Isabella’s mother-in-law, Vivien, dumps a 32-person Thanksgiving on her and expects a flawless feast—starting at 4 a.m.—while Isabella’s husband, Hudson, adds pressure instead of help. Exhausted and unseen after years of being treated like the family’s unpaid caterer, Isabella finally snaps in a quiet, decisive way: she books a last-minute flight to Maui and leaves a simple note saying Hudson can handle dinner.

Back home, Hudson and Vivien panic as guests arrive to no food and total chaos. They scramble with YouTube, backup dishes, and embarrassment, realizing too late how much Isabella had always carried alone. Isabella sends a photo from the beach: “Turkey is your problem now.” The meltdown forces a long-overdue reckoning—especially when Isabella returns and sets firm boundaries: no more impossible hosting, no more being treated like “the help,” and Hudson must choose whether to support his wife or keep appeasing his mother.

A year later, things look different: they host a small, calm Thanksgiving for eight, everyone contributes, and Isabella finally feels like a guest at her own holiday. She’s learned the difference between being needed and being used—and refuses to disappear again.