“Let her live alone for a while—maybe she’ll realize what she’s lost. And you, son, don’t worry, your mum won’t let anyone push you around…”
“So, Evelyn, your Simon left his wife, didn’t he?”
“He did. And what of it? Are you going to gossip about it all over the neighbourhood?” Evelyn snapped, adjusting the scarf on her grey head.
Simon and Emily had been together just over three years. They’d recently had a baby girl—the long-awaited granddaughter Evelyn had dreamed of for years. But here was the problem: Simon was still, as ever, a mummy’s boy. Always with his head in the clouds, a little childish, spoiled by her endless care and forgiveness.
“What do I need a wife for?” he’d say a couple of years ago. “Just another nag. Women—they’re all the same, always wanting more, never satisfied.”
Evelyn would wave him off—so long as he stayed close, that’s all that mattered. He never bothered much with work, but she didn’t mind—he was home, under her roof. What did it matter if he was pushing thirty? He was still her boy.
Then, as if out of nowhere, he announced one day: “I’m getting married.” He brought home Emily—quiet, unassuming, with eyes full more of hope than confidence. Evelyn approved—not some flighty, selfish girl, but practical. She even bought them a small house in a nearby village to start their life together.
At first, things seemed fine. But Simon was hopeless at married life. He drifted from job to job, mostly as a night watchman, then ended up working part-time at a cemetery—”At least there, no one bosses me around.”
“I can’t, Mum, she drives me mad!” he’d whine to Evelyn. “First she hates where I work, then it’s not enough money, then she wants a new bathroom.”
“Oh, Simon,” Evelyn would sigh, shaking her head. “You ended up with a leech, not a wife. Stay with me for a while—let her see what it’s like on her own.”
After that, Simon started running back and forth—to Emily one day, back to Evelyn the next. He’d return home full of complaints and blame. And Emily… that quiet, meek Emily—started snapping back, shouting, crying. And then, in the middle of another fight, Simon slammed the door and left “for good.”
“She’s had enough of me!” he declared, sitting down at Evelyn’s table. “Can you believe it? She said I’m not a real man if I can’t provide! Well, let her feed herself and stock up on nappies then. I owe her nothing!”
“That’s right, love.” Evelyn nodded. “Who does she think she is? Go on, have some stew—made it just how you like.”
He barely mentioned his daughter anymore. Said looking after her was easy—feed her, put her to bed, take her out. How hard could it be? Meanwhile, Emily moved back in with her parents. Evelyn didn’t hold back:
“What’s the point coming back? We gave you a house, a husband—still not enough? Tough it out like the rest of us!”
The neighbours whispered—Simon had a daughter growing up, and there he was, lounging at home, glued to the telly like nothing was wrong.
“Evelyn, you ought to visit your granddaughter,” a neighbour said one day. “Emily’s raising that baby alone—her parents are helping, but you’ve all but forgotten she exists.”
“Oh, she’s filled your head with rubbish!” Evelyn brushed her off. “Couldn’t keep a man—now she’ll just have to manage. And that girl… I’ll get custody. She’s my blood!”
“Seriously? Take a child from her mother? Your Simon hasn’t got a job—only thing he’s good for is lazing about!”
“Don’t you dare! He’s just… taking a break. He’ll sort himself out.”
But years passed, and Simon still did nothing. No job, no plans—just gripes about “difficult women” and moaning that everyone else was to blame.
“Simon, maybe you should go see Emily, visit your daughter…” Evelyn said hesitantly one day.
“What, Mum? And hear the same old tune—‘You’re useless, where’s the money?’ No thanks. I’m living for myself now!”
Only then did it truly hit her. Right to the core.
“Enough, son,” she said one day. “I’m ashamed of what you’ve become. If Emily files for child support, you’re on your own. I won’t shield you anymore. You’re not a boy.”
Too late. Far too late. She realized she hadn’t raised a man—just a bitter, entitled child. Meanwhile, Emily remarried—a steady, decent man who treated her daughter as his own. And Simon? He stayed with his mum. No family, no purpose, no will to change.
A mother’s love is boundless. But sometimes it blinds.
And if you don’t lift the veil in time, you might wake up one day beside a stranger—a lazy, grown child who thinks the world owes him everything.
