Clenching his fists, Yaroslav stared at his phone screen. His mother was calling again, and then sending messages saying she urgently needed to speak with her son. He had absolutely no desire to answer her calls. Every conversation with her inevitably ended with the man being obliged to either give his mother money for his brother’s tuition, or purchase new household appliances, or come over to do repairs. Inna Vladislavovna never asked her son for anything. The woman demanded authoritatively and declared confidently that her son was indebted to her for life, meaning he would do everything she said. Because she gave birth to him… because she raised him… because she cared about his future. But one could hardly call her treatment of her elder son caring. At times, Yaroslav even felt that he was not living with his mother at all, but with a bona fide stepmother. Only his father did not differentiate between his sons and treated both equally—and he even enjoyed it, since Inna Vladislavovna adored the younger one and believed that he should receive only the very best. She often told her husband that it was Edik who should be given the best, while Yarik could play with old toys… things should be worn out rather than replaced with new ones.
Yaroslav had no idea where such cruel division had begun. He could only guess. When the boy was first born, he was a sickly child. His mother had to take an academic leave from the institute. She was deeply worried and scolded herself for not having gotten rid of the child. Her parents helped, but it was never enough for her. They didn’t give her sufficient money, and they spent too little time with her grandson. Eventually, when the boy turned one, Inna Vladislavovna decided to return to her studies. She essentially handed her son over to his grandmother’s care and spent almost no time with him. Yarik grew up with his grandmother, occasionally even mistakenly calling her “mom,” and later he simply did not want to leave her. When the boy turned seven and it was time to start school, long trips to grandmother’s could be forgotten. It was then that a younger brother entered the family. By that time, his mother had already thoroughly enjoyed life, savored all its delights, and was ready to go on maternity leave. She rejoiced at the arrival of the child and was prepared to do everything for him. Yaroslav thus remained an inconspicuous background detail, as his mother had not yet grown attached to him and now saw him merely as a source of misfortune that had stolen from her a few happy years of youth. She tried not to notice him and became greatly irritated if he inadvertently reminded her of his existence.
Yaroslav tried not to be resentful towards his brother, for the latter was not at fault at all. Circumstances had simply come together that way. He never felt jealous and, in his own way, loved the younger one. He was even willing to give Edouard everything that was best. However, the younger one grew up spoiled and increasingly demanding. As he got older, he became completely unbearable, and Yaroslav realized that their paths had to diverge. He almost ceased communicating with his brother. At the very least, there could no longer be any talk of friendship between them.
It should be noted that no matter how things turned out, Yaroslav’s upbringing did not allow him to abandon his family. After finishing university and getting a good job, the young man moved out and started renting an apartment, but he did not stop providing financial help. His parents began to fall ill, and his brother constantly needed something: sometimes he broke his phone, sometimes paying for tutors wouldn’t hurt, sometimes he simply lacked winter clothes. Occasionally, his mother would ask him to help buy medicine, but even then Yaroslav understood that the money would really go to Edik. Helping the family had become a habitual thing. By giving money to his mother, Yaroslav was, in a sense, paying a bribe to avoid family gatherings and confronting a past that weighed on him. Because of his closest family member’s attitude towards him, it was hard for him to trust women. He did not date anyone until he met Taya—a beautiful, kind girl with a name as tender as that of an angel. Taya immediately managed to capture Yaroslav’s attention, and before he knew it, he had proposed marriage to her. It was the meeting with Taisa that rekindled Yaroslav’s zest for life. It was by her side that he felt like a needed person, not just a wallet to be squeezed and then forgotten in a dusty closet.
Inna Vladislavovna tried in every possible way to dissuade her son from marrying, for she fully understood that after the wedding, she would lose her strong influence over Yaroslav. The free lunch would be over, and money would have to be extracted almost with tongs from a hot surface. She vented her negativity on her daughter-in-law, but Taisiya did not respond to provocations. She loved Yaroslav and tried not to quarrel with his relatives. Taya learned almost immediately about the complicated relationships between her husband and his family. She did not pressure her beloved to break all ties; on the contrary, she always supported him, and that had its own effect.
Unconsciously, Taisiya made Yaroslav ponder. Was he obliged to help his relatives when he had already repaid many times over for everything he had received from them? How much money had he wasted? While his younger brother, at nineteen, had his own car, Yaroslav could only dream of such a purchase, even though if he weren’t financially supporting his parents, he would have long ago bought himself a brand-new car. Should he deprive himself of everything just so that his brother could live well?
Once again, his mother called to demand money, and Yaroslav did not want to answer her. He was tired of being endlessly manipulated. It was time to put a stop to it. Not long ago, money had been urgently needed to help his father-in-law. Yaroslav had called his mother and asked to borrow some money for a few days, but she flatly refused, even though she had just received her salary. So Yaroslav decided to refuse and no longer sponsor his brother’s whims. If his mother so wanted to give Edik only the best, let her continue to do so on her own.
— “Do you know that mother sold the little house she inherited and gave all the money to Edouard? He’s planning to take out a mortgage for an apartment!” his aunt once said to Yaroslav.
No one had ever cared about him. Even now, not a single penny was given to him, although his mother knew that her elder son had started saving for a mortgage down payment. He had his own family; he and Taya were planning to have a child, while Edouard dreamed of another life. He wasn’t shy about saying that he wanted to move into an apartment so he could freely bring in beautiful women and enjoy all the pleasures of youth. And his mother rejoiced and continued to support her son.
— “Take out a mortgage in your name for your brother!” demanded his mother-in-law, arriving at the apartment of the son who had stubbornly refused to answer her calls for several days.
Taya sat in the next room and clearly heard the conversation between Yaroslav and his mother. Her heart tightened at the sight of human cruelty, for it was completely incomprehensible how a biological mother could hate one son so much while exalting and loving the other. They were both her children. Had there really been no place left in her heart for Yaroslav? Did he mean nothing to her? Could she truly regret having given birth to him? Is it possible for a real mother to act in such a way? All these questions pounded in her mind, but there were no answers. Only fury roared inside, creating a desire to put Inna Vladislavovna—her husband’s tormentor—in her place. Although Taisiya was never a vindictive person, now she wanted to set her husband’s offenders straight.
— “I’m not going to go into debt for my brother. I already took out a loan to buy him a new gaming laptop. And who ended up paying for it all? Do you want his mortgage debts to hang over me?” Yaroslav frowned.
— “Look at the way you talk! I’m not here to grovel at your feet or beg on my knees. This isn’t a request—it’s a demand. You should be grateful for the fact that I sacrificed my best years and my beauty for you. I wanted to get rid of you, but I didn’t. So now, do as you’re told. Otherwise, you’ll end up with nothing and be doomed to wander. Without a mother’s blessing, you won’t last long. Don’t even think that you can live peacefully if you cut off your family.”
Inna Vladislavovna really did not know how to ask; and, in the end, Yaroslav was completely fed up. Seeing that he was unwanted by his own mother, the man realized that any further communication was out of the question.
— “Of course, you didn’t consider how much I gave to my brother. Don’t you want to share part of the inheritance you received by selling grandmother’s house? If I recall correctly, she wanted half of it to go to me… but you decided to keep it all for yourself.”
— “You’re not entitled to anything. Get a work certificate tomorrow and stop acting so foolishly! My head is splitting from arguing with you. You’re not a son, you’re a damn punishment! Why must I always be the one begging for something? Like I said—without a mother’s blessing, you won’t last long, so behave like a man.”
Yaroslav felt hurt. He realized that all this time he had hoped to see even a hint of love in his mother’s eyes. He had hoped that she would recognize her behavior, but how terribly wrong he was. Now all of it meant nothing at all. His mother had abandoned him at birth, and she was only kept around to later guilt-trip him and demand more.
He wanted to take back everything he had given his mother for his brother… But who was going to pay the debts? Inna Vladislavovna did not consider that money to be a debt.
His mother left, slamming the door loudly, and Taisiya went to her husband and embraced him. She felt that the man needed to vent, and she listened to him. And as soon as he finished, she decided to share her thoughts.
— “Why are you refusing? You’ve helped your brother for so long, and all you got in return was your mother’s dissatisfaction. You’ve had enough, and now it’s time for them to pay their dues. Take out the mortgage in your name, just as your mother demands.”
Yaroslav was puzzled. He could not imagine why his wife was persuading him to take such a step. He had just told her that he had decided to cut all ties with the family and stop helping them financially. However, as soon as Taisiya finished sharing her thoughts, and everything fell into place, Yaroslav smiled. For too long he had allowed himself to be strung along like a devoted puppy waiting for a shred of love. The time had come to take back what he once gave away. Of course, in another situation he would never have even thought of acting this way, but now he had reached a breaking point. His patience had snapped, and seeing how his mother continued to behave, Yaroslav no longer waited for love or respect. Consumeristic treatment had to be met with reciprocity.
As his mother demanded, Yaroslav obtained a certificate from work. His mortgage was approved quickly, and it wasn’t long before he managed to close a deal on a two-room apartment. Yaroslav knew full well that his parents couldn’t possibly afford such payments, and his brother was still burning through his life, not even thinking about work. The debts were once again being planned to be dumped on the elder son. And he didn’t mind paying them off at all. In another situation he might have panicked and grabbed his head, but now everything was in its proper place.
— “Hand over the keys. Edik wants to move in today and celebrate his housewarming with his friends,” Inna Vladislavovna said, disdainfully glancing at her son.
— “I didn’t invite my brother to my housewarming. I’m not about to give you the keys. Taya and I are moving soon. We’re just going to freshen up the place a bit,” Yaroslav replied calmly. “Thank you for helping with the down payment. It wasn’t nearly as much as you spent on your own life for my brother, and later squeezed out of me, but that’s fine. I’m not holding a grudge. With this, I propose we cut off all our ties. After all, they’re utterly useless, given your consumerist attitude towards me.”
Inna Vladislavovna lunged at her son, fists clenched, and began shouting that she would call the police, calling him a thief, but the pain was no longer felt. Yaroslav had grown accustomed to his mother’s hatred. Only his father managed to pull his enraged wife away from her son. Inna Vladislavovna cursed her elder son, even though her husband took his side. She shouted that a boomerang would inevitably come back to him, and that he would pay for such betrayal for the rest of his life. The woman even threatened that she wouldn’t allow Yaroslav a peaceful life, that she would sleep in the building’s entrance, and would find a way to drive him away, but the man no longer listened. They and Taisiya weren’t even planning to live in the apartment. They had to scramble to find a buyer and, in such a short time after the purchase, flip the deal by selling the apartment. The money that Inna Vladislavovna had put down as the first installment was taken by the couple. They planned to move to another city, closer to Taisiya’s parents, and start life anew. Although it was bitter to act this way, Yaroslav felt no guilt. In the end, he only took back what was his… and not a single penny of what belonged to someone else. His mother had cheated him out of so much in the past, and now he had finally put her in her place. Even if it was in such a cruel manner.
Inna Vladislavovna continued to curse her son, but the more bad words she said about him, the more misfortune she summoned upon Edouard…and illnesses upon herself.