— Ol, I have news! — Maksim came into the kitchen where Olga was just finishing preparing dinner and stopped by the window. — The builders said it’s almost done. Just a couple of weeks left. It’s time to think about moving.
Olga turned around, drying her hands with a towel. Joy and hope instantly lit up her eyes.
— Really? Finally! — she ran to her husband and hugged him. — We’ve been waiting for this for five whole years, Max! Remember how we saved on everything? Cancelled vacations, bought the cheapest things, counted every penny…
— Of course I remember, — he smiled, but the smile seemed somewhat forced.
— And how much effort we put in! — Olga continued, already dreamily looking out the window. — But now we’ll have a real home. Spacious, bright. I’ve planned everything: I want to get a cat, maybe a dog. Behind the house — a small garden, apple trees, cherry trees… Imagine how great it will be to pick our own apples?
Maksim nodded, but his gaze became distracted.
— And kids, of course, — she added quietly. — Two, maybe three. Each with their own room. I didn’t build my career for nothing these past years. Now I can work remotely — be home with the little ones and still earn.
— Yes, you’re planning everything right, — he answered, but his voice sounded a bit strange — as if detached.
Olga looked at her husband intently. That strange gleam flashed in his eyes again — not joy, but something close to anxiety. As if he was thinking about something distant, completely unrelated to their conversation.
— Max, why are you so thoughtful? — she asked gently. — We both wanted this house. Family, warmth, comfort…
— No, everything’s fine, — he replied quickly but couldn’t meet her eyes. — Just tired from work. Lots of things piled up.
Olga frowned. After five years of marriage, she had learned to understand him without words. Something was wrong. That gleam in his eyes, that inner tension… But thoughts about the new house and upcoming move drowned out her doubts.
A month later, they were settling into the new, large space. Olga spent all day unpacking, hanging pictures, arranging furniture according to her own sense of beauty. Every room seemed to her the embodiment of a dream — high ceilings, bright walls, large windows. This was exactly how she had always imagined her family hearth.
— Max, — she called her husband from the kitchen where she was already mentally planning the menu for the celebration. — Our anniversary is in a week! Five years! We need to celebrate in the new house. It’s a special day!
— Yes, of course, — he brightened up. — I want to invite the whole family. Parents, Andrey with Marina and the kids, Igor with Lena. Everyone! Imagine what a celebration it will be? The first festivity in our house!
His eyes were glowing as if five years hadn’t passed, and their life together was just beginning. Olga frowned slightly.
— The whole family? All at once?
— Well, yes! — Maksim exclaimed. — It’s a reason! Your parents are in Yekaterinburg, they won’t come. But mine are nearby. About ten people will be here. Prepare a big table, put out what everyone likes.
— I’m not sure… — Olga began.
— Come on! — he interrupted. — It’s a celebration! Everyone’s been wanting to see our house for a long time. Mom kept asking, Andrey requested photos. And about the food! For mom — Olivier salad, but without sausage, with chicken. For dad — meat French style. For Andrey — your famous meat pancakes. And Igor is vegetarian now — more vegetables.
Olga accepted the idea. Their anniversary wouldn’t be a romantic dinner, but it would be the first family event in the new house.
— Great! — she smiled. — I’ll keep everything in mind! I want everyone to like it. After all, it’s our first family celebration here. Everything must be perfect!
She already imagined a huge table in the dining room, decorated with dishes, heard compliments, approving glances. But Maksim looked at her with that same unclear gleam flickering again.
The anniversary evening was noisy and lively. The table was groaning under the food. Olga spent the whole day in the kitchen, and the result exceeded even her expectations. The guests were delighted.
Her mother-in-law, Galina Petrovna, asked for more Olivier salad for the second time:
— Olenka, darling, you’re just a magician! Such a delicious salad! And the meat French style — it just melts!
Maksim’s father, Viktor Semyonovich, nodded while eating his favorite dish. Andrey devoured the pancakes with appetite, and his wife Marina kept admiring the interior:
— Olya, what a house you have! What ceilings, what space!
Igor and Lena were also impressed by the vegetable dishes specially prepared for them.
— Thanks for considering my tastes, — Igor warmly thanked. — Very tasty!
The children happily ran around the house, discovering every nook. Olga watched them with a satisfied smile. Here it was — the long-awaited family harmony in their own home.
But suddenly Maksim stood up from the table, taking a glass of juice:
— Friends! Family! — he began solemnly. — Today is a momentous day. Five years ago, Olga became my wife — and it’s the best decision of my life!
Applause broke out at the table. Olga smiled shyly.
— My wife is an amazing woman, — he continued. — With her, you can boldly go through fire and water. She’s smart, caring, and domestic. It’s with such a woman that I want my family to live. My whole family!
The guests approved with a murmur.
— That’s why tomorrow you’ll start moving here! — Maksim finished with a broad smile.
Everyone clapped and shouted “hooray!”, while Olga sat as if struck by lightning.
— Max, — she quietly asked when the noise subsided a bit, — do you seriously mean that all of you will live here?
— Ol, dear, — her husband sat down beside her and took her hand, — we discussed everything in advance. Even before the house was built, I agreed with my parents — the whole family must be together. And you’ll look after everything. Especially since you’ll soon go on maternity leave, you’ll have plenty of time.
Olga couldn’t say a word. She silently got up and began collecting dishes from the table. Her hands trembled, plates clinked against each other. Behind her, conversations were already turning into active discussions about rooms: who would live where, what to bring first, where to place things.
In the kitchen, Olga turned on the water and started washing dishes. The hot water burned her skin, but she didn’t even feel the pain. Thoughts raced through her head: how did this happen? For five years they dreamed of their own house, planned children, quiet family happiness… And now instead of all that — strangers who would live under one roof with them.
— Olenka, darling! — Galina Petrovna entered the kitchen with a pile of dirty dishes. — What a wonderful dinner! I just admire you!
Olga silently nodded.
— You know how well everything turned out, — the mother-in-law continued, putting plates on the table. — Tomorrow we’ll start slowly moving things. And we’ll take grandma with us — she really needs care now. You’ll watch after her, right? She’s very weak.
— Watch after grandma? — Olga asked quietly.
— Of course! — Galina Petrovna patted her daughter-in-law kindly on the shoulder. — You’ll be home, especially when the baby arrives. You’ll have time, you’ll find strength. I’m so glad it’s you who became part of our family. Someone else would have refused, but you’re understanding.
The mother-in-law left, and Olga remained standing by the sink. She looked up — her face reflected in the window: pale, hair disheveled, with an empty look. The mistress of the dream home… who tomorrow would become a free servant to the whole clan.
Suddenly a wave of horror overwhelmed her — not from the scale of work, but from the realization: this is not the life she dreamed of. Instead of family comfort — a house full of strangers. Instead of a career and personal space — duties she never accepted. Instead of love — exploitation.
Olga turned off the water, not thinking about the unwashed dishes. She slowly walked to the front door, grabbed her car keys, and slipped out barefoot. She sat behind the wheel and drove away from this new reality.
The city apartment greeted her with silence. A small one-room flat where they had lived for five years while the house was being built. There was no luxury here, but there was freedom. Her personal space.
Her phone immediately filled with calls: Maksim, his parents — all demanding explanations.
— Where are you? What’s happening? — her husband messaged.
— Come back immediately! This is just hysteria! — her mother-in-law was outraged.
Olga did not answer. By morning, she had filed for divorce.
— How could you?! — Maksim shouted in court. — You destroyed everything! We were a family!
— No, — Olga calmly replied, — you were a family. And I was an outsider in it.
It turned out that 80% of the funds for building the house came from her personal account, opened before the marriage. All documents, transfers, certificates were in order. Maksim tried to prove the money was joint, but the facts spoke for themselves.
— Your Honor, — she confidently stated at the hearing, — I invested more than my husband. I have the right to eighty percent of the house.
Maksim’s lawyer tried to dispute it but to no avail. Galina Petrovna sat in the courtroom whispering to her neighbor:
— That’s what she is — the daughter-in-law! She robbed her son!
The court sided with Olga. She bought Maksim’s share at a fair price and received full ownership rights to the house. The locks were changed the next day.
— If any of you appear on my territory, I will call the police, — she quietly whispered to herself.
Maksim called, begged, threatened. His parents sent insulting messages, calling her cruel and greedy. Andrey and his wife even came to the house, but video surveillance and security quickly sent them away.
Now Olga sat in the empty living room of the big house, sipping tea from a porcelain cup. Outside the window, the wind rustled through the apple trees she had wanted to plant so much. The plans had really fallen apart — no children’s voices, no family dinners, no cozy nest. But no one pressured her, no one ordered her around, no one interfered in her life.
The house was big. Maybe even too big for one person. But it was hers. Only hers. Here she could get a cat, plant a garden, read books till dawn, work whenever she wanted, and answer to no one.
This was how she imagined freedom.
