Mom, why does Uncle Vanya come over so often?» Artem pondered while playing with his spoon in his soup bowl.
«Because he’s kind and helps us while dad is away at work,» Olga felt her voice tremble with treachery.
The old washing machine noisily buzzed in the bathroom, drowning out the awkward silence. Olga mechanically wiped the shirts, trying not to look at the family photo on the dresser. Sergey was smiling genuinely in it, holding both children in his arms. And she… she was already looking away, as if foreseeing that their life was about to take a wrong turn.
«Mom, the soup is too salty,» five-year-old Anya wrinkled her nose.
«Sorry, sweetheart. I was lost in thought,» Olga sighed, realizing that she had been «lost in thought» quite often lately.
Thirty-two years old, two children, a husband who works away, and silence. Such silence that sometimes she wanted to turn on all the appliances at once, just to avoid hearing her own thoughts. Sergey comes home every three months, brings money, pats the kids on the head, and… that’s it. As if a wall had grown between them made of his fatigue and her loneliness.
«Olga Nikolaevna!» a familiar voice called from the street. «Need any help? I was just passing by…»
«He was just passing by,» Olga smirked to herself. Ivan had been «just passing by» for the third day in a row, as if his farm crew had suddenly moved from the other end of the village right to her house.
«Come in, Van!» she called out, adjusting her hair. «My faucet is leaking!»
Ivan appeared at the doorway, always with that boyish smile. In work clothes, smelling of hay and diesel, but somehow… real.
«Oh, did you make borscht?» he sniffed. «I’m hungry after my shift…»
«Have a seat,» Olga waved dismissively, pulling out a clean plate. «Kids, make some room.»
Artem deliberately moved further away, keeping a watchful eye on his mother. At seven, he sometimes seemed too mature for his age.
«Uncle Vanya, can you fix our swing?» Anya blurted out unexpectedly.
«For such a beauty?» he winked at the girl. «Right now!»
«It’s time for homework,» Olga said sternly, but couldn’t help smiling.
In the evening, when the children were asleep and Ivan was indeed fixing the troublesome swing in the yard, Olga went out «to check on the work.» The stars twinkled unusually brightly, and the air smelled of freshly cut grass and sweet strawberries.
«You know,» Ivan sat down on the fixed swing, «I really don’t just pass by. I make a detour to see you.»
«Van…»
«Just wait,» he waved his hand. «I see how hard it is for you alone. And the kids need someone around, not just once a quarter.»
Olga felt a treacherous pinch in her eyes. Indeed — when was the last time Sergey just fixed something around the house? When was the last time they sat together in the evening and just talked?
«The kids won’t understand,» she said softly.
«They will,» Ivan replied confidently. «As long as you understand yourself.»
In the darkness, his eyes seemed almost black, and his smile a bit sad. Olga suddenly realized that for the first time in a long time, she felt… alive.
Time flew unnoticed. Ivan began to show up more often – to fix a fence, help dig up potatoes. And one day he simply brought a huge bouquet of wildflowers.
«What’s this?» Olga looked bewildered at the daisies and cornflowers.
«It’s because you’re beautiful,» he simply replied.
At that moment, she understood that she was lost. Like a young girl, honestly. She suddenly wanted to wear that summer dress that had been gathering dust in the closet for a year – «nowhere to wear it.» She dug out her grandmother’s old curlers. Even started putting on lipstick in the mornings.
«Mom, you look like a princess today!» Anya exclaimed admiringly at breakfast.
«You’re silly,» grumbled Artem, «she’s doing it for Uncle Vanya.»
Olga choked on her tea. Her son glared under his brows, so much like Sergey that everything inside tightened.
«Don’t talk nonsense,» she tried to keep her voice even. «Eat up, you’ll be late for school.»
But Artem was persistent. In the evening, when she was putting him to bed, he suddenly asked:
«Does dad not love us anymore?»
«What are you talking about?» Olga sat down on the edge of the bed. «Of course, he loves us!»
«Then why does he always leave? And Uncle Vanya is with us?»
She didn’t know what to say. Olga looked into her son’s eyes and felt a tightening of helplessness inside. How to explain to this little person that his dad was somewhere beyond the Arctic Circle, in a freezing trailer, that he fell asleep to the howl of blizzards and woke up in the dark? That the frosts were so severe that phones often didn’t work, and letters took two weeks to arrive? That he hadn’t abandoned them, but on the contrary – was pulling his weight to ensure that Artem could wear new sneakers and Anya could receive the pink bicycle she dreamed of for her birthday?
A lump in her throat prevented her from speaking. Suddenly, she remembered how she met Sergey – young, carefree, making plans for a big house and travels. And now what? A calendar on the wall where she mechanically crossed off the days until his return, and rare phone calls in which there was more silence than words. And this damn waiting, which had seeped into her skin, had become a part of her – like breathing, like walking. You wake up in the morning – you wait. You fall asleep at night – you wait. And she herself no longer remembered when it started or if there was an end to it.
A week later, what she feared most happened. Ivan stopped by after lunch – brought fresh milk from the farm. The kids were supposed to be at school and daycare. But Artem unexpectedly returned home – they had canceled the last lesson.
He caught them in the kitchen. Just talking, but… Ivan was holding her hand, and she was laughing at some joke of his. As if they were alone in the world.
«I’ll tell dad everything!» the boy shouted and ran to his room.
Olga darted between the kitchen and the nursery, not knowing what to do. Ivan quietly left, understanding that it was better not to interfere.
«Sweetheart,» she sat next to her sobbing son, «listen…»
«I don’t want to! You’re a traitor! Dad is working there, and you…»
«Artem, it’s not what you think…»
«Then what is it?» he raised tearful eyes to her. «Why are you always with him?»
At that moment, the phone rang. Sergey. Her heart sank.
«Hello, dear!» her husband’s voice sounded unusually cheerful. «Guess what? I took some leave; I’ll be home in a week!»
Olga felt the room spin before her eyes.
«That’s… that’s great, darling.»
«Is Artem nearby? Hand him the phone!»
Her son snatched the phone from her hands:
«Dad! Daddy! Are you really coming?»
She walked out of the room on wobbly legs. In her head, it spun: «One week. Just a week.»
In the evening, after putting the kids to bed, she sat on the porch when Ivan appeared. He silently sat next to her, pulled out a cigarette.
«Sergey is coming back,» Olga said quietly.
«I know. The whole village knows,» he smiled sadly. «Artem told everyone.»
«What now?»
Ivan took a drag, blew smoke into the dark sky.
«What now… We’ll live. As we lived.»
«Just like that?»
«Did you think I’d ride in on a white horse and carry you off into the sunset?» he laughed humorlessly. «We’re not in a movie, Ol.»
She suddenly got angry:
«So all those talks about how I’m special, that I deserve more…»
«It’s all true,» he interrupted. «Every word. But you have a family, kids. And I… I’m just a lonely guy who fell for the wrong woman.»
The light went on in the house across the street. Neighbor Petrovna was walking her dog and, of course, noticed them on the porch. Tomorrow the whole village would be buzzing.
«You know what’s the funniest thing?» Olga stood up, dusting off her skirt. «I almost believed that you could start over. That the kids would understand that…»
«Mom!» Anya’s voice came from inside the house. «I’m scared!»
Reality reminded itself again. Ivan put out his cigarette:
«Go. They need you.»
«And you?»
«I’ll manage,» he smiled his trademark smile, but his eyes remained sad. «I always have.»
That night, Olga couldn’t sleep. She tossed and turned, counted sheep, even tried reading – useless. Fragments of phrases, looks, touches swirled in her head. Somewhere far to the north, Sergey was packing his things, preparing to return home. And she lay in their shared bed, thinking of another.
In the early morning, she had a strange dream: she and Ivan were walking along the riverbank, followed by the kids throwing stones at them. Small, but sharp. And with each throw, the stones got bigger, heavier…
She woke up to the alarm clock, drenched in sweat. In the next room, the kids were bustling about – Artem was helping his sister tie her braids. He had always been like that – caring, responsible. Just like his father.
«Mom,» he peeked into the bedroom, «I got carried away yesterday. I’m sorry.»
«Come here,» she patted the bed next to her.
Her son climbed under the blanket, snuggled up like in childhood. He smelled of orange toothpaste and just a little bit – of a childhood that was ending too quickly.
«You know,» he said quietly, «I miss dad.»
«Me too, baby,» she kissed his crown. «Me too.»
Three days before Sergey’s arrival, Ivan appeared at the doorstep with a huge box of candies.
«For the kids,» he said, not looking Olga in the eyes. «A farewell gift.»
«Leaving?» she wasn’t surprised at all.
«To Krasnodar. My cousin has been calling me to construction. They pay better than at our collective farm.»
Artem, hearing Ivan’s voice, peeked out of his room. He stood, fidgeted, and then blurted out:
«Will you forget about us?»
Ivan squatted down, face to face with the boy:
«You know, buddy, sometimes adults do stupid things. But that doesn’t mean they’re bad people. Just… sometimes the heart shuffles all the cards.»
«Like in the fool game?» Artem asked seriously.
«Exactly,» Ivan laughed. «Only in life, the loss costs more.»
Anya rushed out at the noise, saw the box of candies, and jumped with joy:
«Hooray! Can we eat them all at once?»
«No,» Olga said sternly, but then softened. «Two pieces after lunch.»
«Stingy-cow!» the girl pouted.
Ivan watched this family scene, and something in his look made Olga’s heart pinch. He could have been a good father. Maybe he still will be – for someone else’s children.
«Well, I’m off,» he stood up, dusted off his knees. «The bus leaves in an hour.»
«Wait,» Olga dashed to the kitchen, took out a jar of her homemade strawberry jam. «Here. Strawberry. You love it.»
Their fingers touched as he took the jar. Just for a moment, but it was enough to turn everything inside out. The silence stretched.
«Uncle Vanya,» suddenly said Anya, «you’re good. It’s a pity you’re leaving.»
«Anya!» Artem scolded his sister.
«What? It’s true! He’s good! But dad is better.»
Ivan laughed, but it was a bit cracked:
«Of course, better. Dad is always better.»
In the evening, the kids took a long time to fall asleep. Artem kept asking about Krasnodar – where it is, how far, do they go to school there. And Anya just snuggled up to her mother and snuffled into her shoulder.
«Mom,» the son suddenly said in a half-dream, «I won’t tell dad. It’s our secret.»
«Sleep, dear,» Olga whispered, feeling tears roll down her cheeks.
Sergey arrived early in the morning, when it still hadn’t dawned. Tanned, thinner, but somehow… bright. The kids clung to him like monkeys:
«Dad! Daddy!»
He pulled out gifts from his bag: a radio-controlled helicopter for Artem, a huge doll for Anya, amber earrings for Olga.
«What’s this?» she was surprised.
«And this is because you’re beautiful,» he said.
She shuddered. The same words, but completely different.
In the evening, after the kids had played and fallen asleep, they sat in the kitchen. Sergey drank tea, Olga sorted through the groats – planning to cook pilaf tomorrow.
«You know,» he suddenly said, «I’ve changed my mind about a lot of things.»
«About what?»
«About us. About how we live. Decided to switch to another schedule – two weeks at a site closer, two here. They pay less, but…»
«Really?» she couldn’t believe her ears.
«Really,» he paused. «I see how hard it is for you alone. And the kids need a father, not just his money.»
Olga looked at her husband and didn’t recognize him. No, he hadn’t changed outwardly, but something imperceptibly different had appeared in him. Something… familiar?
«Listen, who fixed the fence?» he suddenly asked. «Well done.»
«A neighbor helped,» she answered evenly. «Ivan. He left for Krasnodar yesterday.»
«Pity. Wanted to thank him. For looking after you.»
She nearly dropped the jar of rice. Sergey got up, came up behind, embraced her shoulders:
«Ol, I understand everything. Really.»
And she burst into tears. For the first time in a long time – out loud, burying her face in his chest. And he stroked her hair and murmured:
«What are you, silly. Everything’s fine. Now everything will be fine.»
A month later, a postcard arrived from Krasnodar. It had just three words: «Thanks for the jam.» Olga burned it in the stove, and the ashes were scattered by the wind. Along with what could have been, but didn’t happen.
In the evening, they took the kids to a carnival that had come to a nearby village. Artem proudly carried cotton candy, Anya squealed on the rides, and her husband… just held her hand tightly.
«Mom, look – a shooting star!» Artem suddenly shouted. «Make a wish!»
«And I’ve already made all my wishes,» Olga smiled. «And they’ve come true.»
