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Alice had always dreamed of having her own dacha. Not the kind you inherit along with someone else’s memories and worn-out furniture, but one that was truly hers—where she would hammer in every nail herself, where she would know the story of every tree and every bush. She bought the plot three years before the […]

December crashed down on the city unexpectedly early—already in the first days the shop windows of the malls lit up with garlands, and the air smelled of pine needles and tangerines. Marina was walking through the passageway between office buildings, and that pre–New Year bustle felt like a mockery. In her bag lay the payroll […]

“Olga, stop pretending to be a saint!” he snapped harshly. “You live alone in a three-room apartment, while your sister and my son are crammed into a one-room place. Where’s the fairness?” “Maxim is right,” Marina spoke up from the couch, clutching two-year-old Vitya to her. “Olya, you know it’s tight for us. A child […]

Just a little more,” Inga whispered—whether to herself or to the old shoebox from her winter boots that she was reverently pulling down from the top shelf. Her lips stretched into a smile all on their own. It was her monthly ritual, her small sacred ceremony. Counting the money calmed her better than any meditation. […]

— “By the way, I never told you. My folks are coming next week. For about a week.” The words dropped into the kitchen like heavy, dirty stones into a clear stream. Irina froze, her hand holding the carton of milk suspended halfway to the refrigerator. The crinkle of the paper carton against the countertop, […]

— I’m not your son’s servant, and I’m not a punching bag! If you can’t explain to that thick-headed sixteen-year-old that he’s not allowed to talk to me like that, then I’m not cooking for him anymore, and I’m not cleaning up after him either! Let him live in a pigsty and feed himself, since […]

— “Cream, maybe? White is too… hospital-y.” Igor lazily poked at his cheesecake with his fork, thoughtfully eyeing the invitation sample lying on the little table between their coffee cups. Sunlight filtering through the café’s enormous window played over his hair, turning it into a golden halo. Inga watched him, and her heart filled with […]

— “Vitya, your wife didn’t give me the money you promised me! Deal with her yourself as quickly as possible, or I’ll tell everything to our parents and you’ll have to talk to Dad about it!” Alina’s voice—thin and sharp as a shard of glass—hit Viktor at the exact moment he turned the key in […]

— Bought more junk again? Didn’t you need to consult with me first? The words, thrown from the bedroom doorway, hit Alyona like a punch to the gut, instantly knocking the air—and the euphoric high—out of her. Just moments ago, after closing the front door behind her, she had happily set a large, glossy, sturdy […]

Galina Petrovna walked in without knocking—using her own keys, as always. Lena was standing at the stove and didn’t even turn around. “Lenochka, I brought cottage cheese. Real stuff, not that store-bought garbage. I see your fridge is empty—what are you feeding Andrey?” Her mother-in-law went into the kitchen and started unloading groceries. Lena silently […]