— “It’s all yours now, Nadya,” the notary said, handing her the papers. Her grandmother had left Nadya a three-room apartment in the city center. Nadya was over the moon and immediately called her husband, Artyom. He reacted cautiously, saying they would talk everything over that evening.
That evening Artyom told her he’d already informed his mother, Galina Petrovna, about the apartment. She was offended that she hadn’t been the first to know and insisted on seeing it. The next day the three of them went together.
“What a dump!” was the first thing Galina Petrovna said. She criticized everything—the kitchen, the layout, the condition of the place.
“If you ask me, you’d be better off selling this apartment and buying something newer. And closer to me.”
“We’re not going to sell it,” Nadya replied. “It’s my grandmother’s memory.”
Artyom didn’t support his wife in the argument.
A week later, Nadya and Artyom moved in. On the third day, while Artyom was away on a business trip, someone rang the doorbell. Galina Petrovna stood on the doorstep with bags.
“I’ve decided to stay with you for a little while. A pipe burst at my place—repairs will take at least a week.”
Nadya went speechless. She knew her mother-in-law had a sister she could stay with.
“Galina Petrovna, but… we don’t even have proper furniture yet.”
“It’s fine, I’m not picky. Where’s my room?”
Her mother-in-law took the empty third room. That evening Nadya called Artyom. He asked her to “put up with it for a couple of days.”
Galina Petrovna immediately started bossing Nadya around, criticizing her cleaning and cooking, rearranging things. Artyom came back, but nothing changed—he was happy his mother was there. One week passed, then a second. She didn’t leave.
“The plumbers were so irresponsible,” she brushed it off. “Don’t worry, I’m not in your way.”
But she was. And when Galina Petrovna found out the apartment was registered in Nadya’s name, a real war began.
“What do you mean—it’s in your name? And Artyom? A man should be the master of the house! You need to re-register it in both your names. Or better yet—in Artyom’s.”
Every day she brought it up, convincing Artyom that Nadya didn’t trust him. Artyom grew thoughtful.
“Nadya… maybe Mom’s right,” he said one day. “Let’s put it in both our names?”
“Artyom, this is a gift from my grandmother.”
“But we’re husband and wife! Everything should be shared! So you don’t trust me?”
He got offended. The situation became unbearable.
One day Nadya came home from work and found her favorite vase from her grandmother broken.
“I accidentally bumped it while dusting,” Galina Petrovna replied indifferently. “It was old and ugly anyway.”
That evening Artyom took his mother’s side.
“Nadya, she didn’t do it on purpose!”
“Your mother has been living with us for a month! When is she leaving? She was supposed to have repairs.”
“What repairs? I called the plumbers—they said they finished three weeks ago!”
Artyom went pale.
“You checked on her? Don’t you dare talk about my mother like that!”
They fought.
The next day Nadya went to a lawyer and learned her rights. When she returned home, she found her husband and mother-in-law discussing a remodel.
“A remodel? In my apartment?”
“In our apartment,” Galina Petrovna corrected.
“No. In mine,” Nadya said firmly. “And there will be no remodel. Galina Petrovna, I’m asking you to move out. I’m giving you three days.”
Silence fell.
“You’re kicking my mother out?” Artyom finally said.
“I’m asking her to go back to her apartment, where the repairs have been finished for a long time.”
“Artyom, did you hear that?” his mother threw up her hands. “She’s throwing me out on the street!”
Artyom stood up. “Nadya, apologize to Mom.”
“For what? For telling the truth?”
“You’re insulting her!”
“That’s enough!” Artyom raised his voice. “Either you apologize, or I’m leaving!”
“Then leave,” Nadya said quietly. “Together with your mother.”
Galina Petrovna smiled triumphantly.
“See, son? I told you she’d throw you out!”
“You know what? You have twenty-four hours. By tomorrow evening, I want you both gone.”
Nadya went into the bedroom.
In the morning Artyom was packing.
“Are you really leaving?”
“Do I have a choice? You’re kicking me and my mother out.”
“I’m kicking your mother out. You can stay if you stop defending her.”
“She’s my mother!”
“And I’m your wife! Or am I already your ex?”
He didn’t answer. They left that evening. Artyom didn’t even say goodbye.
A week later Artyom called.
“Nadya, let’s meet.”
At the café he looked thinner.
“I want to come back. Mom will stay at her place. I realized I was wrong. She really manipulates me. I lived with her for a week and understood I can’t do it anymore.”
“And you think you can just come back?” Nadya asked.
“Nadya, I love you. Let’s start over.”
I looked at him and felt emptiness.
“No, Artyom. It’s too late.”
“Why? I realized my mistakes!”
“Because you chose her, not me. You let her humiliate me. You threatened me.”
“But I changed!”
“In a week? Don’t make me laugh. You’re just tired of living with your mother. Artyom, it’s over. I’m filing for divorce.”
He tried to talk her out of it for a long time, but Nadya had decided.
The divorce went quickly. The apartment stayed with Nadya. Galina Petrovna called with threats and spread rumors, but Nadya didn’t care. A year passed. Nadya renovated the apartment, got a cat, and started dating a coworker.
Recently she ran into Artyom. He still lived with his mother and looked exhausted.
“Hi. How are you?”
“Great. And you?”
“Fine. Mom’s sick—I’m taking care of her.”
“Nadya, wait! I think about us a lot. I regret…”
“It all turned out the right way, Artyom. Everyone made their choice.”
“I chose wrong.”
“Maybe. But it’s too late to change anything.”
She walked away. Her apartment became a symbol of her independence. Galina Petrovna got control over her son. And Nadya got freedom. And that turned out to be the most valuable inheritance of all