Anna sank back into her business-class seat and closed her eyes. The plane was descending, and in half an hour she’d be in her hometown—somewhere she hadn’t seen in six months. Six months of grinding work, negotiations, endless reports, and sleepless nights spent hunched over balance sheets. But it had been worth it: last month […]
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Alice stood in front of the mirror, adjusting the curls she’d spent ages perfecting. Her sea-green dress hugged her figure with effortless elegance, and her makeup was flawless—she’d booked a professional artist on purpose, even though she usually did it herself. Tonight had to be perfect. It simply had to. “You’re breathtaking,” Ilya murmured, wrapping […]
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The bonus blindsided me. Right before lunch my boss called me into his office and handed me an envelope, smiling like a man who’d just done a good deed. I didn’t even understand at first what it was for—maybe for the annual plan we’d beaten by twenty percent, maybe simply because it was that pre-New […]
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Anton was zipping up the very last zipper on his travel bag when Lena walked into the room with her phone in her hand. The look on her face told him instantly—something had happened. “Your mother called,” she said quietly—too quietly. “She wished you a good trip. Said she’s so happy for us. And that […]
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Olga closed the door of the notary’s office and stepped outside. An autumn wind tousled her hair, and yellow leaves rustled beneath her feet. In her hands was a folder of documents—certificates of inheritance rights. Five apartments. Everything her mother had left behind. Four months had passed since the funeral. Four months of paperwork, office […]
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Irina stood by the window, staring at the gray October clouds. Outside the glass, the first yellow leaves slowly spun down from the poplars in the courtyard. The apartment where she had spent her childhood and youth had now become her only refuge. Three years earlier, her mother had signed it over to her as […]
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October evening settled over the city with early twilight. Olya came home from work exhausted, kicked off her shoes in the entryway, and went to the kitchen, where she started reheating dinner. Dmitry was sitting at the table, scrolling through something on his phone and sighing now and then. Lately those sighs had become a […]
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November twilight fell over the city early, and Elena, on her way home from work, kept catching herself thinking that the day had barely had time to begin. The bus crawled through traffic, and outside the window a fine drizzle blurred the streetlights into dull smudges. Elena sat by the window, running through her mental […]
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— Mom, I don’t understand anything. How is this possible?! — Olga looked at her mother in disbelief. — I don’t understand anything either! — her mother, usually restrained and calm, was clearly nervous. — I’m telling you again! Five years ago I put money in this bank on deposit, with interest, and now I […]
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Diana stood in the kitchen, staring at the screen of her phone. A message from her mother-in-law, Alla Gennadyevna, glowed like an unnaturally bright spot in the evening half-darkness: “Pasha, just a reminder: my birthday is on Saturday at 6:00 p.m. I’m expecting you and Seryozha. The table will be lavish. Ask Diana on my […]
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