Mom Gave My Room to Sister's Dog,I Left

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My mom sent me updates on the new place every single day while it was being renovated. Then, the moment it was finished, she wouldn't let me move in.

"The new place is too far from your office. Why don't you just keep renting? That way you can sleep in an extra half hour in the mornings."

I thought she was worried about my commute.

"Mom, there's a subway station right outside the complex that goes straight there."

"Besides, I've been renting for almost ten years. Now that I've finally bought a place, why on earth wouldn't I live in it?"

"I could spend weekends with you and Dad. Wouldn't that be nice?"

At that, her face fell.

"If you move back in, then what about your sister?"

My hand stopped. "Mom, Julie's married and has her own home now. She only comes back for the holidays."

"And I bought a three-bedroom. You and Dad get one, I get one, and even if Julie visits now and then, there's still a place for her to stay."

My mom got flustered and mumbled awkwardly.

"Then where's Duke supposed to live? I already had a custom dog bed made for him…"

Duke is my sister's dog.

So. In the apartment I paid for outright, my sister and her dog each got their own room, and I didn't.

Seeing the look on my face, my mom fumbled for another explanation.

"If there's really no other way, we can set up a cot for you on the balcony."

"You're allergic to dog hair anyway, so giving Duke his own room is for your sake too. Don't go making yourself sick over this, insisting on squeezing back in."

I nodded. Then I turned around and sold the apartment.

Three bedrooms, and my sister took two of them.

I was done being the family sucker.

…

My mom used to complain to me all the time about how hard her life was, how she was stuck in the countryside forever.

Not like my aunt, who married well and lived in a nice building in the city.

My other aunt's son bought a place and brought her over right away to enjoy the good life.

The thing is, a couple of years ago I'd already paid to renovate the old house.

I even had a heat-pump system installed, so even when it snowed in winter, the rooms stayed a comfortable seventy-seven degrees.

But every time my mom heard my aunt bragging about how she could order takeout whenever she wanted in the city, she'd say the same bitter little thing right in front of me.

"I guess this is all your mom will ever get in this life…"

So after my year-end bonus came in, I didn't hesitate. I took every bit of my savings and bought a three-bedroom apartment outright.

On my mom's birthday, I handed her the deed as a gift.

She froze for a second, then threw her arms around me.

"Oh, Daisy Donaldson… I really didn't spoil you for nothing."

That same night she posted on social media: 【Thank you to my daughter for the birthday gift. We're city people now too.】

The comments blew up. Every aunt and cousin took turns liking it, and my mom couldn't stop grinning.

The place was bare-shell, and since I was flying out of town for work every few days, I handed the whole renovation over to my mom.

"Use good materials. Don't try to save me money," I told her over and over before I left.

She thumped her chest. "Relax. You think I'd cut corners on my own family's home?"

After that, she sent me renovation updates every day.

I'd work late and watch the new place slowly take shape, and it made me feel warm inside.

After almost ten years of renting, I finally had a home.

Back home, the old house had two bedrooms. My parents took one, my sister took the other.

Julie had frayed nerves and couldn't sleep if there was the slightest noise.

So from middle school on, I slept on a cot on the balcony.

Later I lived in dorms through high school and college, then rented after I started working. I came home less and less.

This time was different.

Three bedrooms. I was finally going to have a room of my own.

As the renovation was wrapping up, my lease was almost up too.

I went back to the city over the weekend, planning to pick out a good mattress for my room.

All those years renting, my mattress was either an old one the landlord left behind or some three-hundred-dollar free-shipping thing off the internet, and my back paid for it.

That afternoon I carried the mattress I'd finally settled on and headed home, excited.

"Mom, I bought a new mattress. It'll fit the bed in my room perfectly."

"Oh, and did they hang the curtains in my room yet? I want blue ones…"

My mom, still in her apron, poked her head out from the kitchen and gave a dry little laugh.

"Daisy… you weren't actually planning to move back in, were you?"

I blinked. "What else would I do? My lease is up next month. Why?"

She rubbed her hands together, her eyes darting away from mine.

"See, the new place is so far from your office. If you live here, you'd have to get up at least half an hour earlier."

"You've loved sleeping in since you were little. It'd be too much for you."

I laughed. "It's fine, Mom. I already checked. There's a subway right outside the complex that goes straight there, about the same as my old commute."

"And living in my own place beats renting any day."

She started to say something, stopped, and finally sighed.

"How about you just keep renting?"

"Your sister's in the middle of a divorce. She's planning to move back home for a while. If you move in, where's she supposed to stay?"