Dont worry, you wont lose anything, Victor said, raising an eyebrow. All right, Milly, where did you put the bracelet? Did it go missing? Did you pawn it? Why would you do that? What on earth is happening?
It my mum took it, Milly muttered, looking down.
A heavy silence settled over the livingroom. Victor plopped onto the sofa, his eyebrows still arched. The whole affair seemed absurd to him.
Your mum took it? he repeated, genuinely baffled. What does that even mean?
Well, first she just asked to try it on. Then she said it suited her, and I felt a bit awkward taking it back. Shes my mother, after all Milly trailed off.
Victor stared at his wife as if seeing her for the first time. He knew Milly was softhearted, but he hadnt expected it to be this extreme.
So she just grabbed it and walked off with your bracelet? Milly, come on! Tell me the whole story, step by step, he demanded, a hint of irony in his tone.
Victor had always wanted his wife never to be short of anything. Now he could finally afford to let her have a little, but Milly? Not so much.
Theyd met back in first year at university through a mutual friend. Victor was then a naïve dreamer from a modest background, promising himself that his future family would never want for the best. He didnt yet know how to make it happen, but his enthusiasm was boundless.
Milly, on the other hand, had no grand ambitions, just a kind soul. Victor realised hed fallen in love when she once showed up at his flat, sick with a tin of hot soup in hand.
Sam told me you were ill. I thought Id drop by, she whispered, slipping off her shoes.
Dont bother, youll catch it too, Victor replied, but he didnt send her away.
Well both be under the weather then, and we can nurse each other, she smiled. Im not made of sugar, I wont melt away.
In Milly, Victor saw the woman who could hold down the fort without a second thought, simply because she liked him and liked caring for someone.
A year later they were sharing a tiny rented flat in Manchester, complete with a humming fridge, a leaky tap and the occasional cockroach visit. They pulled allnighters before exams, took on side jobs together. He lugged boxes in a supermarket; she waited tables.
Theyd been through it all. They learned that instant noodles were not a luxury. Milly was distraught when Victor ended up in hospital with gallstones, unable to afford even the basics. They borrowed from parents and friends on a regular basis.
Luckily Victor had a swarm of mates who tossed him odd jobs a helper on a construction site here, a fencepainting gig there, all for a laughable fee. Hed take anything; Milly, however, tried not to add to his load.
I want to help! she declared before his next odd job.
Sure, and what will you do? Carry coal? Youll snap yourself in two. Our medical bills are already high enough, Victor grumbled.
He appreciated her zeal, though, and never left her side when the bills grew.
Step by step, Victor chased his goal. First came the degrees. He bounced between companies before a friend landed him a junior role at a big firm. The schedule was brutal late nights, weekend work, the lot.
Milly kept the home running while also working. She delighted him with his favourite dishes, kept the flat spotless, looked after their dog Baxter even when the old pooch stopped walking.
Dont worry, itll all pass, Milly would say when things got rough.
When Victor finally became head of logistics, his responsibilities swelled, but he felt the warm welcome of home like never before.
From then on life stepped up a gear. They moved into their own house in Surrey, bought a family car, a modest garden cottage. No more hunting for bargains on Gumtree; they purchased brandnew furniture from IKEA. Clothes were bought for pleasure, not just when they wore out. Holidays were spent on the continent rather than at a grandparents farm.
Victors gifts evolved too no more chocolate bars, but leather bags, scarves, gold jewellery, given for no reason other than a Friday night mood. Milly blushed at the price tags, but Victor liked pulling her out of the old pennypinching routine.
At first everything sparkled. She adored the new perfume, the designer outfits, the stateoftheart slow cooker with a hundred settings.
Then things started to slip. Milly reverted to the old slow cooker, a cracked handbag, tucked away her perfume. Victor first guessed she disliked the scent, then thought it was just habit. Why keep wearing shoes that hurt when there were comfy new ones?
Victor decided to test her, and the chance presented itself.
When his colleague Simon invited them to his birthday, Victor bought Milly a gold bracelet and sapphire earrings, hoping everyone would see how much he adored her.
Wear that dress we bought on Friday, and the jewellery I got you last week, Victor said. They go together perfectly.
Milly stammered, claiming the bracelet was broken, that shed handed it to a jeweller but couldnt recall where. Then she confessed her mum had taken the gold and not just the gold.
So everything I gave you has ended up in your mums hands? Victor pressed his lips together. Milly, seriously? Cant you argue back?
She looked away.
I tried. She gets upset, says she raised me, that I owe her everything, that nobody will ever give me anything again and youre still buying me stuff. It wont cost you a thing, she says.
Victor clapped his hands over his face. It felt like a robbery not of trinkets, but of dignity.
Fine, I get it, he sighed. From now on Ill only give you things that wont make a quick trip to your mums house.
Milly fell silent. Shed been too easy to manipulate. Victor wanted to shake her, to set a boundary, but he knew it would be useless. He resigned himself to accept her as she was.
Victor realised that if he wanted a warm home, hed have to deal not with Milly, but with the leak even if that leak was called Vera Ivanova.
Vera, his motherinlaw, was loud, brazen and clingy. Victor had met her almost straight after he started seeing Milly.
Im not trying to interfere, but shed begin, then launch into a monologue of unsolicited advice.
Vera worked as an accountant; her husband, wherever he was, kept a low profile. Their pay reflected that.
From day one Vera tried to wedge herself into their lives, dropping by at eight in the morning, sometimes unannounced. One night, right in the middle of a romantic dinner, Victor simply refused to let her in. Milly winced, whispering Its my mum, but Victor stood firm.
Yes, Mum, he said, but we didnt expect you. Please arrange visits in advance.
Now Vera didnt just barge in through the door; she slipped in through guilt, nurtured carefully in Millys mind.
Oh, what lovely perfume you have! No one ever gives me that. Can I borrow it for a week? Lucys birthday is coming up, I want to smell like a garden in full bloom. You dont mind, do you, dear? Ive given you everything.
How to fight that? How to stop the stealing? Millys birthday was looming, and Victor had a new plan.
At the dinner table he rose, handed Milly a small envelope.
Sunshine, this is for you. I know youve always wanted to visit Italy. Have a nice break.
Veras eyes lit up.
Oh! How lovely. Id love to sunbathe on the Italian coast, see the monuments!
Wanting is fine, Victor replied, but Vera, the second tickets on me. Youll have to travel with me. Im not the ideal companion I snore loudly, blast music at night, wander around the hotel in my shirtless glory. Are you ready?
Laughter erupted around the table. Milly blushed, smiled shyly. Vera flushed, pursed her lips, then turned away. She kept quiet the rest of the evening and left before anyone else.
Victor just grinned. Hed got two gifts that night: his wifes genuine smile and his motherinlaws stunned silence.
