All right, I get it, Victor sighed, looking weary. Youre being thrown out of your own house.
Victor, Mum and I are on our way to you! Natty shouted into the phone at three in the morning.
Dont bother driving over, Victor replied, halfasleep. Were still in bed!
Victor, this isnt a joke! Find a spare cot for Mum and a folding mattress for me! Natty complained.
We dont keep any folding beds, and every bedroom is already occupied! he said, yawning contagiously.
Youre teasing us? Natty shouted.
Sister, what do you want from me? And why are you showing up at my doorstep in the dead of night? Youve got a flat of your own, go spend the night there! Victor retorted.
Victor! Natty snapped, cutting him off. You have to let us stay for the night! Weve nowhere else to go!
Whats happened? Victor asked innocently, pushing his wife out of the way.
Covering the receiver with his hand, he muttered, Anna, Mum and my little sister are here! Theyre barging in for a visit!
Couldnt you have called at a more sensible hour? Anna said drowsily.
Glad were on the same page! Victor smiled.
All the while Natty kept babbling, punctuating her speech with sighs, groans and the occasional shout.
Now make it short and clear! Victor demanded.
Victor! The door is jammed!
How bad? he asked.
First the lock got stuck, then the hinges warped and refused to close, and when I tried to help, they jammed even more. The lock wont turn at all! Natty wailed, starting to sob. Mum and I were in our nightgowns on the doorstep! Were neighbours, but you know how dreadful they can be?
Very interesting! Victor grinned widely. Looks like the payback doors finally caught you!
His wife, who had been listening, theatrically shook her head, covering her mouth to hide a yawn. She wanted to laugh out loud, but didnt want to interrupt him.
Victor, well have to wait until morning and then call a tradesperson. So order a taxi and pay by card! Weve got cash in the flat!
So are you staying or waiting? Victor tried to clarify.
Dont be daft! Natty snapped. Were sitting here like two chickens on the pavement under these cursed doors!
In the early days of childhood, parents love their kids equally and give them everything within their means. As the kids grow, favourites emergesome get more, some get the leftovers. The same goes for caring.
When Victor was getting ready to marry, his younger sister Natty immediately raised the issue of not wanting Victor and his young wife sharing their flat.
Victor, thats your wife, but to me shes a stranger! And Ive got my own house! I want to come and go as I please! she declared.
Why not? Whos stopping you? Victor asked, baffled.
The very presence of a stranger makes me uneasy! Natty quoted, apparently lifted from some internet wisdom.
What kind of unease? Victor frowned. Anna and I work daytime shifts! In the morning you and Mum are still asleep, and at night were back in our own room after dinner!
Sure, darling! Natty snorted. And you wont even use the loo, youll be busy with your own business! Meanwhile I might be doing yoga in the hall!
Believe me, theres nothing exciting for us here! Victor noted. And whos going to stare at you?
Victor! Natty shrieked, then added her mum to the call. Tell him! Why do we need a stranger in the house?
Natalie, said Mrs. Margaret, shes Victors wife, and to us shes a daughterinlaw! Thats practically family.
Its distant family in some faroff village, but legally shes an outsider! Mum, I dont want to live like were in a council flat!
Margaret, as it turned out, favoured her daughter because Victor reminded her of the husband who had abandoned her with two kids years ago. She quietly sided with Natty:
Victor dear, we love you, but we barely know Anna. Well meet her, but moving in together right away feels wrong, she said softly, with a hint of coaxing. Besides, youre a man! Itd be odd if you were living on Mums chest. Your kids will arrive, Nattys still youngperhaps youll throw a party at night and the kids will cause a ruckus. Youre family, after all.
Everythings clear, Victor sighed again. Youre being chased out of your own home!
Victor, no ones chasing you out, his mum replied. We just dont want unnecessary drama.
You can live without a wife, Natty said, but with one, you both go your own ways!
Anna soon sensed something was off between Victor, his mum and his sister, because after the wedding theyd planned to stay together to save for a house deposit. Three weeks before the ceremony Victor moved his belongings into a rented flat and brought his new wife there.
Anna understood, but didnt intervene. She wasnt thrilled about living next to her husbands relatives, yet for Victors sake she was willing to endure as long as needed.
It didnt work out, and thats fine, she told her friend. Victor looks glum all the time.
Anna, stay out of this! advised Katya. The less you think about it, the healthier youll be!
Ill be fine, but Victors really having a hard time!
Youre his wife, after allsupport him! Youre practically his family now, and the others are just relatives.
Victor might have been lenient, but he quickly let the slight go when his own familys problems piled up. He needed to sort out housing and everyday life, and then Anna gave birth to a son.
Cant drag any more, he sighed. We wont be able to save much together. Well just scrape by.
I think the same, Anna agreed. When the mortgage payment comes due, you either pay it or you dont.
They took out a thirtyyear mortgage. They had hoped for twenty, but a longer term spared them from giving up all their leisure.
Four years after little Tobys birth, the joy faded. Their second son, Harry, announced his arrival with a triumphant cry.
Nothing to worry about, Victor said. Well manage!
Of course, love! Anna replied. Where shall we go?
When the younger boy turned five, Victor managed to snag two holiday vouchers for a seaside resort.
They rarely took vacations, usually just visiting Annas family in the country. But even a garden getaway felt like a break.
Anna dear! Theres a pool, spa, disco for the overthirties, fivecourse mealsbasically royal treatment!
What about the kids?
For a small extra fee we could bring them along, or maybe well give them a break?
Shall we lock them up in a room or ferry them to my mums village? Anna asked with a grin. (The lockup and mums village jokes were just playful banter; she wasnt actually planning to hide the children.)
Victor called his mother, Mum, could I leave the kids with you for a week? Anna and I want a break.
Where are you off to? Natty demanded, not letting a word escape.
To a spa outside the city, Victor answered. We havent really taken a proper holiday in eight years.
So youre going to a spa and were supposed to guard your bandits? Brilliant plan! Natty scoffed.
Mum, Victor persisted, theyre decent lads. Feed them, check theyre dressed properly, put them to bed on timeapart from that theyre nearly selfsufficient.
Mrs. Margaret thought about it. Victor, no! Natty, speaking for her mother, replied. We just refurbished the flat, got new furniture costly, you know! What if your kids destroy everything? And youll have to compensate us! Besides, my husband sometimes drops by, and we never had enough room for kids!
Mum! Victor exclaimed, his hope dwindling. Weve just renovated, and Nattys sorting her own life. Youre both a familydeal with your own issues!
Thanks, Mum! Victor said, each syllable a sigh.
They went off to the spa with the boys, and Victor didnt speak of his relatives for a while. He felt a bit bruised.
Then trouble struck unexpectedly, and Victor had to make a quick call to his family.
Mum, Natty, Annas salarys been delayed. We need to pay the mortgage instalment right away. Can you lend us three or four days?
We dont have that, dear, Margaret replied, eyeing her daughter.
We do, Natty said, patting her mothers hand. Dont worry!
Youve saved my skin! Victor breathed a sigh of relief.
No! Natty snapped. Youll have to rescue yourself. Weve set aside money for the front door replacement! The installer is due next week, and we need a deposit for the work as well as the doors themselves!
Natty, what are you on about? I only asked for four days! Victor protested.
Its not clear how youll repay! I need to pay someone in a week, then in five days the door will be fitted and the full amount must be settled! Natty replied.
Why are you paying for it, Natty? Its an emergency! The loans due tomorrow, the salary comes the day after! Ill bring the cash straight away or transfer it now!
Nice words, but Im not going to fly in with the doors! If they hold you up longer, what am I supposed to do?
Lets at least go to the solicitor now and sort everything properly. You can even draw a thousandpercent penalty if you like! Victor joked.
Ill take your penalties, the door promotion will end, brother, so off you go, dont cough! Natty retorted.
Victor, of course, managed to get the old friend solicitor, paid the money even earlier than required, and both his mum and sister ended up on his blacklist.
He told Anna everything, and she quoted something shed read once: A wise person does not seek revenge; they wait for life to settle the score.
He didnt have to wait long
Here we go! Victor announced. My card is empty, and I really dont feel like looking for money to help family right now!
Youve lost it! Were your family! his mother shouted.
The doors! Victor added. Your doors were the final chord that made me lose the desire to speak to you any more!
Dont you feel ashamed, son, stooping so low? his mothers voice rang out.
Im not taking revenge, Victor replied. Im finally paying back the debts!
You never took anything from us? Natty asked, missing the hint.
I took your attitude, Victor said. Your love, care, and kindnessthe very things you gave me. Now Im returning them in equal measure!
And with that, he hung up the phone. It wasnt vengeance, it was a settled debt.
