“Thank you.”
“But I don’t understand why your boyfriend has a bill.”
Ethan explained how the arrangement had begun.
“When we first moved in, Vanessa asked me to contribute something when she made special dinners. I agreed.”
“Which was fair,” Vanessa interrupted.
“I thought so. But then she started charging for everything. Breakfast. Dinner. Leftovers.”
“Because you kept expecting me to cook!”
“I offered to cook for myself.”
Vanessa pressed her lips together. Margaret turned back to him.
“Ethan, who buys the ingredients?”
“I do.”
“All the groceries?”
“Yes.”
“Who pays the rent?”
“I do.”
Vanessa sighed.
“He earns more than me.”
“What about electricity and the other bills?” I asked.
“Me,” Ethan said. “All of them.”
Payments for rent, groceries, and utilities filled the screen. Each entry reinforced how much of their household spending rested on his shoulders, even before the separate meal charges. Margaret reviewed them before questioning her daughter.
