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— “I have a small child, where are we supposed to climb!?” Anna’s voice, a young woman with a tired face, sounded sharp, yet also carried a note of desperation. — “And you suggest an old woman like me climb up there?!” Tatiana Arkadievna’s voice, dry and categorical, cut through the stuffiness of the train … Read more

Maria Petrovna appeared in the village school about ten years ago. She was immediately noticeable: small but lively, like a spring, always with a bucket and a broom in hand. She didn’t just work there – she breathed life into that school. She was the first to arrive in the morning and the last to … Read more

Boys, time to head home?” Alsou whispered breathlessly, her hot breath burning Pavel’s ear. “Shall we take a cab?” Pavel stretched blissfully, hugged the young woman, and laughed. “Time, time… sweet little… cannibal… Let me make some coffee and we’ll scatter for a week,” he said, abruptly getting off the bed with his toned body. … Read more

Dina shook her housecoat, jumped into her slippers on bare feet, and dashed out of the building, trying to catch up with her husband. “Pasha, come back! Where are you going?” she cried out, almost in tears. Pavel irritably responded over his shoulder: “I can’t stand being around you right now, I’m going fishing!” “You … Read more

A man stood in the reception area of the maternity hospital, shoulders slumped. He held no flowers in his hands, unlike what is typical when greeting new mothers with babies. His cracked and chewed lips were tightly pressed together. This was not how Ignat had imagined meeting his long-awaited heir. Oh, not like this! He … Read more

The wind outside howled with renewed force, sweeping the snow-cleared paths. Forester Denis, who lived alone in a wooden hut with a real Russian stove, was preparing dinner. Life had led the young man to the forest after the death of both parents. While he was in the army, a fire broke out at night … Read more

My daughter was three years old when I found her under a bridge, covered in mud. I raised her as my own, even though people whispered behind my back. Now she is a teacher in the city, while I still live in my little cottage, sifting through memories like precious beads. A floorboard creaked underfoot—again, … Read more

Marina and Oleg had lived together for ten years. They had experienced so much during these years—a wedding, children, cozy family holidays, trips to the sea in an old car. Sometimes she was amazed at how quickly it all flew by, leaving no substantial traces on her soul. But if you looked a little deeper, … Read more

Varya stopped her car near a familiar house and looked at her watch. Thirty minutes early—she had arrived too soon. “No big deal,” she thought, “My mother-in-law is always happy to see me.” She adjusted her hair in the rearview mirror and stepped out of the car, holding a box with a cake. It was … Read more

Vera, stop already,” Igor snapped irritably, pushing away his unfinished bowl of borscht. “How long can you keep making scenes over this? Anya is our guest. She’ll be leaving soon.” “Guest?” she snorted disdainfully. “She’s been ‘guesting’ here for three months already. She bought a three-thousand-ruble bottle of wine, slathered caviar on her sandwich, and … Read more