“Mom will stay in the small room, and you and the kids will be in the living room,” my husband announced, figuring out how to fit us all into the apartment—an apartment for which I pay the mortgage. “Marina, Mom will be moving in with us. Starting October, for the winter,” Oleg said, spearing a … Read more
She strode majestically into the hallway. I went to see her out. As my mother-in-law was putting on her shoes, her cell phone rang inside her purse. She hurried to pull it out, glanced at the screen, and before she even made it out the door, she answered the call. “Yes, Zinochka, everything’s fine!” she … Read more
“Ninety-eight thousand,” I said, placing my phone next to his plate, screen up. “That’s how much for a trip to the sea. I’m going in September.” Philipp glanced over at the numbers, finished his cutlet, and burst out laughing. Loudly and with gusto, like he’d just heard a joke on TV. The keychain in the … Read more
As Egor Sinitsyn stepped into the village of Novaya Kosa, he was greeted by the scent of wet wood, seaweed, and smoked fish. That smell was the scent of his childhood. It was the same smell as the old pier where he spent his boyhood days catching gobies on a rusty hook. It was the … Read more
Everyone knew that Yulka was ‘cursed.’ Back when she was in ninth grade, a traveling meat dealer dragged her into an abandoned warehouse. The whole village whispered about it, especially after the dealer bought Yulka’s parents a brand new car and they withdrew their police report. The case was hushed up. Yulka’s dad drove proudly … Read more
“Sergey, how does Olya afford such an apartment?” Tanya paused by the window, watching their guest step out of a taxi loaded with large shopping bags from luxury stores. “She says she makes good money,” Sergey replied with a shrug, eyes still glued to his laptop screen. “On an administrator’s salary?” Tanya shook her head … Read more
“Get this woman out of the hall! I have no idea how she got in here!” Andrey exclaimed loudly as soon as he saw his own wife near the festive table. He stood next to a young woman in an expensive emerald dress, whom he had just introduced to his colleagues as his future wife—now … Read more
For the first time in twenty years, he raised his voice at her. “Do you even realize who you’re talking to?!” Valentina Sergeevna shoved her chair back so hard that it slammed into the kitchen cupboard. “I’m your husband’s mother! If it weren’t for my Andrey, you’d still be stacking bread rolls in your little … Read more
“Please don’t start freaking out,” Sergey said without even looking up from his phone. “Mom decided your apartment is just too big for the two of us. Svetka and her husband have nowhere to live right now, so they’re moving in here, and we’ll stay at Mom’s place for now. You’re hardly ever home anyway … Read more
“Inga, why do you want to drag yourself to this evening reception? You’ve barely left your home office in ten years, you don’t know anyone in these circles, and you’d barely manage a couple of words at a buffet with ministry-level folks! I’m taking Violetta with me—she’s our head of PR, at least she knows … Read more