– Mom said again that you have to give us the big room! – Svetlana blurted out right from the doorway, without even saying hello. Her face was burning with righteous indignation, and she was clutching the keys to the apartment in her hands as if they were a weapon.
I froze with a mug of tea in my hands. Friday evening, which I had planned to spend in silence after a hard work week, was clearly falling apart. Andrey was sitting on the couch and diligently studying the screen of his phone, pretending not to hear his sister’s words.
– Svetlana, we’ve already discussed this, – I answered as calmly as possible, although everything inside was boiling. – Andrey and I live in this room because we pay for the apartment. You and Victor have been living here for free for six months already.
– For free?! – my sister-in-law squealed. – But we are relatives! Family! Or do you think that because you bought the apartment, now you can boss us around?
The story began eight months ago, when I was finally able to buy a three-room apartment. Years of saving, refusing vacations and entertainment, endless overtime – all this resulted in the coveted square meters in a residential area. Andrey was sincerely happy with me then, promised that now we would live well. We moved, settled in, and the first two months were truly happy.
And then a “temporary situation” happened. Svetlana and her husband Viktor lost their rented apartment – the owners decided to sell. Of course, they were in no hurry to look for a new home. Why, if there is a “beloved brother” with a three-room apartment?
“Well, they will live for a couple of weeks until they find something suitable,” Andrey tried to persuade me. “We can’t throw our own sister out on the street.”
A couple of weeks turned into a month, then into two. Svetlana and Viktor occupied a smaller room and, it seemed, were not going to move anywhere. Moreover, the appetites grew.
“Mom is right,” Svetlana continued, sitting down in the armchair with the air of a hostess. “There are two of us, two of you. But we have more things, and it’s cramped in a small room. It’s logical that you should swap with us. Besides, Victor snores, he needs good soundproofing, and the walls in the big room are thicker.”
I looked at Andrey. He continued to feign incredible fascination with his phone. A familiar picture: when it was necessary to make a decision or stand up for me, my husband turned invisible.
“Svetlana, I’ll buy earplugs for Victor,” I answered, restraining myself with all my might. “But we won’t swap rooms. This is our apartment, and we have the right to live in any room.”
“Your apartment!” my sister-in-law shouted. “You’re always pointing that out! Do you think that you bought an apartment and are now a queen?” And the fact that we are Andrey’s family doesn’t count?
“I’m not poking anyone,” I objected, feeling my temple start to throb. “But the fact remains – the apartment was bought with my money, registered in my name, and I pay the mortgage on it. You’ve been living here for free for six months now, and I’ve never asked for a penny, not even for utilities.”
“Ha!” Svetlana theatrically threw up her hands. “Do you hear that, Andryusha? Your little wife is blaming us for the utilities! Mom was right – she doesn’t value you, she only shakes her money and apartment at us!”
Andrey finally tore himself away from the phone. I looked at him hopefully – maybe he’ll stand up for us now? But no.
“Let’s not quarrel,” he muttered. “Maybe we really should think about it… After all, it’s really cramped for the two of them in a small room.
I couldn’t believe my ears. My husband, the man who swore to support me, had just sided with my sister over my apartment!
– Andrey, are you serious? – my voice trembled treacherously.
– Why are you saying that right away… I’m just saying that we can consider our options. Family, after all.
Family. This word has become a curse for me over the past six months. Family demanded concessions. Family demanded patience. Family demanded my money, my space, my time. And what did it give in return? Reproaches, complaints, and demands for new victims.
– Exactly! – Svetlana picked up. – Family! And you, Marina, don’t seem to understand this. Mom always said that Andryusha should have married a simpler girl, without your ambitions and apartments. Someone who would respect the family!
Ambitions. That’s what she called my years of hard labor, saving on everything, giving up simple pleasures for the sake of the dream of my own home. Simpler is, apparently, one that would silently serve all of her husband’s relatives and not dare to object.
– You know what, Svetlana, – I stood up, putting the mug on the table with such force that the tea spilled. – I really don’t understand such a “family”. A family that only takes and demands. A family that does not respect other people’s work and other people’s property. And you know what? I don’t want to understand it anymore.
– Oh-oh-oh, I’m offended! – Svetlana also jumped up. – Andryusha, do you see? Your wife is going to kick us out! Her own sister and her husband! Mom will be shocked! Family vacation tours
Mother-in-law. Another sore subject. Tatyana Petrovna made it clear from the first day we met that I was unworthy of her son. Too independent, too ambitious, too… too much of everything. When I bought the apartment, her discontent only increased. “A normal wife waits for her husband to provide the family with housing,” she said. The fact that her son, at thirty-two, had no savings and lived with me in a rented apartment did not bother her.
“Let him be shocked,” I answered, looking Svetlana straight in the eyes. “And yes, I ask you to move out. I give you two weeks to find housing.”
“What?!” my sister-in-law squealed. “Andrey, did you hear? She’s throwing us out!”
I turned to my husband. He was sitting there pale, confused, clearly not expecting such a turn of events.
“Marina, why so abruptly… Let’s discuss everything calmly…”
“We’ve been discussing this for six months, Andrey. For six months I have been putting up with your sister’s rudeness, her complaints, her demands. For six months I have been waiting for them to start looking for a place to live. For six months I have been hoping that you will finally take my side. But you prefer to pretend that nothing is happening.
— I just don’t want conflicts in the family…
— And I don’t want them to tell me which room to live in in my house! — her voice broke into a scream. — I don’t want to be reproached for the apartment that I bought with my own sweat and blood! I don’t want to support healthy adults who haven’t even said thank you once in six months!
— Oh, so we should also thank you! — Svetlana was furious. — For living in this hole in the middle of nowhere? For huddling in a tiny room? We are doing you a favor by agreeing to live here! Victor crosses the entire city to work every day!
A hole in the middle of nowhere. That’s what she called the apartment I spent five years of my life on. The apartment, every square meter of which I had toiled to get.
“Then what’s the problem?” I grinned. “Find an apartment closer to Victor’s work. I’m sure you can easily rent something in the center. Or buy one, if my apartment is so awful. Family Vacation Tours
“You… you…” Svetlana choked with indignation. “Andrey, are you going to put up with this?”
All eyes turned to my husband. He sat hunched over, looking like he wanted to sink into the ground. The choice was simple – his wife or his sister. Me or my mother with her eternal discontent. Our family or the clan that had looked after him all his life was deciding for him and now demanding payment for this care.
– Sveta, maybe it really is… – he began uncertainly. – You’ve really been living together for a long time…
– Andryusha! – Svetlana looked at her brother as if he were a traitor. – Are you on her side? Mom told me she would ruin you! Turn you into a henpecked husband! And she did!
– I didn’t turn anyone into anything, – I said tiredly. – I just wanted a normal family. Where the husband and wife support each other, and not where the wife serves all of her husband’s relatives. But apparently I made the wrong choice.
Andrey shuddered as if he’d been hit. He understood that I wasn’t just talking about the current situation. All these months when he kept quiet, when he pretended not to notice his sister’s rudeness, when he tried to persuade me to be patient – it all accumulated like a snowball.
– Marina, don’t do this…
– How should I do it, Andrey? To endure in silence? Smile when I’m insulted in my own home? Pretend that everything is fine when your sister demands our bedroom because her husband snores?
“By the way,” Svetlana intervened, “we have the right to live here! This is my brother’s apartment too!”
“No,” I snapped. “This is my apartment. Only mine. And I decide who lives here. Andrey is here because he is my husband. For now. And you are here because of my kindness, which, as it turned out, was a mistake.
“For now.” These two words hung in the air like a guillotine. Andrey turned even paler. Svetlana opened her mouth, but there were no words.
– Are you… are you threatening my brother with divorce? – she finally squeezed out.
– I’m stating a fact. If Andrey thinks that the interests of his sister and mother are more important than the interests of his wife, then what’s the point of such a marriage?
– Marina, let’s talk in private, – Andrey finally got up from the couch. – Sveta, maybe you should go to your… I mean, to your room?
– Yeah, right! So that she can work on you? No way! Mom is right – people like her, just give in to weakness, and they’ll sit on your neck!
I laughed. Honestly, I laughed heartily for the first time in many days. The irony of the situation was deadly – I was accused of sitting on the neck of people who had been living in my apartment for six months for free!
– You know what? – I picked up the phone. – I’ll call a taxi now and go to my friend’s. You solve family issues here. Andrey, when you decide what is more important to you – our marriage or your sister’s comfort, call. You have until the morning.
– Marina, wait! – Andrey rushed to me, but I retreated.
– No. I’m tired of waiting. Tired of hoping that you will finally become a husband and not a mama’s boy. Tired of fighting for a place in my own home. So decide. Either tomorrow Svetlana and her snoring Victor start looking for a place to live, or I will look. But not for a place to live, but for a good divorce lawyer.,
Svetlana was shouting something after me, Andrey tried to hold me back, but I was no longer listening. Throwing on my jacket, I left the apartment, leaving them to sort things out among themselves.
A light autumn rain was drizzling outside. I raised my face to the sky, letting the drops mix with uninvited tears. It hurt. It hurts like hell to realize that the person you love is not able to protect you. That his mother’s opinion and his sister’s comfort are more important to him than his wife’s happiness.
The phone vibrated. A message from Andrey: “Marina, come back, let’s talk normally.”
I chuckled. We could have had a normal conversation six months ago, when his relatives had just moved in. Three months ago, when the first complaints began. A month ago, when Svetlana first hinted at a bigger room. But he chose silence, hoping that everything would resolve itself.
The taxi pulled up quickly. Settling into the back seat, I dialed my friend’s number.
– Olya, can I stay the night with you? Yes, it’s family stuff again. I’ll tell you when we meet.
While I was driving, the phone was ringing off the hook. Andrey, Svetlana, even my mother-in-law joined in. I decided to listen to the last one – I wonder what Tatyana Petrovna will say.
– Marina, what kind of circus are you setting up there? – my mother-in-law’s voice was full of righteous anger. – Svetochka calls in tears, says you’re throwing them out! Have you completely lost your conscience? This is a family! Family vacation tours
– Tatyana Petrovna, this is my apartment, – I answered tiredly. – And I have the right to decide…
– Your apartment! You’re always talking about that! Doesn’t it count that my son lives there? That his sister needs temporary housing? When you got married, you should have realized that you were taking not only your husband, but his family as well!
— Temporarily means two weeks, not six months. And I didn’t sign up to support all of my husband’s relatives.
— Oh, you ungrateful woman! My son married you, and you…
I hung up. I couldn’t stand to listen to these accusations any longer. My son married you — as if it was a favor on their part, and not a mutual decision between two adults.
At Olga’s, I was greeted with tea, cognac, and chocolates — a proven remedy for family drama.
— Tell me, — my friend commanded, sitting me down on the sofa.
I told her. About the apartment, about the relatives, about the demand for a large room, about Andrey’s position. Olga listened, shook her head, and periodically poured more cognac.
— Do you know what I’ll tell you? — she said when I finished. — You did the right thing by leaving. Let your faithful finally decide who he’s with — his wife or his mommy.
— And if he chooses mommy?
— Then be glad that you found out now, and not ten years and three children later. Imagine what would have happened next? Would your mother-in-law have moved in to “help with the grandchildren”? Then some more distant relatives would have joined in?
I shuddered. The picture was terrifying, but realistic. If Andrey can’t defend our interests now, what will happen next? Family vacation tours
The phone rang again. This time it was an unfamiliar number.
— Marina? — an uncertain male voice rang out. — It’s Victor. Sveta’s husband.
Well, he’s also joined in the persuasion.
— I’m listening, Victor.
— I… I wanted to apologize. For Sveta, for myself. We’ve really gotten cheeky. It’s just… we’ve gotten used to it, you know. It’s convenient not to pay for housing. But it’s wrong. I told Sveta that we need to move out, find our own place, but she… Well, you know her character.
I was speechless. The last thing I expected was an apology from my sister-in-law’s husband.
– Victor, I…
– No need to say anything. We’ll move out. I already started looking at options, a month ago. Sveta just thought that we could continue living like this. Free, comfortable. But I understand that this is your apartment, your life. I’m sorry it turned out this way.
– Thank you, – I exhaled. – Thank you for understanding.
– You’re welcome. We are the ones to thank for putting up with it. I’ll try to find something in a week. And… talk to Andrey. He’s a good guy, he’s just overwhelmed by his mom and sister. It’s hard for him to argue with them. But he loves you, that’s for sure.
Victor hung up, leaving me completely confused. I didn’t expect support from anyone.
– So what’s going on? – Olga peeked in from the kitchen.
– My sister-in-law’s husband apologized and promised to move out in a week.
– Wow! And I thought they were united there.
I thought so too. But life, as always, turned out to be more complicated.
Around midnight, a message came from Andrey: “I choose you. I always did, I was just afraid of conflict. I’m sorry. Sveta and Victor will be looking for an apartment. Mom is furious, but that’s her problem. Come home. Please.”
I reread the message several times. My heart sank, but my mind demanded guarantees.
“This must not happen again,” I wrote. “No more relatives in our house without my consent. And learn to say “no” to Mom.”
“I promise. I understand. I almost lost you because of my cowardice. This will not happen again.”
“So, have you made up?” Olga read the correspondence over her shoulder.
“We’ll try. But if we do it again…”
“Then without any snot and straight to a lawyer. Right?”
“Exactly.”
I returned home in the morning. Andrey met me at the door — rumpled, with red eyes, but determined.
“They’re already looking at apartments,” he said. “Victor found several options. Sveta is sulking, but that’s her problem. And… I talked to Mom. He said that if she doesn’t accept you and doesn’t stop meddling in our lives, then we’ll talk once a year on big holidays.
– And how is she?
– She called me an ungrateful son and hung up. But I won’t change my mind. You were right – either I’m a husband or a mama’s boy. I choose to be a husband.
We hugged, and I felt the tension of the last few months begin to ease. Of course, one conversation won’t solve the problem. We’ll have to work hard on our relationship, learn to defend our boundaries, and not allow situations like this to happen. But the main thing is that a start has been made.
A week later, Svetlana and Viktor moved out. My sister-in-law pretended to be offended until the very end, but I saw understanding in her eyes – the holiday of free living was over.
My mother-in-law didn’t talk to us for a month, then she started calling Andrey cautiously. I didn’t interfere – she’s his mother, let him build the relationship himself. The main thing is that this relationship no longer affects our family. Family vacation tours
And we turned the large room into an office – we put two tables so that both of us could work from home when necessary. No snoring, no complaints, just the two of us in our home.
The apartment again became what it should have been – our family nest, a place where it’s comfortable and calm. A place where you want to return.
And you know what? It was worth it. All these years of saving, all the sacrifices – they paid off not only in square meters, but also in self-esteem. I defended what I earned. I defended my home, my family, my principles.
And Andrey… Andrey is learning to be a husband. Not his mother’s son, not his sister’s brother, but a husband. My husband. And he’s doing it. Slowly, creakingly, but it’s happening.
We never talk about that night when I went to see my friend. But we both remember. And we both know that it won’t happen again. Because some lessons are enough to learn once.
And recently I received a message from Victor. They rented an apartment not far from his work, and he thanked us for the push to live independently. “We needed it,” he wrote.
Perhaps we all needed it. I needed it to learn to defend my boundaries. Andrey needed to grow up and become a real husband. Svetlana and Victor needed to start living their own lives.
Sometimes a conflict is not destruction, but purification. Like a thunderstorm that washes away the stuffiness and brings freshness. Our family thunderstorm has died down, leaving behind a clear sky of new relationships.
And no one snores in our big room anymore. Only the clock ticks, counting down the minutes of our calm, happy life in our house. The very one for which I gave five years. And which has now truly become ours – not in documents, but in essence.
