Vitya, your wife didn’t give me the money you promised me! Deal with her yourself as fast as possible, otherwise I’ll tell our parents everything and you’ll have to discuss it with Dad!

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“Vitya, your wife didn’t give me the money you promised me! Sort things out with her as soon as possible, or I’ll tell Mom and Dad everything and you’ll have to have this conversation with Dad!” Alina’s voice, thin and sharp like a shard of glass, hit Viktor at the very moment he turned the … Read more

No one invited you over, Yevgeniya Petrovna! Are you going to leave on your own, or do you need help? And the fact that your son lives here doesn’t change the fact that…

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“I’m here!” That phrase, flung from the doorway in a firm, no-nonsense voice, hit Ksenia like a blast of icy wind. She hadn’t even had time to fully register who was standing there before the massive figure of her mother-in-law was already seeping into the hallway, rudely pushing Ksenia aside with her shoulder. Yevgeniya Petrovna … Read more

I said my mom will live with us!” he yelled — and a week later he was left without his mom, without his wife, and without the keys to the apartment.

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Yulia walked out of the bank with the apartment papers and stopped in the middle of the street. Her hands were shaking. Three years. Three long years of saving, saying no to herself, extra shifts. And now at last—a certificate of ownership in her name. A two-room apartment in a nine-story panel building on the … Read more

“You’re not going anywhere, I said! Your vacation cannot be more important than your brother’s financial problems! So your little wife can wait for the seaside for now, ok?

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“Mom, we’re going to the seaside for two weeks! Here are the keys, can you keep an eye on the apartment?” Anton stepped into his mother’s stuffy hallway, smelling of valocordin and old parquet, and it felt as if the sun itself walked in with him. He wore a light linen shirt, was a little … Read more

After each of her visits I feel worse,” the patient whispered. The orderly didn’t believe him… until she saw it with her own eyes.

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The universe is arranged in a remarkable way. Sometimes it seems you’re walking along a clearly marked path, and then something happens that turns your whole existence upside down. And you realize that all the previous years were only preparation for this meeting, for this very moment that split your life into “before” and “after.” … Read more

You’re the cleaning lady’s daughter, and I’m the director’s son,’ he laughed right in my face. But pride is not for sale… and a year later he was standing at my office door, asking for a job.

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I was born in a place where the sun never shines. Not in a figurative sense, but in the most literal and unflattering one. It was the basement of an old house, its walls soaked through with centuries of damp and the smell of loneliness. My mother, whose hands knew only the weight of a … Read more

A pregnant mistress came into my office with an ultimatum. A week later they both ended up with no jobs, no money—and no me.

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The morning began as always, with the quiet rhythm honed over the years. Sofia brewed fragrant coffee in her favorite ceramic mug, the very one with the delicate gold rim along the edge. This object had been a silent witness to many of her morning thoughts and plans, a gift for one of those memorable … Read more

I’ve blocked all your cards! Now you’ll even have to beg me for money for pads!” my husband raged.

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The end of August greeted the city with a cool, almost autumn wind that drove the first withered leaves along the asphalt, as if hurrying the departing summer along. During my lunch break, having dashed out on urgent, absolutely unavoidable errands, I decided to withdraw a little cash for small household expenses. I walked up … Read more