The air in the pine forest was thick and saturated, like liquid honey, filled with the tart scent of needles, damp earth, and fallen leaves just touched by decay. The rays of the warm, no longer scorching but gentle September sun filtered through the dense canopy of fir and pine boughs, scattering fanciful patterns of […]
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Collecting the softened cream from the pastry, Alexandra sank deep into her thoughts and for a moment forgot where she was. She and her mother had met at a café to discuss the future of the atelier. Elena Vladimirovna could no longer manage on her own. Business was booming, and she was planning to expand. […]
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— “Why didn’t your mother call this time and say she was leaving?” Regina asked her husband. “The flowers need care. She puts so much of her heart into them. If the soil dries out, some finicky plants never recover. Why was she so reckless this time? Was she in that much of a hurry?” […]
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The first rays of the morning sun gently gilded the edge of the pillow on which little Bogdan slept. His breathing was even and serene, and his hand clutched the corner of a soft blanket. Arseny, his father, stood in the nursery doorway, his heart filling with quiet, profound happiness. He watched the boy’s eyelashes […]
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“Since you’re so sure I’m a whore, why don’t you tell everyone here who your son really belongs to? Because you yourself let it slip to me!” Dmitry’s voice was quiet, almost pleading. He stood in the middle of the room already dressed in his formal suit, nervously smoothing an impeccably tied tie. Svetlana didn’t […]
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Anna felt—without the slightest exaggeration—like the luckiest woman on the planet. In just twelve months her reality had changed so much that the past seemed like a hazy, alien dream. Only a year ago her life had been subject to the will of a relative with whom she lived. That woman had turned her niece’s […]
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“Pack your things and vacate his apartment,” declared my mother-in-law when I refused to take out a loan in my name… Nastya pulled the sleeves of her sweater down, trying to get warm. The apartment was chilly—the radiators were barely lukewarm. A dim autumn light seeped through the window, raindrops slowly sliding down the glass. […]
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Artem stood by the window, clutching his phone, a smug smile on his face. His reflection in the glass smiled back at him—a successful, accomplished man who today would become a father… twice. His thoughts tangled, mixing into a strange and shameful cocktail of pride, fear, and anticipation. “They took my mistress and my wife […]
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Eleonora froze with the small, delicate hand rake in her hands, and her fingers uncurled on their own in surprise. The wooden tool fell with a soft thud onto the dry, cracked earth. She didn’t even manage to gasp—the voice that sounded behind her was so sudden and piercing. It was like the creak of […]
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— More junk again? You’d be better off spending it on food. The phrase was tossed at her back, harmlessly, almost lazily, like you’d toss a bone to a dog. Igor didn’t even think it necessary to turn his head. His attention was completely absorbed by the flicker of colored blotches on the huge TV […]
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