Halyna got married at 20. She was unlucky with her mother-in-law. She constantly manipulated her son against his wife, claiming that she was not good enough for him, and that it wasn’t just her opinion but the talk of the whole village.

The mother-in-law was always dissatisfied.
Whether the food wasn’t tasty enough, the laundry wasn’t done well, or the wife didn’t look at her in the right way, there were always reasons for quarrels and reproaches. Halyna’s husband worked in the city, and she eagerly awaited his return every day. He asked her to be patient a bit longer, as he was promised a company apartment at work. Halyna endured it all while imagining how she would arrange her own little corner. What color wallpaper to put on the walls, what kind of dishes they would have…

Before they could realize their dream, Halyna gave birth to a girl, and two years later, a son was born. The grandmother loved and took care of her grandchildren. Meanwhile, Halyna found a job at the nearest cafeteria. She was very beautiful; it was impossible to look away from her eyes. Her husband began to take her seriously, and with his mother’s constant insistence that his wife was spoiling him, he became more and more aggressive. He even suspected her of infidelity, chatted with her near her workplace, hoping to catch her with someone else, but in vain.

His mother continued to nag him, and he decided to persuade his wife to stay at home. But she refused. Through all this, Halyna’s husband started drinking heavily and rarely came home sober. Halyna didn’t understand what was going on, where in all this she failed, as her husband was very gentle with her at night.

One day, a neighbor told the mother-in-law that her daughter-in-law had been seen at the cafeteria warehouse – and not alone. Immediately, she went to deal with her daughter-in-law. To which Halyna calmly replied that there were five of them working there, and they received and distributed products. But the mother-in-law didn’t stop there, reported everything to her son, who was “under the influence,” and almost ended up losing his wife. Thankfully, the children were asleep. In the morning, Halyna packed her things and went to her mother in a neighboring village. However, the mother-in-law and the husband came to her more than once, begging her to return. But Olha firmly insisted on her decision and didn’t want to see them. After all she had been through in that house, she wanted to live in peace without any reproaches.

She took the children with her. Over the years, Halyna’s life improved. She studied to become an accountant, provided well for her children. She met her true love, a very caring and kind man. She was very happy with him and breathed freely. She gave him two children. But one day, she learned that her father-in-law had passed away. She decided to go there for the last time to see him off and say goodbye. After all, her grandfather had been good to her and had never interfered. She came there on her own car; the children were already adults. Her husband was beating himself up for losing her due to his drunkenness and inappropriate aggression, and the mother-in-law threw herself at her feet, begging her to return, but all in vain. It was already too late…