– Congratulations on your purchase! A great choice, – the realtor shook Inna’s hand. – By the way, the windows face both sides, you made the right choice.
Inna smiled, sorting through the documents. Finally, the dream had come true. And the keys to the brand new Toyota were in her purse – a gift to herself for her promotion.
Six months later, Inna met Dmitry. The tall brunette with a pleasant smile captivated her at first sight. The romance developed rapidly. Three months later, Dmitry proposed to her.
“I love you madly,” Dmitry whispered in his bride’s ear. “Be my wife.”
The lavish wedding took place in August. Inna was beaming with happiness, and Dmitry’s relatives loudly congratulated the newlyweds. His mother, Lyudmila Petrovna, was especially active.
– What a beauty our bride is! – exclaimed Lyudmila Petrovna. – And her own apartment, and a car. Our Dima is lucky!
Inna did not attach any importance to these words. But a week after the wedding, Lyudmila Petrovna invited the newlyweds to dinner.
“Children, I feel awkward talking about this,” Lyudmila Petrovna began, pouring tea. “But I have problems paying my utility bills.”
Dmitry scratched the back of his head in confusion.
– Mom, but I gave you money two weeks ago…
Lyudmila Petrovna threw up her hands.
– Dimochka, but you know, my medicines are expensive! Everything is gone.
Inna silently took out her wallet and handed her mother-in-law five thousand rubles.
– Take it, Lyudmila Petrovna.
Dima looked at his wife with gratitude.
A few days later, Dmitry’s sister, Alla, called.
– Innochka, darling! Can you help me out? I don’t want to call Dimka, he’s always so nervous when it comes to money, – Alla was chattering into the phone.
————————————————–
“What happened?” Inna asked, alarmed.
– It’s nothing! The washing machine broke. I need nine thousand, and I only have five.
Inna bit her nail.
– Sorry, Alla, but Dima and I are just getting settled in.
There was silence on the line, and then a disgruntled voice was heard:
– I see. Sorry to bother you.
In the evening Dima’s mother called.
“How can this be?” Lyudmila Petrovna screamed so loudly that Inna could hear it even without the speakerphone. “Your sister doesn’t have a washing machine, and you don’t lift a finger!”
Dmitry sat with red ears.
– Mom, we don’t have any extra money right now…
— Extra? And your wife has enough for new shoes! And you don’t have any money to help your relatives? Pass the phone to Inna!
Inna sighed and picked up the phone.
– I’m listening to you, Lyudmila Petrovna.
– Innochka, my dear, you are now part of our family! – the mother-in-law’s voice became cloyingly sweet. – Can’t you really help your sister-in-law? Only four thousand!
– Lyudmila Petrovna, I already helped you the other day, – Inna answered firmly. – And anyway, I am not obliged to support your entire family.
– What? – the mother-in-law shrieked. – How ungrateful you are! We accepted you as our own, and you…
Inna hung up and turned to her husband.
– Dima, we need to discuss this.
– What is there to discuss? – Dmitry jumped up and began pacing the room. – My sister needs help! And you are rich, you have everything!
Inna went cold.
– Rich? Dima, I just earn good money. And I helped your mother. It was a one-time action. But that doesn’t mean that…
– What does that mean? – interrupted the husband. – That you are greedy? Or that you don’t like my family?
“I don’t like that everyone thinks my money is theirs!” Inna slammed her palm on the table.
A week later, Dmitry’s cousin, Sergei, appeared.
– Innochka, beauty! Help me out, – Sergey smiled disarmingly. – Fifteen thousand until payday. I’ll pay you back – I swear on my mother!
“No,” Inna snapped.
– What do you mean “no”? – Sergey said, dumbfounded. – Dimka, do you hear what she’s saying?
Dmitry looked at his wife imploringly.
– Inna, what’s it to you? He’ll return it…
“No,” Inna repeated. “I don’t owe anyone anything.”
The family scandal erupted on Inna’s birthday. All of Dmitry’s relatives gathered in their apartment.
“And now a toast to our Innochka!” Lyudmila Petrovna proclaimed, raising her glass. “For the fact that she is so… thrifty.”
An unkind chuckle rolled through the room.
– Inna, is it true that you refused to help Aunt Valya with her treatment? – Alla asked loudly.
– What Aunt Valya? – Inna was taken aback. – I don’t even know any Aunt Valya!
“This is my mother’s cousin,” Dmitry intervened. “She has health problems and needs money for treatment.”
Inna got up from the table.
“And how much do you need this time?” Her voice trembled with tension.
“One hundred thousand,” blurted out Lyudmila Petrovna. “You wouldn’t refuse your husband’s relative, would you?”
Inna glanced at the whole company.
“I don’t owe any of you anything,” she said firmly. “Not a penny.”
A week passed after Inna’s memorable birthday. Her husband’s relatives stopped calling directly, but constantly conveyed through Dmitry that Inna was greedy and selfish.
“Aren’t you ashamed?” Dmitry frowned, looking at his wife. “Everyone keeps talking about how greedy you are.”
Inna put the book aside and looked closely at her husband.
– Dima, isn’t it strange that everyone only remembers me when they need money? – She sighed. – When was the last time I heard your mother simply say “how are you”?
Dmitry waved his hand, but didn’t answer.
On Saturday, Lyudmila Petrovna showed up again. The mother-in-law was in a bad mood.
– Dimochka, can you imagine, my friend went to the sea! – Lyudmila Petrovna sobbed demonstratively. – And I’m always at home. I haven’t gone anywhere for years.
– Mom, maybe you could go somewhere? – Dmitry spread his hands in confusion.
– For what? – Lyudmila Petrovna raised her voice. – My pension can only buy bread and water! Not everyone is like some people – they live in their own apartment and drive a car!
Inna left the kitchen, slamming the door. A couple of minutes later, Dmitry came in.
– Why are you offending your mother? – he looked reproachfully.
– Dima, did you hear what she said? – Inna crossed her arms over her chest. – She’s reproaching me for my own money again!
“You don’t understand,” Dmitry lowered his voice. “Mom’s situation is really difficult. It’s hard for her.”
Inna didn’t argue. But the next day, driving past a shopping center, she noticed a familiar figure. Lyudmila Petrovna was leaving an expensive boutique with large bags.
A couple of days later, Lyudmila Petrovna came to visit them with a brand new smartphone.
– Oh, what do you have there, Lyudmila Petrovna? - Inna asked with feigned surprise. – The latest model iPhone?
The mother-in-law was a little embarrassed, but quickly came to her senses.
“My niece gave it to me,” she waved it off. “What’s wrong with that?”
– Oh, nothing, – Inna smiled. – I’m glad everything worked out for you financially.
“It’s none of your business!” snapped Lyudmila Petrovna.
Dmitry watched the altercation carefully, but remained silent.
Inna was preparing for a long-awaited vacation. She and her friends had booked a hotel in Turkey more than a month ago, and Inna was counting the days until departure.
“You’ll throw away so much money just to lie on the beach,” Dmitry grumbled. “You could have helped your mother, too.”
“Dima, I’m going on vacation,” Inna said firmly. “And enough about money.”
On the day of departure, Inna had almost finished packing her suitcase when the doorbell rang. A gloomy Dmitry and Lyudmila Petrovna stood on the threshold.
“Inochka, my dear, we need to talk,” the mother-in-law’s voice sounded cloyingly sweet.
Inna let them into the apartment. A bad feeling settled under her ribs.
“Did something serious happen?” She looked questioningly at her husband.
Lyudmila Petrovna sighed theatrically and took a crumpled envelope out of her bag.
– Here, take a look! – she shoved the paper under Inna’s nose.
Inna glanced at the document. A notice of loan default. For two hundred and fifty thousand rubles. The borrower’s name was Lyudmila Petrovna Kovaleva.
– So what? – Inna shrugged. – What does this have to do with me?
The mother-in-law turned purple.
– What do you mean? I have nothing to pay with! And you’re planning to have fun at the sea!
– Stop-stop-stop, – Inna raised her hand. – Are you serious? This is your loan, Lyudmila Petrovna. You are the one who will pay it back.
– How dare you! – the mother-in-law shrieked. – My son married you! You are obliged to help his mother!
Inna turned her gaze to Dmitry.
– And what do you say?
Dmitry frowned.
– Inna, Mom is in a difficult situation. We’ll have to postpone your vacation and help.
Inna burst out laughing.
– Dima, are you out of your mind? I worked for a year without a vacation! The girls and I booked everything a long time ago!
– So you’ll cancel it! – Dmitry barked. – Family is more important!
– Family? – Inna suddenly calmed down. – Your “family” does nothing but beg for my money. And your mother even lies about being poor.
“Don’t you dare talk about my mother like that!” Dmitry clenched his fists.
Lyudmila Petrovna sobbed heartbreakingly.
– See, Dima? I told you! She’s a greedy egoist!
Inna clicked the suitcase lock and straightened up to her full height.
– I’m going on vacation. Your mother’s debts are none of my business.
Dmitry blocked her path to the door.
– You’re not going anywhere! Solve the problem first!
– Get out of the way, Dima, – Inna pushed her husband away. – And if you value your marriage, don’t even think about meddling with my finances.
Inna took out her phone and blocked her husband’s access to her accounts. Then she took her suitcase and headed for the door.
“You’ll regret it!” hissed Lyudmila Petrovna.
“I already regret it,” Inna said over her shoulder. “Only not about refusing to pay your debts, but about not seeing what you were hiding under the mask earlier.”
The door slammed behind her.
Ten days in Turkey flew by in a flash. Inna turned off her phone and enjoyed her vacation with her friends. Boat trips, excursions, parties — everything was perfect. And most importantly, no one asked her for money.
“Maybe we shouldn’t come back?” Inna joked, sipping a cocktail on the beach.
“Are you afraid?” asked her friend Natasha.
“Not really,” Inna smiled. “I’m just tired of this whole circus.”
When Inna returned home, she was surprised to find that the apartment was in perfect order. Dmitry met her with a bouquet of flowers.
“Forgive me,” he looked down. “I was wrong.”
Inna silently walked into the living room.
– And what has changed? – She looked at her husband carefully. – Mom no longer needs?
“I realized a lot while you were gone,” Dmitry sat down opposite. “Mom took out loans for both my sister and my aunt. And then she stopped paying, deciding that you would pay for everything.”
– And this is news to you? – Inna raised an eyebrow skeptically.
Inna smiled bitterly.
– And now? What now?
“I told her that she would never enter this house again,” Dmitry said firmly. “And if she tries to manipulate us again, I will stop communicating with her altogether.”
“And she just retreated like that?” Inna asked incredulously.
“Not exactly,” Dmitry smiled weakly. “She screamed that I betrayed my own mother for ‘that upstart.’”
Inna thoughtfully twirled the cup of tea in her hands.
“You know, I really would have filed for divorce,” she said quietly. “I’ve reached the limit of my patience.”
“I understand it now,” Dmitry lowered his head guiltily. “And you know what’s funniest? Mom got out of it. She borrowed from someone else and paid off the overdue payment.”
Inna laughed.
– You see? She solves her problems perfectly when she wants to.
“I’m ashamed that I didn’t see the obvious,” Dmitry took Inna’s hand. “I promise it won’t happen again.”
Inna nodded, but deep down she knew that this lesson had come at a high price. Now she would be more careful in her decisions.
