Nadya was wiping her hands on her apron when the doorbell rang. The third time that day. First the mailman, then some electrician who’d gotten lost. “Misha, the door!” she shouted toward the living room. No answer. He’d cranked the TV up again—ever since retirement, had he gone completely deaf or what? Nadya walked to […]
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Are you serious?” Vera froze, unable to believe her ears. “Repeat what you just said.” “You heard me perfectly well,” Dima said, nervously drumming his fingers on the table. “Mom is really upset about your behavior. This is the only way to make up for it.” Vera took a deep breath, trying to calm down. […]
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— Are you serious? — Liza stopped in the kitchen doorway, staring at the sink piled with dirty dishes. — Anton, you promised you’d at least wash the plates. — I’m tired, — her husband muttered without looking up from his phone. He was sprawled on the living-room couch, feet propped on the armrest. — […]
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On the stairwell landing, she ran into her neighbor—old Nina. “Oh, Lyudochka! Suitcases? Where are you off to?” “On a business trip,” Lyuda muttered, squeezing past. “A business trip, huh? Then why’s your Misha been prowling around with that blonde? Third day in a row I’ve seen her!” “None of your business!” “Oh-oh, look at […]
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“Who the hell are you?” Alla stared, bewildered, at the striking young blonde. The blonde was wearing Alla’s favorite white robe. “Why the hell are you wearing my robe? Who are you, anyway? What are you doing in my house?” Alla clenched her handbag and glared at the woman with hatred. It was finally sinking […]
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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. […]
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“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 […]
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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, […]
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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 […]
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— “Katya, when do you get paid? On Friday, right?” Katya stopped in the doorway of the entry hall, her keys still in her hand. Pasha came out of the room; his phone glowed in his palm. It was December 20th, eight in the evening. A blizzard raged outside, but inside it was warm and […]
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