Holiday Ruined by Future Mother-in-Law
Its frightening to travel alone with my daughter, you know what its like two women, dont know the language, what if something happens my future mother-in-law, Brenda, waved her hand dismissively. But with the two of you, it wont be so unnerving. Its better knowing well all be close if anything goes wrong.
Little did I realise how close Brenda intended us all to be.
It stung I cant lie, I felt quite put out.
Months ago, Max and I, along with Vicky and Chris, had started planning this holiday. Maxs brother and his wife made the perfect company you couldnt wish for a better pair whether going out to the pub, jetting off somewhere sunny, or even getting lost in the wild. Our interests just clicked, and the last two trips wed taken together last year had gone off without a hitch.
And now this.
Of course, it never crossed my mind to blame Vicky for falling ill at the worst possible moment. But surely Im allowed to be upset our plans were spoilt?
What else can we do? Youll just have to dash about the ancient ruins on your own, Chris said with a sigh. He was clearly disappointed too; still, no one could expect him to leave his poorly wife at home and go off carousing. The money spent on the holiday stung as well no chance of getting the whole £1200 back now. And it was more than just the money, really; it was knowing our carefully laid plans had unravelled.
That evening, Maxs mum popped round, all smiles, with an idea up her sleeve.
This wasnt unusual. He and his mum, Brenda Thompson, were quite close, and she was, on the whole, a perfectly decent woman. Of course, every now and again shed lapse into the traditional mother-in-law mode, coming up with well-meaning but unsolicited advice on housework and married life. My friends all moan about their mothers-in-law being utter dragons by comparison, Id genuinely got the lightweight option.
Sure, Brenda visited a lot sometimes four times a week. But her lessons on proper cooking or cleaning only cropped up once or twice a fortnight, and in all honesty, a handful of those tips have actually helped. I never felt antagonised.
So when Brenda suggested we spend the holiday together, I took it in good humour. Her plan was simple: shed buy the tickets off Chris and Vicky, bring along her younger daughter Molly, and the four of us Max, Brenda, Molly, and me would head off to sunny Cyprus. She wanted a bit of warmth for her ageing bones and was keen on collecting new experiences.
Im just nervous about travelling alone with Molly, you know how it is two women, dont know the language, anything could happen but with you two there as well, it wont be half so frightening!
Oh, if only Id known just how close together Brenda meant.
Had I known then what I know now, I never would have agreed to spending my holiday with my future mother-in-law and sister-in-law. But, from another angle, perhaps it was for the best that I saw Max and his familys true colours before tying the knot. Its better than dealing with this hassle when a breakup would come tangled in paperwork and solicitors.
Piecing together the trip, I fielded endless doubts from my girlfriends. Who willingly jets off with their mother-in-law? they quipped. Shell run the show, make her son revolve around her, and rope either of you into babysitting Molly. I pushed back: Mollys nineteen, quite independent, and barely spoke to me outside of perfunctory greetings over Sunday roast. There was no reason to believe shed suddenly crave my company abroad.
As for Brenda, yes, it was clear wed need to plan the holiday with her presence in mind, but how much trouble could it really be? And even if it was awkward, it was just for two weeks. I figured itd be a great excuse in future to politely decline any more group excursions.
Besides, my friends didnt know Brenda at all they were judging by their own, rather monstrous mothers-in-law. Theyd always said I was lucky with Maxs mum and family in general, yet now, somehow, they were urging me to run for the hills.
But Brenda was all excited, and Max was elated at the prospect of showing his mum Cyprus. How could I refuse?
The first sign something was off came on the plane.
Molly nabbed the window seat fair enough, no one objected. I travel for work all the time; the window has lost all novelty for me. Max had eyes only for his in-flight movie selection, and I preferred sitting by the aisle quick access to the loo, no clambering over sleeping strangers.
Across the aisle sat Brenda, already nervous. When turbulence hit, she looked on the verge of tears. Of course I swapped seats with her so she could sit beside Max and calm down. Yet, once clear skies returned, no one offered to swap me back. Brenda feigned interest in Maxs film, then promptly fell asleep with her head on his shoulder.
I tried to squash the irritation No need to make a fuss, I told myself. Shes just been anxious, no point waking her. But a small voice inside me pointed out that Brenda awoke conveniently the second food was being served, and she easily couldve swapped with Molly, whod long since shut the blind and was glued to her own screen.
Watching that tableau of familial affection, irritation gnawed at me, growing even stronger when we landed. Max, rather than spare a glance for me, bounded over to help his mum first fetching her suitcase, then hunting down a water bottle. I started to feel invisible, a spare part in my own holiday.
Darling, whats wrong? No ones trying to leave you out, youre imagining things. Mums just new here; the flight rattled her, you saw that
I bit my tongue. What was the point in saying, Why did your mum need to come? After all, Mum always taught me to defer to elders, look after the vulnerable, and not think only of myself.
And yes, Maxs mum had been stressed, and as a loving son he did the right thing, offering support. Helping with bags and looking in on her didnt do me any harm. But I couldnt have known that what happened on the plane and at the airport was only the beginning.
Because the very next evening, Brenda triumphantly wheeled her suitcase into our hotel room and that, as it turned out, was only the start.
