**Parents or Divorce: The Cruel Ultimatum**
In a quiet little town in the English countryside, where cobbled lanes were lined with oak trees and warm summer days gave way to crisp evenings, Sophie and James had been married for five years. Their cosy two-bedroom flat in the heart of town was Sophie’s sanctuary, lovingly cared for. But one fateful night, everything changed.
James returned from work and over supper, he explained the trouble his parents were in. They’d built a grand two-storey house in the outskirts, dreaming of a spacious retirement. But come winter, the place turned into an icebox—heating bills devoured their savings, and their pension barely covered the basics. With no other choice, his father and stepmother asked to stay with them for the winter. Sophie’s pulse raced as she listened.
“I won’t have your parents living here!” she snapped, struggling to keep her voice steady. “And I refuse to put up with their dog! I’m not their maid, cleaning up after them and enduring their nonsense. When we needed help, your stepmother shut the door in our faces. Let her deal with the consequences now!”
She expected an argument, pleas, but instead, James looked her dead in the eye and spoke the words that echoed in her chest like a drum:
“Either my parents stay with us, or we get a divorce.”
The room fell silent, thick with tension. Sophie felt as if the ground had vanished beneath her. She couldn’t believe her husband would force such a choice on her. But surrender was not an option. Hosting his stepmother and her massive, unruly Labrador—used to roaming free in their garden—in their modest flat was unthinkable. Things with James’s stepmother had always been strained; the woman made no secret of her disdain, convinced Sophie wasn’t good enough for her son. The idea of her taking over the flat made Sophie’s blood boil.
“Your parents have two other children,” she said coldly, fists tightening. “Let them stay there. I won’t sacrifice my peace for people who couldn’t care less about me. This flat is mine, and I decide who lives in it.”
She reminded James how his parents had flaunted that house, built to impress the neighbours with no thought for the upkeep. Now their recklessness was her problem? No. She wouldn’t let their pride turn her life upside down.
James said nothing, but his determined gaze told her this wasn’t an empty threat. She faced a choice: bend and lose herself, or stand firm and risk her marriage. Her heart ached, but she knew—there was no going back.
