— You bought the wrong buckwheat again! How many times do I have to explain that “Mistral” is money down the drain!
— Mom, maybe it’s not worth making a big fuss over some grains?
— Don’t you dare talk back to me, Sergey! Your wife needs to learn how to save money!
The apartment on the fourth floor of a panel building had become a real prison for Liza. The young woman moved here after marrying Sergey, thinking it would be temporary—just a year or two until they saved enough for their own place. But every day under the same roof with her domineering mother-in-law Vera Ivanovna was a test of endurance.
Vera Ivanovna, a fifty-eight-year-old woman with stern features and a habit of placing her hands on her hips when giving lectures, never missed a chance to point out her daughter-in-law’s “flaws.” The house rules, the way dishes were washed, the choice of groceries—all became reasons for criticism.
— I was also nagged and taught the right way back in my day, — the mother-in-law justified herself when Liza tried to argue. — So you must go through this school too. Be quiet and learn, dear!
Liza learned not to react to the barbs. At least outwardly. She nodded, agreed, and continued doing things her own way when Vera Ivanovna went off to “grind” the neighbors with her friends.
— Your mommy followed me all the way to the store again, — Liza would tell her husband in the evenings. — She checked whether I picked the right meat.
— Why are you getting so worked up? — Sergey would brush it off. — She just wants to pass on her experience.
— Yeah, we know all about that! — Liza didn’t mince words. — What experience? Intrusiveness and control?
Sergey was surprised by his wife’s sharpness but chose not to argue. Brother Ivanushka preferred to ignore how his sister Alyonushka was slowly turning into a frightened, embittered little goat.
The buckwheat argument was just the last straw in a sea of daily nitpicking. The next day, Vera Ivanovna found a new reason for displeasure.
— Lizochka, who gave you permission to rearrange the jars in the cupboard? — the mother-in-law’s voice rang with fake sweetness. — I have my own system, you know!
— Sorry, Vera Ivanovna, — Liza replied calmly without turning from the stove. — I was just looking for the salt.
— Looking for salt! — snorted the mother-in-law. — Didn’t you leave your brains at home? The salt has always been in the right corner!
Liza slowly turned around, holding a wooden spoon.
— Now it’s in the left corner. The world hasn’t ended.
— Oh, really! — Vera Ivanovna put her hands on her hips. — So you’re going to set your own rules in my house?
— In our house, — Liza quietly corrected her. — Sergey lives here too, in case you forgot.
The mother-in-law was stunned by such boldness. Used to obedient compliance, she didn’t expect resistance.
— After all I have done… — Vera Ivanovna began, but Liza interrupted her.
— After all you have done—what? Taken in a homeless woman? Or maybe you forgot that Sergey and I pay the utilities and buy the groceries?
— Sergey! — the mother-in-law shouted. — Come here right now! Look at what your wife is doing!
Sergey appeared in the kitchen doorway looking bewildered, like a rabbit caught in car headlights.
— What happened? — he muttered, shifting his gaze between his mother and wife.
— What happened is that your dear wife has become downright insolent! — Vera Ivanovna pointed an accusing finger at Liza. — She’s rude to me in my own home!
— Mom, maybe it’s not worth it… — Sergey started weakly.
— No, Seryozha, it’s worth it, — Liza interrupted, putting down the spoon. — Let’s put things straight right away. I’m not going to become a house servant who has to report on every little thing.
— A servant! — Vera Ivanovna shrieked. — I’m raising you, ungrateful one! Making a lady out of you!
— Yeah, we know all about that! — Liza didn’t hold back. — What lady? You drag me by the tail all over the apartment, telling me how to breathe!
— Sergey, do you hear how she talks to me? — Vera Ivanovna turned to her son with a martyr’s look.
Sergey fidgeted in the doorway, clearly wishing to disappear into the floor. Brother Ivanushka was again caught between two fires.
— Liza, why are you getting so hot? — he finally said. — Mom means well.
— Well? — his wife sneered. — Your mommy even stalks me in the store! Checks every purchase as if I’m some spendthrift!
— And I check rightly! — the mother-in-law insisted. — Money doesn’t grow on trees! And you waste it left and right!
— Waste it left and right on what? — Liza opened the pantry cabinets. — On “Mistral” instead of cheap grains? Or on boneless meat?
— Enough! — Sergey suddenly barked. — I’m fed up! Every day the same thing!
Both women stared at him in surprise. Quiet Sergey rarely raised his voice.
— Mom, — he continued, looking at his mother, — Liza is my wife. If she doesn’t like how the jars are arranged, let her rearrange them.
— Sergey! — Vera Ivanovna gasped. — Have you lost your mind?
— And you, Liza, — he turned to his wife, — show a little patience. We’ll move out soon.
— When soon? — Liza asked wearily. — In a year? Two? Five? Maybe ten?!
— Well… we’re saving up…
— Saving up! — she snorted. — And your mommy meanwhile is making a scapegoat out of me!
A few days later, when Liza had a high fever and was lying in bed, the mother-in-law somehow decided that the sweater she had been looking for half an hour had to be in the daughter-in-law’s things. And…
Liza closed the door and leaned back against it, expecting an inevitable storm. She didn’t have to wait long.
— Sergey! — Vera Ivanovna shouted from the corridor. — Come here immediately! Your wife has gone wild!
A minute later, the disheveled husband burst into the room, followed by the angry mother.
— What’s going on? — Sergey asked bewilderedly, looking at the clothes scattered on the floor of his bedroom.
— What’s going on is that your precious wife threw me out of my own room! — Vera Ivanovna pointed trembling finger at Liza. — Can you imagine? Me! The lady of the house!
— Mom, maybe don’t get so worked up… — Sergey started, but his mother cut him off.
— Don’t get worked up? And you think I should tolerate such rudeness? I came to her with kindness—to look for my sweater—and she pounced on me like a tigress!
Liza slowly walked to the window, trying to calm the trembling in her knees.
— Kindness, you say? — she spoke without turning. — Bursting in on a sick person and making a mess—is that kindness?
— Sick! — the mother-in-law shrieked. — We know all about that! Probably just pretending, lazybones!
— Vera Ivanovna, — Liza turned and looked her straight in the eye. — Your blue sweater is hanging in the bathroom. It’s drying after washing. If you wanted to ask—just ask. Why make a search?
The mother-in-law was momentarily confused but quickly composed herself.
— Since when do you wash my things? Who allowed that?
— It was in the dirty laundry basket, — Liza explained tiredly. — I washed it with the rest.
— Exactly! — Vera Ivanovna exclaimed triumphantly. — Without asking! What if it requires delicate washing? You could have ruined it!
Sergey fidgeted in the middle of the room, shifting his gaze from mother to wife.
— Well, mom, Liza wanted to help…
— Wanted to help! — snorted the mother-in-law. — Your wife only does harm! Buys the wrong buckwheat, rearranges jars, pulls some other stunt!
— Stunt? — Liza slowly went to the dresser and began picking up the scattered clothes. — So cooking, cleaning, washing—those are stunts?
— Exactly! When everything is done half-heartedly! — Vera Ivanovna put her hands on her hips. — I was taught the right way back in my day! And look, I turned out fine!
— Taught or tormented? — Liza asked quietly, folding T-shirts into a drawer.
— What did you say? — the mother-in-law narrowed her eyes threateningly.
— What I said. — Liza straightened up and looked Vera Ivanovna in the eye. — For one and a half years I’ve endured your mockery. Every day, every minute you find a reason to humiliate me.
— Mockery! I’m raising you! Making you a person!
— A person? — Liza smiled bitterly. — Or a slave? You’re making a scapegoat out of me, dear mother-in-law.
— Sergey! — Vera Ivanovna shouted. — Do you hear how she talks to me? Your mother is a slave to her!
— Don’t twist my words, — Liza calmly replied. — I said you’re turning me into a slave. Not the other way around.
Sergey finally decided to intervene:
— Girls, enough! Liza, mom meant well…
— Keep dreaming! — Liza didn’t hold back. — Your mommy meant to control every breath I take!
— Control! — Vera Ivanovna was outraged. — I’m passing on life experience!
— What experience? — Liza gestured around the wrecked room. — How to burst into sick people’s rooms? How to rummage through other people’s things? How to make life unbearable?
— Other people’s things! There’s nothing foreign in my house! Everything is mine!
— Exactly, — Liza nodded. — Including me and your son. We’re not people to you—we’re property.
— Liza, why are you like this? — Sergey said plaintively. — Mom cares about us…
— Cares? — Liza looked at her husband with pity. — Brother Ivanushka, when will you finally see? Your mommy doesn’t care. She rules.
— I rule! — Vera Ivanovna shouted. — I’d give you my last shirt! I’ve sacrificed my whole life for you!
— Whatever! — Liza waved her hand. — No one asked you to sacrifice your life. Sergey is an adult man, by the way.
— Adult! — the mother-in-law snorted contemptuously. — An adult would have put his wife in her place long ago!
— What place? — Liza asked. — The same place you put him in for over thirty years?
Sergey blushed and turned to the window.
— Don’t you dare speak about my son! — Vera Ivanovna went berserk. — He’s golden to me! And you… you’re not good enough for him!
— Not good enough? — Liza laughed. — Then who is? You?
— What? I raised him, educated him, made a man out of him! And what did you do? Only spoil everything!
— Spoil? — Liza sat on the edge of the bed. — Maybe I’m trying to turn a little goat into a person?
— Little goat! — Vera Ivanovna shrieked. — How dare you!
— How I dare, that’s how, — Liza replied calmly. — You made him a obedient puppet. You pull the strings, and he jumps.
— Liza! — Sergey finally protested. — That’s my mother!
— I know, — the wife nodded. — That’s why you always choose her. Instead of your own family.
— Choosing right! — Vera Ivanovna exclaimed triumphantly. — He has one mother, but can have many wives!
Liza got up and went to the closet. She took out a suitcase and put it on the bed.
— What are you doing? — Sergey asked, frightened.
— What I should have done a long time ago, — Liza replied, taking her things out of the closet. — I’m leaving.
— Where are you going? — the husband was taken aback.
— What’s it to you? — Liza carefully folded her clothes into the suitcase. — You have mommy. She’ll cook, wash, and iron. Scapegoat for you both.
— Liza, don’t be foolish! — Sergey pleaded. — We had a fight, that’s normal!
— Normal, — agreed the wife. — But this is not a fight. This is the end.
— Good! — Vera Ivanovna exclaimed triumphantly. — No need to wander here! My son deserves better!
— Exactly, — Liza nodded. — He deserves better. Too bad he doesn’t understand it himself.
She closed the suitcase and turned to her husband:
— Brother Ivanushka, when you get tired of playing the little goat—call me. Maybe it’s not too late to get out of the stall.
— Liza, wait! — Sergey grabbed her hand. — We can talk this out!
— Talk? — Liza pulled away. — With who? You or your mommy? Or maybe have a family conference?
— Fine, get out! — Vera Ivanovna yelled. — Just leave the keys! And don’t let your foot touch this place again!
— I see the goal—I don’t see obstacles! — Liza smirked, taking the keys from her purse and throwing them on the dresser. — Here you go, dear mother-in-law. Now you can reign uncontested.
She took the suitcase and headed for the door.
— Liza! — Sergey called after her. — What if I… if we move out?
Liza stopped at the threshold and turned. There was no anger or resentment in her eyes. Only fatigue.
— Brother Ivanushka, — she said quietly. — You won’t move out. Mommy won’t let you. And I’m no longer willing to play these games.
— But we love each other! — Sergey shouted in despair.
— Love? — Liza smiled sadly. — You love mommy. And I… I loved a person who never existed.
She left the room, leaving her husband and mother-in-law behind. She paused in the hallway, listening to the voices from the room.
— Seryozha, don’t be upset! — Vera Ivanovna comforted her son. — She didn’t deserve you! We’ll find you another, a good one!
— Yes, mom, — Sergey replied dully. — Maybe you’re right…
Liza shook her head and headed to the exit. Brother Ivanushka made his choice. Again.
The next day Sergey spent confused. He dialed his wife’s number several times but hung up. By evening, he couldn’t take it and called.
— Liza, what is this kindergarten? — he started without greeting. — When will you stop panicking and come home?
— I won’t come back, Sergey, — she replied calmly. — I’m filing for divorce.
— Are you crazy? Destroying a family over some fight with mom?
— It’s not a fight. It’s a system. Your mother torments me every day, and you encourage it.
— Liza, don’t talk nonsense…
— I’ve made my decision. Either we live apart from your mother, or divorce.
— Are you giving me ultimatums? — Sergey’s voice hardened. — Fine. If you want a divorce—you’ll get one.
The next day Vera Ivanovna learned of her daughter-in-law’s demands and flew into a rage. She started calling Liza, leaving angry messages, even coming to her parents’ house and causing scenes.
— You think you can make us dance to your tune? — she yelled into the phone. — My son will live without you, but you’re nobody without him!
But Liza was adamant. When the mother-in-law showed up at her parents’ home yelling and lamenting, the young woman came down to the yard.
— Vera Ivanovna, — she said evenly, — screw you. You can scream till you turn blue. The decision is made.
— How dare you, you filthy thing! — the mother-in-law shrieked. — I’ll show you where the crayfish winter! You’ll crawl on your knees yourself!
— Keep dreaming! — Liza didn’t hold back. — Your Sergey already made his choice. And it wasn’t me.
— He chose right! — Vera Ivanovna shrieked. — There are plenty like you! And he has only one mother!
— Yeah, we know all about that! — Liza smirked. — That’s why I’m divorcing. The three of us are too cramped in this marriage.
The mother-in-law was stunned by such boldness but quickly regained composure:
— You’ll regret this, bitch! Without my son, you’re doomed!
— I see the goal—I don’t see obstacles! — Liza retorted and headed to the entrance, leaving Vera Ivanovna yelling across the yard.
A week after filing the divorce papers, Sergey unexpectedly showed up at Liza’s parents’ house.
— I need to talk to Liza, — he muttered, shifting nervously at the doorstep.
— Come in, — the mother-in-law replied dryly. — But not for long.
Liza came out to the living room. Her ex-husband sat on the edge of the sofa, studying the pattern on the carpet.
— Well? — she asked, settling into a chair opposite him. — What brings brother Ivanushka to our parts?
— Liza, maybe we shouldn’t do this anymore? — Sergey said plaintively. — I understand you’re upset…
— Upset? — she repeated. — Sergey, I’m not upset. I’m free. For the first time in a year and a half.
— But we can talk it out! Find a compromise!
— What compromise? — Liza leaned back in her chair. — Are you ready to move out from mommy?
Sergey hesitated:
— Well… it’s not that simple… She’s alone, sick…
— Uh-huh, — Liza nodded. — So you’re not ready. Then what’s the point?
— Liza, you can’t destroy a family over petty things!
— Petty things? — she smiled. — Sergey, your mommy made a scapegoat out of me for one and a half years. And you encouraged it.
— I didn’t encourage! It’s just… mom cares about us…
— She cares a lot! — Liza didn’t hold back. — She rules, Sergey. And you let her.
— But you could have tolerated… adapted…
— Adapted? — Liza stood up from the chair. — To abuse? To daily humiliation? You can’t force love, dear.
— Liza, I’m telling you—we’ll find a way…
— We already found it, — she replied calmly. — Divorce.
— You understand it will be hard without me? — Sergey’s voice showed irritation. — Your job is so-so, salary’s small…
— That’s below the belt, — Liza looked at him with contempt. — So I should endure abuse for money? Keep dreaming, brother Ivanushka.
— It’s not about money! Just think clearly…
— I am thinking, — she nodded. — And the more I think, the clearer I see—I’m doing the right thing.
— Liza, mom is ready… well, to make concessions…
— What concessions? — she asked. — Will she yell less? Or nitpick every other day?
— Why so bitter? She doesn’t mean harm…
— She means love, right? Care? Tell that to your friends, maybe they’ll believe.
Sergey got up and nervously paced the room:
— Okay, suppose we move out. But not immediately! We need time to find an apartment, save up…
— Seryozha, — Liza said tiredly, — you won’t move out. Never. Mommy won’t let you, and you won’t try to break free.
— She will! And I will try! Just give me time…
— Time? — she smirked. — How long? A year? Two? Ten? Or when mommy’s gone to the other world?
— Liza, why do you say that! — Sergey was outraged.
— What is, — she replied calmly. — You chose, Sergey. Not me.
— I chose you! I married you!
— Married, — Liza agreed. — But chose to live with mommy. And dragged me along as a side dish.
— It was temporary! We planned…
— That’s all nonsense, — Liza waved her hand. — You can plan anything. The point is the will to carry out plans.
Sergey faltered and stared at her:
— So you seriously think I don’t want to live separately?
— Do you want to? — she answered with a counter-question. — Honestly?
— Of course I do!
— Then why haven’t you made a single attempt in one and a half years? — Liza sat back down. — Not one, Sergey. But every day you told me mommy was right.
— She wasn’t always right! Sometimes I defended you!
— Sometimes, — Liza nodded. — When it became unbearable. Mostly, you defended her.
— I can’t leave her!
— Who’s asking you to leave? — Liza was surprised. — I asked to live separately. Visit, care, help—fine. But live separately.
— She won’t understand…
— What do I care if she understands? — Liza asked harshly. — I was your wife, not her girlfriend.
— You were? — Sergey grabbed that word. — So it’s all decided for sure?
— Definitely, — she confirmed. — The divorce will be finalized in a month, and we’ll become strangers.
— Liza, give me a chance! I’ll change!
— Seryozha, — she looked at him with pity — you’re thirty-two. If you haven’t changed yet, you won’t.
— I will! I swear! Just bring our family back!
— What family? — Liza smiled. — You, me, and your mommy? That’s not a family, it’s a madhouse.
— We can live separately! I’ll find an apartment!
— When? — she asked businesslike. — In a month? Two? Six months?
— Well… in six months for sure…
— And how will mommy react to your decision?
Sergey hesitated:
— She’ll be upset at first… But then she’ll understand…
— Yeah, we know all about that! — Liza laughed. — She’ll throw such a tantrum you’ll forget about living separately.
— She won’t!
— Seryozha, she’s been calling and yelling at me for a week. Coming to my parents’ and putting on a show. You think she’ll be polite with you?
— She just cares…
— Exactly, — Liza nodded. — She cares that she’s losing power. Over you and me.
— Liza, let’s try again! I’ll be different!
— You won’t, — she replied calmly. — Because you don’t want to be different. You like being the little goat.
— What does the little goat have to do with this?
— That you never became a grown man. You hide your whole life under mommy’s skirt.
Sergey blushed:
— That’s unfair!
— It’s fair, — Liza replied. — And you know it well. That’s why you’re angry.
— Fine, — he got up and headed for the door. — So it’s over?
— Over, — she confirmed. — It’s been over for a long time. I just didn’t realize it at once.
— You’ll regret it, — Sergey said at the door.
— Whatever, — Liza answered. — The only thing I regret is not leaving sooner.
Liza received her divorce certificate on Friday and went for a routine checkup at the women’s clinic on Monday. What the doctor told her turned her life upside down.
— Congratulations, you’re going to have a baby. It’s early—about six weeks.
Liza sat in the office unable to move. A baby… Now, when she was just starting a new life, after divorce, trying to stand on her own…
All week she agonized. Abort? Keep the baby? How would she raise it alone, without her own home?
In the end, she decided to tell Sergey. Not because she hoped to reconcile, but because he had the right to know.
They met at a café near his work.
— You wanted to talk? — he asked dryly.
— Yes, — Liza took a deep breath. — I’m pregnant.
Sergey froze with a coffee cup in hand.
— What?
— I’m expecting a child. Your child.
He was silent for a few minutes, then his face twisted into a grimace of unpleasant surprise.
— So that’s it… — he said slowly. — Clever plan. Divorce first, then lifelong child support.
— What are you saying? — Liza couldn’t believe what she heard.
— What am I saying? — Sergey put down the cup. — Very convenient! Divorced to show character, now hooking me for money!
— Sergey, I didn’t plan the pregnancy…
— Of course you didn’t! — he stood up. — Do you think I’m that naive? You planned it all in advance!
— Do you seriously think I got pregnant just to get child support?
— What else to think? First hysterics, then divorce, now pregnancy! Classic scheme!
— What scheme? You remember the last time we…
— I remember, I remember! — Sergey interrupted. — And it happened just in time, right? Right before the divorce!
— Literally on the day of our last fight, — Liza corrected calmly. — When you tried to “make up” after another quarrel with mommy.
— Don’t call my mother mommy! — Sergey exploded. — And how do I know the child is mine?
She slowly got up from the table.
— I see, — she said quietly. — Now I’m also a girl who doesn’t know who the father is.
— I didn’t say that…
— Exactly what you said, — Liza grabbed her purse. — Whatever, Sergey. I told you. Consider the debt paid. Figure it out yourself.
— Wait! — he called her. — What are you going to do?
— What’s it to you? — Liza turned. — You think the baby might not be yours. So it’s not your problem.
— Liza, that’s not what I meant…
— That’s exactly what you meant, — she cut him off. — Keep dreaming, brother Ivanushka. You won’t hear anything else from me.
She headed for the exit, leaving Sergey standing in the café looking confused.
Sergey stormed into the apartment where his mother waited. Throwing keys on the table, he sharply turned to Vera Ivanovna.
— Mom, we have a problem. Liza is pregnant.
Surprise then anger crossed Vera Ivanovna’s face.
— What do you mean pregnant? You’re divorced! How dare she…
— She didn’t dare anything! — Sergey yelled. — It happened before the divorce. Now she wants to keep the baby and demand child support.
The mother put her cup on the table.
— That bitch decided to milk us! Thinks we’ll pay her forever?
Sergey sank into a chair. Anger and confusion fought inside him. On the one hand, he understood the child was his, on the other—the divorce wasn’t without reason, and he wasn’t going back to Liza.
— Have you thought about what you’ll say? — Vera Ivanovna continued raging. — Maybe deny paternity? Who knows whom she messed with after the divorce!
— Mom, stop! — Sergey looked up. — The child is mine. I know that.
— No way! — the mother shrieked. — She better prove it first! And then… No! Better not pay anything! Let her fend for herself!
Sergey was silent, thinking. His anger at Liza was slowly replaced by anxiety. The child… his child. Would he really grow up without a father?
— You know what, mom, — he said slowly, — maybe I should talk to her again.
— Talk about what? — Vera Ivanovna was stunned. — Sergey, are you out of your mind? She left you! Divorced! Now she wants child support!
— She’s not asking for child support, — Sergey objected. — She just told me she’s pregnant.
— First she tells, then she’ll start demanding! What’s wrong with you? That girl has completely messed with your head!
Sergey muttered something, nodded, and went to his room.
The next day.
— Liza Petrovna? You have a visitor, — the secretary said.
She nodded. The door opened slightly, and a figure appeared that chilled the veins. Vera Ivanovna.
The world compressed for a moment, sounds disappeared. The hand instinctively went down, resting protectively over the slight bump under the sweater—a shield against the expected blow.
— Vera Ivanovna… — the name slipped out in a dry, prickly whisper. — Didn’t expect to see you.
She pressed against the back of the chair, bracing for the usual onslaught: icy stares, poisonous words about a broken family, manipulation with pregnancy. But instead of the usual storm, another woman stood in the doorway. Her shoulders were slumped under a heavy coat, deep shadows under her eyes, and in her usual hard gaze there was no trace of the usual aggression.
— Liza… — Vera Ivanovna’s voice was muffled, with an unusual hoarseness. — May I… sit? I need to talk to you.
Liza, still not believing what was happening, silently nodded, indicating the chair opposite. The sound of heels on the linoleum seemed incredibly loud.
A painful pause followed. The former mother-in-law looked into the space behind Liza, gathering strength. Finally, she raised her eyes, and something helpless, almost childlike, flickered in them.
— I came… — she took a short breath — to apologize.
The words were quiet but so powerful that Liza instinctively gripped the armrests of the chair. Apologize? From Vera Ivanovna?
— Yesterday… when Sergey told me… I was beside myself. Angry. But then… I didn’t sleep all night. I thought.
She fell silent, fiddling with the folds of her dress. It seemed she wasn’t looking at the office but somewhere far away, deep into the years.
— You know, Liza, — she began again, and her voice sounded different, softer, deeper, — when I was your age… I also found out I was expecting a child. Twenty-two. University. Sergey’s father’s parents… — she smiled bitterly — they were categorically against it. Said I was a cunning upstart, that I trapped their son, that I got pregnant on purpose to ruin his life. — Her voice broke, trembling with long-hidden resentments. — His mother… — Vera Ivanovna straightened, old pain flashing in her eyes — she came to me. Offered… money. To get lost and… get rid of it. They nearly threw me out on the street. I remember that chilling fear, Liza… That despair when it seems the whole world is against you. And yesterday… — she shook her head, tears standing in her eyes — yesterday, hearing about your pregnancy, I… I became that very woman. The one who almost ruined my life more than thirty years ago. I repeated her words, her hatred… — She closed her eyes for a moment. — Forgive me.
Vera Ivanovna’s words, her repentance, this unexpected confession—it was all too incredible. Liza saw only the sparkle of tears on the former mother-in-law’s lashes, heard the tremble in her voice, and the old wall of distrust cracked for the first time.
— Tell me, — Vera Ivanovna whispered, wiping a corner of her eye. — How do you live? Do you… have enough? For medicine, for necessities? How do you feel? The baby… is everything alright?
Liza felt softened by this unexpected warmth. She cautiously, as if testing the ground, answered:
— I… try. I work. I manage on my own for now. But… — she hesitated, unsure if she could trust, but something in Vera Ivanovna’s eyes pushed her to openness — Sergey… he took everything. All our savings. He says… we divorced on your initiative—so deal with it alone.
The tired and repentant look instantly vanished from Vera Ivanovna’s face. It literally darkened. Her eyes, just filled with tears, narrowed to slits; the cold, steel fire familiar to Liza flared up, but now it burned not for her.
— All the money? — her voice grew low, dangerous. — Even what you saved for years for an apartment? For the future?
— Yes, — Liza confirmed softly. — He said… I chose the divorce, so I have to bear the consequences.
Vera Ivanovna jumped up so suddenly that the steel chair clattered back and hit the wall loudly.
— Wait here, — she said curtly, her voice brooking no argument. — I’ll be right back.
Without waiting for a reply, she turned and left the office with quick, firm steps, leaving behind a hollow silence, the chair’s clatter, and Liza frozen in her chair with a wildly beating heart, trying to comprehend this incredible turn.
The hour dragged painfully long. Liza was still at her desk when familiar footsteps finally sounded on the stairs.
— This is for you, — Vera Ivanovna said without preamble, handing her an envelope. — For the beginning. And don’t you dare refuse.
Liza opened the envelope with trembling fingers. The amount was impressive—more than she earned in several months.
— Vera Ivanovna, I can’t take this… — she started, but the woman sharply interrupted her:
— You can and you will. This is my money, and I decide what to spend it on. And I want to spend it on my future granddaughter or grandson.
Vera Ivanovna sat down in the chair. Her voice became unexpectedly soft, almost motherly.
— Liza, I know there was a lot of bad between us. I know I often interfered in your relationship with Sergey. But now it’s not about us adults, it’s about the child. And this child is my blood.
She rummaged in her purse, took out a notebook and pen.
— If you need anything—call. Don’t hesitate. And be sure to register at the women’s clinic, if you haven’t yet. You need to monitor your health, take vitamins…
Yesterday this woman was her sworn enemy, and today she was giving advice and offering help like a caring mother.
— Why? — Liza barely whispered. — Why did you change so much?
Vera Ivanovna smiled sadly.
— Because I remembered what it’s like to be pregnant and alone. And because I realized that if I want a grandchild in my life, I need to start acting like a grandmother, not a wicked mother-in-law.
Eight months flew by unnoticed. Liza gave birth to a healthy girl and named her Masha. The baby was born strong and calm, as if she already knew she was greatly awaited.
Vera Ivanovna truly kept her word. She helped not only financially but with advice, coming anytime day or night when Liza found it especially hard to cope alone.
— Masha sleeps poorly at night, — Liza complained, rocking the baby in her arms.
— That will pass, — Vera Ivanovna reassured. — All children go through it. The main thing is not to panic.
Sergey tried several times to mend the relationship. He came with gifts for the daughter, cautiously started conversations about wanting to see the child more often.
— Masha grows so fast, — he said, looking at the sleeping daughter in the stroller. — Maybe we could…
— Child support comes on time, — Liza answered evenly. — Thanks. Nothing else is needed.
— Liza, I understand I was wrong, but…
— You understand nothing, Sergey. And don’t want to.
He left, and Liza closed the door. She could not forgive. The memories of how he left her when she needed support the most were too fresh.
Relations with Vera Ivanovna were more complicated. The resentment did not disappear; wounds healed slowly. But when little Masha smiled with her toothless grin and reached out to her grandmother, Liza did not interfere with their communication.
— What a beauty she’s growing up to be, — Vera Ivanovna whispered, gently taking the granddaughter in her arms. — My smart girl, my sunshine…
Masha was indeed a beautiful child. She had Liza’s dark eyes and the stubborn chin of her father. She rarely cried and looked at the world around her with curiosity.
— She looks like you, — Vera Ivanovna once noted. — Calm and thoughtful just like you.
— I hope her character will be better than some, — Liza replied without looking up from folding baby clothes into the closet.
Vera Ivanovna was silent. She knew she deserved those barbs.
Liza watched the former mother-in-law fuss over the baby and pondered the strangeness of fate. The woman with whom she had so many conflicts had perhaps become the only close person who genuinely rejoiced at Masha’s birth. Friends congratulated and gave gifts but then returned to their own lives. Vera Ivanovna stayed.
— I made lunch, — she said, putting Masha to bed. — You need to eat well.
— Thank you, — Liza answered shortly.
They ate in silence. Each thought about her own things. Vera Ivanovna—how to fix things with her daughter-in-law. Liza—whether it was even worth fixing.
— Masha will grow up without a father, — Vera Ivanovna suddenly said.
— Many children grow up without fathers and become wonderful people.
— But Sergey wants…
— Sergey wants many things. The question is how long it will last this time.
Vera Ivanovna put down her fork and looked at Liza.
— I know my son acted meanly. But Masha is his daughter.
— Masha is my daughter, — Liza said firmly. — And I will decide who can be part of her life.
The conversation ended. They returned to silence, each holding her own opinion.
In the evening, when Masha was asleep and Vera Ivanovna had gone home, Liza sat in a chair next to the crib and looked at her daughter for a long time. The baby snored softly in her sleep, occasionally moving her lips.
— We’ll manage, — Liza said quietly. — Somehow, we’ll manage.
Sergey’s personal life turned into a series of unsuccessful attempts to build relationships. Every time he brought home a new girlfriend, his mother considered it her duty to disclose the family secrets.
— You know, my Sergey has a daughter, — Vera Ivanovna casually told one of her son’s girlfriends at dinner. — Masha is so beautiful, my little angel. Sergey hardly sees her but pays child support on time.
His mother’s words worked without fail. The girls disappeared from Sergey’s life at lightning speed. No one wanted to get involved with a man who already had a child, especially if he wasn’t involved in raising her.
— Mom, why do you tell them all this? — Sergey shouted after another breakup.
— Are you ashamed of your daughter? — Vera Ivanovna replied icily. — If a woman can’t accept that you have a child, then she’s not right for you.
— But I don’t live with Masha! What business is it of theirs?
— Exactly. And that’s your choice, son, — his mother’s voice was full of undisguised annoyance. — But my granddaughter exists, and I’m not going to pretend otherwise.
Sergey realized arguing was pointless. His mother would never change her behavior. She methodically destroyed his relationships as if following some secret plan.
— Maybe stop interfering in my life? — he tried once more to reach his mother’s heart.
— I’m not interfering. I’m just telling the truth, — Vera Ivanovna countered. — And the truth is you’re a father. You can run from that fact as long as you want, but it won’t go away.
Months of loneliness made Sergey accept the obvious: his mother would not back down. He either had to start fully communicating with his daughter or resign himself to a personal life in ruins. The choice was his, and the time to think was running out.