“Are you saying we built this house for nothing?” exclaimed the mother-in-law, indignantly. “Then you need to return half the cost!”
“I need to have a serious talk with you,” the woman with the short haircut said as she sat down across from Emily. “Before you marry my son, there are a few things you should know.”
The slender blonde gazed curiously at her future relative, whom she had met only a couple of times before.
“Essentially, if you want to join our family, you must understand that the most important people to Tom are his parents!” Antonina declared proudly. “We don’t want a daughter-in-law who will boss my son around.”
“Am I being bossy?” Emily interrupted her.
“Please let me finish! Be patient,” the woman retorted sharply.
Instantly, Emily looked down, feeling embarrassed. She had no desire to upset Tom’s mother.
They had only just begun their relationship, and Emily wished to avoid any conflict.
“So anyway,” Antonina continued, “our family has a plan: as soon as Tom gets married, we’ll all move into the house, which is nearly complete. We’ll live there as a big happy family!”
“That sounds great!” Emily said with a forced smile.
Hearing her words, the woman raised an eyebrow in surprise, not expecting her future daughter-in-law to concede so quickly.
“I’m thrilled that you’re on board! I believe we will become good friends,” Antonina winked mischievously at Emily.
Immediately, she began singing Emily’s praises to her son, emphasizing how good-hearted, intelligent, and caring she was.
Seeing this and knowing that a little extra support wouldn’t hurt, Emily decided to please the woman even more.
She began giving Antonina small gifts, both to show appreciation and to highlight her care.
A year later, fearing that her son and Emily might not marry, Antonina began pushing him toward making a significant commitment.
“When are you going to propose?” Tom’s mother asked nearly every day. “The girl might get fed up and leave you, and then you’ll regret it…”
After considering her words and acknowledging their validity, Tom decided to propose. Emily happily accepted.
The costs of the wedding were covered by Tom’s parents, so Emily felt assured that she had chosen a worthwhile partner.
For the first three months, the newlyweds lived in a rented flat, and then Antonina joyfully announced that the house was ready for them to move into.
“Alright, pack your things, and we’ll pack ours!” the woman eagerly told her son and daughter-in-law.
“Why? We’re happy here!” Emily frowned, having no intention of living with her in-laws.
“Why not?” Antonina was taken aback. “We agreed that as soon as the house was finished, we’d move in together!”
“Move in if you want! No one’s stopping you!” Emily huffed, her attitude toward her mother-in-law now drastically changed.
Antonina was so shocked by this outburst that she fell silent for several seconds.
“Wait a minute, you gave me your word,” she reminded her, keeping her voice calm.
“Who knows what I said back then? I’ve changed my mind, and I’m against living with you!” Emily replied firmly. “We’ll live separately! By the way, since you’re moving out, Tom and I will just move into your flat.”
“What? Keep your mouth shut!” Antonina shrieked, baring her teeth. “You schemer!” she added angrily before hanging up.
Emily listened for a moment to the beeping sound on the line before confusedly setting down the phone.
Just then, she heard Tom’s phone ringing in the kitchen.
She strained to hear and realised Antonina was calling to complain about her.
Half an hour later, when Tom finally finished the phone call, Emily entered the kitchen.
From his expression, she could tell he was very upset. Tom looked at his wife and asked sternly:
“What’s going on?”
“What’s the problem?” Emily crossed her arms defiantly.
“Mother called. She wants money…”
“What? What money and for what?” This news caught Emily off guard and left her slightly shocked.
“For the house. What did you promise her before we got married? To live in it together?”
“Nothing,” Emily said, trying to play dumb.
“You supported her plan for the house, didn’t you?” Tom asked seriously.
“So what? I agreed back then, but now I don’t want to,” she replied, looking away.
“Well, I didn’t support her plan because I believed she was wasting her time! The house stood for three years, but after we got married, she completed it. Turns out, it was because of you!” Tom clenched his teeth.
“Well, she finished it, so what’s the problem?” Emily exclaimed, throwing her hands up in frustration.
Before Tom could respond, his phone rang again—his mother again. He made a shrewd decision: he handed his phone to Emily, saying:
“Here, you deal with this!”
As soon as Antonina heard Emily’s voice, she launched into her demands.
“Return the money for the house!” she said firmly.
“What money? Have you lost your mind?” Emily retorted, irritated.
“So you mean we built the house for nothing because of you?!” Antonina protested. “Then return half the cost!”
“Half of what?” Emily snapped.
“Five million! You owe me five million!” Antonina shouted into the phone. “Or else…”
“What will you do? I haven’t signed any papers!” Emily replied, triumphant.
“In that case, we will stop communicating with you!” Antonina threatened.
“Be my guest!” Emily smirked and ended the call.
Antonina began demanding money from Tom, who had to pay her fifty thousand pounds each month.
“You’ll only pay me back like this in ten years!” shouted his mother. “Either move into the house or raise the amounts.”
Since Tom had no way to increase his expenses, he reluctantly agreed to his mother’s terms.
Emily, however, did not support the idea, and so, after six months, the couple finally parted ways.
