Tanya lovingly surveyed her kitchen—tiny, but so cozy and bright.
She remembered how not so long ago, she cried, clinging to the sleeve of her deeply loved husband, when she learned that he had a teenage son from another woman and that he had been meeting the mother of his child for years.
She also found out that the other woman was married and had been cheating on her husband all her life.
Tanya could have kept quiet, not shared what she knew, and they would have continued living together as husband and wife.
But after another family scandal, when she was thrown back against the doorframe by Pashka’s fist, unable to hold back the tears from the pain and insult, she shouted:
«Why are you tormenting me?! Do you think I don’t know that you have a son?! That you’ve been sleeping with that woman for years?!»—everything finally fell apart.
Pavel loomed over her, his two-meter frame of muscle, and… Tanya closed her eyes, expecting another blow or, conversely, excuses from him.
But instead, the man laughed. His laughter was not spiteful, but light and cheerful.
«Yes. You’re right, chicken. There is a son and there is a woman who bore him to me—after all, you couldn’t.»
«So why-why-why?» — Tanya sobbed. — «Why won’t you leave them? Why are you tormenting me, making scandals out of nothing, raising your hand to me?»
«Why? It’s simple—she’s married and we have nowhere to go—she lives in her husband’s apartment from before their marriage, and I… well, I’m with you. Maybe you will leave me the apartment? Huh? Will you go? Let a normal family reunite?» — Pavel was no longer smiling.
The sinister icy cold in his eyes made Tanya’s heart shrink in fear.
But despite everything, she did not want to leave her husband.
Whether it was fatal love for him, just habit, or reluctance to radically change her life and start from scratch, Tanya did not know.
«Why did I, fool, tell him about the son?» — she scolded herself and tried to suppress the conversation as if it never happened at all.
And when Pavel, smirking brazenly, left in the evenings without making up excuses anymore, Tanya tried to stop him—clung to his sleeve and cried: «Pashenka, don’t go.»
But one day the limit was reached—another scandal occurred, the husband loomed over her again, swung his fists, and Tanya saw that he barely held back from hitting her.
This fight, not the most terrible of all, was the last straw.
The woman filed for divorce and for the division of property, which ended with the sale of their small apartment and the division of the money earned equally.
Taking out a small loan, Tanya bought this tiny one-bedroom apartment on the third floor of an old panel building.
Having moved to the new apartment, it was as if the woman returned to her childhood—even the Soviet-era swings and sandbox in the courtyard were preserved.
Even the grandmothers on the bench sat as in the good old days.
Clearly, those Soviet grandmothers had long been in the cemetery, and here was a new generation.
But the essence of their sitting was the same—to gossip about the tenants of their building.
They didn’t miss the new resident—Tanya.
«That one… the one who bought the apartment on the third floor from Zoya…» began Ivanovna. «They say her husband drove her out with a rotten broom, called her a slob and a dirtbag… And she drinks too, apparently…»
«Oh, pshaw… She might bring cockroaches into our building… If there wasn’t already enough trouble… there she goes… walking by… hello, Tanya… Come over here, sit with us…»
But Tanya just greeted them, smiling gently, and walked past. To avoid sin.
She didn’t like these old ladies on the benches ever since she was a child—she knew their venomous tongues.
How nice it was to come home from work, run past them, and find herself in her cozy little apartment!
But this time Tanya stayed late at work—the grandmothers on the bench were already gone—it was the end of November, and it was dark.
The woman leisurely entered the building, lamenting the lack of an intercom and the eerie feeling of ascending the dark, cold staircase.
And she almost screamed in surprise, seeing a man sitting between the second and third floors, leaning against the radiator.
A man around fifty years old didn’t look like a homeless person or an alcoholic. He was dressed in a decent jacket, and it was strange that he was sitting on the floor. Tanya quickly slipped past him and greeted him just in case. As she opened the door to her apartment, she looked back—she felt that the man would jump up, quickly climb the steps, push her, Tanya, into the apartment, and… She didn’t want to think further. With trembling hands, she opened the door and only calmed down after she locked it behind her.
«Ah… It’s so good to be home. It’s warm, cozy…» basking under the hot shower with fragrant foam, she had already forgotten about the «scary» man in the hallway.
The next morning, when she was going to work, there was no one on the staircase landing.
But in the evening, the same man was sitting in the same place again, and this time Tanya wasn’t scared, she even paused.
«You… you must be cold sitting here… What happened? Why don’t you go home? Do you have a home?» she asked and was surprised when the man looked at her.
His look was intelligent, but bewildered. And what finished her off was his childishly innocent smile.
«I don’t know if I have a home… That’s the thing… But don’t be afraid. I’m not here for long. I’ll figure something out and leave…» the man’s voice lacked confidence.
And his face expressed confusion, puzzlement, and even fear.
«Ah, you know what? Come to my place, we’ll have dinner and you can tell me everything… Have some hot tea…» Tanya was about to bite her tongue, frightened by her bold action, but it was too late and so she added, «Actually, my brother is supposed to come soon to fix the tank… it’s leaking…»
Tanya didn’t actually have a brother, but it seemed to her that the fictitious visit of an adult man to her apartment would somehow protect her from any bad intentions of her guest.
«I, of course, am grateful to you. I won’t hide it—I’m very hungry. But… it’s awkward…» the man hesitated.
«It’s awkward to put pants on over your head,» Tanya laughed, relieved.
«Well, yes… and to sleep on the ceiling…» the man’s broad smile made him look much younger.
«Indeed, he’s probably about my age,» thought Tanya, who immediately realized she wasn’t scared anymore—»He’s definitely not a marginal type—they don’t talk like that.»
«There’s the bathroom, wash your hands, and then… do you know how to peel potatoes?»
Half an hour later, Tanya and the man were sitting at the table, enjoying simple food—boiled potatoes drizzled with vegetable oil and fatty herring.
Then they drank tea and Tanya felt like she had known this man, slightly taller than her and unremarkable, for a long time. He somehow seemed like family to her.
«I don’t even know my name,» he answered her first question. «I found myself in a hospital.»
«How and why I ended up there, I don’t remember, only what the investigators and the hospital staff told me.»
«Some kid found me barely alive on the street, returning late from training. He called the police and an ambulance.»
That’s all I know.
But I escaped from the hospital two days ago when I learned that they wanted to commit me to a ‘madhouse’.
Though maybe they should have…
At least there would have been a roof over my head, and food.
But I went for a walk in the hospital park, found a hole in the fence, and here I am…
Wandering the city for the second day…
I hope to find my home or at least some ‘beacon’ and remember everything.
«Mmm… What a story… Let me invent a name for you, we need to call you something, like Oleg… And you will definitely remember your real one! Just watch! And, most likely, you have a family… Maybe they’re looking for you…»
«No one is looking for me. The police would definitely know. And those guys, from the investigative committee, on the contrary, pressured me, forced me to remember. But don’t worry. I’ll walk around for another three days, and then I’ll return to the hospital—let them send me to this… to the m.a.d.h.o.u.s.e.» he ended sadly. «Well, thank you for the dinner and for caring. I’ll go.»
Tanya’s heart clenched at the thought that the man would spend the entire night sitting in a draft, leaning against the radiator.
«Well.. I can’t just leave him to sleep outside.» she tried to reassure herself and suddenly came up with an idea—she took a ladder and pulled a warm jacket—a down jacket—from the mezzanine. «Oleg, take this… it will be cozier for you out there in the cold… And bring it back in the morning.»
The man looked at Tanya strangely, it seemed he wanted to say something, but remained silent, just unsurely took the jacket, thanked her, and went out into the cold hallway.
The next day the woman bought some meat and already invited «Oleg» for dinner without any fear.
«So? Didn’t find the ‘beacon’?»
«Alas… It’s silent… I only remembered my parents and my childhood… My father was small, thin, I guess I look like him… We lived in our own house and I had a little sister… I just don’t remember where that house is!»
«See! You just don’t remember yet! But little by little, you’ll definitely remember everything! Don’t rush to give up, Oleg. They’ll turn you into a vegetable quickly in the m.a.d.h.o.u.s.e.»
«Yes, I understand that. But… I need somewhere to live. Today, an old lady yelled that she would call the police, thinking what if I’m a bandit or a t.e.r.r.o.r.i.s.t—might steal the jars of cucumbers from her basement or even worse, blow up her house. And she will call,» the man bitterly chuckled.
«Ah… You know what… If you want…,» Tanya hesitated, realizing how foolish! Foolish! Reckless! it was to do this, but still she said, «I have a mattress in the basement… We can spread it out there… just remove the table from the niche… After all, you’ll remember everything soon. Let’s find a hypnotist—maybe he can help.»
«But I… I feel uncomfortable. I haven’t been…,» «Oleg» blushed embarrassedly.
«Not washed? Ha-ha-. What’s the problem—there’s the bathroom, here’s a towel, and here’s my tracksuit… We’re about the same height and almost the same build….,» Tanya doubtfully looked at the man’s face. «And you probably need to shave. Here are some disposable razors.»
«Thank you, Tanyush. You’re my guardian angel. You have a heart of gold.»
«Not really. I have an ordinary heart. Just… just somehow I felt terribly sorry for you. You know, like you’re my own… brother.»
«Wow! Only let’s not be brothers. Okay?» «Oleg» looked at the woman seriously and she shyly looked away.
And when he came out clean-shaven, she was stunned by his transformation.
First, Oleg was definitely not older, perhaps even younger than her.
And secondly—such a face could only belong to… a doctor… a scientist… a musician… a writer…
The man flatly refused to spread the mattress in the same room with Tanya.
«I will sleep in the hallway—at least I’ll serve some function… like a watchman.»
Oleg turned out to have golden hands—he fixed all the leaking and dripping taps in the apartment, secured the loose electrical sockets, adjusted the windows from which the wind mercilessly blew.
And when, at the request of a neighbor, he hung up her shelves and paintings, the word about the handyman quickly spread by word of mouth throughout the neighborhood, and he became a local «Man of the Hour.»
At first, he was embarrassed to take money, but then he decided—it was time to stop depending on Tanya.
The relationship with the woman became closer and warmer.
They found many common topics for conversation.
And Oleg kept wondering—why did he remember so much—he remembered even movies and actors in them, books and their characters, names of cities and countries… He knew that the creatures that meow are called cats, and the ones that bark are dogs, he knew that cows give milk, and that birches have white trunks with speckles… He remembered a lot. But about himself—nothing. Even his name was erased from his memory. And he had already gotten used to the new one—as if he had always been Oleg.
Moreover, the man, having seen some movie about hackers on TV, thought about it and… the next day he asked for permission to open Tanya’s laptop, quickly tapping away there.
«You know, it turns out I can write programs…» he was surprised. «Surely this was my profession.»
So he started a side job online, bringing a substantial addition to the family budget.
And one evening, they stayed up late watching a movie, and the woman dozed off, leaning her head on his shoulder.
Oleg carefully… just touched his lips to the top of her hair, smelling like some flowers, and groaned from the overwhelming desire.
He would have held back. He would have stopped. If Tanya hadn’t reached for him with her lips.
From that time, their relationship became full-fledged. Tatyana was on cloud nine—in her previous sad experience of marriage, she couldn’t imagine being so happy in a marriage.
«Fate threw you to me,» she laughed.
«Well, what? I need to legalize myself—I can’t just sit around, I need to get documents and get a job under my own name,» so after the weekend I’ll go through the institutions.
But he didn’t have to go anywhere.
On Saturday, Tatyana’s happy world collapsed.
They were already perceived as a married couple and were invited to a colleague’s anniversary evening in a cafe.
«Meet Oksanka, this is my… m-m-m… husband…» said Tatyana, approaching the celebrant.
«I’m Oleg.» the man extended his hand and suddenly froze, staring at Oksana, and then said confusedly. «I’m sorry.»
His face turned to stone and paled.
«Oleg, what’s wrong with you?» Tanya made an apologetic gesture with her shoulders to the colleague and turned to the man. «Do you feel bad?»
«Yes.. That is, no… Tanyush…I remembered. I remembered everything. Your colleague—she looks very much like my wife. Yes, yes.. I have a wife and a son, a student. And I—Grigoriy S*. And I..yes..exactly so… I worked at a large organization as a programmer… And one day some thug, huge, like a wardrobe, attacked me when I was walking our dog—a little chihuahua… And that’s it. I don’t remember anything else.
«Well, there. I told you that you would remember! Hooray! It happened.» Tanya tried not to show her disarray and despair, close to desperation. «You remember your address?»
«Of course. After all, I was born and raised there. It’s my parents’ apartment. They lived in the city and then moved back to the village, and they left the apartment to me. Just why… Why aren’t they—my wife and son—looking for me?»
«Well, when you return home, you’ll find out everything,» Tanya couldn’t hide her sadness.
«Tanyusha, but I… I don’t want to leave you. Do you understand? I’ve never felt as good and warm as I do with you, not even with my wife. Maybe I loved her when I married her, but definitely not in recent years. Especially since she… she has… Well, never mind… It’s not important.
«Oleg! Oh. that is, Grigoriy, but you still need to go back to her, to your son. And then you two can decide together what to do…»
«Yes, you’re right. Only… Will you take me back?»
«Well… Don’t rush, in any case. Make a measured decision.»
Oleg-Grigoriy left and Tanya cried all evening, pressing his sweater to her lips.
«That’s right. It’s correct. He’s a stranger… Let him have everything good—he’s a wonderful person and deserves happiness.» she tossed and turned, unable to sleep.
A doorbell rang in the morning.
Tanya gasped, seeing Oleg through the peephole with swollen and battered lips and a torn jacket.
«My God! What happened?!» she flung open the door. «Come in.»
The man silently stretched out his arms, grabbed Tanya in a hug, and pressed her to himself.
«Well, that’s it… That’s it…» he said, and his heart thumped in time with his words.
«Imagine, Tanyush, I rang the doorbell, my wife opened it and… squealed from… no, not from joy, not from disarray, but from horror and fear…
«Pasha!!!» she yelled and out of the hallway rushed the very same two-meter thug who had broken me that evening. Broke with the intention that I wouldn’t survive. He even stabbed me with a knife.
«So you survived, you wimp?!» he hissed, seeing me today.
«And I understood everything.
«Tanya, you understand that I’m not Jackie Chan and therefore decided to flee. But where there—he caught up with me, knocked me down, but… this time I was more lucky. And not so him.
—Just then, a patrol car was passing by—well, they caught him.
—It turned out that this was a long-time lover of my wife and they together decided to get rid of me the first time.
—Well, now all this matter will be unraveled.
—That’s how it is.» Grigoriy took Tanya’s fingers into his and gently brought them to his battered lips. «Well, I’ll restore my documents, file for divorce, and… make you an offer. Will you agree?»
«Agree, of course—make… an offer…» laughed Tatyana.
«And your answer will be…?» the man smiled.
«My answer remains a mystery. A woman must be a mystery.»
«Well, come to me, my mysterious beloved..»
While the investigation was ongoing, Grigoriy restored his documents—some were still lying in his apartment, some he made anew. He got back his job, divorced his wife, and evicted her from his apartment.
With Tanya, they filed an application.
The most painful issue was resolved with the son.
During the investigation, it turned out that the boy, whom Grisha considered his son, was not his child at all, but that of the very same «thug»—he was tall and built like him.
«My great-grandfather on my father’s side,» his wife used to say.
But the most offensive thing was that the son knew who his real father was all this time and had been deceiving Grigoriy along with his mother.
Tatyana also faced a surprise in this story.
She came with Grisha to the verdict announcement.
Her eyebrows climbed her forehead when she saw the defendant—the very same two-meter «thug» Pavel.
«It can’t be! It can’t be!» she screamed silently.
«What’s wrong with you?» Grigoriy affectionately embraced his beloved woman. «Told you that you shouldn’t have come with me.»
«It’s P-p-p-pavel… My ex-husband.»
«Oh, what a life twist!» Grigoriy hugged the woman tighter and, encountering the astonished gaze of the accused, proudly straightened his shoulders.
