“You’re exaggerating,” Michael said. “Mom only wants things to be orderly.”
Emily gave a tired wave of her hand and went back to her room. There was no point in arguing.
From that day on, the quarrels and the tension only worsened. Linda carried herself as though the apartment belonged to her, while Emily withdrew more and more into herself. Michael kept pretending he wanted to stay out of it, but somehow, every time, he ended up taking his mother’s side.
Then Saturday came. Emily had an important job to finish: a corporate website for a construction company. It had to be delivered by that evening, or she would lose both the client and the payment. The project was large, detailed, and demanding. It required complete concentration.
She got up at seven, drank a cup of coffee, shut herself in her room, and sat down at the computer. The hours slipped by without her noticing. Emily worked without stopping. She did not even go out for breakfast. She placed her phone face down beside her so it would not distract her.
By noon, she had almost finished the main pages. All that remained was to complete the footer, check the mobile version, and upload everything to the server. Emily stretched, rubbed the back of her neck, and picked up her phone to check her work messages. At that exact moment, the door flew open so violently it banged against the wall.
Michael stood on the threshold, his face flushed, his hands clenched into fists.
“What are you doing, going on strike?” he shouted. “Mom can’t handle everything by herself, and you’re sitting here playing with your phone!”
Emily slowly locked the screen and turned toward him. For several seconds, she simply looked at her husband as if she could not quite believe what she had just heard.
“What did you say?”
“I said enough with the loafing around!” Michael snapped. “Mom has been on her feet since morning, cooking lunch and cleaning! And you’re sitting in here scrolling on your phone!”
Emily rose from her chair. When she spoke, her voice was cold and perfectly steady.
“I am not scrolling on my phone. I am working. I have been working for five straight hours on an urgent project that brings money into this home.”
“What kind of work?” Michael scoffed, throwing up a hand. “You’re just on the internet! Real work is when you go to an office, like I do. You’ve spread yourself out at home, and now you’re talking back, too?”
“I earn as much as you do!” Emily felt anger begin to burn through her. “My projects pay for utilities, groceries, clothes! Or do you think money just falls out of the sky?”
“Don’t raise your voice at me!” Michael roared. “You’re selfish! You only think about yourself! Family means nothing to you!”
“Family? What family?” Emily stepped closer to him. “Your mother runs everything here, humiliates me in my own home, and you stand behind her every time. That isn’t a family. That’s torture.”
“You’re ungrateful! Mom is trying for us. She wants to help!”
“She is not helping. She is getting in the way. She interferes with my work, my things, my life!”
At that moment Linda appeared in the room, wiping her hands on a dish towel.
“What is going on in here? Michael, is everything all right?”
“Mom, Emily started a scene,” Michael immediately said, his voice turning wounded and accusing.
“I knew it!” Linda fixed a hard, threatening stare on her daughter-in-law. “No respect for your elders, no respect for your husband! Do you even understand how a wife is supposed to behave? A wife should support her husband and take care of the household, not sit in front of a computer all day!”
Something inside Emily seemed to snap. Every insult she had swallowed, every ounce of exhaustion, every bit of irritation that had been building for weeks burst out at once.
“Enough! That’s it! Both of you, get out of my apartment!”
Silence fell. Michael and Linda stared at her as if they had turned to stone.
“What?” Michael was the first to recover.
“I said get out,” Emily repeated, her tone calm now, but unyielding. “This is my apartment. Mine. I am the one in charge here.”