Tearing off the Mask of the Internet-Famous Mother-in-law

My mother-in-law, Amelia, was a social media influencer.

After my husband and I got married, she moved into our home without invitation, claiming it was to manage her social media accounts.

She would get up at the crack of dawn to knead dough and insisted on walking us down to the car every morning as we headed to work.

Everyone online praised her as the “angelic mother-in-law.”

Fine, then. I decided to start my own live stream to show the world the real side of this so-called angelic mother-in-law.

——

“Oh, it’s no trouble at all! As long as they’re happy together, I’m happy,” Amelia said on her live stream, bent over the floor, meticulously scrubbing with a cloth.

I sat on the couch, watching her with cold eyes.

This scene played out every single day.

She scrubbed the same spot over and over until it gleamed.

Meanwhile, her live chat was flooded with gifts and donations as she thanked her viewers profusely.

“Thanks, everyone! Now I can treat my son and daughter-in-law to something extra special for dinner.”

She then turned the camera toward me. “Chelsea, come thank everyone! Today’s donations mean we can have an even nicer dinner tonight!”

Instinctively, I covered my face with my hand. “Mom, please don’t do this!”

Amelia immediately apologized. “I’m sorry, Chelsea; it’s my fault.”

I didn’t even have to look at the live chat to know it was filled with hateful comments about me.

I quickly stood up and retreated to my room, listening to Amelia’s voice outside.

“My daughter-in-law is just shy; it’s not that she doesn’t treat me well.

“As a mother, all I wanted was for my son to have a good life.

“That’s it for today’s stream. Thank you, everyone. See you tomorrow.”

Amelia shut off her live stream and immediately barged into my room.

“Chelsea, what’s with the attitude?” she yelled at me, the sweet demeanor from before gone in an instant.

“I just don’t want to be on camera. Is that too much to ask?” I responded coldly.

“I’m doing you a favor by letting you be on my stream. Don’t be ungrateful. Now, go clean the floor,” she ordered, with no hint of politeness.

“I don’t have time for that. I have work to do.” I stood up and shut the door, locking it behind me.

She started banging on the door in anger.

“Just wait until my son gets home. Let’s see how he deals with you!” She kept pounding on the door until I felt like I was going to lose my mind.

“Jake, you better get home right now,” I said furiously when I called my husband.

It didn’t take long for him to come home.

I heard him arguing with Amelia outside, then soothing her until things finally quieted down.

He then knocked on my door.

“Chelsea, I’m back.”

I opened the door, still scowling, and saw that the living room was empty.

“Mom went out to visit some friends. Sweetheart, it’s my fault. I promise, she won’t act like that anymore.” He pulled me into his arms, speaking softly.

“Jake, it’s either her or me in this house. You need to think this through. We agreed on our own place, just the two of us, but now your mom’s moved in and you’ve turned into the perfect son. I feel like I’m being pushed to the side.”

Jake looked conflicted. “Chelsea, my mom’s had it tough...”

I cut him off before he could finish.

“She’s had it tough because of me? You keep saying how hard it was for her to raise you, but I didn’t sign up to be mistreated in my own home.”

I refused to back down.

“Chelsea, I know you’re upset about the live streams, but she’s just trying to make money for us. You have to understand.”

“When had she ever given us any money? She’s always asking us for it, and you just forgot?”

Jake had always been easy-going, with a soft heart.

It was what I loved about him, but now it had become the biggest problem.

“I’m going to stay at my parents’ for a few days, Jake. You need to think things over.”

I grabbed my suitcase, ready to leave, and Jake refused to let me go.

“If you try to stop me, I’ll never come back.”

With no other choice, Jake drove me to my parents’ house. He even told them he had to go on a business trip and asked them to look after me for a couple of days.