Natasha tensed up inside when she saw her husband’s niece, Oleska.
The girl, avoiding eye contact and sniffing, handed over a folded square sheet of paper and quickly ran away.
Natasha unfolded the paper, she internally expected something like this, so the written content didn’t shock her.
“Natasha, I’m leaving, forgive me.
Yes, I’m acting like a coward, but I’m exhausted, I can’t do it anymore, forgive me, I won’t abandon the children, but I can’t live with you. I’ve sold the house, here’s your share. Go to your mother’s. It should be enough for a while.”
Natasha indifferently dropped her arms and stood quietly swaying, looking indifferently at the scattered papers.
“Natashenka… what is it?” Grandma Vera whispered, looking into Natasha’s eyes, “A telegram?”
“It’s all good… go have some tea, I need to get the cookies out before they burn.”
The room filled with the smell of vanillin and burnt dough.
She expected something like this; the house was Victor’s, inherited from his grandmother. Lately, he had been coming home less at night, claiming he was delayed at his brother’s place, where they were building a pigsty.
He said it needed to be done before the frost. Natasha heard vague rumors; Victor’s wife, Svetlana with darting eyes, tried to tell her something, hinted at things, but Natasha either couldn’t hear or didn’t want to.
“Mom,” ten-year-old Vanyushka peeked from the street, “Mom, Uncle Petya, our neighbor, is asking for you.”
“Grandma, watch over Katyusha, I’ll be right back,” she said, throwing on her coat and stepping outside.
“So, Natalya, hello, I just came to check, you know… How is it… that thing.”
“Is this about the house?”
He nodded.
“Don’t freak out, if not me, then someone else would. And you know… live here as long as you need, until my Ksenka grows up, I’m doing this for her… you know, neighborly.”
“Give me three days, and I’ll move out,” she said dryly and went back inside.
“Where would you go… Natasha…”
She quietly slammed the door.
A blushing Vanyushka followed.
“Mom?”
“It’s all good, son.”
“Mom, where’s dad?”
She pulled him close, hugged his thin little body, kissed his sweaty forehead, inhaled his familiar scent, and… cried quietly, wiping away tears.
“Mom, he left, didn’t he? He left?”
She nodded.
“I’ll kill him.”
“No, son, don’t, we are strong, we’ll manage.”
Katyushka cried; she calmed her down and seated the children for dinner. She went into Grandma Vera’s room. She was sitting by the window, quietly shivering with thin shoulders.
“Natasha, help me get into a nursing home.”
“What? Are you out of your mind?”
Grandma Vera was the sister of her late grandmother Vali. Grandma Vera had two daughters, both quite well-off. The small village where Grandma Vera lived was disbanded; some elderly were taken by their children, others to nursing homes.
Grandma Vera was left without a place; one daughter lived far across the Urals in a city, another in a small town not far from where Natasha lived with her husband and children.
The second daughter asked Natasha to temporarily shelter Grandma Vera, saying, “You have a big house, she’ll get some fresh air, and she can help you with the child.”
As soon as the prospect of taking her mother arose, the first daughter cut off all contact, so Grandma Vera stayed with Natasha, and it had been six years for Katyushka.
“Don’t be silly, come with us.”
“Where to, Natashenka?”
“Don’t know yet, we’ll see.”
Natasha never thought Victor was a scoundrel for leaving her without a home with children; she always knew the house wasn’t hers, dreamed of building their own home with Victor and the children, it wasn’t meant to be.
She called her mother.
She was outraged, threatened to sue her son-in-law, and sympathized deeply.
“What will you do? Go, go to that scoundrel, let him leave the house to you and the kids, throw those rotten money in his face.”
“No,” she said and turned off the phone.
She understood her mother; she had another family, children. Her stepfather barely tolerated her until she finished school and then kicked her out.
She met Victor, they dated for a year, then got married. She was happy he was such a good man…
Her mother called again.
“Natasha something cut off, where will you put Grandma Vera?”
“Well, definitely not bringing her to you.”
“Why are you like this?”
“That’s it, I’m busy.”
She took an old notebook, found a number. Went outside, dialed.
“Hello, Aunt Natasha,” she said to the one named in her honor, “I’ve split with Victor, I’ll bring Grandma Vera to you?”
“No, what are you, I have high blood pressure. Sit there, what are you?”
“She’s your mother, you have three rooms.”
“So what? I have high blood pressure, my grandchildren come over…”
“Understood.”
They were traveling in a third-class train car.
A thin young woman, just a girl, with big sad eyes, a quiet and serious boy, a lively-eyed girl, and a frail old woman quietly wiping tears.
“Hello, dad.”
“Natasha… the kids? Oh, Grandma Valya?”
“Vera…”
“What?”
“It’s Grandma Vera.”
“Come in, come in.”
“Dad, we’re not coming in, please give me the keys to my apartment, it’s still alive, right?”
“Who, daughter?”
“My apartment, which Grandma Masha, your mother, willed to me.”
“Ah, yes, of course, but come in, Lyuda, Lusya… such happiness, daughter here with the grandkids… Lusya and with Grandma Vera, come on in, come in.”
You see, people live there.
“Well, we’ll go to a hotel, dad, while people find new housing.”
“What hotel,” Lyudmila smiled, “are we strangers…”
Three days later, Natasha heard Lyudmila whispering about when the guests would leave.
“Dad, what about the people? When will they move out?”
Lyudmila dropped her spoon, and father choked on the soup Natasha made.
“You see, daughter… there…”
“No, you don’t have any apartment, look at you getting all cheeky, father paid you alimony until you were eighteen…”
“Until sixteen.”
“What?”
“I’m saying until sixteen, remember I came to visit you, and you dragged me to write off the alimony?”
Lyudmila pursed her lips.
“So what, dad? We need to decide, tired of living like this.”
“Say something, tell her. There’s no apartment anymore, none.”
“How come, dad?”
Doesn’t look her in the eyes.
Your mother and I… we sold it, split the money… right away.
“How? It was supposed to be mine… Grandma Masha to me…”
“And what? He’s a son, be thankful you got some money…”
“I… give me three days…”
“Daughter…”
“Three days.”
“Mommy, where will we go?”
“We’ll live here, son, we’re strong, we’ll manage. This is my homeland. We can’t give up, we have Grandma Vera and Katyushka.”
“Yes! Will I go to school here after the holidays?”
“Yes.”
“Sorry, we don’t rent to families with children.”
“Are you really able to pay?”
“I need three months’ rent in advance.”
“Can we make a deal? No man, right?”
“Well, such a room, but at least it has a toilet, others go outside. Water in the pipes is hot in winter, cold available, shower at the neighbor’s, you’ll meet her, she’s also single… Pay two months upfront.”
“Do you have experience?”
“We don’t hire without experience.”
“Small children?”
“Sorry, you’re not suitable…”
“No experience? Well, you’ll have to learn. My name’s Boris, this is our friendly team. Young, you’ll learn quickly. Girls, take her in…”
“Newbie, three days of training and then off to work. Lots of apartments for rent, seems like sales are good, you’ll sit on a lease, learn and start closing deals…”
Three days again, Natasha thought.
Grandma, kids, we’re moving.
“Where?” Vanyushka looked scared.
“You’ll see!”
“Wow! We’re going to live here?”
“Yes. This is your and Katya’s room, and Grandma and I will be in another.”
“And the third one, mom?”
“The third one is for guests!”
“Wow, that’s something…”
Grandma Vera cried.
“I’m a burden to you, kid, you’ve been alone for three years, is this normal? If it wasn’t for me, maybe you’d find yourself a man, look at you, such a capable girl, just put me…”
“What are you saying? We’re a family, understand! Family. We’re only needed by the children, thank you for looking after them, for all the household chores being on you, you’re my helper, what would I do without you? Who am I without you?”
I wanted to ask, for advice. Boris Arkadyevich offers to go study, he needs a good lawyer, the firm is growing.
“Go, go, my dear, I’ll help however I can, go my sweet.”
“Mom, is it true that we’re buying an apartment?”
“Yes, Katya overhear?”
“No, grandma told me secretly.”
“Yes, son, just as soon as I divorce your father.”
Vanya, already a teenager, talked about his father for the first time. The help he promised… and there was none…
“Wow, mom, is this ours? All ours? So huge? And Vanya and I will have our own rooms?”
“Yes, and grandma, and me!”
“Wow, and we’ll host guests here?”
“Here…”
“Hello, Natasha, it’s mom’s birthday today.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah,” with a discontented tone, “didn’t you know? June seventh.”
“Yeah, only it’s July.”
“Really?”
“Yeah. It’s been two years since grandma’s been with us, we’ve been orphaned…”
“What? Are you a scoundrel? You hid from me that my mom’s gone?”
“I hid? I bombarded you with texts and calls, you hid from me, then your daughter told me to leave you alone, I did. Your sister knows by the way, asked me to send mom’s savings to her, she needs it more.”
“What savings?”
“Don’t know, you’d know better. You probably thought she lived with me, carefully saving her pension for her beloved daughters.”
“So there are no savings?”
Natasha turned off the phone. Counted to three. Phew. Grandma’s memorial day, she’s just at her place. Told how Vanya graduated, found a good girl, Katerina finished school, and it seems changes in her life were looming.
“Ba, remember Sergey,” Natasha whispers, “remember you convinced me he’s good… I might listen to you… He gave me three days to think, said he waited too long.”
So don’t worry, I’m not alone.
The sun peeked from behind a cloud and gently embraced Natasha with its rays.
That’s Grandma Vera, she thought.
Good day, my dears!
I hug you tightly! We need each other now more than ever.
God is with us!
I hug you tightly.
Sending you my kindness and positivity.
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