My Fiancée Forced Me to Buy a Big House, So I Bought a Rundown One Instead

My fiancee was pregnant, and every single day she pushed me to lock down the wedding house.

The original plan had been a nice unit, about eleven hundred square feet.

But she wouldn't have it. She kept telling me all her girlfriends lived in big luxury condos.

She'd rather die than live in some ordinary apartment complex.

Then the agent called and asked me to come look at a place, around sixteen hundred square feet. Nothing wrong with it, he said on the phone, just a little old. And the price. Half of what it should have gone for.

That got my attention right away, so I brought Phyllis along to see it.

Then she saw it was a run-down second-hand house.

She lost it on the spot, crying and shouting her warning at me. "Theo Simmons, don't say I didn't warn you. If you dare buy a second-hand dump not even a dog would live in, I'll go straight to the clinic and have an abortion!"

The place really was old, and there was some strange, foul stench hanging in the air. I was about to lay into the agent when, out of nowhere, a child's voice came to my ear. "Mister, buy this house."

The hair on my neck stood straight up. Who said that?

Then the voice came again.

"There's money in the house. A lot of money, hidden away."

"If you buy this house."

"You'll be set for the rest of your life."

...

I stood there stunned, looking left and right, making sure there was no child anywhere near me. Just me, my fiancee, and the agent selling the place.

The agent smiled at me. "Mr. Simmons, this is a real steal. Look at the light, all this space. And the price is the best part."

I wiped the shock off my face.

Puzzled, I asked him, "Where did the owner go?"

"Moved overseas for good."

"The price has been cut again and again."

"Mr. Simmons, a chance like this doesn't come twice."

"Even if you don't live in it yourself, buy it as an investment and you can't lose."

He had a point, I thought.

Mostly, though, it was that voice in my ear that had my interest in this house running deep.

"Knock a little more off the price."

"It's already cheap enough."

"Take another thirty grand off. We're getting married soon, I need the money for the wedding. You talk to the owner for me, and if it works out I'll throw in an extra three thousand commission."

The moment the agent heard there was money in it for him.

He agreed to go talk to the owner right away.

After he stepped outside to make the call.

Phyllis Pruitt gave my arm a hard pinch.

Her eyes were rimmed red, but she was glaring at me.

"Theo Simmons, are we still getting married or not?"

"Of course we are."

"I think you just don't take me seriously."

"I want a big luxury condo."

"Not some run-down second-hand house!"

"Can't you understand that?"

"Baby, just take it easy."

"We'll live here for now, as a stepping stone."

"Once I'm making money down the road."

"Forget a luxury condo, I'll buy you a huge mansion."

"You're dangling a carrot in front of me?"

Phyllis was so angry her chest was trembling. She jabbed a finger at me. "I'm giving you one last chance. Are you buying the luxury condo or not?"

"I'll buy it, of course I will, I'll buy it for you down the road."

"Bullshit, you just don't care about me!"

"That's not true."

"It's just that the money isn't there right now."

"No money, so get a loan!"

I hurried to calm her down. "I can pay the whole thing in cash. Why would I take out a loan?"

"Theo Simmons, go find some other woman to marry!"

Phyllis could see nothing was getting through to me.

I was clearly dead set on buying the second-hand house.

Voice cracking, she called my parents to rat me out.

"There's no way Theo and I can get married now."

"He promised me before that we'd buy a large luxury condo for our wedding home."

"The down payment is all ready to go."

"And now he wants to buy me a second-hand house instead."

"Tell him to go find you a new daughter-in-law."

Once Phyllis had finished pouring out her grievances, she didn't hang up.

She deliberately put the call on speaker.

"Phyllis, don't get upset."

"Give the phone to that little punk."

"We'll set him straight."

Phyllis said, "You're on speaker. He can hear you."

The next second, my dad's furious bellow came through.

"Theo Simmons, you little bastard, I dug into my own funeral savings to buy you a house."

"We promised Phyllis a large luxury condo, so we're not going back on our word."

Right after that, my mom started in on me too.

"I'm warning you, if you dare upset my daughter-in-law and something happens to my grandchild, I will never forgive you."

"You buy the large luxury condo, and that's final!"

Phyllis watched me with a smug look on her face.

I sighed. "Mom, Dad, I have a plan and my reasons for buying the second-hand house..."

"Plan, my ass."

"If you actually dare buy that second-hand house."

"I'll break your legs!"

I never doubted my dad for a second.

Because he really would do it.

But I swept my eyes over the second-hand house one more time.

And the more I looked, the more I liked it.

So I pretended to agree, telling my parents I'd reconsider the whole house situation.

Once Phyllis hung up, I was just about to explain things to her.

The agent came rushing in.

He told me happily, "Mr. Simmons, the owner agreed."

"When do we sign the contract?"

Phyllis glared at me viciously. "You sign that thing and see what happens."

"Babe, honestly, with just a little renovation, this place."

"It'd be every bit as good as a luxury condo."

"I don't want it!"

"Then... fine."

I quietly shot the agent a knowing look, then took Phyllis and left.

Once she'd gone off to have afternoon tea with her girlfriends, I hurried to contact the agent again. "I'll take the house. I can wire the money today. Let's sign the contract right away!"

"No problem."

And just like that, I bought the second-hand house without telling Phyllis or my parents.

When I got home that night, my parents chewed me out hard all over again.

They told me to put Phyllis first.

To satisfy her as much as I could.

After all, half the money for the house was Phyllis's, and it wasn't like she was being unreasonable asking for a large luxury condo. She'd told me to take out a loan and said she'd pay it back alongside me.

But to me, living with a huge loan hanging over my head sounded exhausting.

Better to wait a couple of years, make some money, and think about it then.

After I'd coaxed Phyllis to sleep, I slipped out to that run-down second-hand house.

Nobody had lived in the house for years, so the water and power had long since been shut off.

Middle of the night.

I went room to room alone with a flashlight.

Floorboards, wall tiles, under the bed, behind the closet.

I tapped and knocked at everything.

Looking for any false panel or hidden compartment.

I was deep in the search when my phone suddenly rang.

It startled me. I saw it was Phyllis and picked up with a low hello.

"Theo, where did you go?"

"It's too hot, I couldn't sleep. Came out to get some air."

"You're lying. I saw the contract. The money for our big condo, you actually spent it on that run-down second-hand house?"

There was no hiding it now, so I admitted it. "Yeah. Babe, listen to me, this house"

"Theo, is your brain waterlogged or what?"

"My parents put up all that money."

"And you buy me a second-hand house for our wedding home?"

"How am I supposed to face the girls?"

"I really can't do this with you anymore."

"First thing tomorrow I'm going to the hospital to abort it."

"We're completely done!"

Before I could explain,

Phyllis hung up.

I almost called back to explain.

Then I thought better of it and let it go.

Nothing I said would matter right now.

Once I found the money hidden in this house,

she'd forgive me.

So I threw myself back into the search.

About ten minutes in,

that child's voice came to me again.

"Check the bathroom, mister."

I froze for a second.

"Who are you?"

No answer.

"I already searched the bathroom. Are you messing with me on purpose?"

Still nothing.

Nothing for it. I made myself go back to the bathroom.

Aside from the washbasin and a yellowed, stinking squat toilet,

there was hardly anything of value in there.

I went over the floor and the walls all around again, carefully.

Solid, all of it.

Fast.

I lost my patience.

"Damn it, you really are just messing with me?"

Just as I was about to leave the bathroom,

a faint, barely noticeable cold draft slid past overhead.

The vent had been broken for ages.

So where was this air coming from?

I looked up, puzzled.

And my eyes lit up in an instant.

Could it be...

Was there something in the exhaust vent?

I hurried to grab a chair and pried off the vent cover.

Then I shone the flashlight and stuck my head inside.

But apart from an even thicker stench,

there was nothing.

Just as disappointment settled in, my phone accidentally knocked against the tile beside me.

Thud!

A crisp, hollow sound rang out.

"Hollow?"

I froze, and a second later the excitement hit me all at once.

I'd finally found it.

I wanted to grab a hammer or something and break the wall open to see.

But after searching the whole place,

all this house had was a few tables, chairs, stools, and a bed frame.

Nothing else.

There was no help for it.

I'd have to go home for tools.

But the moment I walked in, I saw Phyllis sitting on the couch, crying.

My parents' faces were darker than dark.

The second they saw me,

they shot me a vicious glare.

Phyllis shot to her feet and threw a handwritten agreement at me.

"Theo Simmons, I've had enough of you."

"Sign it."

"After this, we never see each other again as long as we live!"

I glanced over what it said.

The gist was that she wanted to break up.

She'd keep the baby.

But she'd raise it alone.

And I was never to come around and bother the child again.

I balled the agreement up and tossed it in the trash.

"What are you doing?"

Phyllis glared at me.

"Phyllis, don't be silly. How could I ever break up with you?"

"We've already set the wedding date."

"You don't even want to marry me. So what if we set a date? We'll just cancel it."

"No. I've told you, you're the only one I'll ever marry in this life."

My parents jabbed a finger at me and let loose a torrent of cursing.

I almost told them my plan.

But I hesitated, and in the end I held it in.

What if there was no money in that second-hand house's hidden compartment?

How would I explain that?

"Phyllis, there are some things you probably won't believe even if I tell you."

"But we're about to get married, and I don't want to keep it from you."

"Come with me. Just once."

I found an iron hammer in the storage room, then grabbed Phyllis and started for the door.

My parents scrambled to stop me.

"Have you lost your mind? You want to bash Phyllis to death with that hammer?"

"Son, are you sick in the head?"

Phyllis yanked her hand back too, scared.

Faced with how badly they'd misread it, all I could do was give a bitter laugh.

"Mom, Dad, stop making this worse."

"I'll explain everything to Phyllis myself."

"Just wait until we're back!"

I dragged Phyllis out of the house by force.

Then we rushed straight to that second-hand house.

When we got there,

Phyllis wrenched her hand free of mine.

She looked at me with an expression that was equal parts shock and disbelief.

"Theo Simmons, have you actually lost it?"

"You're telling me some kid whispered in your ear,"

"telling you this house is hiding a lot of money?"

I nodded hard. "Yes. And when I came earlier I already found the hidden compartment. Once I break the wall open, we're going to be rich!"

Phyllis touched my forehead, uneasy and unsure. "Stop scaring me. You don't even have a fever, so why are you talking nonsense?"

"I know this is hard to believe."

"Seeing is believing."

"Come on, I'll break it open and show you."

I took her by the hand and led her to the bathroom.

"Phyllis, step back a little."

"I'm about to start swinging!"