— «This apartment must be legally ours! Do you understand, you weakling? Only ours! And only then you can dictate your terms to your stubborn wife. And keep her on a leash!» shouted the mother-in-law.
A few minutes earlier…
— «Oh, it’s so cold! Winter is coming soon,» Polina shivered.
She should have worn a jacket, but out of habit, she rushed to the balcony in her home clothes. She quickly hung up the laundry from the washing machine and went back inside.
But, opening the door from the balcony to the room, Polina heard her husband’s voice, who was supposed to be at work, in the office.
By the way, she herself ended up at home by chance today. Lenka called when Polina was already leaving the house and said that their office had scheduled a pest control treatment against cockroaches today.
— «Finally, they waited. They ate the boss’s head off until he agreed. Otherwise, those creatures could carry us out of the building soon. So, everyone got an unexpected day off. Stay at home, my friend.»
And Polina was happy to stay home. There was a lot of work accumulated, and she hadn’t managed to do much over the weekend. She wanted to spend her well-deserved days off beneficially for her soul and body, not just cleaning, washing, and cooking food, sticking her tongue out.
Polina was surprised that her husband, who always left before her, also came back home.
«Is everyone dealing with cockroaches today?» she smiled to herself.
— «How do you imagine this, mom? Polina is not a complete fool to agree to this!» Arkady said loudly.
«That’s right! What is my husband discussing with his mom? Very curious to eavesdrop!» thought Polina and decided not to leave the balcony, just closed the door, holding it with her hand.
— «No, the idea itself is not bad!» continued her husband. — «And I even agree to implement it. And if everything works out, it will be just wonderful!»
He took off his jacket, hung it in the closet, and went to the kitchen. Polina watched him from behind the partially closed door and curtains, which very conveniently hid her from her husband now.
Arkady headed to the kitchen, and Polina realized that she couldn’t hear well what he was saying.
«I’ll go out and quietly approach the kitchen. He’s there for a long time. He got hungry,» the woman thought.
And she did just that. Like a mouse, she sneaked out from the balcony, trying not to make noise, closed the balcony door, and crept closer to the kitchen.
Luckily for her, her husband put his phone on speaker. Because his hands were busy with something very important.
Arkady boiled the kettle, took sausage and cheese from the fridge. He cut them into large pieces and placed them on slices of bread, previously heavily smeared with mayonnaise.
— «Arkasha, can you hear me? What are you busy with? We need to solve this issue as soon as possible, and you’re still fussing,» the mother-in-law’s voice complained through the phone.
— «Yes, mom, I’m listening. Just decided to have a little snack.»
— «Lord, I’m talking to him about important things while the wife is not at home, and he’s eating again! How long can this go on? Have you already found buyers for Polina’s apartment?»
— «Yes, we found them. The deal is in a week. The buyers asked to wait, they had some issues with the money,» Arkady willingly shared their family matters with his mother.
— «Well, there you go. You’ll sell Polina’s apartment, that’s the first step. Then you’ll find buyers for this one, and from there, it’s not far to buying a new one. And you still haven’t figured out how to convince your wife to do it your way,» scolded his mother Lydia Iosifovna.
— «I still have time, what are you talking about! We need to sell both apartments and then buy a new, bigger one, as we planned with Polina. It doesn’t happen in a week. We still have plenty of time. So you got alarmed too early, mom,» Arkady replied, hungrily consuming the sandwich.
— «But it’s a very delicate process, even a kind of political game, which needs to start today. Gradually lead your wife to what you want. Convince her, bring irrefutable arguments and proofs that only your decision is the right one. She won’t agree to what we have planned if you tell her straightforwardly!» the mother-in-law continued indignantly.
— «Do you think she won’t agree? Why? We are a family, and the apartment will stay in the family anyway,» Arkady wondered.
— «Because only you are such a simpleton. All the others are very cunning and mercenary. By the way, your Polina is not as foolish and simple as she tries to show us. I understand people!»
«Indeed, mother-in-law, you are absolutely right about that. I am neither simple nor foolish. And now I’ll try to understand what kind of adventure you’ve concocted,» thought Polina.
They had been living with Arkady for ten years. Their daughter was nine. Polina inherited a small one-bedroom apartment from her parents, where the spouses lived for the first two years of marriage until they bought this two-bedroom, taking out loans. Polina rented her apartment to tenants. The money from the rent went to pay off the loans.
Then their daughter began to grow up. The one-bedroom apartment started to bring more problems than profits—urgent repairs after careless tenants, broken furniture, or appliances. The spouses decided it was time to expand. And Arkady had been telling Polina for a long time that they needed a second child.
— «Why is our little Ritochka growing up alone? No sister, no brother. I even feel sorry for her. I grew up in a family where there were three of us. And you didn’t grow up alone either. So why are we depriving our daughter of this joy? It will be for her whole life—a help and support from a blood relative.»
Polina wanted this too. But she always thought, doubted. And after the spouses finally decided to sell both apartments and buy one spacious one, she now dreamed of a son herself.
«What has my cunning mother-in-law come up with?» Polina whispered.
— «I will try to convince her,» Arkady confidently answered his mother. — «But even if she resists, I don’t think it will be terrible.»
— «How can it not be terrible! Do you not understand what this could lead to? Polina will leave you one fine day and take two-thirds of the new apartment. Because it will have funds from the sale of the inherited apartment.»
— «Why do you think she’ll leave me?» Arkady wondered, even stopping chewing.
He put aside his third sandwich and stared at the phone in offense.
— «Because! Facts! Facts, my dear son! First, you are a fool and a bungler who can easily be manipulated. Yes, yes, don’t argue!» she continued as she heard her son’s discontented grunt. — «Secondly, she once told me that your marriage had cracks. Do you think why Polina hasn’t given you a second child? Huh? Didn’t you think about that? Ritochka is already nine, and she doesn’t even think about a second child,» the mother-in-law argued.
«When did I ever tell her that?» Polina was surprised, standing in her ambush and even shaking her head in astonishment.
— «Do you think Polina is planning to leave me?» asked Arkady. — «I think you’re mistaken, mom. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have agreed to all these sales and purchases. And we talked about a child. She’s not against it. We’re still young, we have time, what are you talking about!»
— «She might tell you anything she wants! But facts speak for themselves. Don’t argue! Your mother knows better how to proceed. You need to do as I teach you. Your new apartment should be registered in equal shares to you and me. Understand? To you and me. I will never betray you. I’m your mother. But she might. Might, my son, no matter how much you deny it. I have lived longer than you and know life better. Women are cunning. Today she tells you she loves you, and tomorrow you’re a divorced man without housing and prospects.»
— «Ah, that’s what it is? Our apartments don’t give you peace. How is it that Arkady and Polina have two, and Lyovushka has none!» Polina whispered. — «Is the mother-in-law dreaming of transferring her share to the younger son later? What, she’s capable of it! Such a cunning woman! She’s already thought of everything, taken care of everything. It’s just interesting, what can Arkady say to convince me of such a monstrosity. To persuade me to agree to what my husband and mother-in-law have planned, I would have to lose my mind!» Polina thought.
She decided to act herself, proactively, so to speak.
Calling her mother-in-law in the evening, Polina deprived her of all her ambitious plans. Completely! She set everything straight right away.
— «Hello, Lydia Iosifovna! How are you, how’s your health? Everything good? Well, I’m glad. I want to tell you that we are already selling my apartment. We found buyers, yes. Happy? I am too, you know. And we already found buyers for our two-bedroom. Can you imagine? My colleague is buying our apartment, she really liked it. Yes, so fast, we ourselves are shocked!»
— «Have you not looked at a new one yet?» the mother-in-law asked, bewildered, not expecting such rapid events in her son’s family.
— «Why not! We already have! We found one that suits us. We’ll finalize the purchase this week. As soon as the buyers transfer the money, we’ll immediately execute the sale-purchase agreement for the new housing.»
— «Really? So fast?» the mother-in-law could no longer contain her emotions and disappointment.
— «Yes, imagine, how well everything worked out!» Polina continued joyfully. — «You’re probably very curious about who we’ll register our new apartment to, right?»
— «Yes, curious. Have you discussed this with Arkasha? What did he say?»
— «Nothing. I didn’t ask his opinion. The only thing I said was that if he doesn’t agree with me, I’ll kick him out. After all, our marriage is cracking at the seams! You know what I’m telling you.»
— «Polina, what are you…»
— «Wait, I haven’t finished,» she interrupted her mother-in-law. — «I want to surprise you. I’ll register the apartment to myself alone. Because there are far more of my shares than Arkady’s. You understand this. The parental apartment, half in this two-bedroom. And you know, he agreed. Yes!»
— «How so—he agreed!» the mother-in-law was flabbergasted. — «Arkady?»
— «Yes, him! I convinced him that it’s the right thing to do. We have a daughter, we have to think about her first. And a second child might be born. And the husband might take off, and we’d be left with nothing. But this way—everything’s fine. Arkady will be with us, knowing the apartment is mine, and he lives there as long as I WANT him to.»
Polina finished her speech and happily disconnected, well imagining her mother-in-law’s reaction.
Let her now live through this wonderful news alone.
That’s better!
