12/12/2025
At my 69th birthday party, my son gave me a box of handmade chocolates. The next day, he called and asked, "So, how were the chocolates?" I smiled and said, "Oh, I gave them to your kids. They love sweets." He went silent... then screamed, "You did what?" His voice shook, his breathing stopped.
It began on the morning of my 69th birthday. Thomas, my son who had grown distant and cold since his marriage, sent a courier with an exquisite velvet box. Inside sat twelve pieces of gold-dusted chocolate from the city's most expensive chocolatier.
I was deeply touched. But then, that old, ingrained habit of motherhood kicked inâthe instinct to deny oneself. These are too good for an old woman alone, I thought.
Laura and the kids will enjoy them much more. That afternoon, I drove to his house and handed the gift to my daughter-in-law, hoping to buy a moment of family peace.
The next morning, the phone rang at 7:00 AM. It was Thomas.
"Mom," he said. His voice was tight, vibrating with a tension I couldn't place. "How were the chocolates?"
It was an odd question. Thomas usually forgot about gifts the moment they left his hands.
"Oh, Thomas," I replied cheerfully. "They were too beautiful to eat alone. I gave them to Laura and the kids. You know how much little Charles loves sweets."
The silence that followed was deafening. It was a vacuum, sucking the air out of my kitchen. I could hear the heavy, ragged breathing on the other end.
Then, he exploded. It wasn't anger; it was the feral scream of a man watching his life disintegrate.
"You did WHAT?"
"I gave them to Laura and the children," I repeated, confused. "Thomas, are you alright?"
"You're crazy! You're an idiot!" His voice climbed an octave, trembling with panic. "Did you eat any? Did the kids eat them? Answer me!"
He hung up. I stood there, the receiver humming in my hand, my heart hammering against my ribs. In the silence, a terrifying realization began to bloom like a drop of ink in water. He didn't care that I gave away his gift.
He wasn't afraid they had eaten the chocolate... he was afraid of what was inside the chocolate.
Two hours later, the phone rang again. It was Laura. She was sobbing uncontrollably.
"Dorothy... the children..."
Full in the first c0mment đ
