Tatiana, what’s going on?” Olga Stepanovna looked around the empty living room, confused. “Where’s the table, where is everything?”
“Excuse me?” Tatiana looked up from the laptop she had been working on intently when her mother-in-law entered the house. “Olga Stepanovna, I don’t understand you. What are you talking about?”
Olga Stepanovna looked at her daughter-in-law with displeasure.
“Why is nothing ready yet?” The woman’s surprise gradually turned into dissatisfaction. “Didn’t I warn you in advance?”
“But I also told you right away that I have other plans!” Tatiana objected. “But you don’t listen to anyone but yourself.”
“Tanya, people are supposed to arrive here in two hours!” Olga Stepanovna no longer even tried to hold back. “What kind of situation are you putting me in, you scoundrel?”
“Don’t you dare insult me!” Tatiana stood up from the table and faced Olga Stepanovna. “And anyway, why did you show up again without an invitation?”
“What invitation? Have you lost your mind?” The woman was full of indignation. “This is my son’s house! Ilya and I agreed on everything…”
“This house belongs to me half as well, if you haven’t forgotten!” Tatiana was clearly not going to give in. “So I also make decisions here. You should have coordinated with me first before planning any event.”
The argument between the two women was interrupted by Ilya, who returned from work and stopped at the doorway.
“What’s going on here again?”
Olga Stepanovna rushed to the man like to a savior.
“Ilyusha, finally!” The furious woman from a few minutes ago was nowhere to be seen.
Now she was a miserable, offended woman, ready to burst into tears at any moment.
“Mom, what happened?”
“Ilyusha, your wife made a fool of me in front of the relatives!” Olga Stepanovna finally let her tears flow. “I don’t know what to do now.”
Ilya cast a questioning look at his wife. Tatiana crossed her arms and watched the scene defiantly.
“Tanya…”
“What about Tanya?” The young woman tried to speak calmly, but with great difficulty. “I think I told you, I have a lot of work! I have to submit a project.”
Ilya gestured to his wife that they would continue the argument later. Olga Stepanovna kept crying.
“My God, what a shame…”
“Mom, call all your guests and tell them the party is postponed until tomorrow,” Ilya said. “I’ll arrange something at the nearby restaurant. I know the manager there. They’ll organize a banquet for you in a day.”
“Thank you, son,” Olga Stepanovna hugged Ilya and cast a spiteful look at her daughter-in-law before heading to the door. Ilya went with her to see her off. Tatiana sat down at her laptop again to try to resume work, but her mind was clearly elsewhere. She knew that when Ilya returned, another confrontation was inevitable. And she was right.
“Tanya, was it really so hard for you to meet your mother halfway?” Ilya tried to speak gently, but his voice carried a clear reproach.
“How many times, Ilya? Why do I always have to break my plans for her sake?”
Tatiana looked coldly at her husband and could not understand why he didn’t get such simple things.
“Mom doesn’t ask for much,” Ilya’s voice sounded uncertain, but he wasn’t ready to give up.
“At least once a month, every holiday, and on her birthday,” Tatiana reminded him. “And if it weren’t for my resistance, this circus would be every weekend.”
“Mom’s just like that,” said Ilya. “She loves having guests.”
“Fine, let her do it on her own territory!” Tatiana cut him off. “Why don’t my parents barge in here to satisfy their wishes, but patiently wait until we invite them ourselves?”
Deep down, Ilya understood that Tatiana might be right. But he belonged to those men who believed their parents were more important than their in-laws.
Tatiana seemed to read his thoughts.
“You can think whatever you want, but half the house belongs to me,” Tatiana reminded him. “And not only because I’m your wife. I worked on it with you equally!”
Ilya had nothing to say in response.
Actually, Olga Stepanovna became overly involved in the couple’s life precisely after the arrival of the ill-fated house.
They had been building it for almost 10 years, living in the cheapest rented apartments and saving every penny. Both really worked day and night to fulfill their dream. They weren’t even thinking about children yet, carefully preparing favorable conditions. Neither Tatiana nor Ilya wanted their children to spend their childhood in the same conditions they did. They loved their parents and knew their parents loved them too. But Tatiana and Ilya belonged to a different generation and wanted to live differently.
The fact was that both spouses grew up in one-room apartments shared with their parents. Neither Tatiana nor Ilya had even their own corner in the cramped apartment. Therefore, their union was based not only on mutual feelings and a similar past but also on a shared vision for the future. Moreover, the big house was not just a dream but a goal they were achieving together.
Three years ago, the long-awaited housewarming took place, to which, besides friends, the parents from both sides were invited. Back then, Ilya’s father, Pavel Viktorovich, was still alive. Besides congratulating the new homeowners, the man lamented that he had not been able to provide similar living conditions for his family.
“Come on, Dad, times were different,” Ilya reassured him.
That was the first and last celebration in Ilya and Tatiana’s house attended by Pavel Viktorovich. The man was already seriously ill and soon passed away. Although his death was expected, Ilya and Olga Stepanovna took it hard. To avoid leaving his mother alone, Ilya even took her into the house for a while. Tatiana did not object then. They expected the woman to live there for 40 days, or a bit more if necessary.
However, the inconsolable widow quite settled into the couple’s home and stayed for half a year. Tatiana repeatedly hinted to her husband that he should talk to his mother and tell her it was time to leave. But Ilya hesitated, and when Tatiana herself spoke to her mother-in-law about it, Olga Stepanovna used every argument to stay. At first, she played on pity, then tried to convince her daughter-in-law that her presence in the house was only beneficial for their family.
“You both work, and I can completely take care of the household chores,” Olga Stepanovna said. “I’m not bothering you.”
“No, Olga Stepanovna, I want to be the only mistress in this house,” insisted Tatiana.
In the end, the mother-in-law was still evicted amid a big scandal. Tatiana and Ilya seriously quarrelled then. It seemed the man himself did not understand why their mother could not live with them.
“Ilya, let me put my parents here too,” Tatiana said. “What’s wrong with that? We’ll live like a camp.”
“Tanya, what do your parents have to do with it?” Ilya tried to argue uncertainly. “That’s different…”
“Is it?” Tatiana was outraged. “Why are my parents worse?”
The topic was dropped then. Olga Stepanovna was deeply offended, and they did not communicate for a long time. Then the mother-in-law appeared again asking to celebrate her birthday at the couple’s house.
“You understand, I won’t be able to properly receive guests in my little hut,” the mother-in-law explained her request.
After discussing, Tatiana and Ilya agreed to accommodate Olga Stepanovna and even took an active part in organizing the celebration. Everything went perfectly. Then there was a joint New Year’s celebration. Tatiana understood the situation then too. Of course, it was no good for a woman to be alone on such a night. Later, Olga Stepanovna decided to organize a barbecue for the May holidays.
“Then I’ll invite my parents too,” Tatiana said.
“Why?” Olga Stepanovna was surprised. “My relatives will come, whom your parents don’t even know. They’ll feel uncomfortable here.”
Tatiana and Ilya quarreled again. Tatiana demonstratively went to her room, showing complete indifference to the event, but it still took place. Moreover, all the expenses for food and drinks had to be borne by Ilya.
“I think this should become a weekly tradition!” Olga Stepanovna declared then, but Tatiana stood firm.
“No way,” she decisively said. “I won’t let your guests over the threshold! And if they barge in, I’ll call the police.”
“Ilya, talk to your wife,” Olga Stepanovna coldly threw at her son and left.
“Ilya, get your mother to behave,” Tatiana insisted on the other side. “I don’t want to quarrel. But if she continues to be insolent, I won’t be responsible for myself!”
Besides the domestic inconvenience and matters of principle, Olga Stepanovna’s “banquets” cost Ilya quite a penny. He began asking his wife for money. Often Tatiana had to take all the family expenses on herself. Of course, Olga Stepanovna was not going to pay for her guests.
Apparently, the mother and son never had that conversation because a week later Olga Stepanovna called Tatiana.
“On Saturday, I invited my relatives to celebrate our wedding anniversary with Pasha,” she said. “Prepare the table by 7 p.m.”
Tatiana suppressed the urge to immediately tell her mother-in-law what she thought of her. Instead, she just decided to ignore it.
When Olga Stepanovna left, the couple had another serious conversation.
“Ilya, from now on you’ll give me a certain percentage of your salary that will go into our joint budget for maintaining the house, groceries, and utility bills,” Tatiana said. “You can use the rest of the money to continue feeding your mother and relatives. I won’t give you a penny more. So forget about lunches at work, new tires for your car, and everything else! Otherwise, I’ll file for divorce and property division. Let me lose my dream again in an ordinary apartment, but at least it will fully belong to me! Believe me, I’m not joking!”
Only after that conversation did Ilya finally decide to have a serious talk with his mother. Tatiana did not know what was said but could only guess because Ilya came home in a very bad mood. Gradually, relations between the spouses improved. Since then, Olga Stepanovna only appeared at the couple’s home when they themselves organized a celebration and invited parents from both sides.