Yulia was shoved into the car so quickly, she didn’t even have a chance to utter a word. She never expected something like this could even happen these days.
Yulia worked at a sanatorium, which meant taking the train to get there. The trip was exhausting, but the pay was decent and the schedule let her juggle her daughter’s kindergarten. In the warmer months, the commute wasn’t so bad, but in winter it was scary running to the station: it was dark, deserted, with those garages around… But she didn’t get shoved into the car near the garages—it happened right by the station. A big black SUV pulled up, the window rolled down, and a man with a thick beard asked:
“Want to go for a ride, beautiful?”
Yulia never considered herself beautiful. In any other situation, she might’ve been flattered. But now her feet in old boots were numb from the cold, her nose was runny, and she had seven minutes left until her train. More than anything, Yulia just wanted to be in a warm, heated house. Though who would heat it without her? She’d warm up for half an hour on the train, run to pick up her daughter, then hit the store and go home to crank up the stove and cook dinner. There were plenty of chores—she really wasn’t in the mood for small talk. So she said:
“Open your eyes, what makes you think I’m beautiful?”
She kept walking along the path by the road. The car drove past her and stopped again. This time, a different man got out—he was tall, strong, clean-shaven. He deftly grabbed her and put her in the back seat.
The bearded man, smiling contentedly, announced:
“I like you. So you’re coming to dinner with me.”
And that’s when Yulia realized the man was very drunk and definitely not used to hearing no. She started to cry.
“Please, let me go, my daughter is waiting for me! Why do you even want me? I’m thirty-two, not pretty, and I’m not good at conversation. Don’t be fooled by my coat, my neighbor gave it to me out of kindness. Under the coat, I’ve got an old sweater and pants—what kind of dinner is this supposed to be?”
The tough guy who put her in the car leaned in and whispered something to the bearded man. He shook his head and said:
“Alright, don’t cry. I’ve been watching you since the sanatorium, you know, I’ve seen your sweater. You remind me of my mom, and she always dreamed of being invited to a restaurant. Come on, don’t play hard to get. Want me to buy you a dress?”
“I just want to go home,” Yulia sobbed. “I need to pick up my daughter.”
“How old is your daughter?”
“She’s four.”
“And where’s her father?”
“He left.”
“Mine left too. For another woman, I bet?”
“No. His mother convinced him that our child isn’t really his.”
“What do you mean—not really his?”
“We did IVF. At first, he agreed, but then his mother told him that children born that way don’t have souls. And all that stuff. He’s a good person, just very easily influenced,” Yulia explained, almost out of habit defending her ex-husband.
“So she’s ‘not real,’ huh?” the bearded man dragged out the words. “Alright, let’s go see. Tell me where your nursery or whatever is called. Vovka, drive.”
Yulia shrank back in the seat, scrambling to figure out what to do next. It was clear the bearded man wouldn’t just let her go. Her only hope was the tough guy—he seemed to look at her with some sympathy.
When they all burst into the group together, the teacher and the parents dressing their kids in warm snowsuits went quiet and stared at Yulia. No wonder, they’d never seen her with a crew like this before. But little Irochka wasn’t scared at all by the strange men—she was never the timid type. She immediately asked if the bearded guy was Santa Claus and if they’d seen her dad anywhere. She asked everyone about her dad, and Yulia was used to it by now, not embarrassed anymore. When they got in the car, Irochka took an interest in the steering wheel and declared that she knew how to drive, too.
The bearded guy laughed:
“What a funny little girl. And you say she’s not real. Want some ice cream?”
“I do!” Irochka exclaimed, delighted.
They drove to an ice cream café. Then they went to a supermarket where the bearded man filled a whole basket with pointless food: salted fish, exotic fruits, and moldy cheeses. Yulia would have preferred chicken and pasta, but hey, don’t look a gift horse in the mouth.
They were dropped off right at home, and the bearded man, who had sobered up a bit, invited himself in for tea. While Yulia was lighting the stove, he stared in disbelief, then asked:
“I thought I had a rough childhood… Wait, do you really have an outhouse?”
“Really,” Yulia smirked.
She didn’t fear the bearded guy anymore. She realized he was harmless—just a little ridiculous. His assistant was a nice guy too; he had even managed to sneak milk, bread, real cheese, and kids’ cottage cheese into the basket. Must have kids of his own.
When she finally got rid of the uninvited guests, Yulia started shaking for some reason. She burst into tears, scaring her daughter, but she couldn’t stop: the tears flowed on their own. It was probably the first time she’d cried like this since her husband packed up and went back to his mother, leaving her alone, heavily pregnant, in the house they’d just bought. At least he hadn’t tried to split the house; he said since the kid wasn’t really his, they could keep it.
The next day, the same SUV was parked outside the sanatorium. The bearded man wasn’t there, just his driver, Vovka.
“Hop in,” he said. “I’ll give you a ride to the city.”
“Why?” Yulia asked in surprise. “Do I look like your mother too?”
“Aw, come on,” Vovka said, sounding offended. “I’m headed that way anyway, figured why not give you a lift.”
“Alright,” Yulia sighed. “Where’s your boss?”
“Sleeping it off. Don’t be mad at him, he’s actually a good guy. Yesterday was his mom’s birthday. Well, it would have been, if she were alive. You get what I mean. He usually doesn’t drink.”
Yulia nodded. Not that it mattered to her. She got in.
At first, they drove in silence. Vovka clearly wasn’t much of a talker. But eventually, he asked:
“So, the kid really is from a test tube?”
“Really.”
“That’s wild. People come up with the craziest things, huh?”
“Do you have kids?”
“Nope. Don’t want any—got three little siblings, they’ve eaten my brain. It’s better alone.”
“Yeah, true,” Yulia agreed.
Irochka got excited about the car and asked if they were going back to the ice cream café.
“No,” Yulia replied nervously—she honestly didn’t have money for a café.
“Why not, let’s go,” Vovka suggested.
“I can’t afford it,” Yulia said bluntly.
“My treat,” he waved it off.
On the way back, little Irochka fell asleep. While Yulia was trying to figure out how to get her out of the car, Vovka simply picked the girl up himself and carried her to the house.
“She’s so light,” he said in surprise. “And honestly, she hardly weighs anything at all.”
Yulia didn’t see Vovka for several days. Then she ran into the car again, but this time there was a bearded man inside.
“Vitaly,” he introduced himself. “Sorry about last time, I wasn’t myself. I’d really like to invite you to dinner at a restaurant. Not today, of course—whenever it’s convenient for you.”
At first, Yulia wanted to say no. Then she thought: why not? She even had one dress she could wear. The only problem was—who would look after her daughter?
When she brought it up, Vovka offered:
“I can watch her.”
Leaving her daughter with a strange man wasn’t the best idea. But Vovka inspired trust. Yulia suggested bringing the girl to the playroom—it would be easier for him, and it wouldn’t feel as scary for her daughter to be alone with someone new.
The dinner turned out to be fun. Vitaly was chatty and a bit self-absorbed, but he wasn’t without charm. And it had been so long since Yulia felt like a woman! So when he asked her to go to an art exhibit next week, she agreed.
Irochka loved both the playroom and Vovka. When he brought over a bag of groceries, Yulia felt this was a bit much, but Vovka said:
“This is from Vitaly Lvovich.”
Groceries started showing up every three days, and Yulia didn’t know what to do: thank Vitaly or politely turn down his help? She had a job and made enough to get by, after all. But she couldn’t find the right words. Plus, Vitaly was more or less courting her: dinners at restaurants and cultural outings (not too often, he was busy with work), but it felt like dating. Vovka naturally became the babysitter, and everyone seemed happy with the arrangement.
One day, Vovka let something slip:
“Looks like Vitaly Lvovich has fallen for you. He’s even thinking about proposing. It’s just the kid that scares him. She’s not his, after all.”
That stung Yulia. Fallen for her? Yet he hadn’t even taken her hand. And a child who ‘isn’t his’…
“Like I need to get married that badly,” Yulia snapped.
“Why, you wouldn’t say yes?” Vovka suddenly perked up. “He’s rich—you’d be well provided for, safe and sound.”
“I don’t need a rich man…”
“So what kind of man do you need?”
Yulia shrugged. She remembered her ex-husband—no, she definitely didn’t need someone spineless like that.
“I don’t know,” she answered honestly.
Suddenly Vovka stepped forward, pulled her close, and kissed her. Yulia was startled and pulled away. Vovka looked embarrassed and blushed.
“Sorry, I don’t know… I’m sorry…”
And then he ran off. Yulia didn’t even have time to figure out if she liked it or not. It was just so unexpected. Now what was she supposed to do when she saw him next?
The next day, Irochka got sick. She had such a high fever, it was awful! Yulia had to take emergency sick leave, which the sanatorium, of course, didn’t like. Vitaly was upset—they’d been planning to go to the theater.
“Maybe Vovka could stay with her?”
“But what if he catches it?” Yulia said hesitantly.
“Oh, come on, he’ll be fine! You really wanted to see that play!”
Why did Yulia end up agreeing to this? It’s hard to say. Maybe she didn’t want those expensive tickets to go to waste, or maybe she really wanted to see the play. Plus, by the evening, little Ira was feeling better… In any case, she agreed. When Vovka arrived, he wouldn’t even look at her; the awkwardness between them was obvious. Yulia had even bought herself a brand-new, revealing dress, but now she just felt embarrassed wearing it. Sitting in the theater, she felt out of place, her mind constantly on her daughter. When Vitaly brought up the idea of a trip to a ski resort, Yulia interrupted him:
“Listen, it’s one thing for you to buy me groceries and theater tickets, but this is too much. I’m not going to a resort at your expense.”
“What groceries?” Vitaly asked, surprised.
“You know, the ones Vovka brings over.”
“Wait, I don’t get it. I haven’t bought any groceries… He must’ve brought them himself, Vovka’s got a good heart. And as for the resort, don’t argue: my mom loved skiing, just imagine if someone had invited her to a mountain trip!”
That’s when Yulia seemed to have a moment of clarity. She took Vitaly’s hands and said:
“Listen, your mother was no doubt proud of you, I’m sure! And she can see how good you are and how hard you try. But you don’t need to do all this. Go find a woman you truly love, someone from your own circle. What would we even do together? No matter how you dress me up, I’ll always just be myself. Like your mom. And besides… I think I love someone else…”
Of course, Vitaly was hurt. He even shed a tear, complaining that he just doesn’t understand women. Still, he drove her home. On the way back, he said he’d just go on his own, and Vovka could do whatever he wanted.
So he got it, in the end…
Irochka was asleep, hugging the teddy bear that Vovka had given her. Vovka himself had also dozed off in the armchair. Yulia tiptoed over, leaned down, and gently kissed him on the lips. He woke up, confused at first. Then Ira spoke up:
“You ran off too quickly yesterday. I just wasn’t expecting it. It scared me, you know?”
And then she kissed him again. This time, neither of them was afraid…
continued in the comments