My Parents Refused to Attend My Wedding Because My Fiancé Was Poor — We Met 10 Years Later and They Begged to Build a Relationship

When Emma fell in love with a humble teacher, her parents gave her an ultimatum: choose him or them. On her wedding day, their seats sat empty, but her grandpa stood by her side. At his funeral ten years later, her estranged parents begged for her forgiveness, but not for the reasons she thought.

Growing up in our pristine suburban home, my parents had a running joke about how we’d all live in a grand mansion someday.

A mansion with a formal garden | Source: Pexels

A mansion with a formal garden | Source: Pexels

“One day, Emma,” my father would say, adjusting his already-perfect tie in the hallway mirror, “we’ll live in a house so big you’ll need a map to find the kitchen.”

My mother would laugh, the sound like crystal glasses clinking, adding, “And you’ll marry someone who’ll help us get there, won’t you, sweetheart?”

“A prince!” I’d reply when I was a kid. “With a big castle! And lots of horses!”

An excited girl with her hands in the air | Source: Midjourney

An excited girl with her hands in the air | Source: Midjourney

I thought it was funny throughout my early childhood. I even used to daydream about my future castle. But by high school, I understood there was nothing funny about it at all.

My parents were relentless. Every decision they made, every friendship they had, and every activity we attended had to advance our social climbing somehow.

Mom vetted my friends based on their parents’ tax brackets! I don’t think I’ll ever forget how she sneered when I brought my classmate Bianca over to work on our science project.

A woman with a disapproving look | Source: Midjourney

A woman with a disapproving look | Source: Midjourney

“You aren’t friends with that girl, are you?” Mom asked at dinner that evening.

I shrugged. “Bianca’s nice, and she’s one of the top students in class.”

“She’s not good enough for you,” Mom replied sternly. “Those cheap clothes and awful haircut says it all, top student or not.”

A strange feeling churned in my gut when Mom said those words. That was when I truly realized how narrow-minded my parents were.

A teen girl seated at a dinner table | Source: Midjourney

A teen girl seated at a dinner table | Source: Midjourney

Dad was no better. He networked at my school events instead of watching my performances.

I still remember my leading role in “The Glass Menagerie” senior year. Father spent the entire show in the lobby discussing investment opportunities with the parents of my cast mates.

“Did you see me at all?” I asked him afterward, still in my costume.

“Of course, princess,” he replied, not looking up from his phone. “I heard the applause. Must have been wonderful.”

A man using his phone while his sad teen daughter stands nearby | Source: Midjourney

A man using his phone while his sad teen daughter stands nearby | Source: Midjourney

Then came college and Liam.

“A teacher?” My mother had practically choked on her champagne when I told her about him. “Emma, darling, teachers are wonderful people, but they’re not exactly… well, you know.”

She glanced around our country club as if someone might overhear this shameful secret.

I knew exactly what she meant, and for the first time in my life, I didn’t care.

A woman with a determined look on her face | Source: Midjourney

A woman with a determined look on her face | Source: Midjourney

Liam was different from anyone I’d ever met. While other guys tried to impress me with their parents’ vacation homes or luxury cars, he talked about becoming a teacher with such passion it made his whole face light up.

When he proposed, it wasn’t with an enormous diamond in a fancy restaurant. It was with his grandmother’s ring in the community garden where we’d had our first date.

The stone was small but caught the sunlight in a way that made it look like it held all the stars in the universe.

A diamond ring sparkling in sunlight | Source: Midjourney

A diamond ring sparkling in sunlight | Source: Midjourney

“I can’t give you a mansion,” he said, his voice shaking slightly, “but I promise to give you a home filled with love.”

I said yes before he could even finish asking.

My parents’ response was arctic.

“Not that teacher!” my father had spat as though he was talking about some criminal. “How will he provide for you? For us? You’ll be throwing your future in the trash if you marry him!”

A man gesturing angrily during dinner | Source: Midjourney

A man gesturing angrily during dinner | Source: Midjourney

“He already provides everything I need,” I told them. “He’s kind, he makes me laugh, and he—”

“I forbid it!” Dad interrupted. “If you go through with this, if you marry that teacher…”

“Then we’ll cut you off,” Mom finished, her voice sharp as glass. “Call him right this minute and break up with him, or we’ll disown you. We didn’t invest so much time and effort in your upbringing only for you to throw it all away.”

My jaw dropped.

A woman gasping in disbelief during dinner | Source: Midjourney

A woman gasping in disbelief during dinner | Source: Midjourney

“You can’t be serious,” I whispered.

“It’s him or us,” Dad replied, his face like stone.

I’d known my parents might have a hard time accepting Liam, but this? I couldn’t believe they’d make such an impossible demand.

But the hard look on their faces made it clear their decision was final. I knew I had to make a choice, and it broke my heart.

A sad but determined woman | Source: Midjourney

A sad but determined woman | Source: Midjourney

“I’ll send you an invitation to the wedding in case you change your minds,” I said before standing up and walking away.

The wedding was small, intimate, and perfect, except for the two empty seats in the front row. But Grandpa was there, and somehow his presence filled the whole church.

He walked me down the aisle, his steps slow but steady, and his grip on my arm was firm and reassuring.

“You picked the right kind of wealth, kid,” he whispered as he hugged me. “Love matters more than money. Always has, always will.”

A bride hugging her grandfather | Source: Midjourney

A bride hugging her grandfather | Source: Midjourney

Life wasn’t easy after that. Liam’s teaching salary and the money I made from freelancing brought in just enough to make ends meet.

We lived in a tiny apartment where the heat only worked when it felt like it, and the neighbor’s music became our constant soundtrack. But our home was full of laughter, especially after Sophie was born.

She inherited her father’s gentle heart and my stubborn streak, a combination that made me proud daily.

A child looking at a book | Source: Pexels

A child looking at a book | Source: Pexels

Grandpa was our rock through it all.

He’d show up with groceries when things were tight, though we never told him about our struggles. He’d sit for hours with Sophie, teaching her card tricks and telling her stories about his childhood.

“You know what real wealth is, sweetheart?” I overheard him telling her once. “It’s having people who love you for exactly who you are.”

An elderly man telling stories to his great-granddaughter | Source: Midjourney

An elderly man telling stories to his great-granddaughter | Source: Midjourney

“Like how Mommy and Daddy love me?” Sophie had asked.

“Exactly like that,” he’d replied, his eyes meeting mine across the room. “That’s the kind of rich that lasts forever.”

When Grandpa passed away, it felt like losing my foundation. Standing at his funeral, holding Liam’s hand while Sophie pressed against his leg, I could barely get through the eulogy.

Then I saw them — my parents. They were older but still immaculate and approached me with tears during the reception.

A mature couple at a funeral reception | Source: Midjourney

A mature couple at a funeral reception | Source: Midjourney

Mother’s pearls caught the light from the stained glass windows, and Father’s suit probably cost more than our monthly rent.

“Emma, darling,” my mother said, reaching for my hands. “We’ve been such fools. Please, can we try to rebuild our relationship?”

For a moment, my heart soared. Ten years of pain seemed ready to heal until Aunt Claire marched up and pulled me aside.

A woman with a grim look | Source: Midjourney

A woman with a grim look | Source: Midjourney

“Emma, honey, don’t fall for it,” she said, her voice low and urgent as she guided me toward a quiet corner, “your parents’ apology isn’t genuine. They’re only doing it because of the condition in your Grandpa’s will.”

“What condition?”

Aunt Claire pursed her lips. “Dad spent years trying to convince your parents to reconcile with you. They always refused, so he put it in his will. The only way your mom will get her inheritance is if they apologize and make peace with you, otherwise, her share of the money will go to charity.”

A woman whispering to someone | Source: Midjourney

A woman whispering to someone | Source: Midjourney

The truth hit me like a physical blow. Even now, after all these years, it is still about the money. The tears in their eyes weren’t for me, or Grandpa. They were for their bank account.

She Was a 1980s Bombshell, But Heather Thomas Faced Demons—Her Transformation at 66 Is Unbelievable!

Heather Thomas, known for her role alongside Lee Majors in *The Fall Guy*, turned 66 on September 8. She was on track for a very successful Hollywood career.

However, after the show’s finale, her mother appeared on set, and Thomas rushed to the hospital, thinking her father had an emergency. But when she arrived at the Santa Monica hospital, her family and friends told her that her father, Leon, was fine—it was her they were worried about.

This marked the start of a new chapter in the 28-year-old’s life, which would change both her personal life and career.

Read on to find out what happened to the famous 1980s pinup girl!

Heather Thomas had talent and natural beauty that compared to stars like Farrah Fawcett and Heather Locklear. She was born to be in the spotlight.

At just 14, she hosted an NBC show called *Talking with a Giant*, where she and other teens interviewed celebrities.

Wanting more, Thomas studied film and theater at UCLA, aiming to be an actor, director, and writer. Before she graduated, she appeared in a short-lived comedy series called *Co-Ed Fever* in 1979.

In 1980, Thomas, who was born in Connecticut, landed her first major role in *The Fall Guy*. She played Jody Banks, a stuntwoman and bounty hunter, alongside Lee Majors, who was famous for his role in *The Six Million Dollar Man*.

Her role made her popular, especially among male viewers, who saw her as a sex symbol. Thomas had mixed feelings about this label.

“There’s a kind of condescension that comes with it,” she told *People*. “You fit the stereotype of the blonde bimbo. But at the time, I was just having fun.”

Unfortunately, Thomas’s fun also involved drugs, a habit that began before her role as Jody Banks.

She revealed that her drug use started in sixth grade to help keep her grades up. “I was taking acid and getting straight A’s. I thought it was mind-expanding,” Thomas said.

As Heather Thomas grew older, the drugs she used also changed.

While studying at UCLA, Thomas started using cocaine. By 1981, just one year into her role on *The Fall Guy*, her drug problems got worse.

Feeling pressure to live up to her image as a sex symbol, the 5-foot-7 actress became obsessed with her weight. She began taking Lasix, a diuretic that can cause extreme tiredness.

To fight the tiredness, she used more cocaine to stay energized.

“At first, I loved the drug. I felt like I was getting a lot out of it. It kept me awake all night, and I could still work the next day,” she said, but claimed she never used it on set. “Cocaine isn’t accepted on sets. It’s no longer cool. It’s just a personal nightmare.”

However, a source close to Thomas told *People* that her drug use was hurting her career. “People knew Heather had a problem,” the source said.

Thomas’s weight dropped from 125 to 105 pounds, and she began falling asleep between scenes. She admitted, “Sometimes, I was in a mini coma.”

One day, she passed out in front of her co-star, Lee Majors. He contacted her manager, who then called her mother.

After the final episode of *The Fall Guy* was filmed, Thomas’s mother, Gladdy Ryder, showed up on set and told her that her father was in the hospital.

Thomas rushed to St. John’s Hospital, but when she arrived, she was met by her family and friends. They were there to admit her into a three-week drug rehabilitation program.

Getty Images

“That day was a big relief for me,” Thomas said. When she checked into detox, she had pneumonia, scarred lungs, and inflamed kidneys. “I’d been on a roller coaster, and I wanted to get off. If my family hadn’t stepped in, I probably would have kept going until I lost my job or died.”

She also said, “The doctors told me I should have been dead three years ago.”

Determined to recover, Thomas surrounded herself with people who supported her goal of staying drug-free. That’s when she met Allan Rosenthal, co-founder of Cocaine Anonymous, and married him when she was 28. They divorced in September 1986.

That same month, Thomas was hit by a car while crossing the street, leaving her with serious injuries to both legs.

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After detox, divorce, and surgery to repair major damage in one of her legs, Heather Thomas returned to acting with smaller roles in TV series. She also appeared in movies like *Cyclone* in 1987 and the 1990 Canadian film *Red Blooded American Girl* with Christopher Plummer.

With her struggles behind her, Thomas started fresh in the 1990s. While working to revive her career, she married entertainment lawyer Skip Brittenham in 1992. She became a stepmother to his two daughters, Kristina and Shauna, and gave birth to her only biological child, daughter India Rose, in June 2000.

Talking about her decision to step away from acting, Thomas said, “I had about 45 restraining orders, and I was on everything from a toilet seat cover to an ashtray. Then I fell in love, had two little girls, and decided to give up acting to write for a while.”

In 2017, Thomas made a brief comeback in the movie *Girltrash: All Night Long*, one of her 26 acting credits.

However, Thomas has focused mostly on writing. She said it wasn’t a lack of roles that drove her away from acting but the constant threat of stalkers invading her privacy. “One guy climbed over the fence with a knife. I had two little girls who needed raising, so that was that. Now, I think I’m old enough that people won’t bother me as much.”

Today, Thomas is also involved in activism. She has served on the boards of the Rape Foundation and the Amazon Conservation Team.

Identifying as a feminist, which some find surprising for a former sex symbol, Thomas explained how she embraced both roles.

“When I was younger, I did what people told me. But as I got older, I didn’t compromise myself. I wanted power and freedom, and my career gave me that. I don’t think being a feminist means you should be ashamed of your body,” she said.

It’s unfortunate that Heather Thomas wasn’t able to fully revive her acting career, but we’re glad she got the help she needed and is now on a lifelong journey of recovery.

The 1980s had so many great shows, and we loved watching her as Jody Banks in *The Fall Guy* alongside Lee Majors, the Six Million Dollar Man!

We’d love to hear your thoughts about Heather Thomas and her journey to recovery!

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