“Won’t you help your sister? She’s struggling after the divorce,” the mother scolded.
The two sisters were seated at the round table in their mother’s home, listening to her complaints.
“Your Jack is really spoiled!” declared Mary Thompson bluntly. “He works shifts, but he barely brings home any money!”
“Mum, is sixty thousand pounds not enough for you?” asked the younger daughter, Emily, angrily.
“I don’t care. What matters is that he can support you,” the mother said, pursing her lips in annoyance.
“He does support me,” Emily frowned.
“I don’t see it! Just yesterday, you borrowed five hundred pounds from me,” Mary reminded her. “If he can’t take care of you, get a divorce! Find someone who can! Besides, look at him; it’s clear he’s a bit off his rocker.”
“Mum, I think that’s crossing the line,” said Sarah, who had been silent until then, deciding to take her sister’s side.
“Am I not speaking the truth? He’s not much to look at, with his red hair and lisp,” Mary sneered and rolled her eyes. “Emily, you deserve better. Before it’s too late, you should leave him,” she advised her youngest daughter.
“Mum, Jack is great with his hands, and besides, looks aren’t everything,” Sarah chimed in, seeing their mother pressuring her sister. “If you measure everything by material means, he has a flat, a car, and it’s obvious he loves Emily.”
Mary pursed her lips and shot a disdainful look at her elder daughter, whom she felt was meddling where she wasn’t wanted.
“You live alone at thirty! So don’t come giving advice,” she brushed Sarah off. “You’ll be desperate by forty…”
Emily sat quietly, listening to her mother and sister and watching them indifferently.
“You praise him… It’s just a one-bedroom flat, an old car, nothing much to boast about,” Mary scoffed.
“What do you think, Emily?” Sarah asked her silent sister. “Do you have an opinion?”
“I don’t know. Maybe Mum’s right,” mumbled Emily, who had initially defended her husband but was now bending under her mother’s views. “He suggested I should look for a job…”
“See!” Mary folded her arms. “Imagine where it’ll lead!”
“Why shouldn’t Emily work? Few can afford such luxury not to. I’m surprised Jack didn’t suggest it sooner,” remarked Sarah.
“I can’t understand why you’re defending him,” her mother looked sharply at Sarah.
“Because I’m afraid your pressure might ruin my sister’s life,” Sarah explained calmly.
“It’s none of your business,” Mary snapped. “Emily deserves better. If he truly loved her, he’d make sure she never suffers. Even if Jack was attractive, he’s got neither looks nor money…”
Emily sat glued to her seat, absorbing every word her mother said.
Mary’s lectures bore fruit. Soon after, Emily confronted Jack.
“Do you think you earn enough?” she questioned her husband.
“It’s fine, why?”
“I disagree,” Emily shook her head. “You should find a better job.”
“A different one? I’m okay with mine,” Jack replied nonchalantly though slightly wary.
“I’m not!” Emily stated firmly. “The flat’s small, the car’s old… I’m embarrassed in front of the neighbors…”
“You used to be fine with it,” Jack said, puzzled. “What’s changed?”
“Nothing’s changed, I just see you differently now. Before, emotions blinded me. Now I see clearly,” Emily justified herself.
“Alright,” Jack responded indifferently, hoping she’d drop it.
But encouraged by Mary, Emily pressed on.
“Your constant dissatisfaction is grating,” Jack gritted through his teeth. “I hear you, but I can’t help you.”
“I need a husband who’ll grow, not be stuck,” Emily frowned.
“Sorry I’m not that man!” Jack replied coldly and went to the bedroom, opening the wardrobe holding her clothes. “Pack your things!”
“Where am I going?” asked Emily, raising her eyebrows in surprise.
“Where there’s a new flat and an imported car,” he stated dryly. “I’ll never forgive myself if you waste your life with a failure like me. Hopefully, you’ll find someone to shower you with riches. I can’t.”
Mary was first to learn Jack had kicked Emily out.
“What a scoundrel! How could he do that?! You shouldn’t have married him in the first place,” Mary lamented, cursing her son-in-law for his actions.
“I only asked him to grow and earn more,” Emily said, sobbing.
“He’s a brute through and through. You’ll find someone better, and Jack will regret it,” Mary consoled her daughter.
Having lost both flat and husband, Emily moved into her childhood room in her mother’s house.
“What will you do now?” Sarah asked her sister during a visit upon their mother’s call.
“Nothing,” Emily replied indifferently, staring at her phone.
“Have you thought about work?” Sarah hinted.
“No. Why would I? I’ll just find someone richer than Jack,” Emily answered matter-of-factly.
“Why bother her? She’s been through enough, let her rest,” Mary defended Emily.
For two months, Mary shouldered the burden of her lounging daughter.
Realizing she couldn’t manage alone anymore, Mary called Sarah for help.
After work, Sarah visited, assuming it was urgent.
“Won’t you help your sister?” Mary asked disapprovingly.
“With what?”
“With money, Sarah. We’re struggling,” Mary corrected her.
“Who told you to poison Emily’s mind and suggest a divorce?” Sarah retorted, surprising her mother. “If you hadn’t meddled, things would’ve been fine.”
“Oh, really? How dare you speak like that? Jack is a fool, a coward! He couldn’t handle Emily! Get out! I don’t want to see you!” Mary shouted.
Emily strode into the room gracefully. Seeing her sister, she stood with hands on hips.
“Defending someone who threw me out?”
“It’s your fault! Stop listening to Mum…”
“You’re lecturing me now? Think you’re so clever? Why are you still single?” Emily screamed.
Sarah shook her head, listening to their tantrums, and left.
The desire to keep in touch with her family didn’t arise. The same applied to Mary and Emily.
