I came back from the bank with a new account. And at home I heard my husband and his sister dividing up my money…

The air in the bank branch was cool and sterile. It smelled of money—not in the sense of wealth, but in the sense of paper: new, crisp, soulless. Alla had just put her last signature on the account-opening agreement. Her account. Not a joint one, not a “family” one, but personal—separate. The first in her … Read more

— My mother-in-law suddenly laid claim to my house that I inherited. My husband backed her up. On the day of her anniversary, I showed them the door.

The evening was the kind when the sky hangs low like a wet blanket, and even the cat—this eternal little engine on paws—suddenly decides life isn’t all that fun and dives under the throw, pretending to be a decorative pillow. Victoria was walking home from work as if she were reporting back for duty—only now … Read more

He told his wife he was bankrupt and demanded they sell the apartment, but in reality he wanted only one thing

It seemed Kirill had calculated everything: the sham bankruptcy, the divorce, the secret accounts. But he forgot that Anya was not just a “modest housewife.” Behind the borscht and baby diapers was a woman capable of turning his lies into financial ruin. When the last illusions collapsed, only one question remained: what is more frightening—losing … Read more

“How could you kick my mother out of my own apartment while I was at work?! You can start looking for a new place to live yourself now!”

Where is my mother?” The question dropped into the room like a stone into still water. Larisa didn’t take off her coat, didn’t even pull the front door closed behind her. She stood on the threshold, and the cold air from the stairwell mingled with the stale warmth of the apartment. Her bag hung limply … Read more

This is my apartment. And I am not going to be squeezed into a corner for your sake. Suitcases – and out you go!” Ira said firmly.

Irina changed her ticket for the return flight at the last moment. She wanted to go home, back to her usual routine, to her husband. Five days at the sea had been refreshing, but now she longed for her own walls. She decided to make it a surprise—come back a day early without telling anyone. … Read more

You’ll work three jobs to pay off my loan,” Andrey said. He didn’t know that I had already filed for divorce and division of property.

The red stripe on the envelope, almost screaming, was the first thing that caught the eye. “FINAL NOTICE.” Margarita held the letter in a hand that did not tremble at all. At forty-seven, she had long since forgotten how to tremble. She, the financial director of a large holding company, was used to the idea … Read more

My fiancé didn’t know that my phone was recording when I went to take a shower. And what I heard confirmed all my suspicions.

I always believed that love is trust. That if two people decide to tie their lives together, then what awaits them is not only passion and tenderness, but also honesty. Especially when it comes to marriage. But it turned out that my trust was just a convenient bridge for someone to reach my money. His … Read more

Either you host New Year’s dinner for all the relatives at your dacha, or you’ll be popped out of our family like a cork from a bottle!” the mother-in-law declared brazenly.

“Mom, what are you saying?” Olga froze with the phone in her hand, feeling a chill run down her spine. Her mother-in-law’s voice, always so confident and commanding, now rang with barely restrained anger, like a taut string ready to snap at any moment. She was standing on the veranda of her dacha, where the … Read more

“My mother-in-law made a snide joke about my ‘stinginess’ in front of the guests. But I calmly reminded everyone who’s gotten used to living at someone else’s expense…”

— “Katenka, why were you so stingy with the dessert? One little cake for this whole crowd!” Zinaida Semyonovna’s voice—shrill and acidic, like cheap perfume—cut through the hum of conversation. The guests gathered in the spacious living room of Katya’s three-bedroom apartment fell awkwardly silent. Vitya, Katya’s husband, immediately jabbed her in the side with … Read more

“Four wives before me didn’t figure it out — I figured it out on the second day and started making a plan.”

— “Sveta, do you have your own apartment?” I was holding my glass and looking at Sergey. We’d met a week ago at dance night in the Rhythm club on Presnya. He’d walked me to the metro, paid me compliments, remembered that I like semi-sweet white wine. And now he was asking about an apartment. … Read more