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That November day was gray and raw, as if fate itself were choosing the set for the first act of this drama. The air in the school hall was thick with the breath of a crowd that smelled of wet coats, woolen mittens, and anxious excitement. Alisa, clutching to her chest a brand-new grade book … Read more

Alina wiped her hands on her apron, glancing at the clock. Twenty minutes until Viktor arrived. The stew was almost done, the salad chopped. — “Mein Gott…” Alina froze with a ladle in her hand, silently running through a grammar rule. She hadn’t used her knowledge in practice for a long time. She didn’t want … Read more

— What do you mean, ‘we can’t’? Come on, drop this nonsense! We always used to come—why can’t we now?” Larisa still didn’t believe it; she didn’t want to accept that her plans were collapsing like a house of cards. And all because of the whims of her former sister-in-law. Just yesterday, Larisa had been … Read more

The trash bag was oozing something sticky, dripping nastily right onto my old robe. I should have done this earlier, not waited until midnight, but it had been a hard day. First Katyusha with her whims, then that… Gleb. My son-in-law. The perfect son-in-law. The dark courtyard met me with a clammy smell of damp … Read more

The news of her grandfather’s death reached Yana in the middle of the workday. She was sitting at her computer when a message came from her mother: “Grandpa Misha is gone. His heart. Come as soon as you can.” Yana didn’t cry—they hadn’t been especially close in recent years. But something snapped inside her, as … Read more

“Ira, brace yourself! I’m about to tell you something, but don’t panic,” Vika’s voice was very agitated. “What happened?” Irina grew alert. Her friend was usually calm and unemotional, but something in her was different today. “Say it—don’t drag it out. If you do, I really will panic.” “You said your Borya went on a … Read more

Marina frowned. A letter with the bank’s logo lay on the kitchen table—the third one this month. She reached for the letter opener, her heart beating out of rhythm. Something was wrong. “Dear Viktor Nikolaevich… payment overdue… subject to penalty… collateralized property…” Collateralized property? What property? “Vitya!” she shouted, holding the letter between two fingers … Read more

— “So you’re leaving me for another woman and decided to claim my apartment?” I asked my husband in disbelief, not trusting my ears. Alexander stood in front of me, nervously fiddling with a button on his jacket. He kept looking away, his whole posture broadcasting how awkward and ashamed he felt. But the words … Read more

Yulia sat at the kitchen table, peering out the window where a fine autumn rain was falling. A cup of long-cold tea stood nearby. She tried to understand when everything had gone wrong—when the chill between her and Boris had turned into an entire wall of ice. — Sashenka, careful there, — Yulia said in … Read more

— Lena, you don’t mind if my mom stays with us for a bit, do you? — Kirill tried to keep his voice calm, but his eyes gave him away: the decision had been made, and asking your opinion was just for show. Lena tore herself away from the laptop for a second, looked at … Read more