Olesya pressed her lips together to keep from saying too much. Invisible needles of caustic irritation appeared on her skin. She wanted to say everything that had accumulated over three years of living together. But before her eyes popped up the face of Kirill – the husband who, after every argument between his mother and wife, was not himself: withdrawn, dissatisfied, with a dull look in his eyes.
“The oven is probably acting up,” Olesya forced herself to smile. “Next time I’ll definitely take your comments into account, Nina Petrovna.”
The mother-in-law snorted.
“My oven is great. Some people just have clumsy hands,” she said, slipping out of the kitchen.
The cramped two-room apartment increased the tension. Nina Petrovna slept in the living room on a fold-out sofa, and she and Kirill got the bedroom. No personal space, no opportunity to be alone.
Even now, standing in the kitchen, Olesya could hear the droning television from her mother-in-law’s room and understood that not a single conversation would escape her attention.
Olesya turned to the sink and started washing dishes. In the reflection of the window glass, she saw her pale face with dark circles under her eyes. The last month had been tough – her boss had hinted at a possible promotion, and she had been giving it her all.
In the evening, when Kirill returned from work, the three of them sat down to dinner. The table was small, their elbows constantly touched, and this created additional tension.
– Kiryusha, you’re so pale, – Nina Petrovna put a second portion of cutlets on her son’s plate. – Olesya doesn’t really care about you.
Kirill frowned.
– Mom, stop it. Olesya works a lot.
– Exactly! – Nina Petrovna raised her fork meaningfully. – Where have you ever seen a wife sitting at work until late at night? You come home – she’s not there. I’m cooking dinner. And she earns… how much is that? Pennies!
Olesya put the cutlery aside.
“I’m promised a promotion in two months,” her voice sounded calmer than she expected. “So now I have to try especially hard. It’s temporary.”
– Oh, I’ve heard those tales! – Nina Petrovna rolled her eyes. – As if they’d make you a director straight away.
“Not a director, but a department manager,” Olesya tried to keep the tremor out of her voice. “The salary will be twice as much.”
– So what? – the mother-in-law pursed her lips. – It would have been better if you had stayed at home and cooked borscht. Right, son?
Kirill buried his face in his plate.
– Mom, we discussed this. These are the times… Two salaries are barely enough.
Nina Petrovna waved her hand.
— In my time, women thought about family, not about a career.
Olesya finished her dinner in silence. There was no point in arguing. Every conversation ended the same way – Nina Petrovna stuck to her opinion, and Olesya was given another label of a worthless wife.
The week flew by in work chaos. On Saturday, Kirill went to meet friends, and Nina Petrovna announced a general cleaning.
“Olesya, the closet needs to be moved,” commanded the mother-in-law, having settled comfortably on the sofa. “There’s dust accumulated there, I can see.”
– Maybe we should wait for Kirill? – Olesya looked doubtfully at the massive wardrobe. – It’s heavy.
Nina Petrovna curled her lips.
– When I was your age, I did worse. Men weren’t needed.
Olesya sighed and leaned against the closet. The wood reluctantly gave in, creaking on the parquet. Suddenly, something swayed above – a box, the existence of which Olesya had not even suspected.
“Be careful!” Nina Petrovna cried out, rising from the sofa.
But it was too late. The box tilted and fell down. Olesya instinctively jerked to the side, trying to catch it, but only touched it with her hand. The cardboard lid flew off, and crystal figurines fell to the floor.
The sound of breaking glass filled the entire apartment.
And then there was a deafening silence.
Olesya froze in place, looking at the scattered crystal shards. For several tense seconds, there was absolute silence in the room. Nina Petrovna’s face slowly turned crimson. Her mother-in-law’s eyes seemed about to pop out of their sockets.
Olesya instinctively took a step back. She knew these signs of an approaching storm all too well.
– You… – Nina Petrovna’s voice was quiet at first, almost hissing. – You destroyed my collection! The vases that I’ve been collecting my whole life!
– Nina Petrovna, it was an accident. I suggested waiting…
– Shut up! – the mother-in-law could no longer restrain herself. – Everything always falls out of your hands!
Olesya clenched her fists. A wave of unfair accusations washed over her.
– Remember how you burned the tablecloth last month! – Nina Petrovna continued, pointing her finger. – And on New Year’s you oversalted the Olivier salad! And how did you nail the shelf crookedly? You still can’t fix it!
Olesya lowered her eyes. Kirill himself had burned the tablecloth. Nina Petrovna herself had oversalted the Olivier salad, but blamed her daughter-in-law. And Olesya hadn’t touched the shelf at all – Kirill and his friend had installed it.
– I’ll clean everything up and…
– No! – the mother-in-law straightened up to her full height. – I’ve had enough! I’ve put up with your antics for three years! I’ve watched you abuse my son for three years!
Nina Petrovna’s face distorted.
“Pack your things and leave my son’s apartment!” she said, emphasizing every word.
Olesya stared at her mother-in-law in amazement. Her cheeks burned with humiliation and resentment. Of all the squabbles over the years, this was the most unfair.
At that moment the door in the hallway slammed.
“I’m home!” Kirill’s voice rang out.
Nina Petrovna immediately rushed into the corridor, sobbing as she went.
– Son! Look what your wife has done! All the crystal that your grandmother gave me!
Kirill entered the room, glanced at the shards on the floor and frowned.
“What happened?” he asked, looking from his mother to his wife.
“Your faithful wife,” Nina Petrovna said through her sobs, “specially dumped my collection! All the figurines! All the memories!”
– That’s not true! – Olesya couldn’t stand it. – The box fell when I was moving the wardrobe. On your orders, by the way!
Nina Petrovna rolled her eyes theatrically.
– Do you hear me, Kirill? Now it’s my fault! It’s always like this! No respect for elders!
Kirill ran his hand through his hair, his face showing fatigue.
– Olesya, couldn’t you be more careful? You know how much Mom treasures these things.
“I offered to wait for you,” Olesya answered firmly. “The wardrobe is heavy. But your mother insisted.”
– And now she’s blaming me! – Nina Petrovna picked up. – I already told her: let her pack her things and leave!
Kirill looked at his wife gloomily.
– Mom is upset, Olesya. You should apologize.
Olesya couldn’t believe her ears.
— Apologize? For what? For trying to please her in everything? For putting up with constant nagging? For the accident?
“For disrespecting my mother,” Kirill snapped. “Apologize, and I’ll let you stay.”
A heavy pause hung in the room.
– Will you allow it? – Olesya asked quietly. – Are you serious?
– Absolutely, – Kirill nodded. – Either apologize or leave. Such a wife is a disgrace to the family.
Olesya looked at the man she had loved for three years and did not recognize him. Where had that caring man gone, who had promised to be with her in sorrow and joy?
To her own surprise, she smiled.
“Okay, I’ll leave,” Olesya said calmly. “But I have something to say for the last time.”
Nina Petrovna smiled triumphantly.
— The mortgage payment is almost fifty thousand — in four days, — Olesya continued. — Collect it yourself. I’m taking the money from the rent of my apartment for myself. And I won’t pay your mortgage anymore. I don’t live here anymore.
Kirill’s face lengthened, and Nina Petrovna suddenly turned pale. They exchanged glances.
“What are you talking about?” Kirill muttered. “We agreed…”
“That was before you decided to kick me out,” Olesya retorted. “How much do you bring into the house? Forty-five thousand? That’s not even enough to pay the mortgage.”
She headed to the bedroom and pulled out her suitcase from under the bed. She began methodically packing her things, ignoring the quiet whispers in the kitchen.
A few minutes later Nina Petrovna entered the bedroom. Her tone had completely changed.
– Olesenka, why are you saying that so suddenly? – cooed the mother-in-law. – I just got carried away. I blurted it out in the heat of an argument. You understand, right?
“I understand,” Olesya nodded without stopping. “I understand that I was never related to you. That I will always be guilty, no matter what happens.”
– What are you saying? – Nina Petrovna threw up her hands. – We are a family! Kirill, tell her!
Kirill stood in the doorway, clearly not knowing what to do.
“Olesya, let’s discuss everything,” he said uncertainly. “No need to get excited.”
“I don’t see the point,” Olesya zipped up her suitcase. “For three years I tried to be a good wife and daughter-in-law. The result? At the first problem, you both throw me out the door.
– We don’t…
“Don’t interrupt,” Olesya raised her voice for the first time. “I realized that divorce is better than life here. Goodbye.”
She quickly walked past her stunned relatives, grabbing a jacket from the hanger.
“What about the mortgage?” Kirill shouted after him.
The slam of the door was his answer.
Olesya’s parents accepted their daughter without any unnecessary questions. Her mother just hugged her tightly, and her father silently helped her carry her suitcase.
“You can tell me later if you want,” said Mom, pouring tea. “Your room is always waiting for you.”
Two days later, money from the tenants of her apartment arrived on Olesya’s card. Previously, she immediately transferred it to Kirill. Now she decided to keep it for herself.
The phone was ringing off the hook with her husband’s calls and messages, but she didn’t answer. Finally, unable to bear it any longer, she answered.
– Olesya, what kind of kindergarten? – Kirill began indignantly. – We have a payment due in two days! My salary is only enough to pay the mortgage. And what do I live on?
“It doesn’t concern me anymore,” Olesya answered calmly. “I’m filing for divorce tomorrow. Think about your own problems.”
– But you can’t do that! – Kirill’s voice sounded desperate. – Mom just got carried away! We’re a family!
– Family? – Olesya smiled. – Family doesn’t throw each other out on the street. I was always bad in your mother’s eyes. Now everything is perfect for you. And I will live alone and separately.
– Olesya, don’t hang up! Let’s talk!
But Olesya had already hung up. It was raining outside. But for the first time in a long time, she felt a strange relief. The most difficult years were behind her.
