When Katie’s boyfriend, Liam, burst into her workplace clutching a ketchup-stained shirt and demanding she wash it, she thought she’d seen it all. But what started as an audacious request turned into a perfectly planned lesson in responsibility.

As a nurse, Katie was used to handling chaos, but nothing prepared her for Liam’s childish antics. They’d moved in together recently, and while she knew he was close to his mom, she hadn’t realized how much he relied on her—until he showed up at her hospital shift, asking her to wash his shirt for a fancy dinner.

“I’m at work, Liam,” she said, baffled.

“But hospitals have washing machines, right? My mom always handled these things for me.”

Her coworkers smirked, and Katie decided right then—this was a teachable moment.

With her manager’s blessing, she took the day off, but instead of washing the shirt herself, she called Liam’s mom. Together, they hatched a plan.

That evening, as Liam sat at dinner with his friends, his mother waltzed into the restaurant, holding the freshly cleaned shirt like a prized possession.

“Liam, sweetheart! I washed your shirt for you!” she announced, loud enough for the whole room to hear.

His friends erupted in laughter. “Aww, look at Mommy taking care of her little boy!”

Liam’s face turned beet red as his mother fussed over him, straightening his collar and reminding him to use napkins. From a hidden corner, Katie watched, barely containing her laughter. When their eyes met, Liam groaned, realizing he’d been set up.

Afterward, he stormed over to Katie, whisper-yelling, “You got my mom involved?”

“You said she always did this for you. Thought you’d appreciate the nostalgia.”

Defeated, he sighed. “Okay, I get it. I was being a jerk. I’ll stop relying on you and my mom for things I should handle myself.”

A week later, Liam attempted laundry on his own—shrinking his favorite sweater in the process.

“You’re lucky you’re cute,” Katie teased.

Liam grinned sheepishly. “I’m trying.”

It was a start.