Vitya, deal with your wife! What does she think she’s doing?! She threw me out onto the street!”
Viktor was sitting in his office, going through contracts, when his phone exploded with a hysterical scream:
“Vitya, deal with your wife! She threw me out onto the street! What does she think she’s doing?!”
His sister Kristina’s voice trembled with indignation and tears. Viktor pushed the folders aside, feeling a familiar headache begin to throb in his temples.
“Kristina, calm down. What happened?”
“What happened?!” her voice rose an octave. “Your wife… that… she threw all my things onto the staircase! She just took them and tossed them out! Like garbage! I’m standing in the entrance hall right now, and the neighbors are looking at me like… like I’m homeless! Vitya, do you understand?! She humiliated me! In front of everyone!”
Viktor closed his eyes, massaging the bridge of his nose. For the past two weeks, he had felt that something unpleasant was brewing at home. Anna had become silent and tense, while Kristina… Kristina kept behaving as if she were staying in a five-star hotel with full service.
“What led up to this?” he asked cautiously.
“Nothing! Absolutely nothing!” Kristina choked out. “I was just living there, preparing for my exams, not bothering anyone. And this morning she burst into my room… I mean, into the guest room, and started yelling that I had to move out! I said I had come to stay with my brother, that it’s your home too, and she… she just started stuffing my things into bags! Vitya, she didn’t even let me pack properly! She just pushed me out the door with my things!”
Viktor felt anger boiling inside him. How dare Anna? Kristina was his younger sister, practically still a child, who had come to apply to university, and this was how she was being treated? In his home?
“Has she completely lost her mind?” he snapped. “Where are you now?”
“On the landing! With three bags! Vitya, I don’t even have anywhere to go! My exam is the day after tomorrow, I need to study, and I…”
“Stay there. I’ll sort everything out,” Viktor said sharply, and without listening to his sister’s sobs, he ended the call.
His fingers were trembling as he dialed his wife’s number. The ringing seemed endless.
“Yes?” Anna’s voice was even, almost too calm.
“Anna, what is going on?!” Viktor exploded, unable to restrain himself. “Can you explain why my sister is standing on the staircase with her things?”
A pause. He could hear her breathing — steady, controlled.
“Because I asked her to move out, and she refused,” Anna replied just as calmly. “So I helped her move.”
“Are you mocking me?!” Viktor’s voice broke into a shout. Several colleagues turned around, and he demonstratively turned toward the window, lowering his voice into a furious hiss. “She is my sister! A nineteen-year-old girl who came here to apply to university! You threw her out onto the street like some kind of…”
“Viktor, you’d better not continue,” Anna’s voice turned cold. “Don’t say something you’ll regret.”
“I’ll regret it?!” He was almost choking with outrage. “You just threw my sister out! A child! Do you understand what you’ve done?”
“A child,” Anna repeated like an echo, and something dangerous sounded in her voice. “A child who hasn’t washed a single plate after herself in two weeks. A child who throws parties in our apartment while we’re at work. A child who took my new dress without asking and stained it with wine. A child who told me this morning that she wasn’t going anywhere because ‘her brother lives here.’”
“So what?!” Viktor interrupted her. “Her brother really does live here! This is my home too, or have you forgotten?”
“No, Viktor,” Anna’s voice became quieter, but that only made it more dangerous. “This is my home. My apartment, which I bought with my own money three years before I married you. You live here because you are my husband. And your sister lived here because you begged me for two weeks straight, and I agreed. Temporarily. For the admissions period.”
“So what if it’s your apartment!” he snapped, feeling the ground slipping from beneath his feet but refusing to admit it. “We’re family! Or does that mean nothing to you?”
“Precisely because we’re family, I’m talking to you instead of simply changing the locks,” Anna cut him off. “Viktor, your ‘little girl’ behaved like a selfish, badly raised person. I endured it for two weeks. I tried to talk to her. I explained that in someone else’s home, you clean up after yourself, you don’t make noise at night, and you don’t touch other people’s things. Do you know what she said to me?”
Viktor stayed silent, clenching his teeth.
“She said, ‘This is my brother’s home, and I’ll do whatever I want. If you don’t like it, that’s your problem.’ Just like that, Viktor. Word for word. And when I asked her to find another place to stay, she announced that she wasn’t going anywhere. So yes, I carried her things out onto the landing. Neatly folded, by the way.”
“That was your responsibility!” Viktor blurted out, already realizing he was saying something stupid but unable to stop himself. “You’re the woman of the house! You should have found common ground!”
“My responsibility?” Anna’s voice carried a note of disbelief. “Viktor, are you serious right now? My responsibility is to raise your adult sister?”
“She isn’t an adult! She’s nineteen!”
“I was eighteen when I rented a room in a dormitory and worked evenings to pay for it,” Anna said in an icy tone. “And somehow I managed to clean up after myself and not be rude to the landlady. So don’t lecture me about age.”
“That’s different!” Viktor felt he was losing the argument, and his helplessness made him even angrier. “Kristina was raised differently, she’s used to…”
“What exactly is she used to?” Anna interrupted him. “To everyone cleaning up after her? To being allowed everything? To her older brother solving all her problems? Viktor, she’s nineteen years old. At that age, people start families, have children, serve in the army. And you’re telling me she’s a child?”
“Listen, stop acting so smart!” he snapped. “Do you even understand what you’ve done?! She’s standing in the entrance hall! Her exam is the day after tomorrow! She has nowhere to go!”
“She has a mother who lives two hours away,” Anna answered calmly. “And she has a dormitory if she gets accepted. And she has money for a hotel, which you transfer to her regularly.”
“How do you know about the transfers?” Viktor blurted out.
“Because it’s our joint account, genius,” Anna said tiredly. “And I can see every transaction. Five thousand for pocket money. Ten thousand for clothes. Another seven — for who knows what. In two weeks, Viktor. Twenty-two thousand.”
“She’s my sister!”
“And she is my headache!” Anna raised her voice for the first time during the conversation. “A headache that ended exactly one hour ago, when I put her out the door!”
“You… you’re crazy!” Viktor shouted, completely losing control. “You’re a heartless egoist who doesn’t care about my family!”
“All right, stop,” Anna’s voice became quiet again. “Viktor, did you just call me crazy and an egoist?”
…Continuation a little below in the first comment.
Victor was sitting in his office, going through contracts, when his phone exploded with a hysterical shriek:
“Vitya, deal with your wife! She threw me out into the street! Who does she think she is?!”
His sister Kristina’s voice trembled with outrage and tears. Victor pushed the folders aside, feeling the familiar headache beginning to throb in his temples.
“Kristina, calm down. What happened?”
“What happened?!” her voice jumped an octave higher. “Your wife… that… she threw all my things out onto the staircase! She just took them and tossed them out! Like trash! I’m standing in the entryway right now, and the neighbors are looking at me like… like I’m some homeless person! Vitya, do you understand?! She humiliated me! In front of everyone!”
Victor shut his eyes and massaged the bridge of his nose. For the past two weeks, he had felt that something unpleasant was brewing at home. Anna had become quiet, tense, and Kristina… Kristina kept behaving as if she were staying in a five-star hotel with full service.
“What led up to this?” he asked carefully.
“Nothing! Absolutely nothing!” Kristina choked out. “I was just living there, preparing for my exams, not bothering anyone. And this morning she burst into my room… I mean, into the guest room, and started yelling that I had to move out! I said I’d come to stay with my brother, that it was your home too, and she… she just started stuffing my things into bags! Vitya, she didn’t even let me pack properly! She just pushed me out the door with my things!”
Victor felt anger begin to boil inside him. How dare Anna? Kristina was his younger sister, practically still a child, who had come to apply to university, and this was how she was treated? In his home?
“Has she completely lost her mind?” he snapped. “Where are you now?”
“On the landing! With three bags! Vitya, I don’t even have anywhere to go! My exam is the day after tomorrow, I need to study, and I…”
“Stay there. I’ll sort everything out,” Victor said abruptly, and without listening to his sister’s sobs, he hung up.
His fingers trembled as he dialed his wife’s number. The ringing seemed endless.
“Yes?” Anna’s voice was calm — too calm.
“Anna, what is going on?!” Victor exploded, unable to restrain himself. “Can you explain why my sister is standing on the stairs with her things?!”
A pause. He could hear her breathing — steady, controlled.
“Because I asked her to move out, and she refused,” Anna replied just as calmly. “So I helped her move.”
“Are you mocking me?!” Victor’s voice broke into a shout. Several colleagues turned around, and he demonstratively turned toward the window, lowering his voice to an enraged hiss. “She’s my sister! A nineteen-year-old girl who came here to apply to university! You threw her out onto the street like some kind of…”
“Victor, you’d better not finish that sentence,” Anna’s voice turned cold. “Don’t say something you’ll regret.”
“I’ll regret it?!” He was almost choking with indignation. “You just threw out my sister! A child! Do you understand what you’ve done?!”
“A child,” Anna echoed, and something dangerous sounded in her voice. “A child who hasn’t washed a single plate after herself in two weeks. A child who throws parties in our apartment while we’re at work. A child who took my new dress without asking and stained it with wine. A child who told me this morning that she wasn’t going anywhere because ‘her brother lives here.’”
“So what?!” Victor interrupted. “Her brother really does live here! This is my home too, or have you forgotten?”
“No, Victor,” Anna’s voice became quieter, which only made it more dangerous. “This is my home. My apartment, which I bought with my own money three years before I married you. You live here because you are my husband. Your sister lived here because you begged me for two weeks straight, and I agreed. Temporarily. For the entrance exam period.”
“So what if it’s your apartment!” he snapped, feeling the ground slipping from under him but refusing to admit it. “We’re family! Or does that mean nothing to you?”
“It is precisely because we are family that I’m talking to you instead of simply changing the locks,” Anna cut him off. “Victor, your ‘girl’ behaved like a selfish, ill-mannered brat. I put up with it for two weeks. I tried to talk to her. I explained that in someone else’s home, you clean up after yourself, don’t make noise at night, and don’t go through other people’s things. Do you know what she said to me?”
Victor stayed silent, clenching his teeth.
“She said, ‘This is my brother’s home, and I’ll do whatever I want. If you don’t like it, that’s your problem.’ Just like that, Victor. Word for word. And when I asked her to find somewhere else to stay, she declared that she wasn’t going anywhere. So yes, I carried her things out onto the landing. Neatly folded, by the way.”
“That was your duty!” Victor blurted out, already realizing he was saying something stupid but unable to stop himself. “You’re the woman of the house! You should have found a way to get along!”
“My duty?” Anna’s voice carried notes of astonishment. “Victor, are you serious right now? My duty is to raise your adult sister?”
“She’s not an adult! She’s nineteen!”
“I was eighteen when I rented a room in a dormitory and worked evenings to pay for it,” Anna said in an icy tone. “And somehow, I managed to clean up after myself and not be rude to the owner. So don’t lecture me about age.”
“That’s different!” Victor felt he was losing the argument, and his helplessness only made him angrier. “Kristina was raised differently, she’s used to…”
“Used to what?” Anna interrupted. “Used to everyone cleaning up after her? Used to being allowed everything? Used to her older brother solving all her problems? Victor, she’s nineteen years old. At that age, people start families, have children, serve in the army. And you’re telling me she’s a child?”
“Listen, stop being so smart!” he snapped. “Do you even understand what you’ve done?! She’s standing in the entryway! Her exam is the day after tomorrow! She has nowhere to go!”
“She has a mother who lives two hours away,” Anna replied calmly. “And she’ll have a dormitory if she gets accepted. And she has money for a hotel, which you regularly transfer to her.”
“How do you know about the transfers?” Victor let slip.
“Because it’s our joint account, genius,” Anna said tiredly. “And I can see all the transactions. Five thousand for pocket money. Ten for clothes. Another seven for unspecified expenses. In two weeks, Victor. Twenty-two thousand.”
“She’s my sister!”
“And she’s my headache!” For the first time in the conversation, Anna raised her voice. “A headache that ended exactly one hour ago when I put her out the door!”
“You… you’re crazy!” Victor shouted, completely losing control. “You’re a heartless egotist who doesn’t care about my family!”
“Stop right there,” Anna’s voice became quiet again. “Victor, did you just call me crazy and selfish?”
Something in her tone made him falter.
“I… I reacted emotionally…”
“No, wait, let’s finish that thought,” Anna continued with frightening calm. “I’m selfish because I don’t want to live in a mess in my own apartment? Because I don’t want a stranger digging through my wardrobe? Because I’m tired of cleaning up after a grown girl who doesn’t even say thank you?”
“Kristina isn’t a stranger!”
“To me, yes, Victor. She is. I had seen her three times in my life before this. At our wedding, on New Year’s, and at your mother’s birthday. And each time she behaved as if I were a servant. So yes, to me, she is a stranger who abused my hospitality.”
“Fine! Wonderful!” Victor was no longer in control of himself. “So my family are strangers to you! Maybe I should move out too? So I don’t defile your kingdom?!”
The pause was so long that Victor even checked whether the call had disconnected.
“You know what, Victor,” Anna finally said, and her voice sounded strange — tired and determined at the same time. “Your sister can come back. Tonight. She can pick up the rest of her things, apologize to me for her rudeness, and move out. If you think that’s wrong, then get out with her. I bought this apartment before marriage. It is entirely mine. You can take your things and live wherever you want. With your sister, with your mother, or sleep at the office for all I care.”
“Are you threatening me?!”
“No, Victor. I’m protecting my home. Doing what I should have done two weeks ago. You can keep shouting at me, insulting me, and accusing me. But every next word will bring you closer to the door with a suitcase. Your choice.”
Silence hung on the line. Victor breathed heavily, feeling the adrenaline gradually retreat and leave room for the cold realization of what was happening.
“I’ll wait for your decision until seven in the evening,” Anna added. “Your sister can collect her things from eight to nine. If you accompany her, make sure she doesn’t make a scene. I don’t have the strength for drama. That’s all.”
The dial tone sounded like a verdict.
Victor sank into his chair, staring at the phone screen. His thoughts were tangled. On one side was Kristina, whom he had been used to protecting since childhood — his little sister, crying into the phone. On the other was Anna, with whom he had lived for four years, whom he loved… or thought he loved?
The phone came to life again. Kristina.
“Well? Did you talk to her? Did she apologize? When can I come back?”
Victor rubbed his face with his hands.
“Kristina… tell me again. In detail. What exactly happened?”
“What do you mean, ‘in detail’?” His sister’s voice sounded offended. “Vitya, you don’t believe me?”
“Just tell me. From the beginning.”
“Well… I woke up as usual. Around eleven. I went to the kitchen…”
“At eleven?” Victor repeated. “And what time did you go to bed last night?”
“Well… around three, probably. The girls and I were chatting, then I finished watching a series…”
“Stop. Were the girls at our place?”
“Well, yes, they came over. What’s the big deal? We were sitting quietly!”
Victor remembered how Anna had silently cleaned up a broken glass in the living room on Monday, one that had “accidentally fallen off the shelf.”
“Go on.”
“So, I went to the kitchen. I wanted breakfast, and Anna was there. And she immediately started saying that I had to wash my dishes. Well, I told her I’d wash them later, because I had to eat first. And she said that ‘later’ always means evening, and she was tired of cleaning up after me. Can you imagine? As if I’m making some horrible mess!”
“And did you wash the dishes?”
“Vitya!” Kristina protested. “Whose side are you on?”
“I’m just asking.”
“Well… sometimes I forgot. My exams are coming up! I need to study!”
Victor closed his eyes. “Sometimes I forgot” from Kristina meant “I never washed them.”
“What happened next?”
“Then she started saying that I make noise at night. That she has to get up early. Well, yes, sometimes I listen to music, but it’s not loud! And besides, the place is big. She shouldn’t even hear me!”
“It’s a three-room apartment, Kristina. Not a palace.”
“Still! And then I saw she was ironing my dress. That blue one I wore to the party. I asked why she had taken it, and she said it was her dress! Can you imagine?!”
Victor felt something cold settle in his stomach.
“Kristina. That blue dress you were wearing in the Instagram photo last week?”
“Well, yes! It was pretty! I thought Anna wouldn’t notice. She hadn’t worn it in ages…”
“God,” Victor groaned. “Kristina, you took her thing without asking?”
“Vitya, we’re practically family! What’s the big deal? Sisters share clothes!”
“You are not sisters.”
“Well, almost! And anyway, I was going to wash it and return it, but a stain accidentally appeared…”
“What kind of stain?”
“Well… some wine spilled. Red wine. But I didn’t do it on purpose!”
Victor felt all his righteous anger evaporating somewhere.
“And what did Anna say?”
“She… well, she said the dress cost twenty thousand, and she had only worn it once, to a corporate party. And that I either had to pay for dry cleaning or buy her a new one. And I said, where am I supposed to get that kind of money? And anyway, so what, it’s just a dress, she can buy a new one. And she went completely pale and said I needed to move out.”
“And what did you answer?”
“What was I supposed to answer?!” Kristina’s voice became offended again. “I said I had come to stay with my brother, that it was your home too, and I wasn’t going anywhere! Let her leave if she doesn’t like it!”
Victor ran a hand over his face.
“Kristina,” he said slowly. “It isn’t my home. It’s Anna’s apartment. She bought it before our wedding.”
“So what? You’re married!”
“That means that legally, I’m only registered there. It’s her property.”
“But you’re her husband!”
“And that’s exactly why I live there. But you don’t.”
The silence on the line was more eloquent than any words.
“So you’re… you’re on her side?” Kristina finally whispered, her voice trembling. “Against your own sister?”
“I’m trying to understand the situation,” Victor replied tiredly. “Kristina, be honest. Did you clean up after yourself?”
“Well… not always…”
“Did you wash the dishes?”
“Vitya…”
“Kristina. Yes or no.”
“Sometimes I forgot,” she muttered.
“Did you invite friends over without warning us?”
“Once…”
“How many times?”
“Two,” she admitted quietly. “Maybe three.”
“And you took Anna’s things without asking.”
“One dress! And I wanted to return it!”
“With a red wine stain.”
Kristina sniffled.
“Vitya, why are you being so mean? I didn’t do it on purpose! I just… I thought we were family…”
“Family is not a license for rudeness,” Victor said, feeling his last illusions crumble. “You behaved like a spoiled child, Kristina. And Anna had every right to throw you out.”
“But…”
“No, listen to me. You can come back tonight. From eight to nine. You’ll pick up the things that are left. You’ll apologize to Anna. Properly. Like an adult. And you’ll move out. Either to Mom’s place or you’ll rent a room. You have the money I transferred to you.”
“What about my exam?”
“There are two days until the exam. That’s enough time to find temporary housing. Kristina, you’re nineteen. It’s time to learn to take responsibility for your actions.”
“So you’re choosing her.”
“I’m choosing common sense. And yes, Kristina, I’m choosing my wife. Because she is right. Completely.”
“You’ll regret this!” Kristina burst out, and then the dial tone rang in his ear.
Victor looked at the phone and sighed heavily. Then he dialed Anna’s number.
“Yes?” Her voice was cautious.
“I’m sorry,” he said simply. “You were right. About everything. I fell for the tears and didn’t look into the situation. Forgive me.”
A pause.
“You talked to her?” Anna asked carefully.
“Yes. And I realized I was a complete idiot. Anna, I’m sorry. For yelling, for the insults, for not supporting you right away. You put up with it for two weeks, and I didn’t even notice…”
“I tried to tell you,” she replied quietly. “But every time, you brushed it off. ‘She’s just a child,’ ‘she’ll get used to it,’ ‘give her time’…”
“I know. I was blind. Or I didn’t want to see. It was easier for me to pretend everything was fine.”
“Victor… I’m not a monster. I really did try. But when she told me to leave my own home… that was too much. I realized that if I didn’t put an end to it right then, she would keep living here. Because you wouldn’t have been able to refuse her.”
“You’re right,” he admitted. “I wouldn’t have. So thank you for having enough backbone for both of us.”
“You’re not angry?”
“At myself — very. At you? No. You did what I should have done myself. You protected our home.”
Anna sighed softly, and he heard the tension leave her.
“Will she come tonight?” she asked.
“Yes. She’ll collect her things. And… Anna, I’ll be there. I’ll make sure everything goes calmly. And that she apologizes. Properly.”
“All right,” Anna said after a pause. “Victor… maybe I overreacted about telling you to take your things…”
“No,” he interrupted. “You didn’t overreact. I deserved it. But I really hope you’ll give me a chance to fix things.”
“We’ll see,” there was a faint smile in her voice. “For a start, make sure your sister doesn’t put on a circus tonight.”
“She won’t. I promise.”
When he lowered the phone, he realized his hands were no longer shaking. For the first time that day, he felt clear-headed. Maybe for the first time in the last two weeks.
He looked at the clock. There were five hours left until evening. Enough time to think through what he needed to say in a very difficult conversation with his sister. A conversation he should have had long ago.
But for now, he needed to finish the report.
It was time for everyone to grow up.
Including himself.