I sometimes wonder if my brother made the right choice in marriage. Honestly, in the beginning, I really tried to get along with my sister-in-law and keep things civil. For a while, my brother and his wife lived with Mum and me. From that point on, I moved into the smaller bedroom, Mum shifted to the living room, and my brother and his wife were given the master bedroom. But Alice made it clear she saw herself above us from the very start. Her father was a university lecturer and she acted as though that somehow set her apart.
Alice never saw it as her responsibility to help around the houseno cooking, no cleaningsaying she wasnt the housekeeper. When she became pregnant, she declared she needed complete peace and quiet. Mum, being the non-confrontational type, simply accepted it without complaint. I couldnt even invite my mates round because, you see, Alice was living there now.
She wanted special meals and absolute silence. Now Mum had to cook separately for her, as well as for the rest of us. I spoke to Mum a few times, urging her not to bend over backwards for Alice, who was becoming bolder by the day. As Alices due date drew near, she insisted her unborn child needed a separate roommeaning Mum and I would have to both squeeze into the living room. That was my limit. Alice burst into tears and started shouting, as if we were forcing her into premature labour. My brother, of course, took her side and called me childish.
In the end, Mum asked my brother to find a place of their own. Eventually, they moved out. Funnily enough, I had no clue when their son was born or when the christening happened. Alice only messaged to say gifts werent welcome; shed rather people gave the child cash. She even specified the amount in pounds.
Mum said she simply didnt have that kind of money. As a result, we were told we couldnt visit the baby. At first, Mum was quite upset, but then they started bringing the boy over themselves. Sometimes Alice would even leave her son with Mum and mefor instance, when she wanted to go for coffee with her friends or for a manicure. Still, she always had something to complain about when she came back: we dressed him wrong or fed him improperly.
When the child turned one, my brother and his wife came to visit. They explained that housing was a real issue for them. Since they couldnt get a mortgage, Alice decided shed go to work, expecting that Id look after their son in the meantime.
Youre studying at the teacher-training college, so itll be practical experience, Alice explained. We cant get by on just your brothers wages anymore. But we cant pay you, and the course? Well, you could always switch to part-time for a while, surely you ought to help us out, she reasoned.
Naturally, I refused.
I couldnt seem to make my brother understand that their housing troubles were not my responsibility. Why should I set aside my own education for their sake? Even so, I had to put up with Alices sulking over my lack of care for her child.
She called us selfish and declared theyd never step foot in our house again. And for about six months, they honestly didnt.
One day, my brother turned up at the door alone. It turned out Alice had started a job and met another man there. She divorced my brother and demanded child support.
Now shes dangling visitation rights over my brothers head: if he pays the maintenance, he can see his son; if not, forget it. Ironically, the new man Alice met was already married and had no intention of leaving his wife for her. Now my former sister-in-law lives in a rented flatstill paid for by my brother, by the way. My brother apologised to us and said that next time hell try to choose a woman more wisely.
