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Raisa Alexandrovna had never imagined she would one day have to prove her right to the apartment she had lived in for thirty-two years. Least of all to her own husband. “You want to transfer the apartment to your son as a gift?” the notary asked briskly. “Exactly,” Viktor Stepanovich replied with a nod. Raisa … Read more

Galina froze when the doorbell rang for the third time. Who could possibly be coming at an hour like this? It was already half past eight in the evening. Rain drummed steadily against the windowsill, and she had just been about to make tea and settle in with her TV series. It was an ordinary … Read more

Each time Dmitry Vasilyevich headed home, he found himself slowing down. At forty-two, he felt closer to sixty. Before he could even slide his key into the lock, the door swung open. “So, you finally showed up,” Asya said from the doorway. “It’s already ten. Where have you been?” Dmitry let out a weary sigh. … Read more

“Alena, don’t be long — we have a meeting after lunch!” her coworker shouted after her as Alena buttoned up her coat. “I’ll be quick! My husband’s sick, I’m just stopping by and coming right back,” she said with a smile and hurried to her car. Sergey had been home with a fever, complaining of … Read more

Lena was riding a minibus with a neatly ribbon-tied box of cakes balanced on her knees. A homemade cherry charlotte and a honey cake—everything her mother-in-law, Valentina Pavlovna, adored. Her sons and her husband, of course, always forgot dates like that; none of them were big on details. But Lena, with her background in teaching, … Read more

“Dema, did you use my card?” Lida was studying her bank statement with a tight, focused expression. “There’s a four-thousand charge from some cosmetics store.” “No, of course not,” her husband replied. “And here’s another three thousand at ‘Golden Thread,’” Lida went on. “All these purchases were made during the day—while we were at work. … Read more

— Take this dump out in the sticks! I don’t need it anyway! — Yuri slammed a set of keys onto the table so hard they bounced with a sharp jingle and skittered across the linoleum. — Consider it my divorce present to you! Sofia picked the keys up and studied them as if they … Read more

You must take money from your parents. We’ll pay off my sister’s debts! my husband announced. When Maksim said that, I set my mug of lukewarm tea aside and looked at him carefully. He was slumped at the kitchen table, buried in his phone, not even bothering to raise his eyes. The knees of his … Read more

The minibus kept lurching over the potholes on Leningradsky Prospekt, and I’d already started regretting not just taking a taxi. Inside, the air was sharp and ugly—a mix of exhaust, cheap air freshener, and human sweat. The driver mumbled to himself, occasionally spitting out curses at other cars. “Stop after the light,” an elderly Roma … Read more

Andrew checked the children’s first-aid kit for the third time, even though he knew perfectly well I could handle things without his instructions. My brother always turned into a broody hen whenever it came to Sonya. “Measure her temperature only with this thermometer,” he said, showing me the electronic one. “She won’t let anyone use … Read more