My husband and I first met by chance, sharing a dorm room during our university days. Over time, our friendship blossomed into something deeper, and eventually, we became partners. Although living in student halls was enjoyable during our studies, we realised it was time to move on and start our own family. As our incomes grew, we made the decision to invest in a flat, which meant selling our two rooms in the halls.
We kept our plans quiet, hoping to renovate the flat and surprise our relatives with a cheerful housewarming party. However, my husband’s brother caught wind of our intention to sell and approached us with an offer:
Why not sell me the rooms for a bit less? Were family after all, he said, playing for sympathy as he explained he could only pay in instalments since he had two children. He even insisted that the rooms were hardly worth anything, making it difficult to justify paying their full value. What he didnt realise was that we had already sold the student rooms long ago and bought our own flat with the proceeds.
He cleverly let slip our secret by telling everyone about our new flat. Instead of celebrating our good fortune, my brother ended up visibly annoyed and left without saying a word. It was clear he hoped to take advantage of the situation, but our careful planning outwitted his scheming intentions.
