“Are you out of your mind?” Anton’s voice shook with disbelief. “She’s my mother! I only get one of those! Wives, on the other hand? Wives come and go!”
“Oh, is that how it is?” Larissa’s tone turned cold. “Well then, what are you waiting for? Pack your bags and go. Fulfill your sacred duty.”
They had spent over three decades together. Raised two children. Watched them grow, marry, and move on.
At first, the house felt too quiet. Larissa caught herself cooking for four, buying groceries out of habit. The silence echoed through the once-lively rooms. But slowly, she adjusted. Smaller pots. Lighter grocery bags. A new hobby: succulents—odd little plants, tough and strange, but beautiful in their resilience.
Life found a new rhythm—slower, peaceful, and entirely her own.
Then, one evening, Anton shattered it with a casual announcement.
“Mother gave her cottage to my sister. She plans to sell it. So I’m bringing Mum here—she’ll live with us.”
Larissa blinked. “Wait. She gave her home to your sister, and you’re the one who’s supposed to take her in?”
“Yes.”
“Why doesn’t she go live with your sister then?”
“You know her house isn’t suitable. It’s a tiny village—no hospitals nearby. It’s not fair.”
“Is your mother even sick?”
“Not yet. But she’s aging, Larissa. You, of all people, should get that.”
Larissa did understand. The long years she spent caring for her own parents, mostly alone, haunted her still. She and Anton had inherited her family’s old townhouse after they passed—a space filled with memories and hard-earned peace.
“I do get it,” she said quietly. “But why us? Why you, when she clearly favors your sister? She cut you out of the inheritance without a second thought.”
“She had her reasons. That’s her choice. But she’s still my mother. I won’t abandon her.”
“And I’m supposed to just accept this?” Larissa asked. “Did anyone ask me? Did she even ask you before handing everything over?”
“No. She just told me.”
“Of course she did. And you accepted it without question. So convenient.”
“She trusts me.”
“How nice. And what about my say in this? Don’t I live here too?”
“You’ve always gotten along with her.”
“I’ve tolerated her,” Larissa corrected. “At a safe distance. Once a year, at most. She’s never shown interest in our lives, or in our kids.”
“What are you getting at?”
“I’m saying I won’t live with your mother.”
“What do you mean you won’t?”
“I won’t. I’ve already spent enough of my life caring for others. This isn’t my responsibility.”
“No explanation? Just no?”
“No explanation needed. You and your sister can figure it out. Maybe don’t sell the cottage just yet. Maybe she can stay on her own for a while. It’s not my problem.”
Anton snapped. “Have you lost it? That’s my mother! You don’t just turn your back on family! Wives can be replaced, but—”
Larissa cut him off, her voice like steel. “Then go. Do what a good son must. Take care of her. No one’s stopping you.”
He stormed out—but didn’t leave. He brooded for days, then acted like nothing had happened.
That Friday, he mentioned it in passing, like it was just another errand.
“Mum’s coming Saturday. A friend’s helping bring her things. Set up the spare room.”
Larissa didn’t respond.
The next day, while he was out, she called their children. Calmly, she explained the situation. Her refusal. His disregard. Then she told them she was filing for divorce.
That evening, Anton came home to find a suitcase by the door.
His key no longer worked.
He didn’t knock. Didn’t call. Just stood there, stunned, thinking: No shame. No loyalty. No heart left in her.
He spent the next week at a friend’s, drinking too much, going over it all again and again. The reality sank in. This wasn’t what he wanted. He wasn’t ready to lose everything.
So he called his sister.
“Don’t sell the house yet,” he said. “Why the rush? Why should I carry this alone?”
But the conversation spiraled fast. Accusations flew. Resentments resurfaced.
“I can’t take her!” Anton shouted. “My marriage is falling apart over this!”
His sister exploded. “You think I want her living with me? What if she lives another ten years? You expect me to babysit her forever?”
Their mother stood between them, trembling.
Then she clutched her chest and collapsed.
The ambulance took too long. The doctors said it was a stroke.
Anton returned to the city. Went to Larissa. She had cooled by then…