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Irina was washing the dishes after dinner in her three-room apartment. She had been married for four years, lived with Oleg in the city center, and worked as an accountant at a medical clinic. Her husband was a driver for a transport company; the pay was decent, and life seemed to be on track. Seemed—because … Read more

Natalya was standing at the stove, stirring the soup, when she heard a familiar little cough behind her. Valentina Yegorovna walked into the kitchen with her particular gait—slow and stately, like a general inspecting his domain. “You’ve overcooked the potatoes again,” the mother-in-law peered into the pot over her daughter-in-law’s shoulder. “Is that how you … Read more

“Sveta, well, are you ready for the big day?” Dima’s voice, full of unabashed boyish excitement, burst into the apartment’s monotone rhythm. Sveta didn’t turn around. She kept running the searing iron along the sleeve of his shirt, smoothing the tiniest crease with methodical diligence. The air in the room was warm and smelled of … Read more

The heat was unbearable, even for late May. The sun, like a baker gone mad, scorched from the sky, branding the earth with red-hot iron. The air above the asphalt quivered like a frying pan. Dust kicked up by the occasional car hung suspended, slowly settling on the leaves of the poplars lining the road … Read more

SMS from the bank arrived at 7:15 a.m. “Debit transaction in the amount of…” I swiped the notification away without opening it. Dima often transferred money for building materials for the dacha. I was used to it. The second came a minute later. The third—while I was filling the kettle. The phone vibrated without stopping, … Read more

— Your father is a miser! A real, utter miser! He held back the money for a car—again! The front door flew open so hard it slammed into the rubber stopper with a dull, heavy thud that shattered the evening quiet of the spacious living room. Yegor burst into the apartment like a fury, flinging … Read more

— “And the dust is still there, just where it was,” came Alla Sergeyevna’s voice, dry and colorless as last year’s herbarium, slicing through the kitchen’s morning hush. She ran her index finger along the top shelf of a cupboard, then examined the dark smear on her fingertip with fastidious disgust. “Looks like the lady … Read more

“Why didn’t you go to my mother’s today?” Vadim’s voice—sharp and stripped of all warmth—struck Valeria in the back. She was in the entryway, just slipping off her shoes, savoring the relief of freeing her aching feet from narrow office pumps. All day she’d dreamed of this moment: coming home, changing into a soft T-shirt, … Read more

— Mom, I’m trying to explain, — Anton’s voice was pleading, but with clear notes of irritation he could barely conceal. He stood in the middle of the kitchen, the phone pressed to his ear, his back tense like a drawn string. — It’s Veronika’s sister’s birthday. A milestone one. They planned everything in advance, … Read more

The silence of the night, broken only by the soft rustle of rain outside the window, wrapped the apartment like a warm blanket. Alyona had already put on her pajamas, tied her hair into a messy ponytail, and was about to collapse into bed after an exhausting nurse’s shift at the hospital. But the phone … Read more