Nataliya heard the familiar voice in the stairwell before the doorbell even rang. Larisa Nikolaevna always spoke loudly, as if the whole world needed to know what was happening in the family

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Nataliya heard the familiar voice in the stairwell even before the doorbell rang. Larisa Nikolaevna always spoke at full volume, as if the entire building had a right to know what was going on in her son’s marriage. Her voice bounced off the concrete walls, mixing with the sharp clack of heels on the steps. … Read more

Tanya didn’t reach for her wallet. And the relatives’ faces fell—they’d grown way too used to freebies

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The sun had only just begun to reach into the cramped kitchen of a typical two-bedroom apartment—one Tanya had bought with a mortgage three years earlier. Winter kept pushing in through the windows, but the radiators worked faithfully, filling the place with a steady, cozy heat. Tanya sat with a mug of coffee, sorting through … Read more

“So you left for another woman, and I’m supposed to keep taking care of your mother?” Lyuda sneered

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Three years earlier, everything began with a fall. Lyuda’s mother-in-law, Antonina Semyonovna, slipped at home and fractured her hip. A call from the hospital in the dead of night. Panic. Paperwork. Endless waiting rooms and doctor queues. Lyuda bounced between her job and the hospital halls, while her husband, Viktor, only sighed and kept repeating … Read more

“We’ve decided to come to you for New Year’s,” her mother announced with a triumphant note. “So get ready. At least five days.”

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“We’ve decided we’re coming to your place for New Year’s,” her mother declared, almost ceremonially. “So start preparing. Five days, at the very least.” “Hold on… what? For New Year’s? To our place? But… we agreed with our friends a month ago… We’re all celebrating together.” Veronika was standing at the stove, stirring soup. In … Read more

First earn your own money, and only then start throwing it around left and right! Do you really think I don’t know who earns money in your family?

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“First earn your own money—then you can fling it around left and right! Do you think I don’t know who actually brings money into your family? Of course you’re the one who spends it! And my dear Dima is still driving that old heap. You’ve drained him dry!” Zhenya woke up early, with that familiar, … Read more

“I’m not going to sit at home. Especially since… I got promoted. I’m the head of the department now.”

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— “I’m not staying at home. Especially since… I was promoted. I’m the head of the department now.” — “How is that even possible?!” he finally exploded, slamming the words down as if he’d hit the table. “It’s… it’s YOU! Just Sveta. Ordinary Sveta. Our Sveta. Why would they promote you? Huh? Who did you … Read more

I arrived at the dacha and found a party: my ex–mother-in-law was celebrating her anniversary as if the place belonged to her

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“I need to get out to the dacha—urgently. Check how the house made it through the winter,” Irina said, glancing at the calendar and trying to figure out when she could finally escape the city. Spring was already in full bloom, and she still hadn’t managed to make the trip. Work, household chores, constant running … Read more

“Now she’s the lady of the house!” my husband declared, bringing another woman home. An hour later, he was howling outside a locked door

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— Pack your things, Natasha. You have exactly one hour. Igor’s voice was so casual, as if he were ordering pizza—not shattering ten years of our life. He stood in the entryway, carelessly leaning against the doorframe, and didn’t even bother to take off his shoes. Next to him, clutching his elbow, stood HER. Slim, … Read more

— I’ve forgiven you for everything. Come back, my ex announced, not taking his eyes off my new car—conveniently forgetting how he’d thrown me and our child out into the cold

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“I’ve forgiven you for everything. Come back,” Viktor said, standing beside my new Mazda and stroking the hood as if it were a purebred horse. “Alyosha needs his father. And it’s hard for you alone.” “Hard?” I hitched my bag higher on my shoulder. “It was hard when you threw us out in January. Now? … Read more

A dacha? So you’re telling me that after working six days straight, I’m supposed to spend my only day off going to your mother’s place to paint a fence?

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— Anyway, get ready, Sveta. Tomorrow morning we’re going to Mom’s dacha, — Andrey said matter-of-factly, hooking a forkful of mashed potatoes and putting it into his mouth. He spoke as if it were something settled long ago—obvious, unquestionable. Svetlana went still. Her fork, with a piece of chicken on it, hung halfway to her … Read more