The day Svetlana had imagined in her dreams for many years finally arrived. But instead of the expected relief, she felt her hands trembling with nerves. Fifty-eight isn’t an age for a new life—right? That thought haunted her all morning. She scrutinized herself in the hallway mirror. A strict suit, minimal makeup, hair pulled into […]
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Anna knew in advance that going there was a lousy idea. But Dmitry kept coaxing her in that bored tone of his, as if they were discussing the weather or the dollar exchange rate. “It’s my mom… No need to make a tragedy out of it. We’ll go for a couple of hours—done.” Anna stood […]
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— Inga, I’ve been thinking… Basically, I’ve got an idea how we can get our life on track, — Stas’s voice, full of self-satisfaction and expecting praise, caught her in the kitchen. She was slicing vegetables for a salad, the sharp knife gliding confidently through the firm cucumber, leaving behind perfectly even, fresh-smelling rounds. Inga […]
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— Mom’s been discharged from the hospital. The doctor said she needs home care for at least a week. You’ll go to her tomorrow. Denis tossed his phone onto the couch and went into the kitchen, already mentally closing the matter. He spoke as if he were announcing a scheduled water shutdown or that they […]
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Alina came home after her second shift at the shopping center. Her legs were buzzing, her head pounding with fatigue. Working as a cashier at a grocery store by day and a cleaner in an office building in the evenings drained her to the limit. But Alina saw no faster way to pay off her […]
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My husband quietly transferred everything to his mistress. He had no idea his accountant wife had been preparing a surprise for him for ten years. “Everything’s been transferred. Nothing belongs to us anymore.” Igor tossed out the phrase as carelessly as he used to toss his car keys onto the hall stand. He didn’t even […]
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Anna dried her hands on a towel and stepped back to admire the bouquet of white roses she’d just finished for a loyal client. Outside, a thin October drizzle polished the street to a gray shine; inside, the air was crisp and alive—the complicated perfume of greens and petals she always called “the scent of […]
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Polina studied the new curtains with a careful eye. Powder-blue, sprinkled with tiny flowers—exactly what she’d pictured for the living room. She fussed with the pleats, stepped back a few paces, and allowed herself a small, satisfied smile. “Sergey, what do you think?” she called to her husband, who was slouched in the armchair, face […]
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You won’t get anything in court!” my ex-husband cackled. But when my attorney walked into the hall, silence fell—and he started to cry. His laughter echoed down the empty courthouse corridor—cloying, humiliating. He stood surrounded by his “entourage”: an expensive lawyer with a crocodile-skin briefcase and his mother, who looked at me with forced sympathy […]
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Inna, let’s agree on something right away so there are no hard feelings later. I’ll support you, and in return you won’t lay claim to my property. Everything will go to my children. Deal? my new husband, Artyom, looked at me questioningly. “Deal,” I sighed. We made that arrangement five years ago. I never dreamed […]
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