“What is wrong with you again?! How much longer can this go on?! I am already so tired of all this!” the woman’s voice coming from behind the door of one of the apartments echoes throughout the stairwell of the apartment building in Gothenburg.
At this moment, Freja and Hugo are climbing the stairs. They instantly freeze, as if they have bumped into an invisible wall. For a second their gazes meet and in this short exchange of looks there is no need for words. Both understand each other without a single sound: now it is better to leave. Sighing in sync, they turn around and quietly head away from the building. Today they clearly do not plan to return to the apartment.
Who would want to spend the evening listening to endless parental arguments? Certainly not them! The teenagers confidently walk towards the neighboring stairwell their grandmother lives there, Farmor Birgit. In recent times her apartment has become a true refuge for them. If earlier they only visited on weekends, now they find shelter there almost every night.
The atmosphere in the parental home has long turned into something completely unbearable. The parents, as if forgetting everything else, shout at each other without stopping. And worst of all, they more and more often try to drag the children into their disputes.
Sometimes the mother, sharply turning to her daughter, demandingly asks:
“Tell me, am I right? You agree with me?”
Sometimes the father, without waiting for an answer, turns to his son:
“No, I am right here! Confirm it!”
Freja and Hugo stay silent. They do not want to choose a side, do not want to become part of this endless conflict. They simply want silence, calm, and warmth everything they find at their grandmother’s.
Such scenes repeat day after day, like a stuck record that no one dares to stop. The children have already learned to understand by barely noticeable signs that it is about to start. By the tone of voice, by the sharpness of movements, by how the parents exchange glances all this becomes signals that it is time to leave. Which child would like to live in constant tension, when any conversation can turn into a loud scandal in an instant?
The kids cannot figure out what exactly triggered this catastrophe. Their family was never ideal, like in commercials, but earlier the parents knew how to negotiate! Arguments happened, of course where without them but they ended not with shouts but with calm conversations. Mom could frown, dad could raise his voice slightly, but after half an hour everything was settled. Everyone sat at the table again, drank tea, and discussed plans for the weekend.
About two years ago everything changed… As if someone had secretly replaced the previous parents with others those who now find a reason for a quarrel in the most ordinary things. A dirty mug left on the table? A reason for a long monologue about inattention and disrespect. A shirt hung on the wrong hanger? Cause for sarcastic remarks about order in the house. A teaspoon forgotten in the sink? Almost a crime, worthy of a multi-minute investigation!
One evening Freja sits in the kitchen at her grandmother’s, mechanically stirring the tea with a spoon. She remains silent for a long time, watching the amber swirls in the cup, and then suddenly asks with bitterness:
“Well, how is that, grandmother? Everything changed after their joint vacation to the archipelago. What happened there?”
Farmor Birgit freezes for a moment, places the cup on the saucer, and carefully runs her hand over Freja’s arm. She herself only guesses about the reasons for the family discord, and these guesses do not please her at all.
“Adults will sort it out themselves,” she answers softly, trying to make her voice sound confident. “Sometimes people need time to understand how best to proceed.”
Freja nods, but distrust shows in her eyes. She knows that grandmother is hiding something, but she does not insist. What’s the point? As long as they consider her a child, they will not share anything serious with her.
“We cannot stand these shouts anymore!” Hugo exclaims with despair in his voice. “Neither to do homework normally, nor to read a book! I do not even remember when we gathered as a whole family at one table. If it is so hard for them together, let them divorce and everyone will feel better!”
The words burst out by themselves, but they contain all the truth of the last months. Hugo speaks not only for himself he knows that his sister feels the same! In their home there has been no silence for a long time: either mom says something sharp, or dad answers with irritation, and here we go again with the bickering, from which there is nowhere to hide…
“Hugo…” grandmother gets confused. She sets aside her knitting, looks carefully at her grandson and slowly shakes her head. “Have you thought about what will happen if they divorce? You will have to be divided. Are you ready to live separately from Freja?”
“We will live with you!” Freja immediately says, looking at grandmother with pleading eyes. “We are here almost all the time anyway! You do not mind, right?”
Farmor Birgit freezes. She understands the grandchildren’s feelings she sees how hard it is for them, how tired they are from the endless parental arguments. On one hand, the children will really be safe here in a calm, friendly environment, where they can do homework without shouts, read books in silence, and simply feel protected. She loves them immensely and is ready to surround them with care.
On the other hand, what about their parents? How to explain to them that the children no longer want to live at home? Will they agree to such an option? And if they agree how will this affect their relationship with the children? Will it not turn out that the result of this adventure will be a complete break in relations with the parents?
“Let us not rush,” the woman says, sighing deeply. “I am always happy to have you here, you know that. But let us first try to talk with mom and dad. Maybe together we will find a way to fix everything.”
“Do not worry, we will talk with them ourselves,” Freja confidently declares, smiling happily. Grandmother has almost agreed, and that is the most important! “Just do not refuse us, please! We really cannot be there anymore! And it will be better for them separately otherwise one day they will really harm each other! I saw how dad raised his hand at mom yesterday… He did not hit, honestly! But he was on the edge.”
Freja falls silent, remembering that terrible moment. She then went into the kitchen for a glass of water and froze in the doorway: the father stood half-turned to the mother, his hand sharply raised up, and the mother instinctively ducked. A second later the father lowered his hand, but that second stretched into eternity for Freja.
“Grandmother, agree!” Hugo supports his sister. He approaches closer, takes grandmother’s hand, as if afraid that she will refuse now. “We will help you around the house with everything. Just do not send us back there. They do not pay any attention to us! Yesterday I approached dad, said that there will be a parent meeting. You know what he answered? “Go to mom!” So I went. Guess what mom said?”
“Go to dad?” quietly asks Farmor Birgit, already knowing the answer.
“Exactly!” Hugo grins bitterly. “And then they argued for another two hours about who of them will go to the meeting. They sat in different rooms and shouted at each other through the corridor. And I just stood and listened.”
“And I asked to sign a permission for an excursion to the museum,” adds Freja, lowering her eyes. Her fingers nervously fiddle with the edge of her sleeve. “And now I am the only one in the class who will not go. None of them signed the paper. But they started arguing again mom shouted that it is dad’s responsibility, and dad proved that mom should handle school matters.”
Farmor Birgit looks at her grandchildren and sees how tired they are. In their eyes there is no childish tiredness that which accumulates over months, when every day is similar to the previous, when instead of family warmth constant arguments, instead of support indifference.
“And it is always like that,” sighs Hugo, dropping his shoulders. His voice sounds tired, as if he has repeated this already hundreds of times. “Any appeal from us turns into a reason for a new argument. We do not even want to return home. A couple of days ago we came at eleven in the evening and do you think they scolded us? No! They just sent us to sleep, without even asking where we had been. But then they accused each other of poor upbringing for a long time.”
The teenagers sigh synchronously again. In recent months they have seriously considered that the parents’ divorce is the only way out of this situation. But they are frightened by the prospect of separation from each other, which would inevitably follow the divorce. One of them would stay with mom, the other with dad, and the usual closeness would turn into rare meetings on weekends.
They consider options, discussing them in whispers in the evenings, when they are alone in their room. Once Hugo jokingly suggests running away from home just take the backpacks and leave where the eyes look. He says this with a smile, trying to defuse the situation, but Freja unexpectedly takes the idea seriously. Her eyes flash for a second, and then she quietly says: “What if we really leave? At least for a couple of days…” At that moment both understand the situation in the family has become so unbearable that even the thought of escape seems not so crazy.
And then it dawns on them: grandmother! Why not move to her? This thought arises simultaneously in both, as if they are thinking in unison. Freja is the first to voice it: “Let’s ask grandmother if we can live with her? She definitely will not argue and shout. And we will not have to listen to these endless disputes…” Hugo immediately picks up: “Yes! She is kind, always supports us. And her apartment is big there will be enough space for us.”
They begin to mentally paint a picture of the new life: calm breakfasts, the opportunity to do homework in silence, evenings playing board games with grandmother. No shouts, no accusations, no need to hide in their room to avoid getting caught in the heat of the moment. For the first time in a long while, hope kindles in their hearts. Let the parents sort things out between themselves, and they finally find peace that is what Freja and Hugo think, imagining how they will live with their grandmother…
“Mom, dad, we need to talk seriously,” the twins say firmly, standing in front of the parents. They specifically waited for the evening when both are home, and resolutely enter the living room. Freja holds Hugo’s hand tightly this makes it easier for her to maintain confidence. “But first promise to listen to us to the end, before expressing your opinion.”
Lars tears himself away from the phone and looks up in surprise. Sofia, who is laying out things on the sofa, suddenly straightens up. An expression appears on her face as if the children have said something completely unthinkable.
“This is all your upbringing!” she snorts, crossing her arms over her chest. “The children are already setting conditions for us! As if we have to report to them!”
“And who is talking!” the man instantly flares up, putting down the phone. “I am constantly at work, trying to provide for the family. You were always with them! And what have you taught them? Why do they now give orders?”
The twins exchange glances. They expected something like this that the conversation would immediately go into the usual channel of mutual accusations. But they cannot back down.
“Enough!” Freja exclaims, almost with tears in her voice. She takes a step forward, trying to speak clearly and calmly, although everything is trembling inside. “Hugo and I have thought and decided that you need to divorce.”
The room instantly becomes quiet. Sofia freezes with her mouth slightly open, and Lars slowly rises from the sofa.
“Now that is news!” the mother’s voice sounds threatening. “Freja, you are still too young to tell adults how we should live! And what else have you ‘decided’? Maybe you will also divide the apartment for us?”
“If you do not divorce, we will contact socialtjänsten,” Hugo tightly squeezes his sister’s hand, as if drawing strength from it. His voice sounds firm, although inside he himself does not fully believe that he is saying this seriously. “And then, dad, you might lose your job. In your company they do not welcome scandals, right? You yourself said that reputation is everything.”
“And you, mom,” continues Freja, looking straight into her mother’s eyes, “will stop being respected by the neighbors. They will not even talk to you! Everyone knows how you shout at each other, and we will add details!”
“They are threatening us! Just look at them!” Sofia finally squeezes out, shifting her gaze from one child to the other. “These are our children! How can you do this to us?”
“We are not threatening,” Hugo says quietly but confidently. “We just want you to understand: we cannot live like this. We are tired! Tired of the shouts, of you not hearing us, of even simple requests turning into a scandal.”
“You will divorce, move apart, and we will live with grandmother,” the children finish in chorus, as if they had rehearsed in advance. “This will be better for everyone: for us calm, for you without constant conflicts. We no longer want to be between you, like between two fires.”
The parents freeze. For the first time in a long time they have nothing to answer. Usually in such conversations they immediately start arguing, interrupting each other, looking for the guilty but now both seem to have fallen silent.
Their thirteen-year-old children are behaving completely unexpectedly! Freja and Hugo stand side by side, holding hands, and look at the parents firmly, without the usual timidity. And they are talking about such serious things that the adults themselves have tried not to think about.
The spouses themselves have thought about divorce more than once. But they are always stopped by the same question with whom will the children stay? Separating the twins seems unthinkable they are incredibly close, always do everything together, support each other. The parents cannot imagine how to tear one from the other, force them to live in different houses, see each other only on weekends.
The option with grandmother they have not considered before. For some reason this thought never occurred to them perhaps because both were too absorbed in their grievances and mutual claims. But now, hearing the children’s proposal, Lars and Sofia involuntarily wonder: what if this is the way out? Grandmother loves the grandchildren, she has a spacious apartment, she is always happy to see them… Maybe this will really solve at least part of the problems?
“I will call mom,” Lars finally says through clenched teeth. His voice sounds muffled, as if the words are given with difficulty. “If she agrees…”
He does not have time to finish the phrase. Sofia sharply interrupts him, and in her voice there is such fatigue that it surprises even herself:
“Then we will finally stop tormenting each other. Call. I will be happy not to see your face every day.”
Her words hang in the air. She did not want to be so sharp, but after years of accumulated grievances and disappointments these words burst out by themselves.
“And I will be so glad!” Lars replies, trying to hide behind irony the pain caused by his wife’s words.
There is no anger in his tone only a bitter smile at what their family life has turned into. He takes out his phone and slowly dials his mother’s number. While the rings go, both spouses look in different directions, avoiding each other’s eyes. They still do not know what this conversation will lead to, but they understand: the point of no return may have already been passed…
On that day the Svensson family makes a fateful decision. Everything starts with a long conversation between Lars and his mother. Farmor Birgit listens attentively, without interrupting, only occasionally asking clarifying questions.
When Lars finally lays everything out to the end, a pause sets in. Grandmother sighs deeply and says:
“If you both understand that this will be better for the children, I agree. They will be safe here, I will take care of them.”
By evening the spouses meet in the kitchen for the first time in a long time without shouts and mutual reproaches. They sit opposite each other and begin to discuss the details. Gradually, step by step, they agree on one thing: divorce is the only reasonable way out of the situation. The children will move to grandmother, and the parents will monthly transfer funds to her for their support in Swedish kronor.
At the same time, no one is going to leave the children to their fate. Both the father and the mother solemnly promise to come on weekends but on different days, to minimize contacts between themselves.
“I will come on Saturday morning, pick them up for a walk, and you on Sunday,” the man says tiredly, to which his still wife nods in agreement. “This will be simpler. The main thing is that the children do not feel abandoned.”
Their main goal is to reduce communication to a minimum and thereby avoid new conflicts. They agree not to discuss each other in front of the children, not to try to win them over to their side, not to sort things out in their presence.
“We are still their parents,” says Lars. “And we must remain so, even if we are no longer spouses.”
And as time shows, the decision turns out to be ideal. The children finally can relax and start living like ordinary teenagers. Freja signs up for a drawing club she has long dreamed of this, but earlier there was not enough time due to constant worries. Hugo starts going to football, finds new friends in the team. They again begin to spend time together: walk around Gothenburg, go to the cinema, discuss school matters without fear that at any moment another scandal will start.
Stability returns to their studies as well. Now they have a quiet place for classes, no one distracts with shouts and arguments. Homework is done calmly, without nerves, and this immediately reflects on the grades. Teachers notice the changes: “You have become so attentive, kids! Keep it up!”
Gradually life enters a new course not ideal, but calm and predictable. The children no longer hide in their room, do not flinch from loud voices, do not worry about every step. They simply live as teenagers should live, who are lucky to find support in the most difficult circumstances…
Five years later, life in the Svensson family flows measured and calm. Freja and Hugo have long been accustomed to the new order: studies, clubs, meetings with friends, warm evenings with grandmother. The parents still come in turns each on their own day, with gifts and attention, but without mutual claims. Over these years they have learned to communicate restrainedly, politely, without previous outbursts of anger.
The first personal contact between the former spouses occurs at the children’s graduation party. The school organizes a formal evening, and both parents, of course, come. They hold themselves cautiously at first, taking places in different parts of the hall, but gradually the ice thaws.
When the dancing starts, Lars unexpectedly approaches Sofia:
“Shall we dance? Remember the past.”
She hesitates a bit, then nods.
After the evening they sit for a long time in the school yard, watching the graduates have fun by the fountain. The conversation starts by itself first about the children, then about the past.
They talk a lot that evening, remember the happy moments of their marriage and behave quite decently. They speak not about old grievances, but about the good that once connected them. The twins, watching the parents from afar, cannot get enough of it. Still, it was painful for them to see how two of the closest people treat each other almost like enemies.
But suddenly thunder strikes from a clear sky. The next day Lars and Sofia invite the children to a cafe. Over a cup of tea, exchanging glances, they take each other’s hands, and Lars announces with a wide smile:
“Kids, Sofia and I have thought and decided to get married again. Over these years we have realized that our feelings have not faded! We still love each other and want to become a family again.”
His voice sounds joyful, as if he is sharing the happiest news in life. Sofia beams, clearly expecting an enthusiastic reaction.
The twins exchange glances their faces instantly darken. In Freja’s eyes flashes distrust, Hugo clenches his fists under the table. Again on the same rake! What is going on in their parents’ heads? Will they be able to live together without conflicts?
“Are you serious?” is all Freja can utter.
“Absolutely,” Lars confidently replies. “We have both changed. Learned to listen to each other. And we want to give our family a second chance.”
The children are silent. Inside, conflicting feelings rage: on one hand, they want to believe that the parents have really been able to change; on the other they are afraid of repeating the pain they once experienced.
However, Freja and Hugo do not try to dissuade them. They do not even comment on this statement, which greatly offends the parents. Sofia looks at the children in confusion:
“What, are you not happy? We thought you would be happy for us.”
But the twins only exchange glances and shrug. And what could they say? “Do not do this! Do not ruin your life!”? The words stick in the throat. They do not want to seem callous, but they cannot pretend that everything is fine either.
Until the end of the meeting the conversation does not flow. The parents try to talk about their plans, the children nod politely, but their thoughts are far away. On the way home Freja quietly says to her brother:
“I hope they know what they are doing.”
Hugo only sighs in response…
“So we are moving to Stockholm?” Freja opens her laptop, preparing to browse university websites. “Further from this madness. I already imagine how this circus will end!”
“Of course we are moving,” Hugo says firmly, and in his voice there is an adult-like tiredness. He runs his hand through his hair, as if trying to throw off the burden of the last months. “They will live peacefully for a month, well maximum two. Then everything anew: shouts, door slams, accusations… I no longer want to be a hostage to their relationship. I do not want every morning to guess what mood they woke up in today and on whom of us the next stream of claims will pour.”
He gets up and walks around the room, mechanically collecting scattered textbooks. One and the same thought spins in his head: why do adults, who should be an example of wisdom and stability, behave like unbalanced teenagers? Why, instead of solving problems, do they again and again step on the same rake?
“We need to leave,” he repeats, stopping by the window. Outside the window the twilight is slowly falling, coloring the city in soft orange tones. Hugo looks into the distance, as if trying to see his future there. “Far away. So far that their arguments cannot reach us. Let them sort it out themselves. We are no longer their psychologists, not mediators, not lightning rods. We have our own life, our own dreams, and I will not allow them to destroy them with another round of parental madness.”
“When do we submit the documents?” Freja calmly asks.
“Tomorrow,” Hugo answers, without hesitation. “To make sure we do not change our minds.”
The girl nods silently, not taking her eyes off the monitor. On the screen flash pages of websites of Stockholm universities she has been studying the study programs, living conditions in dormitories, job prospects after graduation for a week. In her notebook next to the laptop, lists are growing: pros and cons of each option, necessary documents, submission deadlines, contacts of admissions committees.
“The main thing is to study calmly, without being distracted by their arguments,” she quietly says, as if summarizing her thoughts. “Good that we will be so far.”
“Exactly,” Hugo agrees, sitting down next to her. He slightly tilts his head, reading the lines on the screen. “And when they start figuring out again who is to blame, we will not even hear. Let them call, complain, try to call us to a ‘family council’ we no longer participate in this. And their desire to ‘give the relationship a second chance’,” he grins bitterly, “is their choice, not ours.”
Sofia and Lars do get married for the second time. This time they consciously refuse a lavish celebration: they do not want extra expenses, do not want to attract attention, and, to be honest, do not feel that they need something grandiose. They limit themselves to a modest ceremony at the town hall and dinner in the circle of the closest parents, several friends, children.
In the photos from that day they look truly happy. They smile, hold hands, look at each other with tenderness and warmth. In the frame their intertwined fingers, soft glances, light touches are visible. It seems that all grievances are forgotten, that the years of separation have been beneficial, that now they know exactly what they want, and only a bright future awaits them ahead. The children, looking at these pictures, involuntarily wonder: maybe this time everything will really turn out differently?
But… alas, no. The first weeks after the wedding pass surprisingly peacefully: the spouses try to be more attentive to each other, more often say “thank you”, do not nitpick at small things. However, gradually old habits begin to return. Already after a month, raised tones sound again in their apartment. At first these are restrained reproaches quiet, but barbed: “You did not clean up after yourself again?”, “Why did you not warn that you would be late?”, “You could have helped, since you are sitting at home.”
Then open conflicts begin. Arguments arise over trifles: someone left wet towels in the bathroom, someone forgot to buy bread, someone turned on the TV too loud… The words become sharper, the voices louder, the pauses between arguments shorter.
And after two months, as Hugo predicted, the situation heats up to the limit. One evening an argument about who should buy groceries turns into a real storm. Lars, unable to restrain himself, in rage throws a cup at the wall it breaks with a loud clink, shards fly across the kitchen. Sofia, no less furious, grabs a plate from the table and throws it on the floor with force. The sound of breaking dishes echoes through the apartment.
After such scenes the parents invariably try to call the children. Each time the conversation starts the same: one of them dials the number, barely catching breath after the argument, and immediately pours out the accumulated grievances.
“Can you imagine what he said today?” Sofia breaks into tears when Freja picks up the phone. “He does not even try to understand me!”
“Son, you have to understand me, she completely does not control herself,” Lars says excitedly to Hugo. “I try, really try, but she seems to look for a reason!”
But Freja and Hugo have learned to softly but firmly interrupt these monologues. They no longer get drawn into long discussions, do not try to figure out who is right and who is wrong. Their answers are short, but firm.
“Mom, I am in class now, I will call back later,” Freja calmly says, looking at the clock: twenty minutes left until the start of the lecture, but she does not want to listen to another monologue.
“Dad, I have urgent work, let us discuss this on the weekend,” Hugo answers, not taking his eyes off the laptop screen. He knows, if he lets the parent vent, the conversation will drag on for an hour, and then he will have to calm them down too.
“Later” and “on the weekend” invariably get postponed. The children find excuses studies, part-time job, meetings with friends and gradually calls from parents become less frequent. Freja and Hugo do not feel guilty about this: they are simply protecting their nerves and time, knowing that they cannot change what is happening between mom and dad.
The twins really have their own life full, meaningful, far from parental dramas. Each of their days now consists of their own worries, interests, and plans, and not from waiting for another argument behind the wall.
Freja has immersed herself in studying psychology. She likes to understand how the human soul works, why people act this way or that, how to help those who find themselves in a difficult situation. In her third year she begins to volunteer at a center helping teenagers from disadvantaged families. There she leads group sessions, helps the kids express their feelings, find ways out of difficult situations. Freja sees in these teenagers echoes of her own past and tries to give them what she once lacked: attention, support, the feeling that they are heard.
Hugo has found himself in IT. From the first years he has been passionate about programming he is fascinated by the logic of code, the opportunity to create working systems, solve complex technical problems. He spends a lot of time at the computer, studies new programming languages, participates in student hackathons. In his fourth year his team takes third place in a regional competition for developing mobile applications this gives him confidence and shows that he is moving in the right direction. Hugo gets a part-time job at a small IT company, where he quickly establishes himself as a responsible and capable employee. Working on real projects, he learns to interact with colleagues, competently allocate time, find solutions in non-standard situations.
The twins begin to plan the future without looking back at parental scandals. Freja dreams of opening her own practice, helping families find common ground. Hugo is thinking about his own business. They discuss plans over a cup of tea in a cafe, build schemes, write down ideas in notebooks. And in these moments they feel: they have support. They have a path. They have a life that belongs only to them.
When Sofia and Lars once again try to draw them into their problems call in tears, start telling how bad everything is, how they do not understand each other the twins respond calmly and firmly. They have discussed in advance how they will conduct the conversation so as not to break down, not to get drawn into the usual role of mediators.
“Enough, dear parents, sort it out yourselves,” Freja firmly states. “You have your own life, we have ours.”
“But you are our children!” Sofia sobs. “You must support us!”
“If you behaved normally, and not like little children, we would support you,” Hugo immediately declares. “You made a mistake by getting married again, and you continue to torment each other. You cannot coexist normally in one space, so why torment each other? Divorce already and move apart.”
Let these words seem cruel, let… But the brother and sister just want to live calmly.
