My God, I wanted to help you choose a dress!” the mother-in-law exclaimed indignantly. “Who do you look like now? This is simply ridiculous, not a bride’s outfit!”
Lena froze in front of her new mother-in-law, unable to respond. The guests watched the unfolding scene attentively. Andrey tried to calm his mother down:
“Mom, could you speak a bit quieter?” “I could, but what would change? Or do you hope that no one will notice that your bride has neither taste nor common sense?” she retorted.
Andrey took his mother by the hand and led her aside, leaving Lena alone in front of a crowd of guests who couldn’t take their eyes off her dress, all because she had refused the model suggested by her mother-in-law. But Lena hated extra decorations and sequins. Her outfit was not cheap—it was a model of classic elegance without unnecessary decor.
Lena noticed the guests whispering among themselves, especially Svetlana, with whom Andrey had previously had a relationship. Svetlana had seriously hoped to marry him, as her father held a high position in a bank, making her a suitable match for Andrey, unlike Lena, whom the mother-in-law called a dowry-less woman.
Lena’s gaze moved from one guest to another, seeing only mockery and contempt in their eyes. What a surprise, when almost all were invited by Andrey’s mother. From Lena’s side, only a few friends were present, trying to keep a distance from the situation.
She felt tears gathering. Andrey hadn’t supported her, perhaps fearing to lose his parents’ financial backing. This thought only occurred to Lena now, and she suddenly realized she had made a serious mistake. She should not have married him, no matter how dear he was to her. Andrey would always be from another world and could not change.
Lena turned and ran away. She would not give anyone the pleasure of seeing her tears.
Rushing out of the restaurant, she stopped. The wedding took place at a prestigious location near a park and a river. Lena headed towards the river to reflect alone. As she ran through the park in her bridal dress, passersby looked at her in surprise, but Lena didn’t care.
She had always dreamed of a successful marriage with her loved one, not his wallet. She dreamed of a loving family, children. She wanted to live without counting every penny, to go to the sea with her family once a year, to have a normal life like other people.
Although Lena and Andrey hadn’t known each other long, she had felt he was the one she was looking for, an embodiment of a worthy, reliable husband. She hadn’t noticed when he was inattentive or forgot about a date, preferring to have fun with friends. Lena always thought Andrey was a man of bright passions, so she overlooked his minor flaws.
But now, recalling her first meeting with his mother, she realized she should have ended the relationship back then, when she blatantly stated that her son should choose another partner. Andrey had been silent then, and it hurt Lena unbearably.
Now, the future seemed foggy, especially after the wedding fell apart. Bitterness burned inside her. Lena reached the riverbank, sat directly on the grass, and let her tears flow.
They flowed incessantly, and she made no attempt to wipe them away or move. Only after an hour did she calm down a bit. Hesitating, Lena wiped her eyes and stared at the tranquil water surface.
Suddenly, she noticed some movement. On the high bank, fenced off by a barrier, stood an old woman. She had stepped beyond the barrier, and that couldn’t have been accidental. Lena looked carefully and saw the elderly woman had closed her eyes and was muttering something as if praying. Her face looked exhausted, her clothes modest.
Lena felt alarmed.
“What are you doing?” she shouted. “Are you really going to…?”
The grandmother slowly opened her eyes and saw Lena. Gradually her gaze fell on the girl’s wedding dress.
“Sorry, dear. I didn’t think anyone was here. I probably disturbed you…”
Lena felt relief. The grandmother spoke, and it was reassuring.
“Why do you think so? Sometimes it seems like everything is bad, but…”
The old woman shook her head negatively:
“No, dear. When you become a burden to your own children, who want to kick you out of the home you’ve worked for all your life, there’s no hope. I’m not needed by anyone.”
“I think differently. Everyone is important to someone, even if not to those you’d like to be important for,” Lena tried to convince her.
She had just come to terms with sorting out her feelings, but now all her thoughts were about preventing the woman from taking a drastic step. She had to do everything possible to get the grandmother back to a safe place.
“What’s your name?”
“Yekaterina Sergeyevna.”
“And I’m Lena. Today was my wedding, and here I am… I ran away from the restaurant. But I won’t let anyone laugh at my tears, and neither should you! Come with me, I’ll treat you to tea. I have a special tea, you’ve never tried anything like it!”
The grandmother smiled faintly.
“And what makes it special?”
“You’ll see when you try it.”
The old woman finally took a step back and looked at Lena:
“Why do I matter to you, girl? You have enough of your own worries…”
“What worries? Imagine, only finding out at my wedding that I’m making a mistake—and that’s it. Let’s go!”
Lena reached out her hand, and after a slight pause, Yekaterina Sergeyevna took it.
The woman’s story was as old as the world. She had a son who, in turn, had a family. A few years ago, his wife passed away, and the grandson moved to another city, though he hadn’t found his partner yet. A year ago, the son remarried, and the bride was much younger than him.
At first, everything seemed quite well.
Yekaterina Sergeyevna recalled how they had decided to merge their housing, sell her apartment, and buy one large one. Of course, she wanted to spend her old age not alone, so she agreed.
But now they were trying to drive her out of the new house. Her son seemed to ignore the problems, while his new wife openly tormented her, even going so far as to raise a hand to her. When Yekaterina Sergeyevna decided to discuss with her son how his wife was behaving, he threatened to send her to a psychiatric hospital.
Not wanting to wait for such a sad outcome, the grandmother simply left home. She wandered the streets for three days, starving. Today, she had thought to end her life, as it could hardly be called living.
“And your grandson, does he also treat you this way?” Lena asked.
“Oh no, my dear Lenochka, my grandson is good,” the grandmother replied. “It’s just that he stopped visiting us after that snake crept into the family. We used to call each other often, but then they took my phone away. My grandson sometimes calls his father, who tells him that I’m either sleeping or out for a walk.”
An idea occurred to Lena.
“Yekaterina Sergeyevna, tell me, what’s your grandson’s name and his surname? Meanwhile, rest, I’ve made up the sofa for you, don’t worry. I’m sure everything will be alright.”
Yekaterina Sergeyevna quickly fell asleep, exhausted by her ordeals. Lena, leaving her to sleep, sat down at the laptop. Making herself a large cup of coffee, she settled comfortably in the kitchen. Remembering that she hadn’t checked her phone in a long time, she pulled it out of her wedding dress, which lay on the bathroom floor.
It turned out that she had over a hundred missed calls, and only one from Andrey. After a bit of thought, Lena pulled the SIM card from the phone and broke it. Twenty minutes later, she had found information about Yekaterina Sergeyevna’s grandson on the internet. It was him: city, school, age, everything matched.
A morning knock at the door woke her.
Yekaterina Sergeyevna had already gotten up but sat quietly on the sofa, careful not to wake Lena.
“Who could that be?” Lena wondered.
She really didn’t want to see Andrey. She planned to tell him she was filing for divorce as soon as she sorted out her own problems and could help Yekaterina Sergeyevna.
She cautiously approached the door and peered through the peephole. Andrey wasn’t there. But a tall, strong man stood there, unfamiliar to her. She opened the door.
“Elena? My name is Mikhail, I am Yekaterina Sergeyevna’s grandson.”
Yekaterina Sergeyevna jumped up, hearing his voice, and rushed to the door.
“Lenochka, it’s my Misha! Oh, Lord, Mishenka… How did you know I was here, at Lena’s?”
“Grandma, why were you silent? We specifically learned my number by heart. You could have asked for help from the neighbors.”
“Oh, Mishenka, I didn’t want to bother you. You already have strained relations with your father…”
“Grandma, how else could they be, when such things are happening here?”
Misha turned to Lena and gave her a kind smile.
“Thank you so much for not passing by my grandmother. She means an incredible lot to me. I’ve long wanted to take her away, but something always kept her here. We even argued about it, honestly,” he confessed. “I might seem pushy, but I wouldn’t say no to a cup of coffee after four hours behind the wheel.”
Lena perked up as if she had just awakened from sleep.
“Sorry, I guess I’m still not awake… Right away,” she said, embarrassed.
It was decided that Mikhail and the grandmother would stay for a few days to sort out the documents. It turned out that Yekaterina Sergeyevna had also invested in the purchase of the second apartment, so they couldn’t just kick her out onto the street.
“This is unacceptable, and I’m going to file a lawsuit,” Mikhail stated confidently. “Grandma, one way or another, I won’t leave you here, but I won’t let this go either.”
In the following days, Lena felt as if she were in a half-dream. She was upset that she had fallen in love so quickly again, as an adult should be wiser. But there was nothing to be done: she was lost around Mikhail.
Before the guests left, Lena told Mikhail about her feelings. He was amazed.
“Are you serious? I didn’t think that was possible. What are your plans?” he asked.
Lena shrugged:
“Tomorrow I’ll file for divorce,” she replied.
“But you loved him?”
“Apparently not,” she smiled sadly. “For that, maybe I should even say thank you to fate.”
After Mikhail and Yekaterina Sergeyevna left, they called regularly. Lena got divorced, and nothing else made her happier. At some point, she decided that happiness wasn’t her share and immersed herself in work.
“Lena, did you hear we have a new boss?” asked a colleague.
“They said Grigoryevich would only retire in two months.”
“No, he’s already gone. And the new one… He’s young, handsome,” she replied.
“So what? He’s probably inexperienced. It’ll be tough to work with him,” Lena sighed.
“God, you’re not even thirty yet, and all you think about is work. What, are you going to marry your job now?” the colleague chuckled. “They say, by the way, he’s not married yet.”
Lena shrugged and fully devoted herself to her work, ignoring the gossip.
“Elena Vladimirovna, the new manager is calling for you,” she was informed.
Entering the office, Lena froze in surprise: it was Mikhail standing there.
“Hello…” he smiled.
Two months later, the entire work collective celebrated their wedding. The colleague couldn’t resist sighing:
“Come on, spill it, how do you behave with men to find such a husband? To walk into the office, and he just proposes right away.”
Lena just laughed.