For five years, my in-laws, Greg and Janet, used our guest bedroom as a storage unit while downsizing. Initially, it seemed harmless. But when my wife, Sarah, and I learned we were expecting, we needed the space back.

“Sure, Dad, the guest room is all yours temporarily,” Sarah had said. However, “temporarily” turned into an overflowing storage unit filled with boxes and old furniture.

After discovering the pregnancy, Sarah insisted, “The storage unit has to go. We need that room for the baby.” We planned to discuss this with her parents during brunch. They were thrilled about the baby but brushed off our request, saying, “Oh, we’ll get to it soon.”

Weeks passed, and nothing changed. Finally, I decided to confront them. “We need it cleared out by the end of this month,” I stated firmly. They nodded but seemed indifferent.

Eventually, Janet started sorting through her items and discovered a moth-damaged fur coat. She screamed, blaming us for ruining it. “You left this here for five years!” I retorted. The argument escalated, and she stormed out, furious.

The next day, I received a $695 invoice from Janet for a new coat. “If she wants to play it this way, fine,” I thought. I calculated the cost of storing her items for five years, totaling $9,000, and created an invoice for her “storage” at our house.

A week later, Greg showed up to collect the remaining items, avoiding eye contact. The guest room was finally empty, and we transformed it into a nursery.

Just when I thought the drama was over, Sarah discovered that Janet was trying to sell the moth-damaged coat online for $1,200, claiming it was an antique. I couldn’t help but laugh at the absurdity.

Later, Greg called, apologizing for everything. He handed me an envelope with a check for $9,000, saying, “Consider this payment for the storage.”

That evening, we celebrated with taco night on Greg.

What would you have done?