Look, she’s dragging that bag again! See how hard it is for her!” waitresses out on a smoke break laughed.
One of them shouted:
“Dishwasher! Baba Val, just don’t hurt yourself, leftovers are heavier than food!”
The elderly woman looked back, smiled sadly, and, switching the hand holding the bag, headed towards the bus stop with quick steps.
“I wonder why she needs so many leftovers?” one of the girls wondered.
“Who knows? She’s only been here a couple of weeks. And our Palyich…”
“You know, I’m not at all interested in people’s personal lives!” another dismissed disdainfully.
“Oh, of course, as if I need him! Ugly, grey-haired…”
“Well, grey because he’s seen a lot. But you’re wrong about ‘ugly’: Palyich is quite charming, and manly to boot!”
Svetlana looked at her friend:
“Really, you’ve fallen for our manager too?”
“No, just saying he’s an interesting person. No, Svet, we don’t stand a chance. Palyich and our boss aren’t interested in us. They need personalities, and we’re just ordinary.”
Svetlana sighed, accepting that her friend had a point. Andrei, whom everyone called Palyich, was a friend of the restaurant owner. If Ivan Igorevich was around forty, then Palyich was a little younger, by three-four years. Rumor had it they met in a hot spot 15 years ago, then started the restaurant business. They even said they saved each other in some terrible trouble, which is why their friendship was so strong.
Palyich was there, and Svetlana immediately headed towards him.
“Andrei Palyich, is it normal for our new dishwasher to take home bags of leftovers?” Palyich looked at her intently:
“Would you feel better if the leftovers were thrown in the trash?”
Svetlana blushed but wasn’t backing down.
“But think about it, if someone lives so poorly that they eat leftovers and probably feeds someone else with them, what are their home conditions like? That’s unacceptable for someone who works with dishes.”
“Take it more seriously! Valentina Stepanovna has all the necessary certificates — that’s one. She’s always neat and clean — that’s two. You don’t know who she feeds with these leftovers — that’s three. And four: if you, Svetlana, did your job even half as well as Valentina Stepanovna, you would be invaluable! Focus on your work and remember: gossip and slander don’t suit a lady.”
Svetlana, blushing with shame, rushed to the back room, where her friend awaited.
“So, got a telling-off? Tell me, why do you try to act smart where you’re not asked?”
Svetlana snorted angrily.
“Nasty grunt, defended some old woman who eats leftovers! I won’t stay here if she works long!”
“What did this grandmother do to you?” sighed Rita. “Well, she takes them, let her, it’s not without asking! Why are you upset?”
“Just…” Svetlana was on the verge of tears. “Why does he talk like that?”
Rita sighed again:
“Let’s go, we closed half an hour ago, and you’re still not ready.”
The next day, when the girls arrived at work, Valentina was already busily working. While there were no dishes, she diligently cleaned everything around: polished windows, tables, and other surfaces to a shine. Svetlana disdainfully snorted:
“She’s working off her leftovers, no doubt.”
Valentina flinched, turned around, and just calmly smiled, as if facing a petulant child, not worth getting upset over. This serenity immediately infuriated Svetlana. She approached closer:
“You’re smiling in vain! I’ll still ruin your life. If you don’t leave yourself, I’ll tattle to the owner. Since the manager turns a blind eye, let him at least figure it out.” Valentina asked bewilderedly:
“Svet, why are you so angry with me?”
Svetlana choked with indignation and, slamming the door so hard that the glass trembled, stormed out of the room. Valentina watched the door for a long time, then turned to Rita:
“What’s happening with her?”
“I have no idea,” Rita shrugged. “Do you think she’ll really complain to the owner?”
Rita knew about Valentina from Andrei. The woman, although she collected leftovers, clearly did not live in hunger: she dressed neatly and decently. But on the other hand, she clearly lacked something. Rita understood: her friend needed support, as Svetlana was clearly worried about something of her own. In fact, Svetlana was angry because once she would not have refused such leftovers herself.
Svetlana grew up in a family of alcoholics. When there was no food, she had to steal or starve. She experienced shame every day — her father often got drunk and didn’t make it home, and her mother, in his absence, took in anyone.
Now Svetlana wasn’t even sure that her father was really her father. One winter, he froze on the street, not making it home a hundred meters. Her mother did not mourn long and brought a new man home within a couple of weeks, with whom she soon died, poisoned by alcohol.
Her mother’s sister did not want to deal with them but took Svetlana in:
“I have two of my own, and you’re a stranger. You’ll make it to 18, and then you’re on your own.”
Svetlana held no grudges: over four years, she realized that life could be different. There was always food and cleanliness at home. She had been living independently for five years but maintained contact with her aunt, congratulating her on holidays and occasionally visiting. Everything that happened in her childhood was a terrible dream she wanted to forget forever. No one among her current acquaintances knew what her life was like before age 14.
In the evening, Andrei announced that the owner would return in two days. He had gone abroad to study restaurant business.
“I hope we haven’t slacked off here. Everything clean? Order in the kitchen? Everything in place in the refrigerators? Quiet in the complaint book?”
Svetlana smirked:
“Let’s see how Ivan Igorevich reacts to some strange old woman hauling food from his restaurant.”
Rita immediately reprimanded her friend:
“Oh, drop it! It’s just leftovers. They’re needed by no one.”
Svetlana had a dream: to marry so that she would never have to worry about money again. Not billions, but at least a stable and well-provided life. For that, she needed a successful marriage. When Svetlana first got a job at the restaurant, she immediately noticed Palyich. He seemed to her exactly the one who could fulfill her dream. But, no matter how her heart throbbed, Palyich remained indifferent. Then a plan formed in her mind: why not try with the owner? Ivan Igorevich was not much older, and she was young and attractive. And just then, a reason appeared to draw his attention. She just needed to approach the matter wisely.
On the day of Ivan Igorevich’s arrival, Svetlana came to work early. It was not easy for her: she went to the restaurant as if on a date. Palyich raised his eyebrows in surprise and smirked, but Svetlana ignored his reaction. The girls whispered: Ivan Igorevich was already in place. Svetlana sighed:
“Well, now or never.”
She knocked and slightly opened the door.
“Ivan Igorevich, may I come in?”
Ivan looked at her and smiled warmly:
“Svetlana, if I’m not mistaken? Come in, of course. You wanted to see me?”
Svetlana neatly closed the door behind her, smiled charmingly, and began to speak. She expressed her concerns about the reputation of the restaurant where she worked. Ivan Igorevich listened and asked, looking at her in surprise:
“I don’t understand, are you worried about the leftovers, or that the person might be untidy?”
“Of course, about the latter! What do the leftovers have to do with it?”
“Alright, let’s go and see our employee. I suppose she was hired after I left?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
They left the office and immediately encountered Palyich. He looked at Svetlana attentively and snorted:
“Svetlana, you just can’t settle down, can you?”
Svetlana passed him silently. What was Palyich to her if she was now with the owner himself! They entered the dishwashing area. Ivan Igorevich greeted loudly:
“Hello! I’m Ivan Igorevich, the owner of the restaurant. Let’s get acquainted!”
The elderly woman slowly turned around and suddenly whispered:
“Nyusha!”
Ivan froze for a moment, then exclaimed:
“Valentina Stepanovna?”
The owner rushed to embrace her. Svetlana and Palyich watched them in shock. Svetlana immediately realized that her plan would not work and might even lead to her dismissal. She tried to slip away unnoticed, but the entire staff had already gathered at the door.
“Andrei, come here! Remember, I told you about the woman who stayed to help in the hospital after her son died? How she dragged me out of the ward on a blanket when the shelling started? I owe her my life! I thought everyone had died then. I’ve been looking for you.”
“I was wounded, in the head, they moved me from place to place. Vanya, I don’t even know how I survived! And when I returned, I realized that even in peacetime, there are abandoned animals. Sorry, I thought these leftovers were needed by no one, and here it caused such a scandal.”
Ivan Igorevich jumped up:
“Valentina Stepanovna, don’t even think about it! We’ll buy everything necessary. And no more dishwashing for you! You need to live peacefully and enjoy!”
“And who will wash the dishes?” Valentina smiled.
“We’ll find someone, we’ll announce. For now,” he turned to the staff, “where’s our fighter? Svetlana will work in the dishwashing area until we find someone else.”
Svetlana barely held back tears, and Rita sighed.
“Svetka, I told you, don’t meddle! And what did you achieve? What do you care about these leftovers?”
“I won’t work here anyway!” Svetlana snorted.
“And where will you go? To the factory? You won’t pay for a rented apartment.”
Svetlana burst into tears:
“Why, Rita? Why is it like this? In my childhood, these leftovers would have been worth their weight in gold… And here, the old lady just puts it all in a bag and carries it! I hate everyone: the restaurant, Valentina… How am I supposed to live with this?”
Rita looked at her in shock. She had never suspected how hard Svetlana’s past had been. But not only Rita — Palyich was standing in the doorway, watching her attentively. He had always thought she was just mean, but it turned out to be much worse. Svetlana went to wash dishes, did not quit, and said nothing to anyone, keeping to herself.
A few days later, Palyich brought in a new employee:
“Svetlana, show her around. This is our new dishwasher.”
Svetlana, saying nothing, took off her apron.
“So, where should I go? Write a statement?”
“Yes, Svetlana,” Palyich nodded. “Only not for dismissal, but for a leave. I’ve arranged with Ivan. I want to invite you to a ski resort; I know a good place.”
Svetlana looked at him in surprise, and Palyich calmly added:
“The rooms will be separate, don’t worry about that.”
Since then, this ski resort became one of the favorite places for the young family. Later, with the administration’s consent, they started leaving an album with photos of homeless animals that Valentina Stepanovna fed, and many of them found new homes. Incidentally, Svetlana apologized to Valentina and invited her to her wedding with Andrei Palyich. Valentina, of course, forgave her, as she was a person of exceptional kindness.