Right now, the only thing those two old people were living for was to see me and my husband bring the Galloway babies home.
Just minutes ago, they'd texted me asking when I'd be discharged.
If things really escalated to divorce, word would reach them. There was no way it wouldn't.
My mother, always the sentimental one, pressed further.
"Jim has been so good to you. Can you really bring yourself to leave him?"
I thought about the porridge he'd make for me late at night. The breakfasts he'd prepare with little heart-shaped garnishes every morning.
Then the pregnancy—how he never missed a single checkup, how he'd stay up through the night sitting by my bed, massaging my swollen feet.
My heart couldn't harden all the way.
But that house—I couldn't give it up.
It wasn't just a house.
It was where my parents got married.
It was where I grew up. It was twenty-some years of roots for our entire family.
I wasn't handing it over to anyone.
My parents had already thought of that.
"We can give you a property, but not this one."
"This apartment means the world to our family. We can transfer the suburban villa to Jim instead."
"The location is great, and it's much bigger! It's worth even more than this place."
But my mother-in-law's expression darkened. "No. It has to be this apartment."
"A suburb is a suburb. It'll never compare to this place. This is a premium home in a top school district. Who knows how much it'll appreciate in the future."
"It has to be this one."
My father frowned, his displeasure barely contained.
"We understand you want to look out for your son and secure something for Jim. But there's no need to make this difficult for us. I've already told you this apartment is off the table."
He waved his hand and spoke bluntly. "The suburban house, plus eight hundred and eighty thousand dollars on top. That should be more than enough. Even with appreciation, this place would never be worth that much more."
My mother-in-law shook her head. "No. I want this one. You say the school district won't lose value, but who's to say the suburban house won't tank?"
"All I know is this apartment is in a top school district. It'll always be worth something."
My mother sighed. "If you're worried about depreciation, let Jim sell the suburban house and buy a new place in the school district. Why does it have to be this apartment?"
Listening to all of this, the anger inside me surged again.