My name is Svetlana, but everyone just calls me Sveta. I am twenty-six years old. And even now, despite the years, I cannot forgive my mother. Not because she was cruel or indifferent—quite the opposite. She did what she believed was right, protecting me and our family. But it was her choice that left a … Read more
“Hi, dear, tired today?” asked Mikhail, helping his wife take off her coat and boots. “A little,” Olga replied. “And my head feels kind of heavy today. I don’t know if I’m getting sick or what…” “We should take your temperature,” her husband fussed. “You lie down for now, and I’ll bring the thermometer. I’ve … Read more
“Listen, son-in-law, no beating around the bush,” said my father-in-law, placing a thick stack of bills on the table. He looked me straight in the eye, as if appraising not a person, but a product. “Here is one million rubles. Divorce Alena and disappear from our lives. Forever.” I silently looked back and forth between … Read more
Near one of the entrances of a modern high-rise building, a car stopped. An elderly woman walking along the driveway began to complain loudly and even swung her cane at the car. “They park like this everywhere, there’s nowhere to step.” She would have kept complaining, but then a charming young man jumped out of … Read more
Svetlana felt like the happiest woman in the world. In just one year, her life had changed beyond recognition. A year ago, she lived with her aunt, who had turned her into a slave. The aunt did nothing around the house or in the garden — she only came home from the street and flopped … Read more
Enough! I’m tired of the constant lack of money!” Kira had been repeating this phrase for the third day, as if trying to find the key to solving the problem. But her thoughts remained tangled, and there was still no plan of action. Kira worked as an assistant to the general director at a gravel … Read more
Dash! Dashunka! Bring us some cold beer and snacks or something!” Oleg shouted loudly from the living room, drowning out the voice of the football match commentator. Darya sighed. She had just come home, still in her outerwear, not even having time to take off her shoes after a long workday. Twelve hours at the … Read more
How wonderfully life is arranged! Yulia was born in this city; it was here that her childhood unfolded. It had been somewhat clouded by her parents’ divorce, and yet the girl had felt happy. Her relationship with her father was good, and her mother, Natalya, did everything for her daughter’s comfort. Yulia remembered that she … Read more
Larisa, come on, let’s go visit my relatives for the May holidays, huh?” Kostya pleaded with his wife in a pitiful tone. “No way! They’ll pull the same stunt again and make us buy the meat! They’re such cheapskates!” Larisa snapped. “But Larisa, why just sit at home? The weather’s great!” “Kostya!” “At least … Read more
Natasha stroked the wooden wall with her palm, feeling the roughness of the old log. This house had witnessed her first steps, her first tears, her first joys. A sturdy, albeit old, village house with a carved porch and a small, well-kept garden had been her sanctuary since childhood. After the death of her grandmother, … Read more