Chapter 1
“You can make 1,500 pesos last the whole month—and even have some left over. If you can't manage that, then you don't know how to run a household.”
Óscar dropped the bills onto the table as if he were paying off a debt rather than sharing a responsibility. Then he straightened his jacket in the hallway mirror, sprayed on some cologne, and checked his brand-new watch.
Mariana remained seated, surrounded by electricity, gas, and water bills, along with a grocery price list. Outside, Guadalajara was waking up to the sound of buses, honking cars, and the tamale vendor calling out his morning sales.
“So these 1,500 pesos are supposed to cover food, soap, toilet paper, Canela's cat food... everything for the entire month?”
“That’s your job, isn’t it?” Óscar replied. “My mother raised three kids with less.”
“Your mother lived in a small town. She had chickens and grew her own vegetables. Here, a kilo of beef costs nearly 200 pesos.”
Óscar gave her an irritated smile.
“I pay the rent and the utilities. You take care of the house. And I expect a proper dinner every night—meat, soup, a full meal. I work too hard to come home to beans.”
Mariana worked too.
For the past six years, she had worked as a records clerk at a public library. During that time, she had paid for part of the groceries, home repairs, medicine, and even some of the furniture.
Yet Óscar spoke as though her modest salary didn't matter.
“I’m not going to make up the difference with my own paycheck,” she said.
“We’ll see how long your pride lasts.”
He slammed the door behind him, convinced he had put everything in its proper place.
That afternoon, Mariana bought milk, eggs, tortillas, rice, beans, pasta, potatoes, soap, and cat litter.
The total came to 462 pesos.
Looking at the receipt, she let out a bitter laugh.
Nearly one-third of the monthly budget had disappeared in a single shopping trip.
That night, she served noodle soup with potatoes.
Óscar dipped in his spoon, smelled the bowl, and frowned.
“Where’s the meat?”
“It wasn’t included in the miracles that come with 1,500 pesos.”
“Find better deals, Mariana. Stop being lazy.”
Over the following days, dinner consisted of Mexican rice, lentils, grilled nopales, potatoes with chili, and homemade beans.
Mariana ate the inexpensive employee meal at the library and quietly deposited her paycheck into a separate bank account.
Óscar, meanwhile, came home smelling like tacos al pastor, hamburgers, or expensive steaks.
He ate out regularly but never contributed another peso toward the household.
Even so, he still inspected the pantry and complained that the cooking oil ran out too quickly.
On Saturday, Mariana decided to clean out the closet.
As she removed one of Óscar’s gray jackets, a folded receipt slipped onto the floor.
Premium Sport Rims: 46,000 pesos
Low-Profile Performance Tires: 28,000 pesos
Total: 74,000 pesos
The purchase had been made just two days before Óscar handed her that humiliating monthly budget.
Mariana sat down on the edge of the bed.
They hadn't been saving money at all.
He had forced her to count every tortilla while spending a fortune upgrading the wheels on his old sedan.
Then she noticed a handwritten note at the bottom of the receipt:
“Deposit paid by bank transfer from Teresa Cárdenas.”
Teresa was her mother-in-law.
Mariana took a photo of the receipt and carefully put the original back where she found it.
The following Thursday, Teresa would be staying at their house while repairs were being done to her apartment.
That evening, Óscar announced that his mother would be arriving earlier than expected and demanded a special dinner.
“I want carne en su jugo, soup, salad, and dessert.”
“There are only 180 pesos left,” Mariana replied.
Óscar slammed his fist on the table.
“Then figure it out! I’m the man of this house, and I expect a decent dinner!”
Mariana glanced toward Canela, who had quietly hidden beneath the sofa.
Then she looked directly into her husband’s eyes.
“All right,” she said calmly.
May you like
“There will be meat.”
Óscar smiled, convinced that he had finally broken her spirit.
