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The evening in the kitchen of their Khrushchev-era flat was not just stuffy – it was suffocating. The air, thick with the fumes of burnt sunflower oil and cheap “Laskovy May” perfume, which Anya had vainly tried to use to drown out the smell of failure, hung motionless like an oily shroud. On the stove, […]

Nadezhda, dear, I asked you not to touch those documents!” my mother-in-law’s voice sounded unexpectedly sharp when I picked up the folder from the table. Svetlana Ivanovna was standing in the doorway of the study, and her usually friendly face twisted in an irritated grimace. She quickly walked over and literally snatched the folder out […]

Part 1 “Valera, you’ve got visitors!” Irina called out when she heard the doorbell ring on Saturday morning. She had just sat down to check her eighth-graders’ tests, spreading the exercise books out on the kitchen table. Sunday was tomorrow, and on Monday she had to submit the academic performance report. Off to the side […]

Raisa stepped off the bus that had brought her and her husband from the village into the city. She looked around and then happily walked a few steps, stretching her legs that had gone numb during the trip. After her, her husband Vasily tumbled out of the warm belly of the bus into the frosty […]

Valya closed her laptop and stretched in her chair. The workday in online sales had gone well—several large orders had brought in a nice profit. Sixty-two thousand a month allowed her to feel confident, especially together with Pavel’s salary. Her husband worked as a driver, earned about fifty-five thousand, and together they had no problem […]

Alla had been wiping the same cups for ten minutes already. Her thoughts were tangled, her hands were trembling. Pavel’s voice was still ringing in her ears: “I’ve filed for divorce. The house will be mine, the money too. You understand yourself: everything’s in my name.” Thirty-two years of marriage. Thirty-two! And all of it—erased […]

I am not cleaning up this mess after your guests!” Karina snapped. “I didn’t invite them, didn’t feed them, and didn’t pour their drinks.” Alexei flinched at the sharpness in his wife’s voice and guiltily looked at the havoc in the gazebo. Empty bottles were lying under the benches, puddles of spilled beer had dried […]

So what’s the problem? Of course we took it. I don’t feel like cooking today, and we’re going to spend the whole rest of the day at home and aren’t planning to go anywhere. So it will all come in handy. You don’t need it anymore anyway, the celebration is over.” Anya and Kostya had […]

Olya sat at the table, trying to keep her hands from shaking. The plate of salad had gone cold, but she hadn’t taken a single bite. Across from her sat Irina Petrovna—imposing, perfectly styled hair, a stern gaze. Andrey was silent, nervously twisting his fork. “Olénka, tell me about yourself,” his mother said in the […]

All our relatives are coming to stay with us for the summer!” Sergey announced happily, bursting into the kitchen with his phone in his hand. I froze with my half-finished cup of coffee. My first thought was, “He’s joking.” The second: “God, anything but this.” “What relatives exactly?” I asked cautiously, hoping he meant at […]