Charles decided to visit his mother in Maryland for the first time in years only to discover that some young teen had been seeing her every day. He became suspicious of her intentions and chased her off. Then something horrible happened, and the man was taught a shocking lesson.
“Why did you come here so suddenly without any notice?” Mrs. Brown asked her son, Charles, who she had not seen in years.
“Aren’t you happy to see me?” Charles asked, placing his bag on the floor and taking off his jacket. He lived in New York while his mother was in Maryland, and he decided to visit her for the first time in years to arrange some things. After all, she was not getting any younger.
“I am happy, but you’re usually busy,” Mrs. Brown commented, watching her son.
“He comes here after years of absence and yells at the girl who has been caring for his mother..”
“Well, I’m finally not that busy, and I actually have some things to discuss with you, Mom,” he explained. “Should we sit down?”
“Sure,” the older woman responded, and they sat.
Charles wanted to talk about some end-of-life matters with his mother. He wondered what she wanted to do with her assets, including her house, and if they should start talking to lawyers about setting up a will. However, Mrs. Brown surprised him.
“Don’t worry about any of that, Charles. I’ve already arranged everything,” she responded, sipping some tea and avoiding his eyes.
“What do you mean?”
“It’s all arranged. Don’t worry about that stuff,” Mrs. Brown continued, seemingly wanting to get the subject over with.
Charles wanted to protest, but the doorbell rang, and his mother stood up excitedly. “Oh! That should be Natalie!” she announced happily, making him frown.
A teenager came in, carrying bags of groceries, and Mrs. Brown introduced him. “I’m so happy to meet you! I’ve just been helping Mrs. Brown with some of her things for a while now,” the young girl said, making her way into the kitchen and putting everything away.
Charles didn’t like how comfortable a perfect stranger felt in his mother’s kitchen. They started talking about how Natalie helped Mrs. Brown with her groceries once at a bus stop, and when Mrs. Brown hurt her ankle, the young teenager started doing it more often.
Afterward, Natalie started coming every day and just hanging out with the older woman, making Charles even more suspicious. Why would a teenager waste her time with an older woman? It didn’t make sense to him.
One day, he answered the door while his mother was still in her bedroom. Natalie was right outside with a smile. She had brought cookies to share with them both, and Charles was tired of her act.
“Now kid, tell me exactly what you’re planning here,” he questioned the girl.
“Excuse me?”
“Tell me the truth,” he continued. “What do you want with an old woman? Don’t have friends to hang out with? Homework to do? Parties? I don’t know anything, but no one willingly hangs out with an old person.”
“I just like being around her. I don’t have a grandmother, and she’s amazing. I live a few houses away, so it’s no trouble. Her stories are pretty interesting. I really love her,” Natalie said, shrugging her shoulders.
Charles took a deep breath and crossed his arm. He didn’t believe her. “Listen, I think it’s time you stop doing that. My mom doesn’t need some teenager hanging around. I don’t know what your angle is. Maybe you want my mother’s inheritance, but I won’t allow it. Leave and don’t come back,” he demanded, almost threateningly.
Natalie’s eyes widened in shock, and she tried to deny the accusations, but Charles got even angrier. He yelled at her to leave, and the teenager didn’t want any trouble, so she did.
Mrs. Brown died a few days later, and Natalie was heartbroken. Despite Charles’ harsh words, she revisited Mrs. Brown’s house to offer her condolences, but Charles didn’t even let her pass the threshold. “I told you never to come back!”
The funeral was scheduled several days away, and Charles’ family had traveled from all around the country. Natalie truly wanted to go, but her hopes were dashed quickly when Charles showed up at her house one day.
“YOU AWFUL GOLD-DIGGER! You actually got my mother to change her will! SHE LEFT YOU EVERYTHING!” he yelled at her on her doorstep, shocking her parents. “I WILL SUE YOU! YOU WILL NOT SEE A PENNY OF THAT MONEY!”
After making that threat, Charles left in a huff, and Natalie had to explain his accusations to her parents and how she had no idea what he was talking about regarding Mrs. Brown’s will. Of course, they believed and supported her.
Natalie wanted to clear things up with Charles. She didn’t want to be seen as someone who could take money from an older woman. She didn’t want anything from her. Therefore, she went to see Charles at Mrs. Brown’s house accompanied by her parents.
She offered to give Charles everything Mrs. Brown left her. In return, all she wanted was a chance to say goodbye at the funeral. Charles was still suspicious, but the teenager seemed honest, and her parents had assured him that they didn’t want anything either.
Charles finally agreed, and Natalie attended the funeral a few days later. The entire neighborhood was there, and Charles realized how beloves his mother was.
But something else happened. The neighbors had heard him yelling at Natalie, and they were whispering about him at the funeral.
“He comes here after years of absence and yells at the girl who has been caring for his mother….”
“He probably came to make sure he was in the will….”
“Poor Natalie. She’s such an amazing girl….”
Charles was sitting in front, and despite the priest’s sermon, he could hear all the gossip going around. He felt horrible about his actions and started crying because they were mostly right. He had neglected his mother and he only visited for the first time in years to talk about practical matters. Other than that, he never worried about his mother’s health or her well-being.
Worst of all, he had chased away the girl who loved his mother dearly just a few days before she died. His shoulders hunched in shame, and he wanted the service to end quickly.
When the event ended, he asked to speak to Natalie. He apologized profusely and invited her and her parents to his house to discuss some matters. He asked her to tell him stories about his mother’s life, and the teenager was only too eager to talk about Mrs. Brown. She did love the old woman.
“She had the best taste in books and let me borrow many from her collection,” Natalie said. “She also had a great sense of humor and the best lasagna recipe in the world. I will miss her forever.”
Natalie continued, and even her parents chimed in with some stories.
Watching this family, Charles realized his huge error and decided he had to make things right again by honoring his mother’s wishes. He let Natalie keep everything his mother left her. Then he returned home and tried to be a better person every day.
What can we learn from this story?
- It’s best not to jump to conclusions before getting the whole story. Charles labeled Natalie a gold-digger right away, but he didn’t know how much she loved Mrs. Brown.
- Sometimes, shame can force you to learn the harshest lessons. Charles didn’t understand how horrible his actions were until he heard the neighbors whispering about him. Luckily, he made things right.
This piece is inspired by our reader’s story and written by a professional writer. Any resemblance to actual names or locations is purely coincidental. All images are for illustration purposes only.
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