Marina was the only breadwinner in the family. Her husband, Pavel, had not worked for three years, blaming it on “creative burnout,” and lived entirely at her expense. As she was leaving for a three-day business trip, Marina once again asked him to look for a job, but all she received in response was irritation and reproaches. Her suspicions about the strange withdrawals from their joint account kept growing, but she pushed them aside, focusing on work instead.
The business trip to Kazan turned out to be extremely successful: Marina not only secured an important contract but also received a bonus equal to a month’s salary. Her boss, pleased with the result, allowed her to return home a day early. Delighted, Marina decided to surprise her husband and, after buying a bouquet of his favorite lilies, headed home without warning him of her arrival.
As she approached the apartment, she heard music and a woman’s laughter. Opening the door with her own key, Marina was met with a shocking scene: in the living room, surrounded by candles she had been saving for a special occasion, Pavel was sitting with his arms around an unfamiliar blonde woman. An expensive drink stood on the coffee table, and with horror, Marina recognized her own gold earrings on her husband’s mistress.
The bouquet slipped from her hands. Her initial shock was replaced by burning fury as she realized that her husband had not only been cheating on her but had also been spending her hard-earned money on another woman.
“Pack your things and get out! We’re getting divorced!” Marina shouted.
Pavel jumped up and began offering absurd excuses, insisting that the woman was “just a colleague,” but his lie fell apart before her eyes. His mistress hurriedly fled.
“A mistake is when you forget your keys. Betrayal is a choice. Every single day, you chose to betray me,” Marina said coldly, throwing his clothes from the wardrobe onto the bed.
She gave him one hour to pack. All his pleas and attempts to explain were useless.
“Where am I supposed to go?” he asked, bewildered.
“To Alina, I suppose. You spent my money on her so generously that she must be obliged to take you in,” Marina replied.
After putting her husband out the door, she felt not only pain but also a strange sense of relief. She no longer had to deceive herself or carry the burden of a man who did not value her. Ahead of her was a new and difficult life with a mortgage, but at least she would face it with a clear mind and her dignity restored.
