“I’m sick of you. Sick of your care, your constant fussing, that eternally smiling face. ‘Kostya, your soup,’ ‘Kostya, your slippers,’ ‘Kostya, are you tired?’” her husband mocked bitterly as he bustled about packing his things. “It’s disgusting.

— I’m sick of you. Of your fussing, your constant baby talk, that ever-smiling face. ‘Kostyenchka, your soup; Kostyenchka, your slippers; Kostyenchka, you must be tired,’” her husband mocked as he packed his things. “It’s disgusting! I’m wrapped in your care like in sticky cobwebs. The kids are grown; no one owes anyone anything.” “Do […]

Продолжение...

That evening, Marina was cooking his favorite dinner—pot roast with mushrooms. Over twenty-five years, she had learned all his tastes, habits, and wishes.

After twenty-five years of marriage, Marina’s husband, Alexander, stunned her with news. Over dinner, which she, as always, had lovingly prepared for him, he said flatly, “We need to talk. I’ve filed for divorce, bought an apartment, and I’m taking my things.” When she asked, confused, about their joint property, he only shrugged: “So what? […]

Продолжение...

The husband brought his mistress home and said, “We’ll live together, the three of us.” He didn’t expect me to smile — and offer his mistress a deal…

Vadim didn’t come into the apartment alone. Behind his broad back, as if hiding and peeking out at the same time, stood a young girl. Her hand clenched the strap of an unnaturally bright bag, and her eyes drank in the details of our entryway with greedy curiosity — the massive mirror in an oak […]

Продолжение...

“Switch apartments with your brother—he has a family, and you don’t need such a big place!” the mother insisted.

“Switch apartments with your brother—he has a family, and you don’t need such a big place!” Maria Viktorovna stirred her instant coffee briskly without looking at her son. Andrei tore himself away from his phone. From the next room came the crash of cartoons and shrieking children. The air was saturated with the smell of […]

Продолжение...

When billionaire Ethan Graves pulled into the driveway that afternoon, he was ready for the soundtrack of home—Lily’s laughter bouncing through the courtyard, the splash of the fountain, the soft thud of a soccer ball against stone.

Ethan went rigid. Through the SUV’s tinted glass, his seven-year-old, Lily, stared back at him, face ashen, her small fists thudding weakly against the window. The heat outside hovered near 100°F; the air felt like it could scorch a lung. Maria Lopez, the housekeeper, cried out, “She’s not breathing!” and hurled a rock again. The […]

Продолжение...