It wasn't just a house.
It was where my parents got married.
It was where I grew up. It was twenty-some years of roots for our entire family.
I wasn't handing it over to anyone.
My parents had already thought of that.
"We can give you a property, but not this one."
"This apartment means the world to our family. We can transfer the suburban villa to Jim instead."
"The location is great, and it's much bigger! It's worth even more than this place."
But my mother-in-law's expression darkened. "No. It has to be this apartment."
"A suburb is a suburb. It'll never compare to this place. This is a premium home in a top school district. Who knows how much it'll appreciate in the future."
"It has to be this one."
My father frowned, his displeasure barely contained.
"We understand you want to look out for your son and secure something for Jim. But there's no need to make this difficult for us. I've already told you this apartment is off the table."
He waved his hand and spoke bluntly. "The suburban house, plus eight hundred and eighty thousand dollars on top. That should be more than enough. Even with appreciation, this place would never be worth that much more."