“You went to Monterrey?”
“Yes, daughter. And what a house Daniel has, huh? Beautiful. Pool, terrace, a huge kitchen. Yesterday he took us to dinner at a very expensive restaurant. Today he has a get-together with some neighbors. Honestly, we are having a great time.”
I felt the anger rising slowly through my chest.
“You knew today was Lía’s birthday.”
“Yes, but we cannot drop everything for every little thing either. We also have other grandchildren.”
Every little thing.
I looked at Marcos from the living room. He came closer when he heard my tone.
“It was her fifth birthday,” I said. “She spent the whole time waiting by the door. She ended up crying because she thought she had done something wrong.”
“Oh, Sara, do not exaggerate. She is little. She will not even remember. Daniel’s children are older, they actually understand when someone does not come.”
I put the call on speaker. Marcos stood motionless beside me.
Then a question came out of my mouth that I did not even know I had been holding inside for years.
“And with what money did you make that trip, Dad? Last-minute flights, the hotel, the dinners… that costs money.”
Silence.
“That money, once you send it, is ours,” he finally answered. “You have no reason to ask us what we do with it.”
I felt the ground open beneath my feet.
“I send you that money for the mortgage. For the bills. So you do not lose the house.”
“You help us because you want to,” he replied, now annoyed. “Nobody forced you.”
“You called me crying, saying you could not manage on your own.”
“And we cannot. But that does not mean we do not have the right to live.”
Marcos crossed his arms.
“We are not living, Dad. We are surviving. I work more than 50 hours a week. Marcos has two jobs. We buy the cheapest of everything. We do not go anywhere. And you use that money to go on trips.”
“Well then learn to manage your money better,” he shot back. “It was also your decision to have a daughter if you could not afford it.”
