Real life: “My father-in-law found my sex toy in the mail”

Emily (24) has been in a relationship with Michael (23) for almost two years. Everything is going incredibly well in their relationship, although they do have some difficult moments. This is mainly because Michael's parents are not very big fans of Emily.

‘Michael and I actually seem to be total opposites. Really opposites attract. I am very outgoing, very spontaneous, and always full of energy. Michael is a bit more reserved and doesn't show the back of his tongue very quickly. But so far, that has actually only worked in our favor: we learn a lot from each other. He is coming out of his shell more, and I am learning more and more to take my time and not always give 110 percent. We sometimes say that we are yin and yang, but it often feels that way.

The funny thing is that it is also very clear to see from whom we got it: our parents. My parents are my best friends: we are very open and discuss everything with each other. My upbringing was also very free; my parents always gave me the confidence that I would make the right choice. They understood that I wanted to experiment with alcohol, drugs, smoking... I have an older sister and a younger brother, and we are very close with the five of us.

Michael comes from a very different family. He is an only child, and they never talk about anything. They ask how school or studies are going, but nothing more. They thought it was more important for Michael to get passing grades at school than for him to actually have a good time. He did sneakily drink sometimes, but not much; he mainly listened to his parents.

Since Michael and I met, that has changed, I think, because of me. Michael and I see that as something very positive, but his parents see it differently... They think that I am a bad influence on Michael and do not hide that. They have literally told me that a few times and have said it even more often behind my back to Michael. He doesn't care about that, but it is very annoying. I only see them during obligations like Christmas and birthdays. They are friendly to me, but absolutely not warm.

In the last few months, things were actually getting better. I held back more, acted like a completely different person when I saw them, and that seemed to pay off. Until a month ago... Michael and I had to house-sit for his parents because they were on vacation. The fact that they agreed to let me house-sit was already a huge step forward. They were driving to France and would stay there for three weeks.

Michael and I had often discussed spicing up our sex life with sex toys, for me and for him. Now that we were in his parents' house for three weeks and there was not much to do, it seemed like a perfect opportunity to focus on each other... We ordered the toys that would be delivered within five working days.

But then his parents came back earlier because Michael's grandmother ended up in the hospital. We called to change the address, and the company said that was no problem, but then we got a message from Michael's father: what on earth this package was supposed to be, what he was supposed to do with these kinds of things, and that he absolutely wanted an explanation about it.

Michael and I have not dared to face his parents yet, and I keep postponing it. However, Michael cannot do that; they are still his parents. Next week he is going to have dinner with them, and I am really terrified of what they will say... He wants me to come along, but not a hair on my head thinks about that.’

In this unusual time, we asked people for their honest story. To avoid hurting others, the names of Emily and Michael have been changed.