The dream of a house by the sea had been a family dream for many years. Inna remembered how, as a child, sitting at the table in the tiny kitchen of their Khrushchev-era panel apartment, she and her mother and father would leaf through photos of the seashore and imagine how one day they would … Read more
When the doorbell rang, I had no idea that an hour later my life would be turned upside down. The prospective buyers of the apartment were smiling so amiably that I was taken aback—we weren’t selling anything. Then it turned out that my mother-in-law, Valentina Petrovna, had decided to dispose of our home without the … Read more
Diana put the last plate in the drying rack and turned off the water. The kitchen in their two-room apartment was small but cozy. Viktor was sitting on the couch in the living room, scrolling through news on his phone. “Vitya, did Inna call?” Diana asked, drying her hands on a towel. “Yeah, she’ll drop … Read more
Alice watched Anton as he carefully hung his few shirts in the spacious closet of her bedroom. They had been married only three weeks, and only now had he finally moved in with her. The apartment was truly impressive—four rooms in a new residential complex, with panoramic windows and modern finishes. Anton still couldn’t believe … Read more
Olga sank onto the sofa, massaging her temples after a long workday. First eight hours at the office, then another four—moonlighting as an accountant for an acquaintance’s small business. It had been like this for three years straight. The apartment was quiet; only the refrigerator hummed monotonously in the kitchen. The front door slammed—Sergey was … Read more
Marina was quite content with her relationship. She and Andrey had been married for sixteen years; they had a wonderful son, Kirill. And everything would have been wonderful… if not for one incident. One day at lunch with his wife and son, Andrey called his wife “Lena.” “Len, pass the salt, please!” he blurted without … Read more
They said no nanny lasted a full day with the billionaire’s triplets—not one. Ethan Carter’s mansion in Lagos glittered like a palace: marble that shone like still water, chandeliers that threw stars onto the floors, a garden trimmed with the precision of a military parade. But behind those gates lived three small tempests—Daniel, David, and … Read more
Sofiya stood for a long time at the old window, its glass lightly veiled with frosty patterns, following with her eyes the receding figure of her daughter. Wrapped in a bright down scarf, the girl waved to her from the bus window, and Sofiya’s heart clenched with the familiar—yet no less sharp—anxiety. Viktoriya was going … Read more
The quiet of our cozy Saturday morning was shattered by a sharp, insistent knock at the door. Sunbeams danced across the floor of our modest but beloved living room; the air smelled of freshly brewed coffee and vanilla croissants. My daughter, gentle and radiant Alisa, was happily building the castle of her dreams from colorful … Read more
Anna was flipping the fried eggs in the pan when Dmitry’s sharp voice sounded behind her. “More extensions? What do you mean, more extensions?” Her husband pressed the phone to his ear, pacing nervously around the kitchen. “I told you—by the end of the month… No, it won’t work any earlier!” Anna froze with the … Read more