Other People’s Problems The air in the coffee shop was thick and sweet, scented with freshly ground coffee, vanilla, and the damp wool of passersby coming in from the street, where the October rain tapped out a slow, melancholy rhythm on the asphalt. Katerina sat by the window, cradling a warm porcelain cup in her … Read more
Part 1. A Parasite on the Household Budget Inga pulled up by the entrance, turned off the engine, but didn’t hurry to get out. The cabin smelled of gasoline and worn upholstery, yet that smell was dearer to her than what waited at home. She worked as a shift supervisor at a major logistics warehouse, … Read more
— “Lena, dear… so have you already signed the deed of gift over to Petenka? For the inheritance, I mean?” Lena froze mid-watering the plants. Her mother-in-law, Olga Igorevna, hadn’t even taken off her coat, which smelled of naphthalene and stale theatre velvet. She stood in the hallway of their tiny two-room flat, surveying the … Read more
The door slammed so hard that the dishes in the cupboard gave a soft clink. Liza froze by the stove, gripping a wooden spatula. Her heart was pounding somewhere up in her throat. “Again you’ve got nothing ready!” Bogdan barked, flinging his briefcase onto the couch and stomping into the kitchen. “I’ve been busting my … Read more
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
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
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
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
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
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