All Chapters of Scarily Frugal: Chapter 1 - Chapter 9

I watched with my own eyes as my husband, Rufus Truman, used the "specially treated" toilet paper prepared by my mother-in-law, Hilda Mane.After he used it, Hilda even went up to him and asked how it felt.Rubbing his backside thoughtfully, Rufus replied, "It's great! The texture is really soft."I couldn't help but laugh out loud. Of course, the texture was good—Hilda had spent over an hour meticulously "selecting" it. She had picked them out of her little packet of "special" toilet paper.Hilda shot me a glare but then smirked triumphantly. She lifted her chin proudly and boasted, "Of course! I got all of this for free!"Rufus probably thought she had snagged a good deal at some supermarket. He gave her a thumbs-up and praised her, "You're so thrifty, Mom. I must say that you're really good at saving money."That compliment made her even happier. She grinned and said gleefully, "I'll get more of those next time."But her joy didn't last long.That very night, Rufus started s

"Mom, are you sure smearing chili powder helps? It's killing me! Help me! Ah!" Rufus cried.My goodness! To skimp on medical fees, Hilda resorted to some ridiculous home remedy that involved using chili powder.The screaming went on for about ten minutes before suddenly stopping.Then, there came Hilda's terrified shout. "Rufus? Rufus!"He must have fainted from the pain. I didn't intervene and let them handle it themselves.By the next evening, Rufus slowly regained consciousness. Still, he refused to go to the hospital.Rufus complained, "No way! My butt is smeared with chili powder, and it's completely raw. If I go to the hospital, everyone will laugh at me! It's so humiliating. This is all your fault, Mom!"Feeling wronged, Hilda countered, "How is this my fault? I was doing it for your own good! Back in the village, this method always worked. You young people nowadays are weak!"Rufus was so angry he almost burst a vein upon hearing that.To make it up to him, Hilda decid

I was absolutely dumbfounded.As I stayed silent, Greta grew more aggressive. "Mom picked those specifically for you! Why didn't you use them? If you had, she wouldn't have gotten this filthy disease!"Her words were absurd. It was something only a lunatic might say.Greta went on righteously, "And if you weren't going to use them, why didn't you make sure she threw them away? You didn't want to get sick, but you let her get sick instead!"I shot back defiantly, "Why don't you ask your mom whether I had told her to throw them away? And why should I use them? What does her getting sick have to do with me?"Hilda muttered in a barely audible voice, "She did tell me to throw them away."But as soon as the words left her mouth, she straightened up and glared at me like she'd found some justification to base her accusations on. "Why didn't you stop me? If you had been stern with me or thrown them out yourself, I'd be fine now! You could have done it, but you didn't. You wanted to harm

"Your intestines have ulcerated. Your rectum is no longer functioning, and so is your urethra. You'll have to live with ostomy bags for the rest of your life," the doctor stated plainly.Rufus' relieved smile froze on his face. "B-But, Doctor, I... I feel fine. It doesn't hurt..."The doctor continued jotting down notes in his report. "Of course, it doesn't hurt. You've probably lost all sensation by now. The muscles in your rectum are completely necrotic. From your records, it looks like you've been having frequent diarrhea recently."Rufus nodded grimly."That's because your diet has been far too greasy, so it led to severe intestinal issues. You shouldn't have been eating fish, meat, or shrimp. A lighter diet might have helped delay the damage," the doctor said.After finishing the last of his report, he handed it to Rufus and stated, "There's no chance for recovery. Based on the wounds, there's been continuous irritation and trauma, which accelerated the necrosis. "You waite

The next day, Rufus informed me that Hilda had passed away the previous night when I returned. Rufus seemed to be so overcome with grief that he could barely stand. He sobbed inconsolably. Greta was just as distraught. She choked on her words through her tears. To anyone watching, they seemed like devoted, loving children.I offered a few words of comfort before heading to work.On my way, I listened to the recording that I obtained by planting a bug in Rufus' phone.In the recording, Rufus said, "Mom, you have AIDS. How much longer can you live? For all the harm you've caused the people in your life—maybe this is your reckoning. If it weren't for you, we wouldn't be in this mess."Mom, if you survive the surgery and stay in the ICU, how much money will that cost me? How long will you keep dragging me down? Can't you just go peacefully?"Greta's trembling voice chimed in, "Rufus, a-are we really going to… let Mom go?""What's the alternative? Are you going to take care of her?"