Olivia met Ethan at a corporate event for the construction company where she worked as an office manager. He arrived as a representative from a building materials supplier—tall, with dimples on his cheeks and an attentive gaze from his brown eyes. A spark flew between them when she accidentally spilled champagne on him, and he laughed, saying it was for good luck.
Their romance developed rapidly. Just a month later, Ethan introduced her to his family—his father, a retired colonel, and his mother, Margaret Wilson, a former head of the local library. Olivia remembered her first visit to Ethan’s parental home in the suburbs of Boston.
She was nervous, bought a cake from an expensive bakery, and wore a modest dress with a collar. «So you’re a secretary?» Margaret Wilson asked again, examining Olivia through her glasses on a chain. «Office manager,» Olivia clarified, feeling her cheeks flush.
«One and the same,» the future mother-in-law dismissed. «And what do your parents do?» Olivia hesitated for a moment. «Mom works in a business center, in the cleaning service. Dad died when I was 14.»
«In the cleaning service?» Margaret Wilson raised her eyebrows. «Is that a janitor?» Ethan coughed, clearly uncomfortable, but said nothing. Olivia nodded, lifting her chin a bit higher.
Yes, her mom mopped floors in offices to put her through school. And Olivia was never ashamed of it. «Interesting,» Margaret Wilson drawled, setting down her cup.
«Ethan, you said she was from a good family.» «Mom?» he finally interjected. «Olivia is from a wonderful family.»
But it was too late. From that moment, Margaret Wilson saw Olivia as a gold digger after her son’s money, even though he was just an ordinary sales manager, not a millionaire. They got married six months later.
Margaret Wilson insisted on a banquet in a restaurant with columns, where half the neighborhood partied. Olivia dreamed of an intimate ceremony, but quickly realized that marrying Ethan meant accepting his mom as the commander-in-chief of their family life. «You must understand that now you’re a Thompson,» her mother-in-law told her at the wedding, adjusting her pearl necklace.
«Our family is well-known in the city. We’re intelligentsia.» Their honeymoon was in Hawaii.
At a hotel chosen by Margaret Wilson. She even packed Ethan a separate suitcase with medications and instructions on where to eat and which excursions to take. The first year of marriage was spent trying to conform.
Olivia cooked according to her mother-in-law’s recipes, learned to set the table properly, and endured weekly inspections from Margaret Wilson. «You have dust under the TV,» she would usually start, running her finger over surfaces. «Ethan can’t live in such conditions.
He has allergies.» Ethan had no allergies, but he never contradicted his mother. Then they started planning for a child.
Month after month passed without results. At first, Margaret Wilson inquired delicately, then began bringing articles on female infertility and gynecologists’ addresses. «Ethan is a healthy boy, always was sturdy,» she would say, flipping through the family album.
«Probably the problem is something else.» Olivia took all the tests, no pathologies found. Then it was Ethan’s turn.
He resisted for a long time, but after a year of fruitless attempts, he agreed. The results were discouraging. Serious issues with the spermogram, low sperm motility, low concentration.
«It’s temporary,» Ethan brushed off, hiding the doctor’s report in a desk drawer. «Work stress.» Margaret Wilson refused to believe the diagnosis.
She started calling clinics, demanding retests, accusing labs of incompetence. When the third test confirmed the initial diagnosis, she proposed an unexpected solution. «Maybe you just don’t match each other,» she told Olivia privately.
«There can be such incompatibility. Maybe Ethan needs another woman to become a father.» Olivia told Ethan about this conversation.
He laughed nervously. «Mom is just worried about continuing the lineage. Don’t pay attention.»
But Olivia saw how her husband was changing. He became irritable, often stayed late at work, avoided intimacy. The conception problems became a heavy burden on their relationship, and Margaret Wilson skillfully used it to drive a wedge between the spouses.
As Olivia’s thirtieth birthday approached, she decided to use it as a chance to restart their relationship. Two years of marriage, filled with gradual distancing and quiet quarrels, should be left behind. «I want to throw a real party,» she told Ethan at breakfast.
«We’ll invite your parents, my friends, colleagues. Maybe at Riverside, it’s beautiful there.» Ethan shrugged.
«As you say. Just coordinate with Mom, she might have plans then.» For three months, Olivia planned her milestone birthday, booked a hall at the Riverside Restaurant with a view of the river, composed a menu of favorite dishes, chose table decorations, arrangements of freesias and eustomas.
«Isn’t it too expensive?» Ethan inquired, seeing the estimate. «Maybe celebrate at a cafe? I turn 30 only once in a lifetime,» Olivia replied firmly. «I’ll pay for it all myself, from my own money.»
She had been saving for this celebration since the beginning of the year, denying herself small things. She wanted a real, vibrant party, without compromises or skimping. Her first round birthday in marriage.
At the Seaside Mall, she found a seafoam green dress with an open back and fine embroidery on the bodice. It fit her slender figure perfectly, accentuating her waist and flowing over her hips. «You’re going in that?» Ethan asked when she showed the dress.
«Isn’t it too revealing?» «It’s an elegant evening dress,» Olivia objected. «It suits the occasion perfectly.» «As you say,» he replied, not looking up from his phone.
A week before the birthday, Olivia invited her mom to lunch. Linda Carter came straight after her shift, tired but with a gift, silver earrings with aquamarine. «Honey, you didn’t need to throw such a banquet,» her mom said, looking at the restaurant photos.
«We could have sat at home, made chicken soup.» «Mom, I want a real celebration,» Olivia hugged her shoulders. «You deserve a beautiful evening no less than me.»
Linda Carter sighed. «Will that Margaret of yours be there?» «Of course, she and Ethan’s dad will come. Promise you’ll stay calm, even if she starts her usual games.»
«I’m not worried about myself,» Linda Carter shook her head. «About you. I saw how she nitpicked you last New Year’s.
Snobby lady.» Olivia smiled through force. «Everything will be fine. I’m an adult now.
I’ll handle it.» In the evening, the night before the party, Olivia was double-checking the guest list when Ethan shared the news. «By the way, Mom said Dad won’t come.
Blood pressure. She’ll be alone.» Olivia felt a chill.
Margaret Wilson without her husband was always twice as dangerous. No one restrained her barbs. «Okay,» she said only, «I hope your dad gets better soon.»
The morning of the birthday, Olivia spent at the beauty salon. Hairdo, makeup, manicure. She wanted to look impeccable.
She chose strict but elegant makeup, gathered her hair in a high updo with a few loose strands. At home, Ethan waited with a bouquet of roses. «Happy birthday,» he said, kissing her cheek, «You look great.»
For a moment, it seemed to her that everything was improving, that the birthday would truly become a new starting point for their marriage. «Mom called,» Ethan added, ruining the moment. «She’ll come straight to the restaurant, asked to order her a special menu.
She’s on a diet.» Olivia clenched her teeth but nodded. Margaret Wilson always invented new ways to draw attention to herself, demanding special conditions.
«I’ll warn the administrator,» she said, heading to the closet for the dress. Ethan sat on the edge of the bed. «Listen, you’re not going to say anything about our conception problems, right? It would be unpleasant for Mom if the guests found out.»
Olivia froze with the dress in her hands. «Unpleasant for your mom? And her constantly hinting that I’m infertile, that should be pleasant for me?» «Come on,» Ethan winced. «Today is your party, let’s no scandals.»
She took a deep breath. «Right, today is her party, and she won’t let anyone spoil it.» «Okay,» she said, smoothing the dress, «everything will be fine.
Help with the zipper.» The clock showed five in the evening. Two hours left until the start of the celebration.
Olivia put on the earrings, her mom’s gift, spritzed her wrist with favorite perfume, and looked in the mirror one last time. A thirty-year-old woman looked back at her, confident, beautiful, full of hopes. She smiled at her reflection.
«Everything will be perfect,» she promised herself, «this is my day.» Ethan waited in the living room, glancing at his watch. «Ready?» he asked.
«The cab is downstairs.» Olivia nodded and, grabbing her purse, headed to the door. At the threshold, she stopped, suddenly feeling a strange premonition.
As if something was supposed to happen today, something important and irreversible. «Let’s go,» Ethan called. And she stepped over the threshold, towards her birthday, not yet knowing that this evening would change her entire life.
The Riverside Restaurant greeted Olivia and Ethan with subdued lighting and melodic music. The administrator, a slender girl in a strict suit, led them to the booked hall with panoramic windows overlooking the evening river. «Everything is ready as you requested,» the administrator said.
«Flower arrangements on the tables, menu coordinated, musicians will arrive in half an hour.» Olivia scanned the space. Round tables covered with ivory tablecloths, flickering candles in crystal holders, live flowers in low vases so as not to obstruct guests’ views of each other.
Just as she had imagined her party. «Perfect,» she smiled. «Thank you so much.»
Ethan took out his phone, snapping a few photos of the empty hall. «I’ll send to Mom,» he explained. She wanted to see how everything is organized.
Olivia suppressed a sigh. Even in this moment, Margaret Wilson was invisibly present. The first to arrive were Olivia’s colleagues, a noisy group with balloons and a big gift box…
Sophia, her closest work friend, hugged the birthday girl. «God, you look stunning!» she exclaimed, examining Olivia’s dress. «Like a sea goddess!»
After the colleagues, the other guests streamed in. High school friends with husbands, distant relatives, college buddies. Olivia greeted each with a sincere smile, led them to tables, thanked for congratulations.
At the start of seven, Linda Carter appeared. She entered uncertainly, looking around, clearly feeling out of place amid the luxurious interior. She wore a dark blue dress of simple cut, hair in a neat bun, minimal makeup on a face marked by years of hard labor.
«Mommy!» Olivia hurried to meet her, hugging. «You look wonderful!» Linda Carter smiled embarrassedly.
«Bought a new dress at the department store. Not too plain for this place?» «It’s perfect!» Olivia assured her, taking her arm.
«Come, I’ll seat you next to me.» Mom pulled a small box from her bag. «Here, honey, not gold, of course, but from the heart.»
Inside was a silver bracelet with a tiny angel pendant. «To protect you,» Linda Carter explained. Olivia’s eyes stung.
She knew this gift cost her mother several months of saving. «Thanks, Mommy!» she whispered, fastening the bracelet on her wrist. «I’ll never take it off!»
By eight, the hall was almost full. Only Margaret Wilson was missing, and her absence felt like the calm before the storm. «Where’s your mom?» Olivia asked Ethan as waiters began serving appetizers.
He shrugged. «Said she’ll be any minute. You know she loves dramatic entrances.»
As if in response to his words, the doors swung open, and Margaret Wilson entered. She wore an evening dress in deep burgundy, embroidered with beads, a massive necklace on her neck, and a high hairstyle with a jeweled clip. She paused at the threshold, allowing time to appreciate her outfit.
«Ethan dear!» she exclaimed, opening her arms. Ethan jumped up immediately, leaving Olivia, and hurried to his mother. He hugged her, kissed her cheek, took her elbow.
«Mom, you look amazing!» he said admiringly. «New dress?» «Yes, specially for this event,» Margaret Wilson purred, letting her son lead her through the hall.
Wanted to match the level. Passing tables, she nodded to acquaintances, greeted those she knew, ignoring the rest. Her gaze slid over Linda Carter, lingered for a fraction of a second, and moved on, as if she were a piece of furniture.
Approaching Olivia, Margaret Wilson barely touched her lips to her cheek. «Happy birthday, dear! Hope you didn’t forget my special menu? I’m on a diet.» «Of course,» Olivia replied, feeling her facial muscles tense in an effort to keep smiling.
«I arranged everything.» Margaret Wilson went to the table and, without waiting for an offer, chose the chair next to the one marked for Olivia. «Ethan dear, sit next to me!» she commanded her son, patting the adjacent chair.
Ethan nodded, not even glancing at his wife, and sat between his mother and one of his friends. Olivia had to sit on the other side of her mother-in-law, squeezed between her and her own mother. Margaret Wilson immediately began inspecting the hall like an experienced auditor.
She adjusted the tablecloth, shifted a glass a millimeter aside, shook her head examining the flower arrangement. «Interesting choice of flowers,» she said loud enough for neighboring tables to hear. «In our time, serious events ordered orchids.»
Olivia took a deep breath. «I like freesias and eustomas. They’re delicate and elegant.»
«Of course,» the mother-in-law replied, «everyone has their taste. By the way, the menu here is outrageously expensive. Ethan showed me the list.
Are you sure you can afford this?» Ethan, engrossed in chatting with a buddy, didn’t even notice this jab. «I work and can afford a good party once a year,» Olivia replied firmly. Margaret Wilson smiled.
«Of course, just worried about your budget. You still need to save for an apartment.» Olivia and Ethan had been living in a rental apartment for two years, saving for a down payment on their own home.
Margaret Wilson knew well that mentioning this was a sore spot. Fortunately, at that moment, the musicians started playing, and the host announced the start of the party. Olivia smiled gratefully at him.
Timely. Waiters served cold appetizers, champagne flowed into glasses. The host, a young man in a suit with a bow tie, introduced himself as Alex and announced the first toast to the birthday girl.
«Dear guests! Today we gathered to celebrate the milestone of beautiful Olivia. Thirty years is the age when a woman blooms in full force, retaining youth and gaining wisdom.» Guests applauded, raising glasses.
Olivia smiled, feeling the tension gradually release. The evening was just beginning, and she could simply enjoy the attention and warmth of friends. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed Margaret Wilson scrutinizing the separate plate of salad brought to her.
«Is this with salmon?» she asked the waiter. «I asked for trout. Salmon has too high a glycemic index for my diet.»
The young waiter glanced confusedly at Olivia. «I’ll check in the kitchen, ma’am.» «Please,» Margaret Wilson cut off, pushing the plate away, «and bring me mineral water without gas.
Not from a bottle, but from a pitcher with ice and a lemon slice.» Linda Carter, watching this scene, quietly said to Olivia. «Don’t pay attention, honey.
Enjoy your party.» Olivia gratefully squeezed her mother’s hand. Linda Carter was her quiet harbor, always calm, never creating problems, supporting without extra words.
After appetizers, the first congratulations began. Colleagues presented Olivia a certificate for spa treatments and a bouquet of roses. Sophia, speaking on behalf of the office, gave a touching speech about what a wonderful person Olivia is and how lucky everyone is to work with her.
High school friends gave a set of expensive cosmetics and an album with school year photos, evoking a bout of nostalgia in Olivia. Ethan sat next to his mother, occasionally leaning to her, whispering something and laughing. He hardly looked at his wife, as if her birthday was just an excuse to meet friends and mom.
When hot dishes were served, Margaret Wilson pulled pills from her purse and demonstratively laid them next to her plate. «Digestive enzymes,» she explained to her table neighbor. «At my age, you need to watch health carefully, though some,» she threw an expressive glance at Olivia, «somehow think at 30 you can eat anything.»
Olivia stayed silent, enjoying the tasty sea bass fillet. She wasn’t going to spoil her mood over her mother-in-law’s jabs. After the hot course, the host announced a dance break.
Musicians played a slow composition, and Ethan, after an expressive look from his mother, finally remembered his marital duties. «Shall we dance?» he offered Olivia, extending his hand. They went to the center of the hall.
Ethan placed his hands on her waist, Olivia on his shoulders. They moved to the music’s rhythm, but between them was like an invisible wall. Ethan looked somewhere over her head, his thoughts clearly elsewhere.
«Do you like the party?» Olivia asked, trying to connect. «Yes, everything’s fine,» he replied mechanically. «Mom’s pleased too, though she says the meat is dryish.»
Olivia pursed her lips. «And how’s the meat for you?» «Normal,» he shrugged. «I’m not picky, you know.»
After the dance, Ethan quickly returned to the table to his mother, who immediately started telling him something, gesturing actively. Olivia stayed on the dance floor, and soon her friends joined her. They danced to upbeat melodies, laughed, and for a while Olivia forgot about the tension hovering at the table.
Returning to the guests, she saw Linda Carter sitting alone, watching the fun with a soft smile. Margaret Wilson had moved to a neighboring table where Ethan’s friends sat, animatedly telling them something, occasionally glancing towards Olivia and her mother. «Everything okay, Mom?» Olivia asked, sitting beside.
Linda Carter nodded. «Of course, honey. Wonderful party, you look so beautiful today.»
Olivia hugged her mother. «Thanks for coming. I know it’s hard after your shift.»
«What are you saying?» Linda Carter shook her head. «For you, I’d move mountains.» At that moment, Ethan approached them.
«Olivia! Mom wants to give a toast. Come to the table.» Olivia and her mother returned to the main table.
Margaret Wilson was already standing, holding a glass of champagne. She waited until Olivia sat and gestured for the musicians to quiet down. «Attention, dear guests!» she proclaimed in a ringing voice.
«Today is a special day, a milestone. And I, as the mother of our birthday girl’s husband, want to say a few words.» Guests fell silent, turning to her.
Ethan looked at his mother with admiration, preparing his phone for recording. Olivia tensed. Something in her mother-in-law’s voice made her inwardly shrink.
She felt her mother’s hand cautiously cover hers under the table. Margaret Wilson scanned the hushed hall and smiled. That special smile Olivia had learned to recognize as a harbinger of trouble.
«Life is amazing,» the mother-in-law began, raising her glass higher. «You never know what twists of fate await around the corner. Take my son.
From a good intellectual family, with excellent education, working at a prestigious company, suddenly meets…» She paused, as if choosing words. «…a girl from a completely different world. And falls in love so hard he loses his head.»
A light whisper ran through the hall. Olivia felt blood rush to her face. «Olivia,» Margaret Wilson continued, looking straight at her, «became part of our family…
And today we celebrate her 30th birthday. Milestone. Let’s raise glasses to the janitor’s daughter who married so successfully.»
She pronounced the last words with special emphasis, pausing before and after «janitor’s daughter.» The restaurant froze. Someone choked on wine, someone sharply lowered eyes to their plate.
Waiters carrying dessert froze with trays in hands. Ethan didn’t look shocked or embarrassed. On the contrary, he was choking with laughter, recording everything on his phone.
It seemed incredibly witty to him. His wife’s reaction to outright humiliation from his mother. Olivia felt the dress suddenly become unbearably tight.
The bracelet, gifted by her mom, seemed heavier on her wrist. She wanted to disappear, fall through the ground, be anywhere but here, under dozens of gazes. Linda Carter sat very straight, her hand still covering her daughter’s, but now noticeably trembling.
She looked at Margaret Wilson with an expression Olivia had never seen on her quiet, modest mother’s face. Margaret Wilson, pleased with the effect, elegantly sipped from her glass and sat down, throwing a triumphant glance at Olivia. «Mom was joking.»
Finally, Ethan spoke, continuing to record. «She has a peculiar sense of humor. Right, Olivia?» But Olivia couldn’t answer.
A lump was in her throat, red spots floated before her eyes. She looked at her mother-in-law and husband, feeling the carefully built house of cards of her family life collapse. Linda Carter slowly rose from the table.
The hall was so quiet you could hear the chair legs scrape on the parquet. The elderly woman straightened to full height, and suddenly it became noticeable where her daughter got her proud posture and steel character. She looked at Margaret Wilson with a long scrutinizing gaze, from which she stopped smiling.
The hall held its breath. All present felt something significant was about to happen. Even the musicians stopped playing, unwittingly becoming witnesses to the unfolding drama.
Linda Carter scanned the guests and finally fixed her gaze on Margaret Wilson. Her voice sounded quietly but clearly in the ringing silence. «Your son is impotent.»
Linda Carter’s words hung in the air like a sudden gunshot. Margaret Wilson froze with her mouth slightly open, her hand with the glass trembled, and the thin crystal slipped from her fingers, shattering on the parquet floor. The sound of breaking glass rang especially sharp in the deafening silence.
Ethan stopped recording. The phone in his hand dropped, his face distorted as if from physical pain. A blush starting from his neck rapidly flooded his cheeks, reaching the roots of his hair.
He looked like a man caught naked in a crowded square. «What?» Margaret Wilson finally squeezed out, grabbing the table edge. «What did you say?» Linda Carter didn’t raise her voice, but each word now sounded clear and weighty.
«I said your son, Ethan, suffers from impotence. And you know it well. Olivia told me you have issues with an heir.
And it’s not her. Doctors explained the cause.» Margaret Wilson straightened, clutching her heart convulsively.
«How dare you! This… this is outrageous! Ethan, say something!» But Ethan couldn’t utter a word. He looked at his mother-in-law with absolute horror, realizing the secret he carefully hid even from closest friends was now public knowledge. Sophia, Olivia’s friend, covered her mouth with her hand.
Ethan’s colleagues exchanged shocked glances. Waiters discreetly turned away, pretending to be busy, but clearly catching every word. «Do you realize what you just said?» Margaret Wilson tried to take control, but her voice treacherously trembled.
«This… this is slander! My son is perfectly healthy!» Linda Carter slowly shook her head. «My daughter has lived two years in a marriage where she’s humiliated over no children. Two years hearing hints she’s barren, while your son has serious reproductive dysfunction.
And you know it.» Margaret Wilson paled completely. Her hand on her heart clenched into a fist. «Not true! My Ethan…» Ethan jumped up, knocking over his chair.
«Enough! Olivia, you told her? You promised it would stay between us!» Olivia watched the unfolding scene as in slow motion. Her mom, always quiet, modest, never raising her voice, now stood straight-backed, uttering words that shattered the carefully built facade of the Thompson family. «I told Mom because I couldn’t bear this lie anymore,» Olivia finally said, finding her voice.
«Every time your mother hinted at my inadequacy, I held back for you. But today…» Today she crossed all lines. One of Ethan’s friends, red-faced Ryan, coughed awkwardly.
«Maybe we should leave? This is personal.» «Stay,» Olivia said unexpectedly firmly. «Since Margaret Wilson decided to make my personal life a public discussion topic, why not be consistent?» Margaret Wilson sank into her chair, her breathing becoming ragged.
«I feel bad. Heart. Pills…» Ethan rushed to his mother, pulling a blister pack from her purse.
«Mom, don’t worry, it’ll pass now. This is just a misunderstanding.» He helped her put a pill under her tongue, then turned sharply to Olivia.
«Are you happy? Drove my mother to a heart attack on your birthday?» Olivia didn’t have time to answer; Linda Carter placed a hand on her daughter’s shoulder and calmly said. «Don’t shift responsibility, young man. Your mother consciously humiliated my daughter publicly.
What did she expect in return? Gratitude?» Margaret Wilson, somewhat recovering from the initial shock, now looked at Linda Carter with undisguised hatred. «You… a simple janitor. How dare you speak to me like that? Who are you?» «Simple,» Linda Carter replied.
«And I won’t let anyone humiliate my child.» Ethan shifted his gaze from mother to wife. «Olivia, this crosses all bounds.
Apologize to Mom immediately.» Olivia felt something finally break inside her. Two years of humiliations, two years of pretense, two years trying to be a good daughter-in-law, all collapsed at once.
But along with fear and shame came an unexpected feeling of liberation. «Apologize?» she asked, looking into her husband’s eyes. «For what exactly, Ethan? For my mom telling the truth? Or for daring to throw a party that your mother decided to use for my public humiliation?» «You’re exaggerating everything,» Ethan dismissed.
«Mom just joked poorly, and you… You revealed our personal secret, only we, doctors, and…» He trailed off, shifting gaze to Linda Carter. «And my mom…,» Olivia finished for him, «because I needed support, Ethan. Because I couldn’t listen anymore to your mother hinting at my inadequacy, knowing the truth.»
Margaret Wilson, a bit recovered, stood up, leaning on her son’s arm. «We’re leaving. Immediately.
Ethan, grab my purse and coat.» Ethan nodded like an obedient child, ready to fulfill any mother’s wish. «Wait.»
Olivia stood between them and the door. «You won’t leave just like that, not after what happened here.» «Get out of the way,» Margaret Wilson hissed.
«Your family life is over. Tomorrow I’ll send Ethan to a lawyer.» Linda Carter, watching this exchange, quietly said.
«Don’t you think your daughter-in-law should decide that? As far as I remember, divorce needs both parties’ consent.» «Mom, please,» Olivia said quietly, «let me handle it myself.» She turned to her husband.
«Ethan, do you want a divorce?» Ethan looked confused. He shifted gaze from mother to wife, clearly not ready for such a direct question. «I…» «Olivia, let’s not decide this now.
Everyone’s emotional.» «No,» she replied firmly. «I want to know now.
After two years of marriage, after all I endured from your mother, after supporting you when we learned your diagnosis, I have the right to know.» «Do you want a divorce?» Margaret Wilson didn’t let her son answer. «Of course he does.
You think my son will live with a woman who publicly shamed our family?» «I’m not talking to you,» Olivia cut off, not taking her eyes off her husband. «Ethan…» He swallowed, lowered his eyes. «I… I need to think.»..
Olivia nodded, as if getting exactly the answer she expected. «Good then. Think.
And while you’re thinking, you can pack your things and stay with Mom. I need space.» Margaret Wilson gasped in indignation.
«What? You should move out! Ethan rents the apartment!» «The lease is in my name,» Olivia parried calmly. «And we pay half each. So I have the right to decide who stays.»
Ethan looked bewildered, as if seeing his wife for the first time. This confident, decisive woman was starkly different from the one who usually yielded in all arguments with his mother. «Olivia, maybe we should talk privately?» he suggested.
«No,» she shook her head. «I think we’ve said everything to each other. Or rather, it was said for us.»
She looked expressively at Margaret Wilson. She lunged forward, but Ethan held her. «Mom, calm down, your heart.»
«Let go!» she yanked her arm. «This… this girl dares speak to me like that! Ethan, if you’re a man, put her in place!» Guests, silently watching the drama until now, began whispering quietly. Sophia approached Olivia and quietly asked.
«Need help? Maybe call a cab or…» «It’s okay.» Olivia gratefully squeezed her friend’s hand. This had to happen sooner or later.
Margaret Wilson, realizing she was losing control, went into a final attack. «Ethan, we’re leaving! Now! And you file for divorce tomorrow! I won’t allow my son to be humiliated!» Ethan stood, shifting gaze from mother to wife. At that moment, he looked especially pathetic, a confused man unable to make his own choice.
«I…» he started, but Margaret Wilson interrupted. «No ‘I’! We’re leaving!» She grabbed her son’s hand and pulled him to the exit. Ethan threw a last glance at Olivia.
In it was embarrassment, fear, maybe even regret, but he let his mother lead him away. When the door closed behind them, a heavy silence hung in the hall. Thirty people had just witnessed a family’s collapse.
Olivia stood in the middle of the hall, feeling all the gazes on her—sympathetic, curious, embarrassed. Linda Carter approached her daughter and quietly asked. «Are you okay?» Olivia took a deep breath.
«No, but I will be.» She turned to the guests and unexpectedly smiled for herself. A bit forced, but sincere.
«Sorry for this spectacle. Not how I imagined my birthday.» «Olivia, we can leave if you want,» one friend suggested.
«You probably want to be alone?» «No,» Olivia replied resolutely. «I spent three months planning this evening. I won’t let Margaret Wilson steal my party too.»
She approached the musicians and asked them to continue playing. Then turned to the host. «Alex, please, let’s continue the program.
We haven’t cut the cake yet.» The host, professionally hiding surprise, nodded. «Of course, Olivia! Ladies and gentlemen, now the sweetest moment of our evening.»
Waiters, getting the signal, brought out a large cake with lit candles. Musicians played «Happy Birthday.» Guests, a bit hesitantly but then more confidently, began singing along.
Olivia stood before the cake, looking at the candle flames. In their flickering light reflected everything that happened in these two years. Hopes, disappointments, pain, humiliations.
And now the climax. «Make a wish,» Linda Carter said quietly, standing beside. Olivia closed her eyes.
What could she wish? For Ethan to return? For everything to magically fix? For Margaret Wilson to disappear from their lives? No. That wasn’t it. She opened her eyes and inhaled deeply.
Then blew out the candles in one resolute breath. Guests applauded. «What did you wish?» Sophia asked as waiters began cutting the cake.
Olivia smiled, this time genuinely. «Freedom. I wished for freedom.»
Gradually, the atmosphere in the hall began to thaw. People returned to tables, spoke quieter than usual, but without the tense silence that reigned after Ethan and his mother’s departure. Olivia went around guests, thanked them for coming, accepted belated congratulations.
She did everything mechanically, as if watching herself from outside. Part of her was still in shock from what happened, but another part, the one that suppressed her true feelings for years, finally breathed freely. Linda Carter sat quietly at the table, watching her daughter.
When Olivia returned to her, she silently took her hand. «Mom,» Olivia said quietly, «you shouldn’t have…» «I had to,» Linda Carter interrupted softly. «I was silent too long, watching you wither in this marriage.
But now everyone knows…» «And what?» Linda Carter shrugged. «Truth is better than lies, honey. Always.»
Olivia looked closely at her mother, at this simple woman who worked hard all her life to give her daughter an education, who never complained even when it was tough, who stoically endured contempt from people like Margaret Wilson. «You’re amazing,» Olivia said quietly, «I’ve never seen you so… decisive.» Linda Carter smiled softly.
«It was just time. I couldn’t watch anymore as that woman humiliated you. Especially when she used my profession as a weapon against you.»
«You’re not ashamed of your job, right?» Olivia suddenly asked. «Never,» Linda Carter replied firmly. «I’ve always been proud that with my own hands I provided you a decent life.
Even if I mopped floors, you got higher education, found good work. That’s my main victory.» Olivia hugged her mother tightly, feeling tears well up.
«Thanks for everything.» The party continued for about another hour. Guests gradually left, warmly saying goodbye to Olivia.
In their eyes, she saw sympathy, but also respect. She didn’t break, didn’t run away in tears, but kept her dignity. When the last guest left, Olivia remained in the empty hall with her mother.
Waiters cleared dishes, musicians packed instruments. «Come to my place,» Linda Carter suggested. «I don’t want you alone tonight.»
Olivia shook her head. «No, Mom. I’ll go home.
I need to think a lot.» «Sure?» Linda Carter asked worriedly. «What if Ethan returns?» «He won’t,» Olivia replied confidently.
«At least not today. He’s consoling mommy now and hearing what an ungrateful I am.» Linda Carter sighed.
«Anyway. Call me when you get there. Anytime.»
Olivia agreed, hugged her mother goodbye, and called a cab. Sitting in the back seat, looking at the night streets flashing by the window, she suddenly realized that today a new stage in her life truly began. And not as she planned, but perhaps exactly as needed.
The driver, an elderly man with kind eyes, looked at her in the rearview mirror. «Celebrating something? You’re dressed so beautifully.» Olivia met his eyes in the mirror and smiled.
«Yes. Today I’m celebrating my liberation.» He didn’t ask further, just nodded, as if understanding everything.
Olivia leaned back in the seat, looking at the starry sky through the cab window, and for the first time in a long while felt she could breathe fully. The cab stopped at the entrance exactly at midnight. Olivia paid the driver and slowly climbed the steps.
The party shoes, comfortable in the morning, now pinched mercilessly, and the beautiful dress became cold in the cool night air. She took out keys and froze before her apartment door, realizing she didn’t know what awaited inside. Had Ethan returned? Packed his things? Or maybe he and Margaret Wilson decided to ambush and continue the scandal at home? Taking a deep breath, Olivia unlocked the door.
The apartment was dark and quiet. She flipped the switch and looked around. Everything looked just as she left it in the afternoon…
On the coffee table lay Ethan’s tie he tried on before leaving and decided to change at the last minute. In the sink stood a cup with unfinished coffee. Ordinary life that now seemed to belong to someone else.
Olivia kicked off her shoes, went to the hallway mirror, and stared long at her reflection. The carefully styled hair was a bit disheveled, makeup slightly smudged, but something new appeared in her eyes. Calm resolve of a person who shed a heavy burden.
She went to the bedroom, unzipped the dress, letting it slide to the floor, and put on a home robe. Then sat on the bed and finally allowed herself what she held back all evening. Cried.
Not from grief or offense, but from emotional exhaustion. As if something inside her, long tense, finally let go. The phone was blowing up with notifications.
Messages from friends, colleagues, questions, support, and not one from Ethan. Olivia dialed her mother’s number. «Mom, I’m home, everything’s okay.»
«Alone?» Worry sounded in Linda Carter’s voice. «Yes, Ethan’s not here. I think he’s staying at mommy’s.»
«Good.» Mother calmed a bit. «How are you?» Olivia paused, gathering thoughts.
«Strange. Like I woke from a long sleep. You know, I really loved him once.»
«I know, honey.» «Two years, Mom. Two years I tried to meet their standards, be a good wife by Margaret Wilson’s version.
And for what? To be humiliated at my own birthday?» Linda Carter sighed. «People like her are never satisfied. They always need to belittle someone to feel superior.»
«You know what’s most offensive,» Olivia continued, «not that she called me a janitor’s daughter, but that Ethan laughed, recorded on phone. He thought it funny.» «He was always weak,» Linda Carter said softly.
«A man who at 30 can’t detach from his mother’s skirt is unlikely to be a reliable husband.» Olivia smiled sadly. «Why didn’t you tell me earlier? Would you have listened?» mother asked reasonably.
«Advice is useless to the in love.» They talked a bit more. Linda Carter made sure her daughter was okay, and they agreed to meet the next day.
After the call, Olivia made tea and sat by the window, looking at the night city. For the first time in a long while, she didn’t need to rush anywhere, please anyone, care for anyone. Morning brought news.
The phone woke Olivia at 8. It was Sophia. «Olivia, have you seen?» her friend asked excitedly. «Seen what?» Olivia replied sleepily, barely opening eyes.
«Check social media. Now.» Olivia sat up in bed and opened the app.
First thing she saw was a photo from her birthday, taken by some guest. It captured Margaret Wilson with a high-raised glass and triumphant smile, giving her toast. The caption read: «Mother-in-law from hell humiliated daughter-in-law at her birthday, calling her janitor’s daughter.»
But the mother-in-law got revenge with one phrase. «Oh my God!» Olivia exhaled. «Who posted this?» «No idea,» Sophia replied.
«But the post has gone viral. Tons of shares, comments, people mostly support you and your mom.» Olivia scrolled comments.
«Mother-in-law got what she deserved,» «Hero mom protected daughter,» «Typical toxic family with mama’s boy» and hundreds similar. «I’m in shock,» Olivia muttered. «My personal hell became public entertainment.»
«Sorry, didn’t mean to upset you,» Sophia said guiltily. «Just thought you should know.» Olivia thanked her friend and hung up.
She went to the kitchen, mechanically put on the kettle, and opened the phone again, browsing other posts. The story spread like a virus. People discussed, shared, added details that weren’t there.
In some versions, Margaret Wilson was already a former party functionary, and Linda Carter a heroic single mom working three jobs. The phone rang again. This time Ethan’s name flashed.
Olivia stared at the screen for seconds before answering. «Yes?» she said dryly. «Have you seen what’s happening?» Ethan went straight to business.
His voice sounded tense, with panic notes. «You mean social media posts?» «Yes, just found out.» «This is a nightmare!» he exclaimed.
«Mom’s hysterical! Acquaintances, colleagues calling her, everyone saw these posts!» Olivia was silent, waiting for continuation. «You must refute everything!» Ethan demanded. «Write it was a joke, prank, something!» Olivia laughed mirthlessly.
«Refute? Joke?» «Ethan, your mother publicly humiliated me before all guests. Called janitor’s daughter with such contempt, like a stigma. And you recorded on phone and laughed.
What exactly should I refute?» «But about… about my problems!» he exclaimed desperately. «This is personal, Olivia. Imagine what’ll be at work? How people will look?» «And how would they look at me, Ethan?» she asked quietly.
«After your mother basically announced to everyone I married you for money, using ‘janitor’s daughter’ as insult. Did you think of that?» Silence hung on the other end. «By the way, I didn’t post these,» Olivia added.
«And have no idea who did. There were 30 people at the birthday, anyone could.» «Mom’s in the hospital,» Ethan reported suddenly, changing tactics.
«Hypertensive crisis. Doctors say possible stroke.» Olivia closed her eyes.
She knew this trick. Margaret Wilson always got sick at critical moments when needing to manipulate her son or evoke guilt in her daughter-in-law. «I’m sorry,» she said sincerely.
«Hope she gets better.» «You must come,» Ethan insisted. «Apologize to her, it might calm her.»
«No, Ethan,» Olivia replied firmly. «I won’t come. And won’t apologize for what I didn’t do.
I didn’t start the scandal at the birthday, didn’t post online. If you want my opinion, your mother long needs to learn her actions have consequences.» «You… you’re just heartless,» Ethan blurted.
«I thought you loved me.» «I did,» Olivia replied quietly. «Two years I tried to be part of your family…
Endured humiliations, hints, condescending attitude. Supported you when we learned your diagnosis. Though your mother did everything to blame infertility on me.
And what did I get? You let your mother humiliate me publicly and recorded it. Is that love, Ethan?» A ragged sigh sounded on the phone. «I… I was in shock.
Didn’t know how to react.» «Two years?» Olivia repeated. «Two years I waited for you to take my side once.
But you always chose mother. What now?» Ethan asked dully after a pause. «I think we need to separate,» Olivia answered calmly.
This marriage was a mistake from the start. «Because of one incident?» pleading notes appeared in his voice. «Olivia, let’s discuss when Mom recovers.
I’ll come, we’ll talk.» «No, Ethan, not one incident. Because of two years full of such incidents.
Yesterday was just the last straw.» «You can’t just cross everything out,» he exclaimed. «We had good moments too.»
«We did,» Olivia agreed. «And I’m grateful for them. But it’s not enough for marriage.
Marriage is partnership, support, respect. We had none of that.» «I love you,» Ethan suddenly said.
Olivia closed her eyes. Once these words made her heart beat faster. Now they sounded empty.
«Goodbye, Ethan,» she said quietly and hung up. All day the phone rang with calls and messages. Colleagues, acquaintances, even people she hadn’t talked to in years called.
All wanted scandal details, to express support or satisfy curiosity. By evening, she turned off sound and just lay on the couch, staring at the ceiling. The door rang around seven.
On the threshold stood Linda Carter with grocery bags. «Thought you wouldn’t cook,» she said, going to the kitchen. «I’ll make dinner.»
Olivia gratefully hugged her mother. «You’re my savior.» While Linda Carter worked at the stove, Olivia told her about Ethan’s call and the story spreading online.
«All this buzz will die down soon,» mother noted philosophically, chopping vegetables. «People will find a new topic.» «Margaret Wilson is in the hospital,» Olivia reported.
«Hypertensive crisis.» Linda Carter paused, then cautiously asked. «Do you feel guilty?» Olivia thought.
«No. Maybe should, but don’t. She got exactly what she deserved.
If a person sows malice and contempt for years, sooner or later it returns.» «And right,» Linda Carter nodded. «Can’t take others’ responsibility.»
Over dinner, they talked about the future, that Olivia might change jobs, start fresh. «Maybe even change cities,» Linda Carter suggested. «Move to New York or Los Angeles.
With your qualifications, you’ll find work.» «And you?» Olivia asked. «What about me?» mother shrugged.
«I’ll find work anywhere. My hands are always needed.» Olivia looked closely at her mother, at her work-worn hands, gray hair, wrinkles around eyes.
This woman sacrificed herself all life for her daughter, never complaining, not demanding thanks. «I’m so proud of you, Mom,» she suddenly said. «Always was.»
Linda Carter got embarrassed. «What are you? I’m ordinary, nothing special.» «No, not ordinary,» Olivia objected.
«You’re the strongest person I know. And I’m happy to be a janitor’s daughter, if the janitor is you.» They talked until late night.
Linda Carter stayed overnight at her daughter’s, refusing to go home so late. Before sleep, Olivia checked her phone, another dozen messages and one missed from Ethan. She ignored it and opened Sophia’s message.
«How are you? Holding up? Coming to work tomorrow?» Didn’t want to, but hiding neither. «Coming,» she replied.
«Time to move on.» Morning started with insistent door ring. Olivia, just woken and not yet had coffee, opened, expecting Ethan.
But on the threshold stood Margaret Wilson, pale, with circles under eyes, but not in hospital clothes, in her usual strict suit. «Hello,» Olivia said coldly, surprised by the visit. «I came to talk,» Margaret Wilson replied dryly.
«May I come in?» Olivia silently stepped aside, letting her mother-in-law in. Linda Carter came from the kitchen, hearing voices, and froze seeing the guest.
«And you’re here,» Margaret Wilson noted, pursing lips. «Well, even better. The talk concerns you too.»
«Go to the living room,» Olivia said, closing the door. «Want tea?» «No need for courtesies,» Margaret Wilson cut off.
«I came on business.» They went to the living room. Margaret Wilson remained standing, refusing to sit.
«Because of you,» she began, looking at Linda Carter. «My reputation is ruined. All acquaintances discuss me.
Library colleagues call with condolences. I had to turn off the phone.» «Because of me?» Linda Carter asked calmly.
«Weren’t you the first to publicly humiliate my daughter?» «It was a toast,» Margaret Wilson exclaimed. «Ordinary joke.»
«Joke?» Olivia stepped closer. «Calling me janitor’s daughter with such contempt before all guests at my birthday—is that a joke?» Margaret Wilson got confused for a moment but quickly composed herself.
«You all misunderstood. I just wanted to emphasize what path you took, Olivia. From cleaning worker’s daughter to office manager in a solid company.
It was a compliment.» «No need to lie,» Linda Carter said softly. «You knew well what you were doing…
And I knew. And all guests understood your intent.» Margaret Wilson caught her breath, clearly holding anger.
«Fine. Suppose I was wrong. But what you did is incomparably worse.
You revealed my son’s personal medical secret. This… this is illegal.» «It’s not a medical secret,» Olivia objected.
«It’s a fact of our family life you used against me, constantly hinting at my infertility though knowing the truth.» «Ethan is depressed,» Margaret Wilson continued, changing tactics. «He doesn’t leave his room, refuses food…
Do you realize what you’ve done?» «And do you realize what you did to my daughter for two years?» Linda Carter asked quietly. «How was it for her to hear your remarks, endure humiliations, see her husband always take mother’s side?» Margaret Wilson shifted gaze from one woman to another, realizing no sympathy. «What do you want?» she finally asked.
«Money? I’m ready to pay for you to publicly refute all these online stories.» Olivia laughed.
Bitterly, but without malice. «Money? You really think it’s about money? I didn’t post those. And won’t refute anything, truth is truth.»
«Then why all this?» Margaret Wilson exclaimed desperately. «Why start this scandal?» «I didn’t start it,» Olivia reminded. «You did.»
I just didn’t stay silent as usual. Margaret Wilson sank onto the couch edge, suddenly losing all her combative spirit. «What do I do? My son, his career at risk, all these gossips…» «You know…» Olivia sat opposite her.
«I really don’t wish you ill, neither you nor Ethan. I just want to divorce and start a new life, without you both.» Margaret Wilson raised her eyes.
«You don’t love my son?» «I did,» Olivia answered honestly. «But your constant interference, his inability to protect me, constant concessions to you—it killed my feelings.» «Ethan is a good boy,» Margaret Wilson said quietly.
«He’s just attached to me.» «Too attached,» Linda Carter noted. «A man must separate from mother when starting a family.»
«You don’t understand,» Margaret Wilson shook her head. «He was always special, sensitive. After father’s death, we became even closer.»
«His father died two years ago,» Olivia reminded. «We were married a year by then.» Margaret Wilson didn’t answer, staring into space.
For the first time, Olivia saw in her not a formidable mother-in-law, but just an aging woman panically fearing loneliness and clinging to her son as her only support. «What do you want from us?» Olivia asked after a pause. Margaret Wilson gathered thoughts.
«I want you to help stop this online dirt flow, publicly state it was a misunderstanding.» «I can’t do that,» Olivia shook her head. «First, I don’t control who writes what online.
Second, it wasn’t a misunderstanding. You consciously humiliated me, my mom protected. That’s the whole story.»
«Then at least,» Margaret Wilson stumbled, «at least don’t aggravate, don’t give interviews, don’t publish details.» «That I can promise,» Olivia agreed. «I won’t turn my personal life into a reality show.»
Margaret Wilson nodded, accepting this small promise as a major victory. «And about the divorce.» «I’ll file papers next week,» Olivia said.
«Hope it goes quick without extra complications.» «You… sure?» Margaret Wilson asked hopefully. «Maybe wait? Cool down? Ethan is very upset.»
«I’m sure,» Olivia replied firmly. «Our marriage was a mistake from the start. Better admit now than continue tormenting each other.»
Margaret Wilson stood, adjusted her jacket, and headed to the exit. At the door, she stopped and, without turning, said. «You know, I always wanted the best for him.
Always.» «I know,» Olivia replied. «The problem is you never considered me the best.»
Margaret Wilson said nothing and left, carefully closing the door behind. «Well, that’s it,» Olivia exhaled, sinking onto the couch. «Not all,» Linda Carter shook her head.
«Just the beginning. But you’ll manage.» And Olivia knew her mom was right.
This was just the beginning. Beginning of a new life, free from toxic relationships, from constantly proving her worth, from an unequal marriage to a man unable to cut the umbilical cord tying him to his mother. A week later, she filed for divorce.
Ethan didn’t object, though tried several times to meet and «discuss everything.» Olivia refused, not out of anger, but because she understood any talk would turn into manipulations and guilt attempts. Had to change apartments, too many memories, too many past ghosts.
Olivia found a small studio closer to downtown and enjoyed furnishing it to her taste, without regard for others’ opinions. The birthday story gradually faded, displaced by new scandals and sensations. Sometimes Olivia stumbled online on mentions of that very mother-in-law or mother-in-law’s revenge, but it no longer evoked painful emotions, only a light smirk.
The divorce was finalized quickly without extra dramas. Margaret Wilson didn’t appear at hearings, Ethan was pointedly polite and detached. They divided jointly acquired property, which fortunately wasn’t much, and went separate ways.
