And you just left everything to them?» Katya saw her friend looking at her with an uncomprehending gaze. «You won’t go to the notary and fight for your rights? Katya, what are you thinking?»
Katya shrugged.
«Natulchik, what rights? Seryozha and I weren’t married. So nothing belongs to me,» Katya sighed. «Nothing.»
«But you fixed up his dacha and bought a lot for the house,» Natasha persisted.
«Yes, I did. And I bought a lot for the house too. But technically, the apartment is not mine, it’s his. The dacha is not mine, it’s his. And Svetlana said I could take whatever I wanted.»
«Well?» Natasha drew out the word.
«I took the painting. The one I bought when we were vacationing by the sea.»
«That’s it?»
«That’s it! Who needs the rest of the trinkets? They won’t bring Seryozha back…,» Katya lowered her eyes. «And I did tell him, begged him not to work so much. But he just laughed, saying, ‘I’m not working; I’m on vacation.’ What kind of vacation? It’s all just stress…»
«Kaaat…I’m so sorry…really.»
«It’s okay. Now I need to move on,» Katya tried to encourage herself.
«And what do you plan to do?»
«I’ll move back into my own apartment. Good thing I didn’t sell it but rented it out. And good that Svetlana allowed me to live in this one. I’ll get it in order. And I’ll look for a job. Now there’s no one else to take care of me,» Katya explained.
«Do you have any money?» Natasha clarified.
«A little. I didn’t specifically save up, but I should have. Well, it will be okay!» Katya tried to smile through tears.
A few weeks later, Katya re-entered her old small apartment. She brought in her things, collapsed on the bench in the hallway, and cried. It’s not that she never wanted to return here, no. Katya cried because her beloved Seryozha wasn’t with her and never would be again. And if there, among everyone, she held herself together, here, on her own territory, she could express what she truly felt.
Later, she wiped away her tears, went into the room, and ordered groceries.
Katya sat on the sofa and listened to the trills of the phone. Someone was calling her, both at the apartment and on her mobile phone. And Katya, of course, guessed who this «someone» was, but she couldn’t bring herself to answer.
«Leave me alone…,» she whispered faintly. And, oh wonder! The calls stopped. There was silence for about 2 minutes and then a doorbell rang again, echoing the phone’s ring.
Katya held her head in her hands.
«Leave me alone!» she shouted into the void.
But the calls did not end.
Finally, Katya gathered her courage, got up from the sofa, and took small steps toward the front door. How long she walked, she didn’t know. But those calls! They kept stopping and starting again. And Katya felt that if she didn’t go and open the door, they would never end.
And there’s the door…
Katya flung it open, and into the apartment burst Natasha.
Who else could it be?
«Are you out of your mind?» she yelled. «Why aren’t you answering the calls? Why?»
Katya shrugged. Natasha looked around and realized that Katya hadn’t unpacked the things she moved from Sergey’s apartment…. Then she went into the kitchen and saw that Katya had ordered groceries and the courier had delivered them, but she hadn’t put them in the fridge, and they just stood next to it, probably all spoiled now….
«Have you not eaten anything all this time? My God!» Natasha wanted to say more, but she waved her hand. «Alright, I’ll sort everything out now and make something to eat, and I’ll stay with you.»
«Why?» Katya was surprised.
«Just because. Consider me a poor relative who begged to stay with you.»
After some time, Katya felt better, and Natasha moved out.
«Katya, start looking for a job. Update your resume. Understand?»
Katya nodded. Of course, she understood everything, especially that Natasha was right: she definitely needed a job, or her money would soon run out.
And Katya updated her resume and, moreover, responded to all possible job vacancies and started waiting for some interesting job offer. But employers were not lining up to hire her.
«Who would have doubted that this would happen, Kat?» said Natasha. «Look at how long you’ve been out of work! Everything has probably changed now. You need to register at the employment office.»
«At the employment office? Are you joking?»
«Not at all. Of course, they’re unlikely to offer you a decent job there, but there you can get some training for free. Update your knowledge, so to speak,» Natasha explained. «Katya, promise me that you’ll register at the employment office,» Natasha folded her hands as if in prayer.
«Alright,» muttered Katya and sighed heavily. «Although my intuition tells me that I have nothing to do there.»
Katya filled out a form, took a ticket, and sat opposite the consultant.
«What a long break you’ve had from work!» said the consultant.
«Is that bad?»
«Well, of course! We can’t offer you anything in your field.»
«Do you have any training programs?» Katya looked meaningfully at the consultant.
She nodded.
«Yes, of course. After me, go see that girl over there,» the consultant waved her hand somewhere at the end. «She’ll tell you everything. But keep in mind that all these programs start only after the new year.»
«That’s a pity…,» Katya stretched the word.
«Now, since I’ve already registered you, here’s a list of vacancies for the week that you must process,» the consultant handed a sheet of paper to Katya.
«What does ‘process’ mean?» Katya was surprised.
«It means you need to call, arrange an interview, and show up for it. And there, if you fit, they’ll take you, if not, I’ll see you in a week,» the consultant smiled.
«Okay. Thank you,» Katya got up and walked away. Then she looked at the vacancies offered by the consultant and realized that they were not suitable for her. First, they offered her a cleaning lady position, and secondly… for such a salary, even a cleaning lady wouldn’t work.
Katya sighed and walked out onto the street.
Katya hesitantly entered the territory of the clinic. Actually, she was dissatisfied. Well, let them have offered her only cleaning lady vacancies, but here, for example, she would have to work among people who were sick. And they could certainly infect her. And all this for a pittance!
«You suit us,» the HR department declared. Katya cringed…
«To be honest, I’m afraid you don’t suit me. You can’t live on your salary.»
«Alright, then I’ll write that you didn’t fit,» the girl from HR looked regretful. But Katya was relieved: if everyone kept rejecting her, she could easily last until the new year.
The next place of employment was a social center. Firstly, it was very far away. Secondly, it was located next to a railway station in some kind of industrial area. And while Katya was getting there, she met a bunch of shabby-looking men.
«How do they walk here?» Katya thought. Really, how? After all, only in the summer is it light in the evenings, but in autumn, winter, and spring it’s dark…
But that was the least of the problems.
When Katya entered this social center, such a stench hit her nose that it almost turned her stomach inside out. How she found the necessary office, how she persuaded them to write her a rejection, she herself did not know. But after visiting this center, she realized that such work was not for her.
Then there was a job offer at a nursing home, then at a hospital, then somewhere else…
After visiting all these places, Katya became sad. Because maybe in an ordinary hospital or nursing home she wouldn’t mind cleaning floors, but not for such a salary.
«Probably that’s why there’s a high turnover in such places,» Katya thought. «People go there out of desperation.»
Then came New Year. But it brought no hope to Katya because the training she wanted to undergo was canceled, and her finances were dwindling rapidly.
Katya aimlessly wandered around the neighborhood. She didn’t know why she was doing it, but her intuition wouldn’t let her sit at home. Katya entered a store and, of course, heard that they were hiring people. Maybe she should try? Well, what does she have to lose?
A short interview with the director and—you don’t fit.
Katya understood that it was because of her age.
«I didn’t really want it,» she muttered.
Then she approached a shopping center in some branded store and again a rejection—not the right look.
Then somewhere else… and again… and everywhere rejections and rejections.
«Well, it seems that a cleaning lady is not the worst option,» decided Katya. And, as if by magic, she saw an ad that they needed a cleaning lady in a commercial firm and boldly entered inside. For some reason, she was sure they would hire her.
And 20 minutes later she was calling Natasha.
«Yes, Natasha, congratulate me. I found a job. No, not in my field. Well, as what? A cleaning lady of course. Only the pay is higher than in those vacancies they offered me. I start tomorrow.»
Time passed. Katya not only got used to the job, on the contrary, she began to like it. Judge for yourself, isn’t it beautiful, when you are free all day and come only at the end of the workday and your task is only to wash the dishes, if there are any, wipe dust everywhere, and wash the floors. Yes, it’s a breeze! Especially when you just need to maintain cleanliness.
That day Katya, as usual, entered the office, greeted the girl sitting at the reception, and went to change clothes. Yes, she didn’t want to attract attention, so her clothes were always dark, simple, and she wore a scarf on her head.
Employees reacted to her differently. Some smiled and greeted her, some just passed by, and some watched with condescension and disdain. Yes, Katya understood that many thought that being a cleaning lady was a «shameful» job and it made her laugh: after all, everyone does this work at home.
Zhanna snorted:
«Oh, there’s our cleaning lady.»
She took a piece of paper, tore it into small pieces, and threw it on the floor. «Here, clean it up.»
Yes, if Katya had been a young girl, she would have been outraged and would have entered into a conflict, but now, when she was already a mature woman, she didn’t care. Well, torn and torn… Well, thrown and thrown… No problem. Katya had to clean this room anyway.
«Zhanna, you are behaving disgustingly!» Jeanne’s colleague Marina said deliberately loudly.
«Oh, someone decided to stand up for the cleaning lady?» Zhanna’s voice was mocking. Zhanna took another sheet and tore it again, throwing it so that all the small pieces scattered across the floor.
«Leave the office, I need to clean the floors,» Katya said deliberately rudely.
«See! Our cleaning lady thinks I’m behaving normally,» Zhanna stuck out her tongue at Marina, turned off her computer, grabbed her bag, and fluttered out of the office.
«Excuse her,» Marina’s voice was upset.
«It’s alright,» Katya waved it off. «Not all people appreciate the work of cleaning ladies when they are young. Understanding comes later.»
«Yes, of course. I understand,» Marina nodded her head. And then she left, and Katya was left alone.
Katya cleaned the office, and then, at the very end, entered the director’s office. She took a rag and started to wipe the dust, picking up objects lying on the table and putting them in their place. Then she picked up a contract and decided to wait a bit for the table to dry. And by inertia, she started reading it—after all, a long time ago, she was actually a lawyer and reading contracts was her duty. Then Katya found a pencil and underlined the «slippery» parts of the contract in her opinion: at least she would not have let such a contract pass. Then she came to her senses, literally threw the contract away from herself, and continued cleaning.
Time passed. Several more times Katya read the contracts left in the director’s office and underlined the parts she didn’t like. Although the last contract was perfect and on it, Katya drew a smiley face with a pencil.
In the evening, Katya came to work, as usual. She took off her outerwear, tied her scarf, and took in her hands a mop, rags, and a bucket.
«Ekaterina Andreevna,» she was stopped by the secretary. «On Friday we have a corporate party and you are invited. Here, take the invitation.»
«Thank you,» Katya smiled. She mechanically put the invitation in her pocket and went on to clean.
Actually, she didn’t plan to go, but Zhanna, as usual, started to needle her and disparage her work. And also, as usual, threw things on the floor and even spilled some tea on her desk. Marina, too, as usual, tried to put Zhanna in her place. And then Katya decided that she would definitely go to this corporate party and show her that cleaning ladies are ordinary employees too and they are also respected like everyone else.
Katya twirled in front of the mirror.
«Well, Natasha? How do I look?» she asked.
Natasha smiled.
«Generally good. Just understand that your Zhanna is 26, and you are already 53. She’ll take you with youth.»
«I’m not trying to overshadow her or anything… I just want to show that even a cleaning lady can look good. Just like their chief accountant, who, by the way, is my peer. Just like a couple of managers who are about 50. I am just like everyone else,» Katya tried to explain.
«Katya, to hell with that Zhanna. Just go and have a good time,» said Natasha.
Katya quietly entered the hall and sat at the very back. At first, the director gave a speech, and at the end of his speech, he started calling some employees and handing them a certificate for excellent work and some kind of gift. To Katya’s surprise, they also called her and she walked on cotton legs to the stage.
«I don’t understand, for what?» she quietly asked the director.
«For what? — he was surprised. — Of course for work. We can’t do without your cleaning,» he whispered quietly.
And Zhanna got neither a certificate nor a gift. Katya didn’t know if it hurt her or not, but passing by Zhanna, she unexpectedly stuck out her tongue. Well, yes, childish, but Zhanna blushed from it.
«You also got a bonus transferred,» Marina whispered, who sat down next to Katya.
Katya nodded her head. Then the official part ended and everyone moved to the banquet hall.
«You go, Marina. I’ll catch up,» said Katya: she somehow didn’t want to go to the banquet.
Marina disappeared from view, and Katya headed for the exit from the building.
«Ekaterina Andreevna!» she suddenly heard a voice behind her and turned around—it was the director himself.
«And where are you going?» he asked.
«Home,» Katya honestly admitted.
«Home?»
«Well, yes. I don’t really like the banquet part at corporate parties,» said Katya.
«Maybe then we’ll go to a cafe and have a cup of tea?» the director suggested.
«You and me?» Katya was surprised.
«What’s so strange about that? We have something to discuss,» the director shrugged. «For example, the fact that someone is reading contracts in my office…,» the director looked meaningfully at Katya.
«Dmitry Igorevich… I didn’t mean to. Really.»
«You are a lawyer?» asked Dmitry Igorevich.
«Yes. Only I haven’t worked in the field for a long time, and I’m of pre-retirement age…,» Katya spread her hands.
«You can’t tell by your age. Well, how about tea, do you agree?»
«I agree,» Katya nodded her head and smiled. She didn’t know where this meeting would lead and what would happen to her, Katya, next, but she felt that changes were coming. And her intuition had never let her down.
