Why did you come home so early?!” the husband exclaimed in fright, instinctively closing the door in his wife’s face.
“What do you mean?” Svetlana managed to wedge her bag in the doorway to stop the door from slamming shut. The situation resembled a cheap joke. Only, in this anecdote, the role of the ‘traveling husband’ was played by the wife, Svetlana…
She never wanted to leave, suspecting her husband of infidelity!
Svetlana had always dreamed of building a career. She worked hard and eventually got the promotion she desired. Initially, her husband, Gosha, was skeptical about his wife’s new position.
“And why were you appointed? Couldn’t they find someone else?”
“What do you mean?”
“Well… A man, perhaps, or a younger girl…”
“So, according to you, only men or young girls should hold good positions? What about mature, experienced women? Should they be dumped at a landfill? To expire?” Svetlana was offended.
“No, that’s not what I meant,” Gosha stammered. He tried to explain, to justify himself, but failed.
Svetlana was hurt and didn’t speak to him for several days. Then she announced that she was going to Moscow.
“Why?!”
“They called me to the head office. On business.”
“For how long?”
“No, just for a couple of days.”
“Next time, let me know in advance! How am I supposed to live alone?”
“You’ll manage. You’re not a two-year-old. Nobody canceled sausages, pasta, dumplings.” Gosha nodded gloomily. Svetlana left, but this was just the beginning.
From that moment, she often had to travel either to Moscow or to Saint Petersburg. She never left for more than three days and always warned her husband about her trips. Usually, Gosha was upset, muttered, but lately, something in his behavior had changed. He became secretive, acted strangely, and seemed only to wait for his wife to leave.
And Svetlana, just to spite him, didn’t leave. Changes were brewing at her company again, and the woman had to work even harder. She stayed late at the office, and Gosha had plenty of wife-free time. And when free time arises, there are usually activities to fill it. Sometimes these activities lead to the dissolution of a marriage.
Svetlana realized this, noticing how her husband had changed. He often lingered on the phone, showed no interest in her news, and didn’t hide his concern that his wife “overstayed” at home.
“Darling, are you having trouble at work?” he asked one day.
“No… What made you think that?”
“I figured you haven’t gone to Moscow for over two months,” Gosha looked disappointed. “Did they find a replacement for you?”
“Not at all! I’m just needed here. But why do you ask?”
“Just wondering… Maybe you forgot to tell me something important? So I decided to check.”
“Don’t worry. If I go somewhere, you’ll be the first to know,” Svetlana snorted. She pondered her husband’s behavior, his questions, and strange looks.
“He probably found himself a mistress,” thought Svetlana. Besides, she noticed that her husband had completely stopped bringing money home.
“Maybe we should go to the store together?” she suggested, calling her husband.
“I don’t think I want to spend time on that. That’s what the internet is for.”
“In that case, order groceries yourself. I don’t have time for this, and you’re already home.”
“Okay,” Gosha agreed. Half an hour later, Svetlana’s card was charged for the order.
“Why didn’t you pay yourself?!” she asked.
“I’m having some financial difficulties, salary delayed… And usually, you pay for the groceries. I don’t see a problem.”
“I see a problem! You’ve become a freeloader, and you can’t even do simple things: you even forget to say good morning, immediately grab your phone! You lock yourself in the bathroom and sit there for hours. What are you doing there for so long?!” Svetlana exploded.
“I thought that ‘office’ affairs were something any person is entitled to. Personal boundaries—ever heard of them?” Gosha replied discontentedly. He didn’t like that his wife called him a freeloader.
“You need personal boundaries? Tired of me, then?” Svetlana crossed her arms. “Fine, then rejoice: I’m being sent on a business trip.”
“When?” His eyes sparkled. He couldn’t hide his joy.
“Actually, tomorrow. It’s an urgent, long trip…” Svetlana wanted to say it was for a year but feared her husband wouldn’t believe her and her plan wouldn’t work.
“And how long are you leaving?”
“For a month,” she blurted out, noticing her husband’s hands reaching for the phone.
“Well, well… he completely loses control! His wife hasn’t even crossed the threshold, and he’s already inviting his mistress!”
Svetlana’s thoughts were sadder than before. But not long ago, she was worried about something else, about how her boss had called her into his office and talked for a long time.
“Think about it, I’m not rushing you.”
“I understand, but I have a family… It’s too difficult a decision to make alone.”
“Of course. I’ll give you time to think.”
“How long do I have?”
“One and a half to two months. I need to submit a report to the head office by summer. Perhaps you’ll deliver it yourself, in your new position.”
Svetlana smiled modestly. She couldn’t have dreamed of such an offer. But her husband, Gosha, was against such changes. So, the woman didn’t experience the full spectrum of emotions. She postponed the conversation for a while: she needed to prepare her husband for this news. And then such a turn of events.
It turned out that her husband couldn’t wait for her to free up living space!
Svetlana packed her suitcase with a heavy heart. An inner voice told her that leaving was not the right decision, but she went anyway. Fortunately, her trip was approved, and she planned to return unexpectedly, without warning.
Svetlana left: she left her husband, who didn’t even notice that the fridge was empty, that his wife hadn’t prepared clean shirts for him…
This trip was different. Gosha didn’t call his wife to find out how her flight went, how she got to the hotel. He didn’t write her messages, and in general, he seemed to have forgotten about her existence. Moreover, he answered his wife’s calls quite dryly, in passing. As if he was always in a hurry, and he didn’t have a couple of minutes for a simple conversation.
At first, Svetlana felt sorry for herself, cried into her pillow, realizing that their marriage was doomed, but a few days later, she caught herself thinking that any ending is the beginning of something new.
Two weeks later, during a conversation with her boss, she made a fateful decision:
“I agree, Boris Lvovich.”
“Have you thought it all through?” he clarified, holding back a smile.
“Yes.”
“In that case, we’ll have a meeting tomorrow. Fortunately, you’re currently in Moscow.”
“Alright.”
Svetlana was unanimously approved. Another rung on the career ladder was climbed. She should have been happy, but domestic problems prevented her from feeling complete happiness.
“You can start your new duties from Monday. Perhaps you need to finish some things at home?” her new boss clarified.
“Yes. You’re right.”
“In that case, go to your city, settle all issues, and return. I hope a week will be enough for you to resolve matters.”
“Yes. That’s quite enough,” Svetlana nodded. She booked a return ticket and, without delay, headed home. She didn’t call her husband. She needed to catch him off guard. And that’s what happened.
Walking into the building, she took out her key and with trembling hands unlocked the door.
“Who’s there?!” her husband’s voice rang out. Likely, Gosha was near the door. For a second, Svetlana thought she had wound herself up, that her husband was faithful to her, and now, at home, she wouldn’t see proof of his infidelity.
“It’s me.”
“Sveta?! Why did you come home so early?!” the husband was frightened, closing the door in his wife’s face.
“What do you mean?” Sveta managed to stick her bag so the door wouldn’t slam shut. “Do you think I should ask for permission ‘to enter?’ Now, move aside! I’m tired from the road.”
Svetlana pushed the door open forcefully and entered the apartment. Her husband’s expression was indescribable. It seemed he was ready for anything just to have his wife disappear.
“Are you not happy to see me? Didn’t miss me in two weeks?” she looked at the strange items lying in the hallway. A jacket, sneakers… Svetlana expected the mistress would wear heels, not these raggedy “slippers.”
“I-I missed you… Why so early? Or are you just passing through?” the husband babbled nonsense, and Svetlana suddenly found it funny.
“Right, I’m just passing through. I’ll settle some things and then I’ll move on,” she walked deeper into the apartment, from where noise was coming. Svetlana was so agitated that she didn’t immediately notice the layer of dust on the floor, nor did she see the bags of glue. Only when she looked into the room did she understand what was happening. In her absence, her husband had decided to renovate! True, he didn’t manage to finish because his wife returned earlier.
“Did the surprise not work out?” she propped her hips with her fists. “How sweet, I see we have pink walls and a cartoon drawing on the wallpaper. Did you regress into childhood? Or decided to set up a room for our 18-year-old son? He’s a boy, not a princess! And he lives in a university dorm, and it’s too early for him to marry and have kids!” Svetlana snapped. Gosha looked down. “I’m waiting for explanations, don’t be silent!”
“It’s a room for my daughter.”
“You have a mistress who bore a daughter?!”
“No… I have a daughter who bore a daughter. God, I know all this sounds strange… After all, we’ve been together for twenty years…”
“Yes! You’re right, it sounds like you’re out of your mind!”
“Listen, Sveta, I have a daughter. I didn’t know about her existence until recently… She’s twenty years old… Her mother died, no one to help her. I recently found out I became a grandfather. In short, Alice found me and asked for help. Her man left her, and she has nowhere to live. She’s alone with a baby in her arms… And I feel guilty that she grew up without a father. Allow me to at least give my grandson what I couldn’t give my daughter!” Gosha spoke haltingly, and Svetlana couldn’t believe his words.
“I see the renovation is almost finished?” she forced out.
“Yes, the crib will be delivered the day after tomorrow. Don’t worry, everything is already paid for. Svetochka… Dear, I didn’t tell you in advance because I thought you wouldn’t agree, that you’d be angry and not allow me to shelter the poor girl. I was hoping that when you returned from your business trip, everything would already be ready, and Alice and the baby would move in here. I just hoped you wouldn’t kick a young mother out into the street… You’re a kind woman!”
“You’re absolutely right. I won’t kick out a mother with a baby. I’ll kick you out! Pack your things now, so that in an hour your presence here is gone!” she yelled. “And you, keep working!” Svetlana addressed the woman doing the renovation. “You have a day to finish.”
The woman nodded.
Gosha stood there, neither alive nor dead.
“Sveta… How can you kick me out? We’ve been together so many years… Where will I go? And why do you need such a large apartment alone?”
“I’ll figure that out without you. Get out to your ‘daughter and her daughter’!”
When her husband left, the renovation woman approached Svetlana.
“Where should I deliver the crib? Or will you refuse?” she asked.
“Bring it here. Everything is paid for.”
Svetlana sat down on a chair and pondered. How fortunate that they offered her this job with a relocation to Moscow. Otherwise, she would now be struggling with her own sanity not to let a stranger with a child into her apartment. Who really was Alice to Gosha, a daughter or a mistress, Svetlana didn’t know. But she couldn’t allow another woman to live in her territory. And the renovation? It was very timely.
Svetlana dialed her friend’s phone number.
“Anya, hi. I’ve decided to move after all. They’re paying for housing in Moscow, my son lives in a university dorm, and my husband…” she paused. “I kicked out my husband. Basically, the apartment is free. Move in, live. I won’t charge much for rent, we’re friends after all. And also… don’t buy furniture for the granddaughter. Gosha ‘took care of’ the future tenants.”
Anya was thrilled with the fresh renovation in the nursery. She had long been renting an apartment nearby, but the owner decided to sell the property, and the woman with her daughter and granddaughter were left without a roof over their heads. They had no property of their own—a complicated story. She hadn’t expected her friend to decide on the move, but now she was very glad.
“Thank you, Sveta! I promise the apartment will be in safe hands. And don’t be sad about your husband’s infidelity. Few men remain faithful to their wives… Let him now live with his ‘daughter and granddaughter,’ pay for a rented apartment, and buy groceries. You’re not obliged to support them.”
The women talked for a bit, and Svetlana went to pack her things. Serious changes were ahead in her life, for which she needed to prepare thoroughly.
Divorce, property division, and a new job, a new place to live, and new horizons. In her new life, there was no place for old Gosha, although he tried very hard to reconcile and even came to his wife in Moscow. But Sveta did not forgive mistakes…