— Are you waiting for someone? — her voice sounded even, without a trace of excitement.
Taras looked up, and his face showed neither surprise nor confusion. He simply smiled.
— You, of course.
— Me? — Olesya felt as if the ground were slipping from under her feet. — Or, perhaps, Zhanna?
— All men are the same, — Anna lowered her voice to a whisper, as if sharing a secret. — Every single one! At some point they get bored, and they start seeking… new sensations.
— Ulyana caught her Renat with some girl yesterday! Ten years of marriage—and everything’s gone to the dogs! — Anna, indignant, placed her cup on the table and glared at her friend, waiting for a reaction.
Olesya shook her head. She loved Anna, but sometimes her friend got too carried away with other people’s problems. Olesya didn’t know Ulyana and Renat very well—they had met a couple of times at mutual gatherings.
— Poor Ulyana… And what, did you catch them right in the bedroom? — Olesya stirred her now-cool tea with a spoon, feeling a strange awkwardness.
— No! She happened to see them in a restaurant. Imagine—walking hand in hand, and that girl was very young! A student, I think, a freshman, — Anna moved closer. — Ulyana had long suspected something. Renat seemed to have changed—started staying late at work, cloaked in secrets. And weekends—always some business meetings! On Sunday, can you imagine?
Olesya absentmindedly nodded, lost in her own thoughts. Taras, too, had been staying late more often… But he really had a lot of work. He’d been promoted recently.
— All men are like that, — Anna lowered her voice again. — Every single one! At some point they get bored, and they seek… new experiences.
— Don’t talk nonsense, — Olesya weakly objected. — Taras isn’t like that.
Anna leaned back in her chair and raised her eyebrow skeptically.
— Oh? And you’re sure?
Olesya felt a wave of irritation rising within her.
— Absolutely. We’ve been together for ten years. We have two wonderful children.
— So what? Ulyana and Renat have a child too. It didn’t stop them.
— Taras loves me, — Olesya stated firmly, though somewhere deep down a treacherous shadow of doubt had crept in.
Anna smirked, as if reading her friend’s thoughts.
— How about we test your husband? — she suggested. — Then you’ll know if he’s faithful to you!
— What nonsense? — Olesya frowned. — I’m not going to spy on my own husband.
— Who said anything about spying? — Anna leaned forward. — There’s an easier way. We’ll create a fake profile of some beauty, send him a message, and see how he reacts…
— No! — Olesya decisively pushed the cup aside. — That’s… unfair. And besides—I trust him.
— Oh, come on, — Anna said dismissively, nodding. — Ulyana trusted him too.
The first signs of doubt seeped into Olesya’s mind like water through a cracked dam. Little details that she’d previously overlooked suddenly took on a sinister meaning.
Taras had indeed been staying late at work more often. Sometimes she tried calling him in the evening, but he wouldn’t answer. “Meeting,” he would briefly explain afterward.
Ten years of marriage had passed in the blink of an eye. She had met Taras at university—he was studying law, and she was at the psychology department. She was drawn to his confidence, some inner dignity. He didn’t flirt with her like other guys; he simply invited her to the movies—politely and directly. Then there were three years of dating, and now ten years of life together.
They argued, of course. Especially hard was it after Arseniy was born—Olesya couldn’t cope with her new role as a mother, and Taras wasn’t ready for the fact that a child demanded so much attention. Their second child, Maya, was born once they had overcome the crisis and learned how to be parents… And then things got difficult again.
Now Arseniy is five and Maya is three. The children are wonderful, but there’s almost no time left for herself. And most importantly—time for them as a couple. When was the last time they went out together? Six months ago? A year?
Olesya often caught herself thinking that she was gradually turning into a machine, running on a loop between work, laundry, cooking, and putting the children to bed. And Taras increasingly sat on his phone, replying to work emails even on weekends.
Right now—the children had finally fallen asleep, and Taras was in the living room, absorbed in his smartphone, typing something intently. Olesya approached quietly, but he still heard her—and immediately turned off the screen.
— Waiting for someone? — her voice sounded unexpectedly even.
Taras looked up—and his face showed not the slightest hint of surprise or confusion. He simply smiled.
— You, of course.
— Me? — Olesya felt as if the ground were slipping from under her feet. — Or, maybe, Zhanna?
Taras sighed, took out his phone, unlocked it, and handed it to her.
— I knew it was you and Anna from the beginning.
On the screen, the chat with “Zhanna” was open. Olesya quickly scanned the latest messages and chilled—Taras was directly asking if that profile belonged to his wife.
— But… how did you figure it out?
— First, the photos. I recognized the girl from them. At first I thought I must be mistaken, but no, I definitely saw her. Then I remembered where—I saw her at Arseniy’s birthday, remember? A long time ago, of course, but you know I have a good memory for faces. To be sure, I even looked through the photo album on Anna’s page from that birthday. Secondly, the style of communication. Anna has a very distinctive way of writing, with those endless exclamation marks.
Olesya sank into the chair opposite her husband, feeling a lump form in her throat.
— And you still agreed to meet? And bought flowers?
— I decided that since you started this game, I might as well see it through, — Taras shrugged. — Besides, today is a special day for us. Or did you forget?
Olesya frowned, feverishly trying to remember. What had she missed?
— Ten years and one month since our wedding, — Taras reminded gently. — We missed our anniversary because of my business trip, remember? I promised we’d celebrate it when we had the chance.
— But you said in that… in the chat… that you were free, — Olesya still couldn’t believe it.
— I decided to play along. I wanted to see how far you’d go, — his voice carried a hint of hurt. — And frankly, I didn’t expect you to actually set up such a test. I never thought you would distrust me so much.
Olesya felt her cheeks flush with shame.
— I… — she stammered. — Anna mentioned Ulyana and Renat, and I just… began to doubt. Lately, you’ve been working so much; we hardly see each other…
Taras looked at her intently, and Olesya couldn’t tell what lay behind that gaze—hurt, disappointment, or something else.
Suddenly, a young woman with a folder of documents approached their table.
— Sorry for being late, — she said, extending her hand to Taras. — The traffic was just awful. All the documents are ready; we can start discussing the details.
Olesya looked at the woman in confusion, then at her husband.
— This is Karina, the realtor, — Taras explained. — I wanted to surprise you. We’ve been looking at a new apartment—spacious, with separate rooms for Arseniy and Maya.
— A new apartment? — Olesya echoed.
— Yes, I… — Taras faltered, noticing the expression on his wife’s face. — Is something wrong?
Karina shifted her bewildered gaze from Taras to Olesya.
— Maybe I’ll come by later? — she suggested delicately.
— Yes, please, — Taras nodded, and after waiting until the realtor stepped away, he turned to Olesya. — I’m sorry, I didn’t think it would turn out like this.
— No, you should be the one apologizing, — Olesya felt tears welling up in her eyes. — I’m such a fool…
Taras sighed, then silently retrieved a small envelope from the bouquet and handed it to her. Olesya looked at her husband in confusion.
— Open it, — he said softly.
With trembling hands, she opened the envelope. Inside was a card, on which Taras had written in his own handwriting: “To my beloved wife on the tenth anniversary of our family. Thank you for our two wonderful children and for every day by your side. Forever yours, Taras.”
Tears streamed down Olesya’s cheeks, smudging her carefully applied makeup.
— I’m sorry, — she whispered. — Forgive me…
Taras handed her the bouquet.
— I knew you’d come. This bouquet was always for you, — he said quietly. — It’s just a pity that you came not as a loving wife, but as an investigator.
And his words carried so much bitterness that Olesya felt her heart tighten with pain.
At home, it was quiet. Nonna had put the children to bed and left. Taras silently walked into the living room while Olesya placed the bouquet in a vase, at a loss for words. A tense silence hung between them like a fog.
— Taras, — she finally said, gathering her courage. — I know I acted foolishly. But I thought…
— That I was like Renat? — he bitterly smiled, not looking at her. — That ten years of marriage meant nothing?
— No, of course not! — Olesya stepped closer. — It’s just that lately you’ve always been disappearing, constantly on your phone…
Taras gave her a tired look.
— I was saving up for the down payment on an apartment. I took on extra projects, consulted on weekends. And on the phone, I was corresponding with realtors, looking at options.
Olesya felt the lump in her throat returning.
— I didn’t know… You never mentioned any of this.
— I wanted to surprise you. I thought you’d be happy.
— With what? Complete absence of attention? After Maya was born, I already felt insecure. The children, the household, everything was on me. I felt like I’d neglected myself—always in loungewear, exhausted… And I thought—you were looking at me differently. And then these endless extra projects. We sometimes only saw each other for about twenty minutes over weeks: you’d come, have tea, and then sleep. That’s it! And then Anna with her “let’s test him.” I refused at first, but then you didn’t come home on time even once during the week. What was I supposed to think?
Taras finally turned to her.
— Olesya, that’s nonsense. I look at you just as I did ten years ago.
— Really? — she raised her tearful eyes to him.
Taras nodded, and at that moment Olesya’s phone rang. Anna. Olesya dismissed the call.
— Don’t you want to talk to her? — Taras asked.
— Not now, — Olesya shook her head. — I… I still blame her. If it weren’t for her idea of that stupid test…
— Don’t blame Anna, — Taras said unexpectedly softly. — The problem wasn’t her. The problem was your doubts. And my busy work schedule. I was so caught up in the idea of surprising you that I didn’t think about how it would look from your side.
Olesya idly ran her finger along the edge of the vase with the flowers, then took out the card and re-read it.
— You know what struck me the most? — she said quietly. — That you signed that card while preparing for our meeting. You knew I would come, that I had set up that stupid test, and yet you continued to love me.
Taras put his arm around her shoulders.
— Do you want to see photos of our potential new apartment?
Olesya nodded, feeling the weight of the past few days finally recede.
Taras took out his tablet and began showing her photos of a spacious, bright apartment. And as they discussed the layout of the rooms and the view from the window, Olesya felt the warmth between them gradually return—a warmth she had feared lost forever.
That evening, Olesya realized a simple truth: true fidelity cannot be tested—it can only be believed in.
