So let me get this straightyour fathers little floozy gets a helping hand, but your actual stepdad gets chucked out with the rubbish? Thats charming! Honestly, Molly, whose side are you onmine or hers? her mother asked, wounded and more than a little theatrical.
Molly pinched the bridge of her nose, staring forlornly at her tepid coffee.
Mum. Please, just stop. First off, Elaine is a qualified accountant. And lets be honest, my real stepdad cant make it through the morning without his bottle of whisky. Ive said before, I cant afford to ruin my reputation.
Oh, dont talk rot! her mothers voice exploded through the phone speaker. So he misstepped a few timeswho hasnt? And now youre throwing your own mother under the bus for that snake! Youre doing it to spite me, arent you? Sack her today, and call to apologise tonight. Or just forget you even have a mother.
With that, the call ended, leaving a fog of dial tone and embarrassment. Molly set her phone down gingerly, cheeks aflame. Her colleagues pointedly acted fascinated by their spreadsheets, but Molly was convinced her mothers bellowing could be heard all the way down the corridor.
Her mother, Jean, had always been like thatexpecting total submission from everyone and resorting to shouting when she didnt get her way. Occasionally, even the crockery would bear the brunt. Once, shed even tried it with Oleg, and thats pretty much why her parents divorced.
Mollys parents split up when she was seven. At the time, she didnt have a clue why. There hadnt been infidelity or punch-upsjust endless arguments about everything and nothing.
As she grew older, Molly pieced it together. Her dad was an engineer, always at work, and Jean was stuck at home in an eternal maternity leave, positively bored out of her skull. She poured all that pent-up energy into relentless criticism and suspicion.
Oleg took the brunt. Maybe he glanced at someone wrong, or forgot to buy bread, or simply breathed the wrong way. Jean always imagined he had a lover stashed in a cupboard. If he so much as said good morning to the neighbour, hed come home to a melodrama and a full Spanish Inquisition.
Unsurprisingly, Oleg caved. The marriage eventually collapsed like a badly built sandcastle.
A year after the split, Elaine appeared in Olegs life. Molly still remembered the dread of meeting the wicked stepmother her mum had describedsomeone whod have her scrubbing floors until her hands fell off.
But reality had other plans.
When Molly visited her father, she was welcomed by a calm, smiley woman with a kind gaze, and a daughter, Rita, who was as inquisitive as a squirrel on espresso. After lunch, Elaine handed them a chocolate barhalved equallyand sent the girls off to Ritas room.
Go on, girls, she chirped. Have a play or watch tellyno need to hang about listening to us grown-ups waffle.
That was a turning point for Molly. Elaine never divided children into mine and yoursshe was a champion for equality (and sharing treats). Every weekend, the four would stroll through Hyde Park, feeding ducks, and buying Molly and Rita ice cream or candy floss. No one fainted with shock if the girls got their Sunday best muddy.
Jean saw this picture of domestic harmony as an affront. The second she realised her ex looked actually happy, she launched herself back into the dating scene like a woman possessedeager to out-happy her former spouse.
Thats how Victor entered the flata perpetually rumpled man who was never pleased and only truly passionate about strong drink.
And just like that, Mollys life turned to a blend of EastEnders and a low-budget horror. Every time Victor had a drink, hed become both a prison warden and a half-baked philosopher.
Oi, whyd you leave your plate dirty, you little madam? hed bellow, stale spirits on his breath. Show some respect for your elders! Do you think were running a hotel?
Hed threaten with the dish towel, lock her in her roomall for things she hadnt done. Trying to argue was pointless. Jean would watch on, lips tight, approvingly silentafter all, what mattered was having a proper man at home. Keeping up with her ex was the only priority.
When Victor once tried to teach Molly a lesson for getting a C on her maths testwith the aid of a leather beltshe snapped. In tears, she stuffed her books in her backpack and legged it out the door, catching a bus across London to her dad and Elaine, hoping desperately theyd let her in.
They didhappily. Elaine spent the evening making her tea, soothing her nerves, and even helped her with her homework. With the gentle whistle of the kettle in the background, Molly realised that here, at least, she felt safe.
Those days were thankfully behind her. Now Molly was an adult, independent and gainfully employed, but somehow, the past always lurked just out of sight.
Six months ago, Jean had dropped in on Mollys flat unannounced, claiming to be simply desperate to see her. She came armed with a Victoria sponge. The game of happy families lasted exactly ten minutes.
So, Molly, love, Jean began, fiddling with a napkin. Youre not exactly bottom rung in that firm of yours. Any chance you could sort Victor out with a job? Warehouse, security, anything really. Only his boss let him go again. Least this way, youll be able to keep an eye out, you know?
Molly nearly choked on her cake. Keep an eye out? For a fifty-year-old man?
Mum, no, she said flatly, pushing her plate away. Your Victor is on every employers blacklist in the city. He needs to sort himself out first. Im not risking my job just to try and fix him.
Jean pouted, finished the cake, and left in a strop. That should have been the end of it.
But, just a few months later, Mollys firm lost their head accountant. With quarterly reports due, they were desperate for a replacement.
Thats when Molly remembered Elaineher stepmum had recently lost her job in a construction company meltdown and was scraping by on odd jobs and peanuts. Elaine was an absolute wizard with numbersMolly had asked her for advice a few times and shed always stepped in, just to be nice.
Elaine joined the firm and immediately plugged every leak in their accounts. Not a single complaint.
Of course, good news travels fast especially the bad sort. Mollys company shared a building with a cleaning service, and one of Jeans mates from her housing estate worked there. It was on an otherwise ordinary Tuesday that this neighbour caught Molly and Elaine sharing a laugh by the coffee machine, plotting their next weekends adventures.
The news went straight to Jean at breakneck speed, and the response was immediate. Jean called Molly, demanded she sack her stepmum and apologise for hiring her in the first place.
Molly, predictably, refused to play along. She wasnt about to ruin both her own and a perfectly pleasant accountants career for the sake of her mums melodrama.
Three long months trudged by. Autumns gold gave way to Novembers biting chill.
On the 28th of November, Molly turned thirty. She had booked the day off, planning to pamper herself and wallow in solitude. Friends and family were lined up for a celebration at the weekend, but deep down, Molly hoped her mother would rememberjust once. Maybe a text, a call. Even just a meme.
She woke up, stretched, tossed aside the duvet, and checked her phone. Endless notificationscolleagues, friends, her dad, even her bank wishing her a happy birthday.
But nothing from her mother.
Jean was still stubbornly pretending her only daughter didnt exist, fully convinced shed soon come crawling with an apology.
No miracles occurred. Honestly, Molly wasnt surprised. People like her mother rarely changed overnightthey just burrow deeper into their own resentment. But, as always, the rejection smarted.
Just then, her phone rang. Elaines smiling face appeared. Molly shook off the morning blues and answered.
Up and at em, birthday girl! Elaine cheered down the line. Happy birthday to our accountant extraordinaire! Heres to perfectly balanced spreadsheets and never a penny out of place!
Thank you, Auntie Elaine, Molly said, tears threatening. She tried to keep her voice steady but it wobbled all the same.
There was a pause. Elaine could read her stepdaughters mind like a novel.
Molly Are you alright? Your mum still hasnt been in touch, has she?
Molly sighed, eyes shut.
No. Not a card, not even a silly joke I know I havent done anything wrong, but honestly, it feels a bit like Ive been deleted from the family tree.
Alright then! No moping allowed today! Elaines voice shifted to her best drill-sergeant-who-bakes-cakes tone. Were nearly ready! Your dads marinated your favourite pork ribs, Ritas gone out to pick up that pistachio cake you like, and were all waiting for you.
Elaine, I really shouldnt I was going to stay in, watch some Netflix. Everythings planned for the weekend, honestly
Nonsense! Youll be here in an hour. Were sending a taxi. And bring an overnight bagwere giving you a lift to work tomorrow anyway, its closer from ours. End of conversation.
Molly grinned in spite of herself.
Alright, Ill come, she said.
Hanging up, she stared at her phone a moment, a genuine smile stretching her lips. The sting of rejection faded, replaced by the warm glow of being wantedmaybe not by the parent fate gave her, but by the family shed found.
She pulled out the emerald dress Elaine had given her months before.
It didnt matter that shed never had the picture-perfect mum. She had a proper, loving family at lasteven if it was stitched together from the most unlikely places. And, in a neat bit of symmetry, Elaine ended up with not one, but two daughters.
To anyone feeling lost: family sometimes turns up where you least expect it, right along with the best cake and the strongest cup of tea.
