— It’s my anniversary! — the mother-in-law reminded. — And that means I’m expecting a gift from you. Why don’t you give me the same wonderful refrigerator, only a little earlier?
— But… it costs… quite a bit… — Olga was a bit taken aback by such a direct hint.
— Don’t worry about it! — Irina Dmitrievna waved her hand. — You bought one for yourselves, so you can afford one for me too. Right, Andryusha?
Olga and her husband Andrey had long dreamed of a two-door refrigerator with a large freezer compartment. The old one barely worked anymore: sometimes it hummed like a tractor, sometimes it suddenly defrosted, leaving puddles on the kitchen floor. But there were always more important things than a refrigerator.
And then suddenly the husband announced they had received a bonus. Olga was happy.
The shiny two-door refrigerator with a huge freezer took its honored place in the kitchen. Olga ran her hand admiringly over the glossy surface — finally, the dream came true! She was already mentally arranging groceries on the shelves, imagining how convenient and aesthetic it would be.
— So, do you like it? — Andrey hugged his wife’s shoulders, smiling.
— Of course! — Olga laughed. — Now we can stock up for a month ahead.
They unpacked the boxes together, connected the appliance, and Olga even let her husband be the first to put a bottle of champagne inside — to celebrate the purchase.
The next day, there was a knock at the door.
— Ol’, mom’s here! — Andrey shouted from the hallway.
Irina Dmitrievna entered the apartment, as always, with the look of an inspector. She examined the hallway, nodded in response to her daughter-in-law’s greeting, and immediately headed to the kitchen — to “have some tea.”
— Oh, what a beautiful refrigerator you have! — she exclaimed, seeing the new purchase. — I’ve never seen one like this!
Olga smiled:
— Yes, we’ve long dreamed of one like this.
— Convenient, very convenient… — the mother-in-law thoughtfully murmured, walking around the refrigerator on all sides.
Olga poured tea, placed a plate of cookies on the table, and briefly stepped into the other room — to answer a call from a friend. When she returned, the conversation in the kitchen abruptly stopped. Andrey awkwardly stirred his tea with a spoon, and Irina Dmitrievna sat with a dissatisfied face and pursed lips.
— Did something happen? — Olga asked cautiously.
— No, everything’s fine, — her husband answered sharply, as if he had been expecting the question.
— I just reminded my son, — interrupted the mother-in-law, — that my anniversary is in three months. There will be many guests, snacks, preparations… And my refrigerator is small, it won’t hold that much.
Olga slowly sat down on a chair.
— You… want us to keep your preparations at our place? — she asked, frowning, not understanding the problem.
— No, no! — Irina Dmitrievna replied, raising her head proudly. — It’s my anniversary! — she emphasized that word. — Which means I’m expecting a gift from you. Why not give me the same wonderful refrigerator, just a little earlier?
— But… it costs… quite a lot… — Olga was a bit disconcerted by such a direct hint.
— Don’t worry about it! — Irina Dmitrievna waved her hand. — You bought one for yourselves, so there’s enough money for me too. Right, Andryusha?
— Yes, of course, — Andrey choked on a cookie.
Olga got up, took her cup from the table, and poured out the unfinished tea into the sink.
— No, — she said quietly. — We won’t buy anything else.
— Ol’, don’t start… — Andrey whined.
— What a stubborn woman! Sergei’s wife is much better behaved, — the mother-in-law sarcastically remarked.
The bedroom door slammed shut behind Olga with a dull thud. She sat on the bed and took a deep breath to release the flood of emotions and keep from crying. Muffled voices came from behind the door:
— What a temper! She doesn’t listen at all… — grumbled Irina Dmitrievna.
— Mom, not now… — Andrey mumbled uncertainly. — Olya is good, just not in the mood today.
— So what now? I have to put up with all her moods? — the mother-in-law continued. — Let her learn to behave before she sits at the same table with me.
— Yes, mom, you’re right… — Andrey agreed with everything his mother said.
Olga buried her face in the pillow. How tired she was of this endless game of “whatever mom says”!
The clock struck nine in the kitchen.
— Well, I’m leaving, — Irina Dmitrievna finally got up, deliberately dragging the chair loudly and glancing at the closed bedroom door. — Didn’t even come to see me off… Rude.
— Probably Olga is already asleep, — Andrey guessed.
The mother-in-law just snorted in displeasure.
— Well, call me a taxi. Did you see how dark it is out there? I’m not walking home.
Andrey silently called a taxi and helped his mother put on her coat. In the hallway, Irina Dmitrievna suddenly turned around:
— You do understand, I’m not just talking about the refrigerator for nothing? In three months, the anniversary, all the relatives will come… How will I look?
— Mom, I promise I’ll think about it…
— Son, I know you love your mother and will find a way! — she interrupted. — Or do you want everyone to think your youngest son is stingy with his own mother?
The door closed. A suffocating silence hung in the apartment.
Andrey stood in the corridor, hesitant to enter the bedroom. Thoughts swirled in his head:
“If we buy mom a refrigerator — Olga will explode. If we don’t — mom will throw a tantrum…”
He cautiously opened the door a little. In the dark, the silhouette of his wife lying on her side was visible.
— Ol’… — he started.
— I’m sleeping, — she replied dryly.
Andrey sighed and closed the door.
The next morning Olga woke up to the sound of the kettle boiling. Andrey was bustling in the kitchen, trying to prepare breakfast.
— I thought… — he began, seeing his wife. — Maybe we should really buy mom a refrigerator? Just a simpler one…
Olga slowly put her cup down on the table.
— Are you serious?
— Well… it’s the anniversary… — he helplessly spread his hands.
Olga squeezed the cup in her hands.
— Simpler — how much do you think that is, Andrey?
— Well… there are decent options for fifty to sixty thousand, — he said uncertainly, avoiding his wife’s stern gaze. — Just without all the fancy features…
— Fifty?! Sixty?! — Olga sharply set the cup down on the table. — Are you out of your mind? We just spent your entire bonus and half your salary!
— But it’s mom’s anniversary…
— So what? — Olga nervously crumpled a paper napkin. — I was expecting a gift costing at most thirty thousand. Let’s just give her money in an envelope — let her decide what she needs more: a refrigerator or, for example, a trip somewhere. I understand it’s the anniversary, but let me remind you that for my mother’s last anniversary we gave her a hairdryer. Yes, a good one, but it doesn’t cost fifty thousand. My whole salary is fifty thousand!
Andrey thought for a moment. There was an inner struggle in his eyes:
— But… mom’s expecting a refrigerator…
— Do you hear me? — Olga laid her head on her folded arms. — She’s “expecting”? As if it’s her legal right! A gift should come from the heart, not at the first command.
— It’s just… — he sighed, — if we don’t buy it, she’ll be offended. And at the whole celebration, she’ll tell everyone how stingy we are…
— And if we buy it — I’ll be offended, — Olga said firmly.
Silence.
Andrey lowered his gaze. He understood that the envelope idea was sensible — mom could really buy what she needed. But the thought of her reaction scared him more than his wife’s anger.
— Let’s… let’s at least look at models, — he weakly suggested. — Maybe we’ll find something for forty…
Olga sharply turned and left the kitchen. A minute later, the sound of the front door closing was heard.
Two months later, Andrey stood in front of the appliance store window, nervously tapping his fingers on the glass. The price tag on the refrigerator proudly showed — 52,000 rubles.
“Mom will like it,” he thought, pulling out his credit card.
In the evening, when Olga came home from work, the kitchen smelled of her favorite stew.
— I thought… — Andrey began, laying out dinner on plates. — You were right about the envelope. Let’s give mom thirty thousand — let her decide.
Olga froze, spoon in hand.
— Really? — her eyes lit up. — Are you serious?
— Of course, — Andrey rubbed the bridge of his nose. — We’ve already spent a lot lately.
Two days before the mother-in-law’s anniversary, Olga went to the ATM herself, carefully counted new crisp bills, and bought a beautiful congratulatory envelope with gold embossing. On the way home, she stopped by the florist — choosing a luxurious bouquet of white roses.
— Look, — she joyfully showed her husband. — Isn’t it a wonderful bouquet?
Andrey nodded approvingly.
Dressed up, Andrey and Olga went to the celebration.
Irina Dmitrievna greeted them with a radiant smile, but then she looked disdainfully at her daughter-in-law. Olga didn’t understand this look until they entered the apartment. In the hallway, apparently because the kitchen was too small for it, stood a brand-new refrigerator. Exactly like the one they had at home. Olga turned pale and faced her husband, who had been standing beside her all this time.
— You… bought a refrigerator?
Andrey was silent. His reddened ears spoke for themselves.
— Not just bought, — Irina Dmitrievna suddenly said in a sweet voice, — but surprised mom!
Olga looked at her husband, then at the satisfied mother-in-law.
— Congratulations on your anniversary, — she said unnaturally calmly and put the envelope with money back into her purse.
Olga spent the entire evening in the corner of the hall, tasting the snacks and draining glass after glass. Her extinguished gaze and pale face did not escape her mother-in-law’s notice.
— Your stubborn woman isn’t in the mood today, — Irina Dmitrievna mockingly remarked to her son, nodding toward her daughter-in-law. — Looks like she finally understands how to behave.
Andrey nervously poked at the herring under a fur coat salad with his fork when it was time to give presents.
— From us and Lyudochka! — older brother Sergey solemnly handed his mother an envelope. — A gift card to your favorite cosmetics store!
— Ten thousand? I knew you loved me, son, — Irina Dmitrievna kissed her son on the cheeks.
Olga snorted loudly enough that several guests turned around. Her trembling hand reached for another glass of champagne.
— Olya, maybe that’s enough? — Andrey tried to intervene in a whisper.
In response, she demonstratively drained the glass to the bottom.
— Do you even understand what you’ve done? — Olga asked when they finally left the entrance. The cold night air sobered her a bit. — You took out a loan? Where did you get the money?
Andrey silently opened the taxi door.
— Answer me!
— Mom’s… anniversary… — he muttered.
— Uh-huh, — Olga sharply turned around. — So here’s the deal. You’re not going home tonight. Go back to your precious mommy — she will surely appreciate your sacrifice.
— What? — Andrey raised his voice for the first time that evening.
— Darling, you’ve crossed all the lines, — her voice suddenly became icy. — Tomorrow I’m sending you a second refrigerator by mail. You can put it next to your mom’s — it will be a cute composition “two idiots.”
Andrey returned to his mother’s apartment, but Irina Dmitrievna didn’t even notice, enjoying her day and chatting with relatives.
The next morning Olga woke up with a clear head and cold determination. She methodically packed all Andrey’s things into suitcases, even folding his favorite T-shirt with the inscription “Best Son,” which Irina Dmitrievna had given him.
While movers carefully packed their shared refrigerator, Olga attached a note to it:
“Now you have two refrigerators. And not a single wife. Hope mom appreciates your choice.”
After signing the shipping documents, she ordered herself a new, modest refrigerator — single-door, but her own.
Andrey meanwhile woke up on his mom’s couch with a terrible hangover. Movers woke him up, bringing the belongings.
— Son, what’s going on here? — Irina Dmitrievna looked into the hallway where movers were installing the second refrigerator right opposite the first.
— Olga, as promised, sent me a refrigerator…
Andrey silently approached the appliance, noticing the note. His hand trembled as he unfolded the sheet.
— Well, congratulations, — Irina Dmitrievna said sarcastically, — finally got rid of that amoeba.
Andrey looked at the two identical refrigerators occupying half the corridor and for the first time wondered — did he really need to blindly obey his mother? He tried to call his wife, but to no avail.
A week after the mother-in-law’s anniversary, there was a knock at the door. At the threshold stood Andrey — haggard, with dark circles under his eyes.
— Mom… — Andrey coughed, — says she doesn’t need two refrigerators. She asks to take one back.
Olga smirked:
— Let her sell it. Or give it to Sergey and his perfectly behaved wife.
She was already closing the door when Andrey unexpectedly pressed his palm against it:
— What if… what if I realized? What if I’m ready to change?
— Too late, — Olga shook her head. — You made your choice. Twice.
The door closed.
Olga, settling into her chair with a book, caught herself thinking that for the first time in a long while, her apartment felt truly cozy.
