Hey sweetie, how’s it going? Have you made all the money yet, or what? Nina, Tatyana’s mom, asked with an unpleasant giggle on the phone.
“No one can make all the money in the world. But that’s not the only reason I work, Mom.”
“Oh? What else then?”
“For pleasure. I love my job, Mom.”
“Oh, I just don’t get it. Our Ulyana has the right dream—marry rich and never work. And you? Are you going to stay single forever, drowning in reports until you die… alone?”
“Mom!” Tatyana hated these conversations.
“What? Am I wrong? We’re having a family dinner on Saturday. Ulyana’s bringing her fiancé. And you? Coming alone again? It’s embarrassing—everyone keeps asking when there will finally be grandchildren! Anyway, just come. We need to talk.”
Tatyana wanted to hang up, but then a thought hit her.
“Sure, Mom. By the way, do you have room for one more at dinner? I’ll be bringing my fiancé.”
“Plus one? What does that mean?”
“I’m coming with a boyfriend. Well, actually, a man—my fiancé.”
“Why didn’t you tell me you were seeing someone?!” her mom stammered, a little panicked. She was really hoping her daughter’s new relationship wouldn’t affect her help with the family.
“Because you’re always going on about Ulyana and never give me a chance to say anything.”
“Well, okay then, you’re right. No need to talk about it over the phone. Just bring him. He can tell us everything himself.” Her mom quickly said goodbye and hung up, leaving Tatyana staring at her monitor. The words blurred before her eyes. Why did she even say she’d come…
And the ‘talk’ her mom hinted at was easy to guess. Ulyana’s studies needed financing. A new semester was coming up, meaning it was time to hit the eldest daughter up for a hefty sum.
Tatyana glanced at her reflection—a tired, serious woman far beyond her years with her hair in a tight bun, judging her from the other side.
“I’m not an old maid. I’m only thirty. And I’m really not bad…”
She unbuttoned the top of her blouse, loosening the collar that seemed to choke her, then yanked the clip from her hair, shaking it loose—just as HE walked into the reception area.
“Tatyana? Sorry, is this a bad time…?”
“Come in, since you’re here!” She flushed, hurriedly twisting her hair back into a bun.
A few days later, at Tatyana’s parents’
“Well… introduce us to your fiancé,” Tatyana’s mom said, looking curiously at the young man standing beside her daughter at the door.
“My name’s Peter. And you must be Nina?” He flashed a radiant smile that left Ulyana speechless—and a little envious. Her own fiancé wasn’t so handsome. And his suit didn’t look nearly as nice!
“I’m Ulyana!” She pulled her hand out of her fiancé’s grasp and offered it to the guest.
“Nice to meet you.”
“Come in to the table, let’s talk there!” their mom remembered her manners.
“So, what do you do for a living?” her potential mother-in-law cut right to business.
“Mom, maybe feed them first before the interrogation…” Tatyana felt embarrassed by her mother’s behavior.
“You take care of your fiancé; we’ll talk. I want to know everything.”
Peter glanced at Tatyana, who answered for him.
“Mom, it’s time I told you the truth. Peter is the director—my boss. That’s why I live so well—it’s all thanks to him.” Tatyana blurted out. Ulyana dropped her spoon and stared at Peter, then at her sister.
“Is that true?”
Peter looked at Tatyana for a long moment, then nodded.
Find out what happens next by following the link in the description.
“You can’t make all the money in the world. But that’s not the only reason I work so hard.”
“Oh yeah? Then what else drives you?”
“I work for the joy of it. I genuinely love what I do, Mom.”
“Oh, I just don’t get it. Now our Ulyana, she has the right kind of dreams: marry rich and never have to work. But you? Are you planning to grow old alone with your reports and die single? Alone.”
“Mom!” Tatiana hated these conversations.
“What? Am I wrong? We’re having a family dinner this Saturday. Ulyana is bringing her fiancé. Are you coming alone again? It’s embarrassing, the whole family keeps asking me, when are there going to be grandkids? Anyway, whatever. Make sure you come. We need to talk.”
Tatiana wanted to hang up, but then a clever idea popped into her head.
“Yeah, Mom, by the way, is there room for my fiancé? I’ll be coming with a plus one.”
“Plus one? What does that mean?”
“It means I’m bringing a guy. Well, a man. My fiancé will be coming with me.”
“How come you never told me you were seeing someone?” Her mom sounded shocked. She was secretly hoping her daughter’s relationship wouldn’t interfere with helping out the family.
“Well, you always talk about Ulyana nonstop—I never even get a word in.”
“Is that so? Well, you’re right, no point talking about it now—bring him along and he can tell us all himself.” Her mom hung up quickly, leaving Tanya at the table staring at her computer screen. The words blurred in her eyes. Why had she even told her mom she was coming?
And the conversation her mom hinted at was easy enough to predict. Ulyana’s schooling needed funding. With a new semester coming up, it must be time for the eldest daughter to hand over a hefty sum again.
Tatiana looked at her reflection. A tired woman, far older than her years, hair in a messy bun, stared back in silent judgment.
“I’m not a spinster—I’m only thirty. And I don’t look half bad…” She unbuttoned a few buttons of her blouse, freeing her constricting collar, quickly pulled the clip from her hair and shook it out—just in time for HIM to walk into reception.
“Tatiana? Sorry, am I disturbing you?”
“Come in, since you’ve made yourself available!” she blushed, quickly twisting her hair back into a bun.
A few days later, at Tatiana’s parents’ house
“So… introduce us to your fiancé,” Tanya’s mom said, eyeing the young man standing at the door beside her daughter with interest.
“My name’s Peter. And you must be Nina?” He flashed a perfect white smile that left Ulyana speechless. Her own fiancé wasn’t nearly as handsome. And that suit! Hers could never compete.
“And I’m Ulyana!” She freed her hand from her own fiancé’s grip and held it out to the guest.
“Pleasure to meet you.”
“Come in and join us at the table, we can talk there!” the hostess quickly remembered.
“So, what do you do for a living?” The future mother-in-law wasted no time getting to business.
“Mom, maybe you should feed him first before interrogating him…” Tatiana felt embarrassed by her mother’s behavior.
“Go on, dear, serve your fiancé yourself, and we’ll have a chat in the meantime. I want to know everything about you.”
Peter glanced at Tatiana, and she answered for him.
“Mom, it’s time for the truth: I’ve been hiding something from you. Petya is actually the boss and director at my work. He’s the reason I’ve been living so comfortably,” Tatiana blurted out. Ulyana, shocked, dropped her spoon and stared at Petya, then turned her gaze to her sister.
“Is that really true?”
Petya looked at Tatiana for a few seconds, then nodded.
“Yes. Tanya is an incredibly valuable employee. I like to spoil her.”
“So young, and you already have so much money?!”
“Well, I wouldn’t say it’s a lot, but it’s enough for some little pleasures.”
“So, when is the wedding?” the prospective mother-in-law eagerly asked.
“As soon as we decide, you’ll be the first to know, Mom,” Tanya assured her. She quickly changed the subject to her sister, whose new fiancé looked pitiful in comparison to Petya. “And what do you do?”
“Me?” he replied, startled.
“Yes, you…”
“Well, uh… I’m a bartender.”
“Oh… how interesting,” Tatiana replied condescendingly, glancing at her sister, who dreamed no less of marrying a millionaire. At that moment, Petya’s phone vibrated in his pocket.
“Excuse me, I need to take this call,” Petya smiled and stepped away from the table. Nina took advantage of his absence.
“Tanya, your fiancé might be young, but if he’s got money—you need to hold onto him. And I hope the family’s support will match his wealth. Anyway, I wanted to talk to you. We’ve had a family discussion and decided that you should give your car to Ulyana.”
“What do you mean?”
“Exactly what I said. Our darling has her license now, and it’s uncomfortable for her to take the metro to university.”
“Exactly! Just the other day, I got so cold walking to the bus stop!” Ulyana nodded. “And you don’t need the car, your work is just a couple steps away.”
“And you have nowhere else to go besides work,” their mother added.
Tatiana was stunned by their nerve.
“I need the car for more than just work! First of all. Second, the car, just like the apartment I live in—everything belongs to Petya!”
“To Petya? Oh, come on. Just tell him the car’s in the shop, he’ll forget about it soon enough. He’ll buy you a new one, everyone will be happy.”
“Forget about it? A car? It’s not like it’s a handkerchief…” Tanya turned away, already tired of her family’s growing demands.
Ever since Tanya started earning good money, her family has been all over her! Her parents were sure she was some big boss, loaded with cash, and that it was her duty to share with her family. But now things were turning around…
“And besides, why should you report everything to him? He gave you the car, so just give it to us.”
“I’m telling you, the car isn’t mine! He never gave me anything.”
“Not yours now, but it will be soon! Take his hand and go straight to a notary! Make him put everything in your name! You’re practically family already,” Nina suggested. “And as soon as you marry him, you’ll move in with him, and we’ll let Ulyana live in your apartment!”
“Exactly! It’ll be even closer to university for me. Plus, I’ll save money on gas,” Ulyana added.
“Yeah, that all sounds perfect. Except everything is actually registered under his grandmother’s name,” Tanya quickly lied.
“Really?! She must be on her last legs by now, right?”
“Not at all. Grandma’s in great health—in fact, she’s still running the company! She’s a powerhouse.”
“You’re lying! You just don’t want to help me,” her mother accused, not believing a word.
“Why don’t you call her and ask? Anyway, Petya and I have to go now. I bet it’s his grandma calling him. We still need to visit her today. Thanks for the warm welcome.”
“Wait, Tanya! You forgot about the money for tuition.”
“Oh, right, about the money… I’ve already transferred the necessary amount to the university’s accounting office. But this is the last time. I’ve been paying for you for two years, even though we agreed I would only lend you money for the first year. You’re in your third year now. From next semester, you’ll need to pay for your studies yourself.”
“Where am I supposed to get that much money?!” Ulyana gasped.
“Then study harder and transfer to a free spot. Or ask your boyfriend—he works too, doesn’t he?” Tanya picked up her bag, waved, and left the room.
“Let’s go,” she said to Petya, who was still pretending to talk on the phone.
Nobody came out to see them off. The family immediately began to loudly complain about how the wealthy never have enough and can’t spare a little money to help their own daughter.
“Consider your internship project approved,” Tanya said to Petya as she started the car. He had played the perfect fake fiancé in exchange for her signature and official stamp.
“So, shall we visit my folks now?” Petya joked.
“No, thanks! I think I’ll pass on that. Where should I drop you off?”
“Just drop me at this street, please,” Petya replied, his tone turning formal again around his boss. Tanya couldn’t help feeling nervous that she’d dragged her young intern into this after he’d just come by at the wrong moment for his internship paperwork. While the others were working, Petya was out skipping his practice. That’s why he had to play actor as his boss commanded.
Still, she didn’t regret a thing. She knew the young intern would soon forget this little adventure, but from now on, no one would be expecting her to pull off impossible favors or endlessly help her younger sister. And if needed, she’d remind them again about Petya’s grandma and dramatically show off her ’empty’ pockets.
The things we’d do just to get our family off our backs!
“Thanks. That was fun,” Petya said as Tanya’s car parked near the old house.
“Come by for your signed documents on Monday,” she said, glancing at her manicure.
“Alright.”
On Monday, Petya showed up—this time with flowers.
“What’s this? A bribe?” she frowned.
“No, these are for you. Just because.”
“Really? Well, this is for you. Also just because,” she said, firmly stamping his document and signing it. “Good luck, Petya. In business, it’s not just honesty that matters—sometimes luck favors those who take risks and play their part well.”
The young man took his papers, hesitated for a moment, then found the courage to ask:
“Tanya, do you have any plans after work today?”
“Wor…” she started, then changed her mind. Petya was actually a pleasant and pretty smart guy. And even if he was six years younger, why not grab a coffee together? “I’m completely free tonight.”
Petya smiled and helped his boss with her coat. Neither of them made any plans for the future, but that evening, they simply enjoyed being together.