“What’s this?” Ira was rummaging through some documents when she needed her husband’s passport. As she searched his bag, she stumbled across something else that caught her attention.
“I didn’t think you’d find that…” Andrey mumbled, blushing.
That morning, Irina woke up alone. Andrey had left early, nothing unusual. Reaching for her phone, she saw a notification light up the screen—she’d received a new message.
“I’m fine. How are you? Love you.”
Getting such a message from her husband surprised Ira. It was unexpected. He almost never texted her in the mornings—his mornings were always all about work.
She was about to reply but paused. Something about the message felt off. Maybe because it read like a response to a question she hadn’t even asked.
Ira set the phone back down.
That evening, while they were having dinner together, she casually asked:
“Who were you texting this morning?”
“No one.”
“Strange, because I got this…”
He smiled and hugged her:
“Oh… I just wanted to say everything’s good. You barely text me anymore.”
She looked at her husband and smiled. Everything seemed perfectly normal. But that strange feeling she’d had didn’t go away, no matter how fleeting it seemed.
The next day, Irina was gathering laundry for washing. She always laundered her husband’s shirts separately. At some point, as she loaded them into the machine, she noticed a scent on one shirt—something cloyingly sweet and floral, unfamiliar to her.
She brought the shirt closer to her face. The same smell lingered. It wasn’t fabric softener or detergent. It was definitely not her perfume, nor his deodorant.
“That’s a weird smell, isn’t it?” she asked Andrey. He sniffed and shrugged.
“I don’t know,” he muttered, averting his gaze. A couple of days later he brought her a gift.
“Perfume?” Ira was surprised. She usually picked out her own fragrances.
“Wanted to make you happy. And you figured it out before I could surprise you. That scent—on the shirt—it’s perfume from the store. You know how sometimes the clerks spray perfumes everywhere when you’re trying them out? I guess it rubbed off on me.”
She took the bottle.
“What’s the occasion?”
“No reason. You’re beautiful, and beautiful women should wear expensive perfume.”
“Thank you,” Ira said. It seemed he was being genuine, smiling as he spoke. She thanked her husband. Even though the scent felt foreign to her, when she sprayed some on her wrist in the bathroom, it seemed oddly familiar.
Irina arrived early for her meeting with a friend and was finishing her coffee when Evelina walked in—a tall, striking woman. People often thought they were sisters, given the resemblance, but they were so different at the same time.
“How are you, dear? You look tired.”
“A bit, yeah,” Irina nodded. “Andrey had an early meeting. Told me he’d be home late tonight.”
“Work again?” Evelina laughed. “Why can’t they just be present instead of always ‘on a project’?”
Irina chuckled.
“He does try. He’s almost always home on time. Last week, he even brought me my favorite cake out of the blue. And yesterday he texted me in the morning: ‘Love you.’ And gave me perfume. What do you think?” Ira showed her the bottle.
Evelina flinched slightly, but quickly masked it with a sip of coffee.
“Such a romantic!” she replied with a forced smile. “I know that perfume. My ex gave me the same one—right before we broke up.”
“Oh? Now I understand.” Irina looked away.
“Understand what?!”
“Where I know that smell from. It’s yours. Not mine.”
Evelina almost choked on her coffee.
“Well… I hardly ever use that perfume.”
“I didn’t like it. It suits you better. If you want, I’ll give it to you.”
“No, that’s not necessary. Thanks. I still have a full bottle,” her friend said as she adjusted her hair and tried to change the subject, but Ira still voiced her doubts.
“You know, I was never the jealous type before, but that text message… it really shook me. We haven’t been in the honeymoon phase for a long time. And Andrey’s not the sentimental type. What if he didn’t mean to send it to me, but it ended up on my number by mistake?”
Evelina giggled.
“Ir… don’t you think you’re just overtired? Seriously. Always being on guard is exhausting. Sometimes we invent problems for ourselves — and then find things that were never really there. Go to a spa, relax. I saw an ad for a really nice place the other day… Bubble massage, hammam… It’s called ‘Fairy-Orchid’ Salon. Write it down. I’m thinking of trying it too.”
Irina nodded. She wanted to trust her husband. Still, there was a discomfort inside her, as though something important was just beginning to surface — something she couldn’t quite name yet.
And it “surfaced” a week later.
“What’s this?” Irina frowned.
She was searching for Andrey’s passport — she urgently needed to send a copy for insurance. Andrey was on the phone at the time. Irina rummaged through his bag, unzipped a pocket. The passport was in the side compartment but snagged on something — something dense and glossy.
It was an envelope. White, with the spa center’s logo.
Ira took her discovery and turned it over in her hands. The paper felt thick and expensive. On the other side was a picture of a flower.
“What’s this?” she repeated, louder.
Andrey was already standing in the kitchen doorway. His eyes fell on the envelope and for a moment, he seemed lost for words.
“I thought… you wouldn’t find that,” he mumbled.
“What exactly wasn’t I supposed to find?” her voice trembled.
“It’s… well, I wanted to surprise you,” he stepped closer, “A spa package for two. Massage, thermal area… I wanted to give it to you on Friday. But again, you found my gift ahead of time.”
“Really?” she looked at him closely. “Then why is only your name on the envelope? Not a word about me.”
He hesitated. His gaze dropped for a second.
“I just didn’t bother with the details. But if you want, I’ll write your name on it myself.”
She nodded silently, set the envelope on the table. Maybe she really was just overthinking things.
They went to the spa. Everything was romantic, just like when they first started dating. It felt like everything was fine. Irina even relaxed. Things felt easier. Her husband was right there, after all. What more could she ask for? He came home on time, his phone was “clean,” he gave her gifts, surprised her.
Maybe all this talk about unhealthy relationships is just getting into women’s heads too much? Cheating is everywhere — in movies, books, insurance company ads, love songs, girlfriends’ gossip…
When Ira finally realized all this was nonsense and just her imagination, she bought her husband a gift in return and decided to plan a candlelit evening at home. Just like before.
And suddenly, on the eve of their special night, she got a phone call:
Hello! We’re calling from the “Feya-Orchid” SPA center. You left a bracelet with us, and we found your number in the guest registration.
“I didn’t leave anything,” Ira replied, startled. The name of the salon made her uneasy. Someone had mentioned it before, but Ira hadn’t even looked at the sign. Some sort of flower logo… An orchid, it seemed…
“Are you sure? It was definitely you and your husband who visited us.”
“Alright, I’ll come by,” Irina agreed for some reason. She decided it was time to confirm her suspicion and clear things up. That same evening, she went to the salon where she and Andrey had gone together.
The girl at the front desk looked at her and hesitated for a moment.
“You were here… recently, right? With…”
“With my husband.”
A heavy silence hung in the air.
“I’m sorry… It’s just… he was here yesterday. Around lunchtime.”
“Alone?! Are you sure?”
“I thought he was with you—after all, this bracelet stayed behind… But the girl who was with him looked a lot like you. Only, she didn’t act nearly as polite and well-mannered as you do. She demanded champagne, rose petals… My coworkers and I even joked you’d changed so much in a week that maybe you had a split personality or PMS… Oh, I’m sorry, I don’t know why I’m saying all this,” the receptionist said, nervously turning red.
“Where’s the bracelet?” Ira asked curtly.
“Here…” The administrator pulled out the bracelet from a drawer. Costume jewelry—familiar to Irina. She had recently given this trinket to Evelina, brought it back from her vacation. Such a pretty keepsake, unusual and very memorable.
“Oh wait, then I can’t give it to you… it’s not actually yours!” the girl realized suddenly.
“Not mine?” Ira repeated. “Well, the husband is mine… but the bracelet belongs to my friend.”
“Hmmm… this is awkward. I’m sorry.”
“Just hand it over to me. Trust me, I’ll return the found item—personally, right into that… less-than-smart woman’s hand. And I’ll have a talk with my husband about why he’s taking my friends to the SPA…”
In the end, Ira was able to work something out with the salon administrator.
She had no plans to cause a scene or throw a tantrum. Ira spent the whole night thinking of how to get back at her husband. As for Evelina, she simply decided not to talk to her anymore.
The following week, Ira focused only on herself and her looks. She no longer wanted to resemble her friend. She dyed her hair, got a new haircut, changed her wardrobe—emptying Andrey’s credit card in the process.
But revenge wasn’t just about that. She had prepared a special kind of ‘dish’ for her husband. For dessert.
“Where have you been?” Andrey asked a couple of days later.
“I had a work meeting. It’s about time I focused on my career.”
“But… we were planning to start a family…”
“No, I’ve decided I’m not ready yet.”
He gave her a suspicious look.
Evelina messaged several times that week. She even called once.
“Ira, can we meet up? There’s something I need to tell you…”
“I’m busy, sorry.” Irina declined the call. She already guessed what Evelina wanted. Then, Evelina sent a screenshot of their chat on social media.
“Yes, your husband and I… we’re close. Sorry,” Evelina typed, attaching some photos.
Now Ira knew it was really over. She could see her husband was nervous. Of course, Andrey hardly recognized his wife anymore.
“What’s going on with you?” he asked as she was getting ready to leave for another evening out. She was dressed in a cocktail dress, hair done up.
“Tired of sitting at home. Friends—they’re fickle, you just can’t count on them…”
— So, maybe the two of us could go out sometime?
— I’m busy today.
— Hey! Do you have someone else?! — Andrey pouted like a sulking teenager, then tried to hug her. She pulled away without replying. That night, she came home very late.
Two weeks passed.
Andrey couldn’t relax—his thoughts were always on his wife. He was jealous.
His anxiety started to affect his work, too. A major project was coming up and Andrey had a business dinner at a restaurant, but he was barely prepared—Irina hadn’t come home the night before, and he’d spent all night trying to reach her. By morning, Irina finally answered: she claimed she’d been ‘at her mother’s’.
He didn’t believe her. But there was no time for a confrontation; he had to get ready for his meeting.
Andrey barely made it on time. But inside, he was in for a surprise. There, sitting at the table, was Irina. She faced his boss, calmly and confidently explaining something. His boss nodded at Andrey:
— Oh, hey. Have a seat. Your wife—well, almost ex-wife now—is an excellent candidate for my deputy. Shame you never told me she was so skilled in sales strategy. We’ve decided you need a lighter load. You’ll handle all the routine work that’s piling up, and she’ll take on the new project.
Andrey sat down but couldn’t hear anything being said. He just stared at Irina’s hand—her wedding ring was gone.
She didn’t go home. She didn’t speak to her husband. She simply notified him that she’d filed for divorce.
A week later, Andrey was demoted and Irina started at her new job.
It turned out later that Ira had connected with Andrey’s boss by ‘accidentally’ meeting him during lunch at the restaurant. A quick chat, her charm, her low-cut top and feminine charisma captivated him, and since he was just as much a womanizer as Andrey, he offered her a job—and a little something extra, no strings attached.
Ira hinted she wasn’t against the idea, but kept her dignity, which only fueled the interest of a man who wasn’t exactly a stickler for principles. After a couple of weeks, he no longer thought of her as his subordinate’s wife. He wanted to win her—and was ready to make staff changes to get her.
— Did you cheat on me? With my boss?! — Andrey confronted Ira in the office lobby. He looked crushed, confused, lost.
— No, — she replied with a predatory smile. — Not yet. But once our divorce is finalized, I’ll definitely catch up on lost time. Or is it only you who’s allowed to have fun?
— What are you talking about?!
— Stop pretending. I know everything, — Irina said quickly, then walked away, leaving her husband to stare after her alone.
It was really over between them. Irina had achieved her goal, set her husband free for someone else—and served up the ultimate revenge. After all, cheating men need to be taught a lesson. Don’t you think? Or maybe… they should have talked first? Heard his side of the story… continued in the comments.