Sometimes, a whirlwind romance leads to a bitter ending that no one saw coming. Nate and Sarah first met at a mutual friend’s wedding in the suburbs of Chicago.
Sarah was the maid of honor, and Nate was the groom’s cousin. They hit it off instantly, spending the entire night talking and dancing. But as the sun came up, Nate had to head back to his hometown three states away.
Neither of them wanted the spark to die out. The connection felt rare, almost electric. Nate’s job kept him tied to his city, and Sarah was hesitant to leave her life behind for a man she’d just met. Still, they couldn’t stay away from each other.
Their long-distance relationship felt like a movie. They spent hours on FaceTime every night and traded texts all day. After a month, Sarah decided to take a leap of faith and visit Nate for a week to see if they had a real future together.
Nate introduced her to his parents, and at first, Bill and Martha seemed like the typical, welcoming Midwestern couple. Sarah even started looking at local job listings, thinking about a permanent move. But the illusion shattered when she accidentally overheard a blunt conversation between Nate and his father in the kitchen.
Bill didn’t mince words. He told Nate that they weren’t interested in housing a “long-term guest” who wasn’t contributing. He suggested that if Nate wanted to play house, he needed to find his own place and pay his own rent. Bill complained that Sarah seemed “entitled” and that his wife was exhausted from picking up after her.
He was particularly annoyed that Sarah hadn’t offered to help with the laundry or the dishes, letting things pile up as if she were at a hotel. He ended his rant by reminding Nate that the visit was supposed to be seven days, and they were already on day ten.
