Denis was returning home after an exhausting day at work. The many important decisions he had made that day now manifested as a dull pain in his temples, and all he could dream of was to relax and rest. At one point, the idea of stopping by the market on his way home to buy some fresh vegetables and make his own salad occurred to him. Cooking had always been a hobby of his, but most of the time he ordered food from restaurants—there was just no energy or time to cook. However, today, despite his fatigue, his mood was surprisingly good, and Denis decided to treat himself. Thoughts of how wonderful it would be to take a week-long vacation to visit his parents flickered through his mind. They owned a country estate where he would occasionally go, almost like a resort.
Home-cooked food, clean air, and, most importantly, loved ones—everything now seemed so desirable. Lost in these thoughts, Denis almost ran a red light. Straining to concentrate on the road, he turned into the parking lot by the market. However, finding a parking spot turned out to be nearly impossible. Weaving his way between improperly parked cars, he silently cursed those responsible for the chaos. Several times, he even considered giving up his plan and ordering pizza or something similar again, but he managed to pull himself together. His nerves were on edge, and he simply couldn’t afford a break at the moment. Denis understood that such exhausting work could take a toll on his health, yet his business was flourishing, and he dreamed of ensuring a secure retirement not only for his parents but for himself and his future children. He didn’t have a fiancée yet, but he hoped that one day he would meet a girl who would appreciate him for who he was, not just the figures in his bank account. He fantasized about a modest and sincere life partner, but such women were rare—perhaps because he moved in the wrong circles.
After getting out of his car and straightening his shoulders, Denis slowly headed towards the vegetable stands. Suddenly, his attention was drawn to an elderly woman sitting at the entrance to the market, selling flowers. She sat with her head lowered, her gaze empty and wandering, as if life had treated her too harshly. She was nothing like the other grandmothers selling vegetables, berries, or handmade items, who usually smiled and beckoned customers. This woman sat silently, eyes cast downward, and it seemed she had no real desire to sell her merchandise. Denis suddenly remembered his own grandmother. In his family, money had once been scarce, and she often sold vegetables and fruits grown in the garden to buy any necessary items. Looking once more at the gloomy old woman, he saw a resemblance to his grandmother. Although she had passed away several years ago, her image remained vivid in his memory. His grandmother had taught him to respect people and be kind, assuring him that life would become gentler if he did so. A pang struck his heart when he noticed that no one was paying attention to the flowers, and the old woman was sending a strange, heavy look at passersby as she sighed.
Deciding he had nothing to lose, Denis approached the woman and asked the price for a bouquet. The price was laughable, and after a brief moment of thought, he pulled out a five-thousand ruble note, handed it to the old lady, and declared that he was taking all the flowers, with the change to be kept by her. The woman paled, her eyes widened, she made the sign of the cross, and a tear welled up. She tried to dissuade him, asking why he needed so much money, but upon hearing his firm decision, she quietly whispered “thank you” and stood up. Denis got the impression that she wasn’t exactly happy to be rid of her merchandise. He wondered: perhaps she enjoyed sitting at the market, interacting with people, or simply being among them? A feeling of unpleasant aftertaste filled him. The old woman gathered her things, thanked him once more, and slowly shuffled away. Denis looked at the huge pile of bouquets that now had nowhere to go. His eyes fell on a girl selling cucumbers and greens nearby. She looked at him as if accusing him of all sorts of sins.
“Miss, these flowers are for you!” Denis tried to smile.
“Why would I need so many?” she replied, looking embarrassed.
“Well, place them in every room in your home. Or distribute them to customers if you don’t need them,” he shrugged. “It’s a gift with every purchase.”
“It’s obvious you love throwing money around!” she grumbled, deepening his confusion.
Denis turned away. He felt so repulsed, as if a bucket of filth had been dumped on him. Why was his kind gesture being accused of being extravagant with money that had been earned at such a high cost? Of course, one could understand the girl’s reaction—why would she need extra flowers? But why did the old woman look at him so strangely? The internet was full of videos of people helping elderly folks, and the beneficiaries would cry with gratitude, sharing touching stories. Certainly, Denis hadn’t acted solely for that reason, but her reaction seemed too cold. It was as if doing a good deed left him with a bitter aftertaste. He was already heading back to the parking lot, deciding to abandon his plan to buy vegetables, when the girl spoke again.
“You’ve only made things worse for her by buying everything at once and giving her more than she needed. Today is her second Women’s Day—the day she despises more than anything in the world.”
This piqued his curiosity. Slowly turning to face the girl, Denis stared intently at her, waiting for her to continue. After all, she clearly had something to say, having drawn his attention. But why did the old woman have such a negative attitude toward International Women’s Day? After all, on that day the floral business usually breaks all records.
“Please explain what you mean!” Denis said sharply, as if addressing a subordinate.
“Baba Zina has been trading here for a long time—sometimes socks, sometimes other trinkets, but mostly flowers. However, the goods aren’t supplied for her own benefit, and the earnings don’t go to her. Her son uses his mother as free labor. His friends supply him with various goods, and he sends her out to sell them. Most of the money goes to paying for those goods, and the rest…” the girl sighed heavily. “The rest he wastes on alcohol, down to the last kopeck. He has absolutely no sense of moderation. You gave her much more than necessary, and now he’s going to drink even more. And during such binges, nothing good is ever in store for Baba Zina. He’ll surely take it out on her, maybe even throw her out onto the street at night to beg for money for another bottle…”
Inside, a surge of anger welled up in Denis. His fists clenched, the muscles in his face tensed, and his teeth ground together. How could a desire to help people result in such a reaction? It was hard to comprehend how a son could treat his mother so cruelly. However, if this son was indeed an alcoholic, much became clear: alcohol completely destroys everything human in a person, leaving only decay. It was unlikely that anyone heavily addicted to “white” (vodka) could retain even a trace of sanctity.
“Can’t she find a way to protect herself from her son?” Denis asked, struggling to contain his emotions.
The girl continued with what she knew. Baba Zina had called the police more than once when her son attacked her with his fists, but due to the lack of sufficient evidence, he was quickly released.
“At most, he was detained for fifteen days because they found him semi-conscious. But after each such incident, he grew even angrier, and his threats drove the old woman into panic. Eventually, she resigned herself to her fate. Our market men once planned to teach him a lesson, but then learned he was an acquaintance of theirs. After a joint drinking session, the old woman ended up suffering even more for ‘talking too much.’ In short, her only option was to pay for his drinking and stay silent, so that he wouldn’t take her last—her life.”
Denis’s head spun, and he understood why the old woman had looked at him with such bitterness. She wasn’t happy with the money at all. Trying to dissuade him from buying all the flowers, she probably already envisioned what awaited her that evening. Looking around, Denis noticed that the old woman was no longer in sight. She had gone far enough away, and now he could only guess where to find her.
“Do you know where she lives?” Denis asked, looking at the girl intently.
“Only roughly. They have a little house down in the dacha area, on a street that seems to be called Zelyonaya (Green). The house, as she says, is all rundown and old. But you certainly won’t miss it. Baba Zina always complains that it’s too noisy and crowded there.”
Denis nodded. He decided to go there, and if the son was indeed as the girl had described, then he intended to teach him a lesson for the way he treated his mother. However, Denis wasn’t planning to do the dirty work with his own hands. He was certain that he needed to act precisely and efficiently to make that man’s life unbearable.
Thanking the girl for her honesty, Denis hurried back to his car. His navigator showed Zelyonaya Street, and he set off in that direction. The girl was right: finding the house was easy. Loud, foul language and drunken voices could be heard from one courtyard. It seemed that the revelry had begun long before the old woman had brought the money. Noticing her, sitting by the fence under a lilac bush, Denis got out of the car and approached her. She was sitting on the ground, arms crossed, silently weeping. The old woman mumbled to herself, as if in prayer. Perhaps that was her way of seeking an answer to her prayers, and Denis had happened to be there to help. His heart clenched with compassion.
“Please forgive me for buying all your flowers!” Denis began to apologize. “If only I had known…”
The old woman lifted her clouded eyes to him and only softly sniffled.
“Go away, child! You shouldn’t get involved in this! They’ll come at you in a mob and beat you up!”
Denis gritted his teeth again. No, his group of drunks wouldn’t beat him up. Of course, in their drunken frenzy, they might grab a weapon, but Denis planned to act carefully and thoughtfully.
“Get in the car. I’ll take you away from here.”
“Where could you possibly take me, child? I’ve already tried to get into a nursing home, but they said there was no space.”
“I have an apartment that belonged to my late grandmother, and it’s empty. I was planning to rent it out, but I never got around to it. I’ll help you. Let your son learn to live on his own!” Denis assured her. “Most likely, he’ll end up alone, because he probably won’t understand how wrong he was.”
The old woman asked him for a few minutes—about five—to gather her documents and a few things that were especially dear to her. Denis did not argue, although he understood that this mission could turn sour. He stayed by the fence, watching the situation, ready to intervene if necessary. Fortunately, the old woman’s son was too preoccupied with his own affairs and hadn’t even noticed that his mother quietly left the house with a small bundle. Denis helped her into the car, and it was only then that her unworthy offspring noticed what was happening. Running out of the gate with an axe in hand, he began swinging it, but Denis had already started moving. Hitting the gas, he quickly sped onto the main road.
The old woman cried, and Denis didn’t know how to calm her down. He could only gently ask her not to pity her son, for there was nothing human left in that man. Of course, he understood that a mother’s heart finds it hard to accept such a truth, but he still hoped that she could overcome her feelings and not forgive the man who had treated her so cruelly.
After settling the old woman in the apartment of his late grandmother, Denis brought her groceries. At that moment, as tears streamed down her face and she embraced him tightly, the woman sincerely and wholeheartedly thanked him for his kindness.
A few days later, Denis went back to the market to buy fresh vegetables for the old woman—clearly, nothing in the stores could compare. There, unexpectedly, the girl to whom he had given the flowers rushed at him, demanding an explanation: what had happened to Baba Zina after his intervention.
“Nothing terrible happened! She’s living with me, in my late grandmother’s apartment!” Denis began to explain in confusion. However, the situation amused him inadvertently, and for a moment he even thought that perhaps the girl with the kind heart he had long been searching for was right before him.
After buying the vegetables, Denis invited Tatiana—the name of the stranger—to come to the apartment so she could see for herself that the old woman was alright. The old woman was happy to see the girl and told her in detail how Denis had literally saved her life. Baba Zina insisted on giving him her entire pension as a token of gratitude, but he categorically refused, as he had more than enough money. Then she declared that she would knit and sew clothes for his future children, who must surely be born to such a good person. She was simply not accustomed to accepting help for free.
Tatiana asked Denis for permission to visit Baba Zina, as the old woman had become like family to her. He replied that now the apartment belonged entirely to the old lady, and she could invite anyone over.
Tanya and Denis began to meet more often. The girl grew increasingly dear to him, and one day he finally dared to ask her out on a date. To his delight, she agreed. She, too, was charmed by his kindness—a rarity among affluent people who were accustomed to guarding every penny as if they were taking their wealth with them into the afterlife.
A few months later, it became known that the old woman’s house had burned to the ground when her son and a couple of his drinking buddies were sound asleep inside. Of course, the mother’s heart was shattered with grief, but Tatiana and Denis stood by her, supporting her in that difficult moment. And then, finally, Denis took the long-awaited vacation to visit his parents’ estate. He wanted to introduce them to his fiancée and to the old woman he had saved. In a way, it was this very woman who had brought him together with the girl of his dreams, becoming part of his new life.