Ulyana Alexandrovna was no longer surprised that three-year-old Masha often wandered alone in the building’s entrance hall. Initially, she tried to reason with her mother, Svetka, even going to the neighbors to make them listen, but no one paid attention, and once they almost beat her up!
“Get lost! And don’t stick your nose into other people’s business!” Svetka yelled. She was very young, uneducated, and led an unhealthy lifestyle. She became pregnant early and gave birth to Masha. How they survived was a mystery to Ulyana Alexandrovna.
Svetka partied daily with new suitors, and Masha was an unwanted presence at these “festivities.”
That evening, the little girl sat on the dirty floor by the wall, clutching something in her hands.
The house where they lived was small, with only five apartments. One was vacant, another was rented by a lonely man, and a third was occupied by a frail old woman. No one cared about Masha except Ulyana Alexandrovna.
“Masha… why are you sitting here barefoot? It’s winter outside!” The woman approached the little girl and noticed a piece of dry bread in her hands. Masha got scared and hid it behind her back, afraid someone would take it. “Did your mom go partying again? What a curse! And what am I to do with you? Your feet must be frozen…”
The girl curled up into a ball, resembling a little sparrow. Ulyana Alexandrovna couldn’t just walk away. Her heart was breaking with pity for Masha, especially when she saw her looking at her bag. It was filled with groceries. The woman lived modestly, but her table always had fresh milk and bread.
The girl couldn’t talk yet, but she really wanted some milk. She remembered how her mom once let her drink a whole glass! Back then, her mom was kind. But then everything changed. Strange men came, and Masha became unwanted. She was afraid of people, so she ran away from home and hid in the entrance hall. When it got very cold, she warmed herself by the radiator and ate whatever she found near the garbage bin or what was left after her mom’s guests. Sometimes, a kind woman with gray hair would give her something. Like that time.
“Hungry… come on. Want some milk? Or porridge?”
The girl really wanted it. So she timidly followed Ulyana Alexandrovna. And within minutes, a large glass of warm milk stood in front of her, just like at mom’s. And the table was filled with so much food that it seemed Masha could never eat enough. She greedily ate everything she could reach, while Ulyana Alexandrovna just shook her head, and for some reason, tears rolled down her cheeks. Masha didn’t know why. But sometimes she really wanted to cry too. But she was afraid to cry because her mom forbade her to whine.
Her mom forbade her a lot. Especially when strange men came to their home. They didn’t like Masha getting underfoot. Sometimes they locked her in a closet; sometimes she ran away herself. Once they forgot her outside. It was cold and scary, but the next morning, her mom came for her and took her home. Then her mom scolded Masha, but Masha was still happy. Because she loved her mom, and it was warm at home.
But Ulyana Alexandrovna’s home was not only warm but also cozy. Masha didn’t know what coziness was, but she instinctively understood that in a home where it was quiet, where food smelled delicious, and where you were fed and given milk, evil could not live. So she thought if her mom were as kind as this woman, Masha would be the happiest girl on earth!
Ulyana Alexandrovna left the kitchen. She decided to put on warm socks for Masha that she had knitted for her grandson. When she returned, she saw the girl sleeping, resting her head on her little dirty hands on the table.
“Why should she suffer? Why did she end up with such a wayward mother?!” Ulyana Alexandrovna looked up to the sky as if hoping for an answer. But instead, she heard the doorbell ring and loud cursing in the stairwell.
It turned out that the unfortunate mother remembered her daughter.
“Is Masha with you?”
“Yes.”
“Came to pick her up…,” swore Svetka. “Give her here, I’ll raise her!”
“You should be raised properly! A child hungry, eating from a garbage bin! While you bring men home!”
“None of your business!” barked Svetka. Hearing her mother’s voice, Masha woke up and peeked into the hallway.
“Mama…” she said quietly, seeing Svetka. She was glad they remembered her, but she was afraid of her mother. And her mother grabbed the girl by the hand and dragged her home.
“I’ll make a call where it’s necessary and report this!” shouted Ulyana Alexandrovna after them.
Svetka wanted to discipline her disobedient daughter, but she fell asleep on the floor. And the next morning, Ulyana Alexandrovna learned that due to her neighbor’s unhealthy lifestyle, a tragedy had occurred.
“And Masha? The girl? What happened to her?!” gasped Ulyana Alexandrovna.
“Found in the pantry,” sighed the doctor from the ambulance. “Alive.”
“Thank God! And where are you taking her now?”
“To the place where they determine orphans. It’s a pity, but what can we do… But judging by what was going on in their home, the child will be better off in an orphanage than with her mother. You don’t know, by any chance, any other relatives of Svetlana?”
Ulyana Alexandrovna shook her head, then remembered the woman who used to live in Svetka’s apartment. Svetka used to call her grandmother. Ulyana Alexandrovna also remembered that this grandmother talked to a neighbor from the first entrance. She told the social service woman, and they started looking for her.
With considerable effort, they found the phone number of Svetlana’s grandmother. She was in full health and agreed to come from another city to resolve the child’s situation.
And Ulyana Alexandrovna persuaded the social service worker to allow her to temporarily shelter Masha at her place.
The girl was scared and pale. She didn’t understand why her mom was silent and no longer scolded her. She also didn’t understand why the adult ladies looked at her and cried.
“Come, Masha,” Ulyana Alexandrovna called tenderly. “I’ll feed you.”
Masha thought for a moment, then timidly reached out her hand and followed the kind woman. She remembered that her house was warm and smelled deliciously of food. That night she slept sweetly on a soft pillow, and in the morning, they fed her plenty of semolina porridge.
Two days later, her great-grandmother arrived. She gasped, seeing her great-granddaughter, although Ulyana Alexandrovna had bought her a beautiful dress and even braided her hair before the meeting.
Masha didn’t want to leave Ulyana Alexandrovna’s cozy home. She was afraid they would start scolding and chasing her out into the hallway again. But the other grandmother gave her a beautiful doll and promised that everything would be alright. Then she hugged her tightly, put a warm jacket on her, and took her somewhere on a big train. Since then, Masha no longer cried. Not because she was afraid of punishment, but because the grandmother kept her word.