Author: admin

Ver, what—did you lock yourself in? Open up!” Igor’s voice was hoarse, irritated. Vera didn’t move. She set her book aside and simply stared at the door that separated her new life from his old one. “Vera! I’m talking to you! What, are you deaf in there? Open up—I said open!” Silence was her answer. […]

“Ilya, we’re getting a divorce.” Anfisa stood facing her husband and looked him straight in the eyes, piercingly. “What do you mean, a divorce?” Ilya struggled to grasp the meaning of his wife’s words. “Ilya, you just don’t get it—you’re living with me, not with your mommy… This can’t go on.” The last thing Anfisa […]

Olga sat in the kitchen, mindlessly poking at a salad with her fork. It had already darkened, turning into some pathetic mix of yesterday’s optimism and today’s exhaustion. Sergey was rushing around the apartment like someone who hadn’t lost his keys, but the meaning of life. Galina Petrovna sat in the armchair by the window, […]

Fyodor Aristarkhovich called for the third time in a row, and only on the third ring did Vera think to pick up. “Miss, are you at home? Some people have come to see you. With tools. They say you lost your keys, and your mother-in-law sent them.” Vera froze with the phone pressed to her […]

Lyuba stood at the mirror, brushing a client’s hair. Edik was supposed to come at six. With rings. Finally. “All right, Maria Ivanovna,” she smiled, taking the cape off the elderly woman. “Goodbye.” The client left, and the salon emptied out. Lyuba stayed alone with the mirrors reflecting her from every angle. Half past six. […]

Anya placed a large platter of roast chicken on the table. The skin was golden, and the air smelled of garlic and herbs. Svetlana Markovna, her mother-in-law, immediately gave an approving little snort. “Now that’s what I call a proper homemaker! The smell fills the whole apartment! Not like our Marina—hers is always either burnt […]

Get your rags out of here—this is junk! We need to clear the room for Lenka!” the mother-in-law demanded, and the husband nodded. But they weren’t expecting the answer they were about to get. Anna was working on lace cuffs. A thin needle obediently dove through the weave of threads, leaving behind a barely visible […]

A sharp, irritated slam of the front door echoed through the apartment, making Vera flinch. She set aside the book she’d been reading, marking the page with her finger. Sergey was back—and from the sound alone it was clear: today was another one of his “Groundhog Days,” when any little thing could set him off. […]