The Useless Son In-law Is A Legend

Chapter 29

?The whole Harrison house was strangely quiet that afternoon. Ryan had just finished sweeping the front yard when he heard raised voices coming from inside. It wasn’t the usual harsh tone that Mrs. Harrison used on him. This one sounded worried… almost scared.

Ryan paused at the doorway.

He didn’t want to look like he was listening, so he bent down and pretended to tie his slippers. But the voices kept spilling out clearly into the hallway.

Ava was speaking first.

“Mom, you’re too stressed,” she said softly. “The doctor said you need to rest more.”

Mrs. Harrison exhaled sharply. “How do you expect me to rest when things keep going wrong? This house used to be peaceful before all these problems started.”

Ava didn’t reply.

Ryan remained still, pretending to fix the strap of his footwear. He wasn’t trying to eavesdrop. He just didn’t want to walk in and make things awkward. But the next words froze him completely.

Mrs. Harrison’s voice dropped to a shaky whisper.

“I still wonder if it’s because of what happened back then… the past we tried so hard to bury.”

Ava gently touched her mother’s hand. “Mom, please don’t talk about that. You promised not to bring it up.”

Mrs. Harrison groaned. “I know. But sometimes, I feel like everything is coming back to haunt us. The debt… your father leaving us… the shame… all of it.”

Ava quickly cut in. “You raised us alone, Mom. You’re strong. And we’re okay now.”

Mrs. Harrison didn’t answer for a moment. Then she spoke again.

“I’m just tired, Ava. So tired.”

Ava hugged her. “I know.”

Ryan slowly straightened up. He had never heard Mrs. Harrison sound so weak. The woman who always barked orders… the same woman who never showed him kindness… was trembling inside her own room.

He stepped away quietly, not wanting them to know he heard anything.

As he walked toward the backyard, Ryan kept replaying her words.

*“The past we tried so hard to bury…”*

What past?

He knew Clara had anger issues. He knew Ava tried to act kind even when she wasn’t sure how to. And he knew Mrs. Harrison had been struggling alone for years. But there was something deeper—something none of them talked about.

Something painful.

Ryan didn’t want to judge them. He knew what it was like to carry secret wounds. But hearing Mrs. Harrison speak like that made him see her differently—not just as someone who disliked him, but as a tired mother trying to hold her family together.

He took a deep breath.

“Everyone is fighting their own battles,” he said quietly to himself.

He didn’t know why, but his chest felt heavy. Maybe because their problems were starting to affect everything in the house.

Later in the evening, Ava stepped outside and found Ryan folding the laundry.

“You’re quiet today,” she said.

Ryan gave a gentle smile. “Just thinking.”

“Is everything okay?” she asked.

“Yes,” he replied. “Everything is fine.”

Ava studied him for a moment but didn’t ask more. Instead, she sat on the bench beside him.

“Ryan,” she said softly, “thank you… for staying with us. Even when the house feels… complicated.”

Ryan looked up, surprised. Ava rarely spoke like that.

“I’m part of the family,” Ryan said simply. “No matter how small my place seems.”

Ava smiled faintly. “Mom likes stability, you know. She’s just scared of the past repeating itself.”

Ryan wanted to ask what the past was, but he didn’t. It wasn’t his place.

Instead, he nodded. “She’s strong. She’ll be fine.”

Ava looked at him, her eyes soft. “Sometimes… people pretend to be strong because it’s the only thing they can do.”

She stood up and walked inside.

Ryan folded the last shirt and stared at the sky.

He still didn’t know what the Harrison family was hiding.

But he knew one thing for sure—  

whatever it was, it was starting to show cracks around the edges.

And sooner or later, the truth would come out.