To test my girlfriend’s loyalty, I brought her to my mother’s old house in a small town in Jalisco. I never expected that, when she met her, she would hand me a note that would leave me filled with shame.

“Do you know what I thought when I saw this place?” he asked.

I shook my head.

—That we could be happy here.

I lowered my gaze.

—I’ve been an idiot.

—Quite a big one —she replied, laughing.

I took a deep breath.

—Let me do something… build a new roof.

—I like that.

My mother returned with coffee and watched us with curiosity.

Camila hugged her.

—Thank you for raising a good man.

—Thank you for reminding him who he is—my mother replied.

In that moment, everything became clear.

The one being tested… was me.

I pulled out a ring and dropped to one knee.

—I think you already passed the test.

“You’re a fool,” she said through tears. “But you’re my fool.”

—So…?

—Yeah.

My mother cried with happiness.

And for the first time in many years,
that old house in the middle of the countryside
felt like the richest place in the world.