Yana parked the car in the courtyard and turned off the engine. It had been a hectic day—two wedding hairstyles in a row, a capricious bride who changed her mind three times, plus the regular clients. But the register was ringing, and that was encouraging. The salon she’d opened two years ago was finally bringing in a steady income.
Climbing the stairs to the fourth floor, Yana mentally planned the evening. A shower, a light dinner, maybe a TV series with her husband Igor. Simple pleasures after a twelve-hour workday.
The apartment door opened just as Yana reached for her keys. Standing on the threshold was her mother-in-law, Galina Petrovna, in a housecoat and slippers, her face serious.
“Yanochka, at last! I’ve been waiting for you for an hour. Come to the kitchen, we need to talk.”
“Good evening, Galina Petrovna,” Yana said wearily, taking off her shoes. “Is Igor home?”
“My son is in the kitchen. I need to talk to both of you. A serious talk.”
The kitchen greeted her with the smell of fried potatoes and tea. Igor sat at the table with a cup in his hands; he looked worried. Her mother-in-law had already set the table—three cups, a sugar bowl, cookies in a dish.
“Sit down, Yanochka,” her mother-in-law indicated the chair next to Igor.
Yana sank onto the chair, studying her husband’s family with suspicion. These family councils were rare and always for serious reasons.
“I have something to discuss with you,” began Galina Petrovna, settling herself opposite. “You know, Yanochka, that Lena is having trouble with work. She’s young, beautiful, and has been sitting at home without a job for three months now.”
Yana took a cup and sipped the hot tea. Yes, she knew about her sister-in-law’s problems. Lena had quit her last job at a travel agency after a scandal with the director. Before that, she’d left a cosmetics store, also not of her own accord. And a mobile phone shop. Everywhere there had been reasons for conflict.
“There’s plenty of work out there; she’ll find something suitable,” Yana answered cautiously.
“What work!” Galina Petrovna waved a hand. “Everywhere they want experience—where is she supposed to get it? Either the pay is pennies or the schedule doesn’t fit. The girl is suffering.”
Igor nodded, backing up his mother.
“Mom’s right. Lena really is in a tough spot. Maybe we should help her?”
Yana looked at her husband, sensing a catch. It was becoming clear where this conversation was headed. The muscles in her shoulders tightened with the foreboding of an unpleasant request.
“So,” continued Galina Petrovna, “I think you should take Lena into your salon. We’re family! A daughter-in-law is obliged to help her husband’s relatives.”
“Mom, you’re right,” Igor agreed at once, turning to his wife. “Yana, understand, she’s my sister. We can’t abandon her in a difficult moment.”
Yana set the cup on its saucer, trying to stay calm. The proposal was no surprise, but that didn’t make it easier.
“Igor, my team is set. Three stylists, an administrator— all the girls are experienced and know their job. Lena has never worked in the beauty industry.”
“She’ll learn!” the mother-in-law brushed it off. “What, are you stingy? Your salon is booming, money’s pouring in, and your husband’s own sister is out of work.”
“Yana,” Igor interjected, “Mom’s right. Things are going well for you—why not help my sister? It’s only temporary, until she finds something else.”
Memories flashed through Yana’s mind of family celebrations when Lena was among the guests. The sister-in-law always found something to criticize—the food was too salty, the music too loud, the gifts inappropriate. With relatives, Lena carried herself condescendingly.
“It’s not about stinginess,” Yana explained patiently. “A salon is a business. Every employee affects the reputation. Lena doesn’t know how to work with clients.”
“What clients!” snorted Galina Petrovna. “They cut hair and paint nails. What’s so hard about that?”
Igor put a hand on his wife’s shoulder.
“Understand, Lena just hasn’t found her place. And a salon has a woman’s atmosphere—it’ll suit her. You can see how worried Mom is.”
Yana looked closely at her husband. He avoided meeting her eyes; there was a note of coercion in his voice, wrapped in the packaging of family concern.
“I’m against it,” Yana said clearly. “I have criteria for hiring.”
“Criteria!” her mother-in-law exclaimed. “And family—doesn’t that count as a criterion? I welcomed you into the family like a daughter. I shared Igor with you, I’m waiting for grandchildren. And you refuse to take relatives into your work?”
“Mom, don’t be so harsh,” Igor asked, but immediately added, “Still, the point stands. Yana, she’s not a stranger. She’s my sister.”
Yana felt her fists clench under the table. Her husband and mother-in-law were presenting a united front against her.
“I’m grateful for being welcomed into the family,” Yana said slowly. “But business and family relations are better not mixed.”
“What do you mean, not mixed?” protested Galina Petrovna. “Family is sacred!”
“Yana,” Igor leaned closer, “what does it cost you? Take Lena at least on a trial basis. If she doesn’t fit, you can let her go.”
“No,” Yana answered firmly.
“Why not?” Igor raised his voice. “Explain why you can’t help my sister?”
“Because I know Lena’s character. Remember when she worked at the phone shop? Customers complained about her rudeness.”
“That was long ago,” Igor dismissed it. “People change.”
“At the travel agency it was the same story. A client asked to change the tour dates, Lena snapped at her. A scandal, a complaint, she was fired.”
“So what?” Igor persisted. “Bosses nitpick everywhere. It’ll be different in your salon.”
Yana stood up from the table and carried her cup to the sink. Her husband was pressing for a concession; her mother-in-law was leaning on the authority of family.
“Igor, I’m not going to hire Lena,” Yana said distinctly.
“Oh really?” her husband stood too, cold notes entering his voice. “So my request means nothing to you?”
“I hear your request. But the answer is no.”
“Yana,” Igor moved closer to his wife, “I’m asking you as your husband. Help my sister.”
“And I’m answering as a business owner—I can’t.”
“Can’t or won’t?” Igor crossed his arms over his chest. “Seems to me you’re just being selfish.”
Galina Petrovna rose from her chair and stood beside her son.
“Igor is right. A wife should support her husband, not oppose him.”
“Yana, I’m asking you one last time,” Igor said in a hard tone. “Take Lena into the salon. It’s important to me.”
Yana looked at her husband, then at her mother-in-law. Both watched her expectantly, certain they were right.
“No, dear, I’m not going to toil away for your sister. Let her get a job on her own,” Yana said firmly.
Igor blanched in surprise. Galina Petrovna gasped and clutched at her heart.
“How dare you talk to your husband like that?!” the mother-in-law shouted.
“I dare,” Yana replied calmly. “Because I’m telling the truth.”
“Yana, you’re crossing the line,” Igor said coldly. “I’m the head of the family, and my word should be law.”
“Head of the family?” Yana repeated, her voice ringing with steel. “The head of the family who lives on his wife’s salary?”
A tense silence fell. Igor turned even paler; his mother opened her mouth in outrage.
“What did you say?” Igor asked slowly.
“What everyone knows but shyly keeps quiet about,” Yana answered. “You work on and off, picking up odd jobs. Our family’s main income comes from my salon.”
“I…I’m looking for a decent job,” Igor stammered, trying to justify himself.
“You’ve been looking for two years. And in the meantime you demand that I support your sister as well.”
Galina Petrovna couldn’t stand it and exploded:
“You ungrateful thing! It’s gone to your head! You think money lets you do anything?”
“It lets me not depend on other people’s whims,” Yana replied evenly.
Igor clenched his fists; anger flashed in his eyes.
“So you think I’m a freeloader?”
“I think a grown man should provide for his family on an equal footing with his wife. Not hide behind the search for a ‘decent’ job.”
“Enough!” Igor barked. “Don’t you dare humiliate me!”
“I’m not humiliating you. I’m stating facts,” Yana said calmly. “You want me to support your sister? First find yourself a permanent job.”
Igor was silent, breathing heavily. Galina Petrovna paced between her son and daughter-in-law, unsure whom to back.
“Yana,” Igor finally said more quietly, “we’re a family. Family should support each other.”
“Support—yes,” Yana agreed. “But not at the expense of one’s own business and common sense.”
Her husband sank into a chair and rubbed his face with his hands. For the first time in their marriage, his wife had confronted him with an unpleasant truth—he really was living off her income while demanding even greater expenses.
“What do you propose?” Igor asked tiredly.
“Get a job. A permanent one, with a normal salary. Then we can talk about helping relatives,” Yana said clearly.
Galina Petrovna couldn’t bear such a turn of events.
“How dare you set conditions for your husband!” she shouted. “A wife must obey!”
“Obey a husband who provides for his family himself,” Yana countered. “Not one who lives off my money.”
Igor stood, paced the kitchen, and stopped by the window.
“All right,” he said without turning around. “You’ve won this round. But I’ll remember what you said.”
“Do,” Yana replied calmly. “And find a job.”
Her mother-in-law left the kitchen in outrage, slamming the door. Igor walked out after her without a word. Yana remained alone, feeling both relief and anxiety.
For the first time in years of marriage, she had said aloud what she’d long thought. Her husband lived off her earnings yet demanded even more spending on his relatives. That kind of family arithmetic had long seemed unfair to Yana.
Her phone rang—it was the salon administrator, Oksana.
“Sorry to bother you, Yana Aleksandrovna. We’ve got a cancellation for ten tomorrow; a slot opened up. Should I move someone from the waitlist?”
“Yes, call Svetlana Viktorovna and offer her an earlier time. Thanks for your work, Oksana.”
Yana hung up and thought for a moment. Oksana was a reliable employee, polite with clients, diligent. Imagining Lena in her place still seemed absurd.
Igor returned to the kitchen half an hour later, looking lost.
“Mom went home,” he said, sitting down across from his wife. “She’s very upset.”
“I understand,” Yana nodded.
“So…am I really a freeloader?” Igor asked quietly.
Yana looked at her husband carefully. There was confusion in his voice; for the first time he had asked himself that question.
“You’re my husband,” Yana said gently. “But our household budget rests on my income. That’s a fact.”
“I’m looking for a job,” he offered weakly.
“You’ve been looking for a ‘decent position’ for two years. Meanwhile, I work twelve hours a day.”
Igor was silent, absorbing what he’d heard. Yana stood, came over, and put a hand on his shoulder.
“I’m not against helping Lena,” Yana said. “But not at the expense of my own business. We can pay for courses for her, help her look for a job somewhere else.”
“And the salon is out of the question?” Igor asked timidly.
“Out of the question,” Yana answered firmly. “I’m not ready to risk my reputation for the sake of family obligations.”
Her husband nodded, accepting her decision. For the first time in their marriage, Igor faced a clear stance from his wife, one that neither pleas nor pressure could break.
That evening, after Igor fell asleep, Yana lay awake for a long time, thinking over what had happened. For the first time, she had told her husband the truth about the family’s finances. Igor took the criticism painfully, but there was nothing to argue with—the facts spoke for themselves.
Tomorrow she would have to face the consequences of the family quarrel. Galina Petrovna would not forgive such humiliation; Lena would be angry about the refusal. But Yana no longer intended to sacrifice her interests for the sake of a dubious family peace.