“Once again, you’ve bought a gift just for your mum and forgotten about me?” Hannah said bitterly.
The scent of oranges and cinnamon filled the flat on New Year’s Eve. Hannah, wearing her new silk scarf, was busy preparing the festive table. Helen, looking elegant in her shawl, helped her with the salads.
Discover something new:
Snow was falling in large flakes, covering the streets of London with a white blanket. Only two days remained until the New Year. Hannah stood by the window of her and Alex’s flat on the twelfth floor, absently watching the snowfall. Somewhere in the distance, the lights from Christmas decorations twinkled, and decorated trees could already be seen in the neighboring windows.
On the coffee table lay a small box tied with a golden ribbon—a gift for her mother-in-law. Hannah had chosen it herself: a beautifully patterned wool shawl. Helen had been dreaming of such a thing for a long time. “Hope Alex likes my choice,” she thought, adjusting the bow on the package for the hundredth time.
The sound of the key turning in the lock made her jump. Alex entered, holding a large bag from an expensive shop.
“Can you believe it? I barely made it!” he exclaimed, shaking the snow off his coat. “It was the last one. Mum will be thrilled!”
Hannah froze as her heart skipped a beat.
“What’s in the bag?” she asked, trying to sound casual.
“That cashmere cardigan she spotted at Harrods last month. Remember? She mentioned it?” Alex pulled out a luxurious dark chocolate-colored cardigan from the bag.
Hannah remembered. As well as the fact that this cardigan cost nearly half her monthly salary. And she also recalled showing her husband a silk scarf she liked two weeks ago… He had nodded absentmindedly and changed the subject.
“You’ve bought a gift only for your mum again and forgotten about me?” The words slipped out, tinged with the bitterness of many years of hurt.
Alex paused with the cardigan in his hands, surprise flickering over his face, soon replaced by mild annoyance.
“Hannah, you know how important she is to me,” he said, gently placing the cardigan back in the bag. “She’s my only mum. Besides, we didn’t talk about gifts for each other this year…”
Hannah turned to the window. Outside, the snow kept falling, as cold as the growing void inside her.
“We never talk about it, Alex. You just…” she trailed off, her voice betraying a slight tremor.
In the hallway, the keys jingled again—it was Helen. They had planned to discuss New Year’s Eve menu together. Hannah quickly wiped her eyes and forced a smile.
“Oh, it’s good you’re both home!” Helen entered, carrying a bag of oranges. “I was thinking, maybe we should make that pomegranate salad again? Like last year?”
Hannah nodded mechanically, avoiding looking Helen in the eye. Her throat tightened, and her hands, as she tidied the gift from the coffee table, trembled slightly.
“Mum, let me help you,” Alex offered, taking the bag of oranges, but Helen stood still in the doorway, observing both her son and daughter-in-law closely.
“Has something happened?” she quietly asked. She had become attuned to the tension between the young couple after fifteen years of her son’s marriage.
“Nothing,” Alex replied too quickly. “Everything’s fine.”
“Yes, everything’s just great,” Hannah couldn’t contain the bitter irony. “Alex bought mum a gift today. A cardigan—from Harrods.”
Helen paled as comprehension dawned.
“Alex, we’ve talked about this…” she began.
“Mum, please don’t start,” her son interrupted. “I just wanted to please you. What’s wrong with that?”
Hannah turned sharply toward her husband:
“What’s wrong is that you can’t see past your own nose! Fifteen years, Alex. For fifteen years, I’ve felt second place. Every holiday, every weekend—it all revolves around your mum. Her wishes, her plans, her gifts…”
“Hannah, darling…” Helen stepped toward her daughter-in-law, who retreated.
“No, it’s not about you. It’s about him,” Hannah waved her hand toward Alex. “‘Mum’s important to me,’ ‘She’s my only mum’… And me? Just an appendage to family life?”
“You’re being unfair!” Alex flared. “Do I not do enough for you?”
“Do enough?” Hannah laughed bitterly. “You don’t even remember what I told you two weeks ago. About the scarf I liked. You nodded and forgot immediately. But mum’s cardigan you remember perfectly!”
A heavy silence descended upon the room. Only the ticking clock marked the seconds of tense quiet.
“I think I’ll go,” Helen said softly. “We’ll discuss the menu tomorrow.”
“Mum, stay…” Alex began.
“No, dear. You two need to talk. It was long overdue.”
The front door closed quietly behind his mother-in-law. Hannah remained by the window, her arms wrapped around her shoulders—a comfort that appeared when her heart was especially heavy.
Instead of heading home, Helen wandered down the street coated in snow. Flakes fell on her face, blending with unbidden tears. “How blind I’ve been all these years…” she thought sadly.
Her phone vibrated in her pocket. Alex.
“Mum, where are you? I’ll come down for you.”
“I’m by the bench in the park,” she answered. “You know, we truly need to talk.”
In five minutes, Alex, having thrown a coat over his sweater, sat beside her. The snow continued falling, covering their shoulders in a white shawl.
“Son,” Helen took his hand. “Do you remember how you loved puzzles as a child?”
“What does that have to do with anything?” Alex asked, puzzled.
“The point is, you always started with the brightest piece. And then you couldn’t complete the picture because you didn’t see how all the pieces fit together.”
She paused, gathering her thoughts.
“And now you only see one bright piece—your love for me. But family, Alex, is a whole picture. And Hannah is a crucial part of it.”
“Mum, but I love Hannah!” he objected.
“You do. But do you show her?” Helen sighed. “You know what’s the worst thing for a woman? Feeling invisible. Especially to the one she loves.”
Alex was silent, staring at the falling snow.
“Do you think I need that cardigan?” his mother continued. “I need my son to be happy. And that’s only possible if your wife is happy. I see how much she does for our family. Cooks my favorite meals, remembers all the important dates, even that shawl…”
“What shawl?”
“The one she picked for me. I saw it on the table when I came in. Exactly what I’ve been dreaming of.”
Alex covered his eyes with his hand.
“God, what an idiot I’ve been…”
“Not an idiot, son. Just… caught up with one piece and forgot about the full picture.”
Returning home, Alex paused outside Harrods. The window displays shimmered with festive lights, reflecting off the freshly fallen snow. That silk scarf was still there, as if waiting for him.
Walking into the quiet flat, he saw a cup of cold tea sitting on the kitchen table—Hannah hadn’t even finished it.
“Hannah?” he called, peeking into the bedroom.
She lay on the bedspread, turned towards the wall. Her shoulders shook slightly.
“I’m sorry,” he said softly, sitting on the edge of the bed. “I’ve been a blind fool.”
“Blind for fifteen years?” she replied quietly, not turning.
“Yes. And an idiot every year,” he gently touched her shoulder. “You know, mum mentioned something… About puzzles. How I always got stuck on the brightest piece and couldn’t see the whole picture.”
Hannah slowly turned. Her eyes were red from tears.
“I was so focused on being the perfect son, I forgot to be a good husband,” he showed her the scarf. “Recognize it?”
She propped herself up, disbelief in her eyes as she gazed at the shimmering silk.
“Alex, don’t do it just because of the scarf…”
“I know,” he took her hand. “It’s not about the gifts. It’s that I never saw how you take care of both of us. Of mum, too. That shawl you picked… It’s perfect, isn’t it?”
A tear rolled down her cheek.
“I just want to feel that I matter to you. Not just words, but…”
“Through actions,” he finished. “And I’ll prove it. Not just today. Every day.”
The aroma of oranges and cinnamon filled the flat on New Year’s Eve. Hannah, in her new silk scarf, was working her magic on the festive table. Helen, elegant in her wool shawl, was helping with the salads.
“Hannah, your salad is always special,” her mother-in-law smiled. “Will you share the secret?”
“Of course,” Hannah found herself smiling genuinely. “I add a little apple vinegar to the mayonnaise. My grandmother’s recipe.”
Alex, watching them, discreetly took a photo: the two most important women in his life, gathered over the festive table, so different yet so dear.
“Ladies,” he cleared his throat to get their attention. “Before the clock strikes midnight, I have something to say.”
He took out two envelopes.
“Mum, this is for you,” he handed the first envelope to her. “A stay at that spa you’ve dreamed about. For two weeks, this spring.”
“Alex…” she pressed her hand to her heart.
“And this,” he turned to Hannah, “is for us. A trip to Venice, for our anniversary. Fifteen years is a big milestone.”
Hannah froze with a napkin in hand: “But you said you’d have a lot of work this spring…”
“Work can wait,” he wrapped his arm around her shoulders. “I’ve been missing so much, emphasizing the wrong things. It’s time to catch up.”
Outside, the first New Year’s fireworks boomed. The colorful sparks reflected in Hannah’s eyes, making them glisten with emotion.
“Happy New Year, my dears,” Helen said softly, looking at both of them. “May this year be the start of something new. Something real.”
Hannah leaned against her husband’s shoulder. The cashmere cardigan stayed in the wardrobe, but it no longer mattered. What was more important was the warmth spreading through her heart—the warmth of knowing that finally, everything was falling into place.
