«What? You can’t leave now!» Ulyana cried out, following him. She was holding their one-year-old daughter in her arms. «Can’t Antonina call a doctor herself?»
When is this ever going to end? Ulyana thought, struggling to keep from screaming in pure frustration.
Her husband zipped up his heavy coat, grabbed his keys, and shot an irritated look at his wife. After five years of marriage, he was so exhausted from being torn between her and his mother that he was ready to lash out at Ulyana just to vent some of the pressure.
Stepan knew it was hard for Ulyana with the kids, and that she had been looking forward to a break from the household chores today, but he felt powerless.
«She feels better the moment I get there!» he snapped.
«Don’t you think there’s a reason for that?» Ulyana asked cautiously. «Maybe she’s just using you?»
«Look, I know you don’t like my mother, but have a heart, for God’s sake!»
Ulyana adjusted her grip on little Ninochka and bit her lower lip, fighting the urge to snatch the car keys out of his hand.
«I just don’t want Antonina to keep manipulating you like this,» she hissed. «She’s trying to drive a wedge between us! Just think about it…»
«I don’t want to hear it!» Stepan interrupted. «I have to go!»
He bolted out of the apartment. The bang of the door against the frame made Ulyana flinch. She looked down at a blissfully unaware Nina and realized the weekend was officially ruined.
«It’s like my mother-in-law knows my plans in advance! How else do you explain the fact that we haven’t been able to make it to a movie in a month?» She glanced dejectedly at the clock and, with a heavy sigh, headed into the living room.
Their older daughter, Lyuba, who had recently turned four, was sitting at a small table. She was focused intently on a coloring book, scribbling away with a crayon.
«Mommy, where’s Daddy?» Lyuba asked, surprised.
«He left…»
«To see Grandma?»
«Yes, honey. Grandma Maria will be here soon, though. We’ll have some tea together since we aren’t going anywhere now,» Ulyana said quietly, setting the baby down on the floor.
Half an hour later, the doorbell rang. Ulyana’s mother, Maria Dmitrievna, stood on the threshold. She looked at her daughter in confusion, seeing her in loungewear instead of the dress she’d planned to wear.
«Ulyana, why aren’t you ready?» her mother asked, pulling off her warm fur hat. «You’re going to be late for the movie!»
«Hi, Mom. We aren’t going anywhere,» Ulyana replied sadly. «Stepan went to Antonina’s.»
«Whatever for?» Maria asked, freezing in her tracks.
«She’s ‘sick’ again.»
Maria Dmitrievna’s face twisted into an expression of pure annoyance. She smoothed her hair, which had been tousled by her hat, and asked indignantly, «She’s still at it? When is this performance finally going to end?»
«Never,» Ulyana smiled sadly. «And Stepan is mad at me again. Every time this happens, he grows more distant. He thinks I’m the ‘evil daughter-in-law’ who hates his mother.»
The women walked into the room, where the grandmother was immediately surrounded by her happy grandchildren. Once the initial excitement died down and all the news regarding the lives of the dolls had been shared, Maria Dmitrievna spoke thoughtfully.
«We have to do something. A little more of this and you’ll be headed for a divorce.» She looked meaningfully at Ulyana, noting how exhausted her daughter appeared. «I know the type. She gave birth to her ‘sun and stars’ and now she won’t give him a moment’s peace. There’s a reason her own husband ran off.»
«I’ve been trying to appease Antonina for five years!» Ulyana said in despair. «But she still sticks her nose into everything. She comes over every day like she owns the place and goes through my things! And you know,» she hesitated, «talking to Stepan is useless. I asked him to change the locks and not let her in without a call first, but he just turned it back on me.»
«I have an idea…» Maria Dmitrievna said with a sly smile. She knew exactly how to expose the mother-in-law’s antics. More than anything, she wanted her daughter to finally have some peace.
«Mom, how are you feeling?» Stepan asked anxiously, holding his mother’s hand.
Antonina was a rosy-cheeked woman who looked like a delicate dandelion, with blue eyes and fluffy white hair. She was lying in bed, her eyes shining with happiness, though she continued to moan and groan incessantly.
«Oh, I feel so poorly,» she whispered. «Age is catching up with me—I am over seventy, after all…»
«Should I call an ambulance?»
«No, no!» She shook her head frantically. «Just pour me some water, dear.»
Stepan hurried to the kitchen, the sound of clinking glasses echoing back. When he returned, he sat on a chair by his mother’s bed and watched her. After taking a sip of water, Antonina Viktorovna sighed with relief and looked intently at her son.
«You look sad,» she noted. «What happened?»
«Well, you’re sick…»
«It’s not just that, is it? Tell me!»
«Ulyana and I had a bit of an argument,» he said, looking down.
Antonina’s eyes flashed with a sharp, unkind light.
«How do you live with her?» she snapped, propping herself up on her elbow. «Five years of misery, and look how much you’ve aged.»
«Mom! I love Ulyana,» Stepan answered firmly. «We just wanted to go to the movies today, and she was upset that we couldn’t go.»
«A movie is more important to her than my health?! She’s probably just waiting for me to kick the bucket so she can have my apartment!»
Stepan’s eyes widened, and he stood up abruptly.
«Mom, what are you saying? Look, I can see you’re feeling better. I should probably get going.»
Antonina dropped her glass and clutched her heart. She simply couldn’t allow her «spiteful» daughter-in-law to win. She was determined to reach her goal, no matter the cost.
The following morning, the doorbell rang at Antonina Viktorovna’s apartment. She glanced at the clock in surprise, noting that she wasn’t expecting anyone at such an early hour. Standing on the landing, shifting from foot to foot, was her daughter-in-law.
«Ulyana?» the mother-in-law asked, surprised, as she opened the door. «What happened?»
«Good morning. I need to have a serious word with you,» Ulyana said firmly, stepping inside. She was no longer worried about offending her mother-in-law, nor did she have any desire to play nice.
They went into the kitchen. Antonina quickly brewed the cheapest tea she had on hand and set a basket of stale cookies on the table.
«So, what’s this about?» the mother-in-law asked with a smirk, sitting down on a stool.
«Why are you manipulating your son?» Ulyana asked point-blank.
«I beg your pardon?» the older woman recoiled, her cheeks turning a deep shade of red.
«You know exactly what I’m talking about!» Ulyana hissed. «Because of your ‘poor health’ and ‘constant attacks,’ we’re always fighting. We can’t spend a single weekend together! And don’t even get me started on vacations.» She paused for a moment, remembering her mother’s advice, and added, «Give me back the keys to our apartment.»
«Fat chance! That is my son’s apartment,» Antonina bristled. «If you don’t like it, pack your bags and go back to your mother’s,» she drawled.
Ulyana looked at the older woman. In that moment, she realized her mother was right—people like this don’t change, and trying to build a relationship with her was a lost cause.
Pushing the mug of terrible tea away, the daughter-in-law decided to ask the one question that really mattered.
«What is your end goal here? Do you want Stepan to leave his family and live with you?»
«Yes!» Antonina blurted out, glaring proudly at her daughter-in-law. «He is my son, and you are nobody to him! Since when does a man drag a whole family along while his wife just sits on his neck?»
«I’m on maternity leave…»
«What difference does that make?!» Antonina Viktorovna snapped. «He’s exhausted. He’ll be much better off and more peaceful with me. I know what my boy likes, and I’ll actually take care of him.»
«Are you out of your mind?» Ulyana whispered, staring at her mother-in-law, who—on the outside—looked like a sweet, harmless old lady.
Without waiting for an answer, Ulyana got up and walked to the hallway. she threw on her coat, opened the front door with trembling hands, and rushed out. Only when she hit the fresh air outside did she finally feel like she could breathe again.
From the very beginning, she’s dreamed of getting me out of Stepan’s life, Ulyana thought. She doesn’t even care about her granddaughters… Mom was right. I have to give him an ultimatum. I can’t live like this anymore.
Ulyana decided to take decisive action. That same day, she sat Stepan down and told him exactly what his mother had said about wanting them to divorce. He didn’t believe her. She tried to convince him to move further away from his mother, but when he flatly refused, she packed up the kids and moved in with her own mom.
«I will not live in an apartment that feels like a bus station,» she told him. «You have a choice: either we move far away and Antonina only visits by appointment, or I’m filing for divorce.»
Stepan tried everything to get Ulyana to come home, but she wouldn’t budge. After struggling for over a week—and experiencing the full force of his mother’s «love» after she brazenly moved into his place—Stepan realized his wife was right. He made up with Ulyana and agreed to the move.
It isn’t easy to dampen the fire of an overbearing single mother, but now Ulyana and Stepan can finally breathe a sigh of relief every now and then. As for Antonina Viktorovna, she continues to dream that one day Stepan will live with her again and everything will go back to the way it was before he got married.
But will that dream ever come true?
