“Len, you don’t mind if my mom stays with us for a little while, do you?” Kirill tried to sound like the calm, reasonable type—though his eyes made it obvious: the decision was already final, and her opinion was just a courtesy. Lena glanced up from her laptop for a second, peered at him over … Read more
The notary’s office was bright and impersonal, as if it had been built for one purpose—to bring stories to an end. Masha sat across from Alexey, slowly running her fingers along the edge of a folder filled with documents. He was smiling—wide and carefree—like this was the best day of his life. “Well, that’s everything,” … Read more
Gleb slammed the keys onto the table so hard they rang against a ceramic vase. “And what are you moaning for?” he barked. “Yeah, I cheated on you—but I’m happy now! And I’m taking the house and the car. I’m tired of your hysterics, you get that? I put up with it for thirty-two years. … Read more
When Denis received the letter from the court, it took him a moment to even grasp what he was looking at. “Claim for division of property. Plaintiff: Valentina Sergeyevna Ponomaryova. Defendant: Denis Viktorovich Ponomaryov.” He actually coughed—not out of rage, but from shock. The anger showed up right after. It had already been six months … Read more
The last client was running late, and Polina had slipped out of her schedule—her own schedule, carefully built for herself. She was already imagining the rest of the evening: stopping by her favorite supermarket near home, picking up fresh salmon for dinner and a bottle of that sauce Artem adored. It was Friday, after all. … Read more
Ira stood by the window of their rented two-bedroom place on the outskirts, watching the city lights blink on one by one. In the glass, her reflection seemed to smile back—Friday at last, the end of a hard week. Andrey would be home any minute, and tomorrow they could sleep in and spend the whole … Read more
“Are you seriously saying that right now?” Raisa set down the comb she’d been threading pearls into and slowly turned toward her husband. Her voice was quiet, but there was steel shaking inside it. “You want me to sell my apartment to pay off your mother’s debt?” “What choice do we have?” Andrey stood by … Read more
“I didn’t buy this apartment just to start living by my mother-in-law’s orders again! That’s it—no more. In my home, it’s my rules!” Yana finally snapped. Her words flew like glass splinters. The air seemed to crack. The kitchen reeked of burnt onions and fatigue. Sergey stood in the doorway, bewildered, a mug in his … Read more
The morning began in silence. Not the gentle, restful kind, but a thick, ringing hush—as if the air in the wide kitchen were saturated with invisible crystals of ice. A single shaft of sunlight, slipping through the spotless window, landed on the polished countertop and pulled one piece of cutlery from the shadows, aligned with … Read more
The last rays of the autumn sun timidly slipped through the tall window, scattering glints across the flawlessly polished dining table. The air was steeped in silence—thick, heavy, like the pause before a storm. Olga set out the plates without a word, checking an invisible list in her head: her place setting, her daughter’s, her … Read more