I hesitated. “How much are we talking?”
“Only $5,000!” she chirped.
It was a drop in the bucket. And it was for a car, something practical.
So, I said yes.
Two weeks later, Patricia pulled into my driveway in a BRAND-NEW SUV.
That was my first mistake. Because once I opened the door, they NEVER stopped knocking.
It became a thing.
“Patricia’s dental implants!”
“Robert needs a vacation!”
“Oh, wouldn’t it be nice to redo the kitchen?”
Every conversation led to my money.
Late one night, I confronted Jake in our bedroom. “Do you realize your parents have asked for money five times this month alone?”
He barely looked up from his phone. “They’re just going through a rough patch.”
“A rough patch that requires a $15,000 kitchen renovation? Jake, they’re taking advantage of us… of me.”
He finally met my eyes, but his expression was distant. “They’re my parents, babe. It’s just temporary.”
“Just like the car was temporary? Like the dental work was temporary?” I could feel tears threatening to fall. “When does it end?”
“Why are you being so dramatic about this? It’s just money.”
“It’s not JUST MONEY!” I exploded. “It’s my mother’s legacy! The last thing she could give me! And your parents are treating it like they won the lottery!”
“You’re blowing this out of proportion, Helen. They’re family.”
“Yeah? Some family. The kind that takes and takes until there’s NOTHING left.”
Three months later, I had given them over $40,000.
And then Patricia sat me down for another conversation. I should’ve known something was up when she invited me over for tea and actually used my name instead of “sweetheart.”
“Helen, you know Jake mentioned you haven’t bought a house yet,” she said, stirring her tea like she wasn’t about to cross every boundary in existence.
I nodded. “We’re still looking.”
“Well,” she said, smiling like a cat eyeing a canary, “Robert and I had an idea. Since we’ve always wanted to retire early, and you have all that money just sitting there…”