– Son, your Yulia is putting us in a very difficult situation, – Anna Pavlovna scolded Ilya. – Doesn’t she understand herself?
– Mom, I’ll talk to her, – Ilya tried to calm the woman down, dialing his wife’s number on the phone every now and then. – Damn, she’s not answering.
– Is she at work now? – asked Anna Pavlovna.
– Most likely, – the son shrugged. – Where else would she be?
– So go to her office and talk to her right there, – the woman insisted. – I’m sure she won’t dare argue with her husband in front of her colleagues.
Anna Pavlovna had her own ideas about life, which most people might find rather strange. However, over time, Ilya himself began to perceive them as the norm.
– Yes, you’re right, – he said. – I’ll go right now.
“I hope that the situation will be resolved by the evening,” Anna Pavlovna called after him.
At his wife’s work, Ilya was told that Yulia was at lunch, but should be back soon. Ilya looked at his watch. In his opinion, lunchtime had already passed. However, the man did not bother with Yulia’s strange schedule, so he simply stayed to wait. He came to his wife’s work for a completely different reason.
Ilya had to suffer for almost an hour when, finally, Yulia showed up. But not alone… Ilya watched in shock as his wife entered the lobby of the office building, accompanied by an attractive young man. They laughed serenely, and the companion hugged Yulia around the waist. It seemed that this picture was familiar to those around her.
A confused Ilya hurried to hide behind a tub with a large palm tree. Yulia and the man accompanying her passed by and did not even notice the woman’s husband. Ilya remained in his place for some time, and then quietly hurried out.
He himself did not understand what made him run away so cowardly instead of demanding an explanation from his wife. Deep down, he guessed the reason, but he was afraid to admit it even to himself.
Ilya was walking home when Anna Pavlovna called him.
“Well, did you talk to her?” she asked sternly.
“Sorry, Mom, I didn’t have a chance,” the son lied. “We’ll talk at home.”
“Don’t drag it out,” his mother ordered him.
At home, Ilya gave free rein to his feelings. He rushed from corner to corner, tormenting himself with all sorts of guesses and versions. The scene he had recently observed kept appearing before his eyes: his wife accompanied by a handsome man, he was hugging her around the waist, they were laughing merrily…
Ilya sat down on the sofa with all his might and clasped his head in his hands. He had no idea how to behave in such a situation. Should he start a showdown with his wife, or should he pretend he hadn’t seen anything?
The man himself understood the vulnerability of his position, and hated himself for it. He could have imagined any outcome from the situation, but he had never expected this from his wife. His Yulka was a quiet, gray mouse… Today Ilya was amazed at how confident and calm she was. Maybe she only pretended to be modest at home, but as soon as she stepped out the door…
Ilya was interrupted from finishing his thought by the knock on the front door. Yulia had returned from work. She was surprised to find her husband at home.
“Ilya, are you so early?” Yulia asked. “Did something happen?” Ilya was shocked to notice a bouquet of flowers in his wife’s hands, which she did not even think to hide. On the contrary, Yulia, in front of her husband, filled a vase with water and began to cut the ends of the flowers before putting them in the water.
“Where did you get the flowers from?” her husband asked hoarsely.
“A colleague gave them to me,” Yulia answered calmly. “But you still haven’t answered why you came back so early?”
“We need to have a serious talk…”
This was a rare occasion when Ilya felt completely confused and could not find the right words. He did not recognize his wife. The man could not understand when Yulia had managed to change so much, and how he had managed to miss such a moment.
“I’m listening to you,” Yulia said, calmly looking at Ilya.
“Mom is nervous,” Ilya said, feeling like a complete idiot.
Yulia smiled faintly.
– Well, she’ll have to get used to it, – she answered, still in an unperturbed tone. – I think I made it clear.
– Are you serious? – Ilya couldn’t believe his ears.
– Do I look like I’m joking?
Yulia chuckled again and headed to the bedroom to change. Ilya followed her. He saw that instead of home clothes, Yulia was sorting through formal and evening options. This puzzled the man even more.
– Are you going somewhere? – he asked uncertainly.
– Yes. I have a meeting at a restaurant, – Yulia demonstrated rare composure. – So have dinner without me.
Having finally made her choice, the young woman put the chosen option on the bed and sat down at the dressing table, taking out her cosmetics from the drawer. Ignoring her husband, she began to apply brighter, evening makeup, and Ilya continued to simply watch her preparations.
He said nothing to his wife when she was already heading for the exit. Ilya simply could not decide how to behave in this situation.
He did not touch the food, sitting all evening until late at night in the kitchen, deep in thought
– I’m filing for divorce, – Yulia told him, returning from the restaurant.
Ilya couldn’t believe his ears.
– What are you talking about, darling? – the man was surprised.
– You heard perfectly well, – Yulia answered calmly. – I don’t want to live with you anymore, so I’m filing for divorce.
Ilya looked at his wife in amazement, and Yulia smiled sadly.
– I know that you saw Pasha and me today, – she said. – But you didn’t care that I was in the company of another man, right? You don’t care about me at all, all you want from me is money. So, the shop is closed. That’s it, Ilyusha.
– Who is this Pasha? – the husband asked in shock. – Are you leaving for him?
– Pasha is my colleague, – Yulia answered. – He has been trying to court me for a long time, but I didn’t give him a chance. I am a faithful wife. Was… But now I’ve changed my mind. So I ask you to vacate my apartment as soon as possible.
Ilya had forgotten that he had been living on his wife’s territory all this time – so much had Yulia allowed him to feel like the master of the situation. And now she had reminded him of his place in the “food chain”.
Ilya didn’t know how to react to his wife’s words, and Yulia was impatiently tapping her fingers on the table. Ilya wanted to explode, hit his wife, strangle her or yell at her. And in his thoughts he did all this, but in reality he didn’t dare even say a word against her. And he obediently wandered off to collect his things.
When the front door slammed, Yulia gave free rein to her feelings. It had been very difficult for her to restrain herself all this time, because she still loved her husband, no matter what. But she understood that she didn’t want to live like this anymore and couldn’t.
An hour after Ilya left, Yulia received an angry call from her mother-in-law, who tried to reproach her daughter-in-law for her insensitivity and appeal to her conscience. And, of course, she demanded money as moral compensation or severance pay. But the daughter-in-law simply interrupted the conversation and blocked Anna Pavlovna’s number.
Pavel and Yulia decided not to force the issue, but to develop their relationship gradually. Pavel also had a sad story behind him. They were both happy with everything, they were good and comfortable together. Yulia was not interested in Ilya’s fate, they never even met again.