mind. Because I was prepared to give this family a gesture if they requested one.
The following few days were spent getting ready.
I then brought gifts back to Denise’s house the following Sunday.
She was so excited that she was virtually bouncing. She gave a childlike clap of her hands on Christmas morning.
I distributed boxes or gift bags one by one.
To her? A box from Cartier.
She opened it with a gasp and discovered a dollar shop plastic bracelet.
To Elena? A toy vehicle.
I remarked, “I thought this was more your speed, Elena,” in a kind way.
Dad-in-law? A phony timepiece.
For the family holiday? A family brochure for a low-cost city bus excursion.
That loan of twenty thousand dollars? A “bank loan” card for Monopoly.
Denise stopped smiling.
She snarled, “What the hell is this?”
Innocently, I batted my eyelids.
Yes, I had intended to begin with symbolic presents. Just a way to let you know that I take the family seriously.”
Her face flushed.
“This isn’t amusing. Absolutely not.
I bent over the table.
“Denise, no. Your insistence that I purchase my way into your family, as if I were an outsider who must pay a membership fee, is not amusing. I’ve spent three years with this family. You’re behaving as though I’m a complete stranger, too!”
At last, Jake said something.
He moaned, “Baby, you’re overreacting again!”
“No, Jake,” I replied. “I’m not. Your mother attempted to coerce me into giving them my inheritance as though they were entitled to it. Additionally, you failed to shut it down when it occurred. Or when I discussed it with you at home? That provides me with all the information I require.
I inhaled deeply before dropping the last bomb.
“Oh, and Jake, don’t stress over our engagement. Think of it as canceled. Think of us as canceled. I’m finished.
The room was filled with gasps.
Denise appeared as though she could pass out.
Jake? Astonished.
“Wait, what?!” he said as he regained consciousness.
I put my engagement ring on the table after sliding it off.
“Find someone else to fund your family, Jake.”
With that, too? I left.
I wasn’t in tears.
I believed I might. I hoped that after three years of being in love, starting a family, and saying “yes” to forever, I would experience something different than this subdued, aloof numbness.
However, no. I simply felt… finished.
By the time I heard the key turn in the door, the boxes were already half-packed. When Jake entered, I didn’t even raise my head.
The sight of the apartment made him freeze.
On my way home, I picked up boxes from a garage sale that contained his game console, clothes, and shoes.
“Layla,” he said in a voice that was almost audible above a whisper.
I closed the box’s flaps after folding another of his shirts and placing it on top of the others.
“You’re back earlier than I expected,” I replied. “Denise asked you to leave before dinner? Before I gave them their presents, she mentioned that it was roast beef and roast potatoes.
“What… what is this?” His voice rising in unadulterated panic, he made wild gestures toward the crates. “Are you… are you seriously kicking me out?”
At last, I looked him in the eye.
“Yeah,” I replied plainly.
“Wait, let’s talk about this, Layla.”
“We did talk, Jake,” I said with a sigh. “Your mother did exactly what I told you. I expressed my pain to you. And you brushed it off as if it didn’t exist.
His mouth tightened.
“I didn’t brush it off! I simply believed that we could get past it. You won’t be able to attend family dinner for a long, yes, but…”
In fact, I laughed.
“You believed that your mother’s attempt to extort me could be forgotten? That she used my sorrow as a source of income for herself?”
He clinched his hands at his sides.
“All right, she went overboard. We don’t have to discard everything because of that.
I inhaled deeply.
“Jake, please shut up. I cherished you. Yes, I did. But the time you didn’t even defend me and instead let your mother to abuse me like a walking ATM? I came to the realization that I preferred the concept of us to the actual situation.
“Please, Layla, don’t do this.”
However, it was already finished.
I pushed the final package into his arms after picking it up.
It’s okay for you to crash at your mom’s. Cami will also be staying with me here.
He winced.
For weeks, Jake blew up my phone. Sorry. Excuses. begging.
His parting message?
“We can put this behind us, but my mom went too far. I cherish you.
I never answered.
What about Denise? She attempted to discredit me online. She among other things called me a gold digger.
I didn’t care, though. I didn’t care about it.
I bought myself a lovely house with my inheritance, one that would never be occupied by avaricious in-laws.