She had cared for her disabled husband for years. And one day, he forgot his phone in the kitchen…

Emily barely held herself upright as she left the building of the cosmetics company in Chicago. The workday had drained her to the limit.

Endless product checks, new formulations, constant discussions with suppliers. All the responsibility lay on her shoulders, and it had long become routine. She trudged to the bus stop, mechanically counting the days left until payday.

Familiar thoughts swirled in her head: mortgage, bills, groceries, daughter, Alex. Emily sighed wearily. Her husband, once a strong, cheerful man, was now like a shadow of himself.

After he lost his job due to illness, the whole family rested on her shoulders. At first, she believed it was temporary, that he would cope, find some way to occupy himself, but year after year, nothing changed. She made it home, slowly climbed to her floor, and opened the door.

The apartment was quiet. Alex, as always, lay in the living room, staring at the TV. «Hi,» she tossed, taking off her coat.

«Yeah,» he replied, not even glancing at her. «A typical evening, always like this,» the woman thought. Emily set the kettle and pondered.

Once, Alex was completely different: hardworking, fun, full of energy. He started working early because he didn’t want to waste time on long studies. Right after high school, he went to trade school, trained as a driver, and got a job at the bus depot.

At first, he worked on city routes, but later got certified for interstate trips. He liked that job. Roads, changing landscapes, new cities, but his body couldn’t handle it.

Years of sedentary work, constant vibrations, poor nutrition, and chronic sleep deprivation led to the first alarming symptoms. At 38, he ended up in the hospital with severe back pain. Then came a heart crisis…

Doctors strongly recommended changing jobs. But Alex stubbornly resisted until it finally broke him. After several hospitalizations, he could no longer move normally without pain.

That’s when his mother, Theresa, who held a high position at the Social Security Administration, arranged his disability benefits. Emily accepted it as inevitable. She sincerely believed he was truly unable to work, since Alex complained he couldn’t sit, walk, or even stand for long without pain.

Since then, she took on all the cares. Theresa was a woman with a firm character. Her life had been devoted to caring for her son, and now she believed Emily should continue that mission.

«You’re not taking good care of Alex,» she said almost every chance she got. «He needs support, attention.» Emily didn’t argue, though inside she boiled.

Support? She works every day, pays the bills, provides food, medicine, mortgage, and Alex just complains about life. But for her mother-in-law, that wasn’t an argument. «You know how morally hard it is for him,» she reminded.

«At least cook something tasty more often, not your quick dinners.» Emily clenched her teeth, as if she had time for culinary masterpieces. After her mother-in-law arranged the disability for her husband, he completely gave up on everything…