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<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
Marina unlocked the apartment door, entered, and turned on the light in the hallway.<\/p>\n
The first thing that caught her eye was a pair of red women\u2019s shoes in the hallway. She recognized them instantly; they were shoes\u2026<\/p>\n
At work that morning, Marina felt ill. She experienced sudden nausea and dizziness.<\/p>\n
She had been feeling slightly unwell for the last couple of days but had tried to ignore it. Now, she felt genuinely sick.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat\u2019s wrong?\u201d her office neighbor, Anya, asked worriedly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI suddenly felt nauseous, and my head started spinning,\u201d Marina replied, unbuttoning her blouse collar and wiping her sweaty forehead.<\/p>\n
\u201cCould you be pregnant?\u201d Anya asked with a sly smile.<\/p>\n
\u201cYeah, right, say something like that!\u201d Marina dismissed her. \u201cI probably ate something spoiled.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat could you have eaten that\u2019s spoiled if you\u2019re such a proponent of healthy eating?\u201d Anya giggled.<\/p>\n
Marina pondered. What if she really was pregnant? No, it couldn\u2019t be. Or could it\u2026<\/p>\n
\u201cListen, Anya, I still want to get checked out. Just in case. I\u2019ll run to the pharmacy.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marina got up from her chair, left the office, and quickly headed towards the exit\u2026<\/p>\n
Ten minutes later, she stood in the office bathroom, unable to take her eyes off the two lines on the test.<\/p>\n
She was pregnant!<\/p>\n
Marina didn\u2019t know whether to be happy or upset. She and her husband Andrei were not ready for children yet. But since it happened\u2026 Maybe it was fate?<\/p>\n
Her thoughts were jumbled. Marina realized she couldn\u2019t work normally today and went to her boss, Irina Ivanovna, to ask to go home.<\/p>\n
The boss, learning of the situation, smiled kindly:<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, Marisha, go home. Rest, pull yourself together, and I expect you back at work tomorrow.\u201d<\/p>\n
Marina didn\u2019t walk home; she flew. She couldn\u2019t wait to share the news with her husband. He had the day off. What a surprise it would be when she unexpectedly appeared at the doorstep with such news!<\/p>\n
Marina unlocked the apartment door, entered, and turned on the light in the hallway.<\/p>\n
The first thing that caught her eye was a pair of red women\u2019s shoes in the hallway. She recognized them instantly; they were the shoes of her friend Alla.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat is Alla doing at our home, especially at this time?\u201d Marina wondered, surprised as she entered the living room.<\/p>\n
There was no one in the living room, but voices were coming from the bedroom.<\/p>\n
Already suspecting something was wrong, Marina quickly moved towards the sounds, swung open the door, and froze on the threshold\u2026<\/p>\n
Andrei and Alla were passionately discussing something.<\/p>\n
Marina gasped in surprise, and the couple turned their heads in fear towards her.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarina-a-a?\u201d Andrei stretched out, confused. \u201cWhy are you home so early?\u201d<\/p>\n
Alla said nothing, only wrapped herself in a blanket and blinked fearfully, looking at her friend.<\/p>\n
What happened next, Marina remembered with difficulty.<\/p>\n
It seemed she screamed, threw things, chased her husband and friend out of the apartment, then fell on the bed and cried loudly for a long time.<\/p>\n
Then she sat on the floor, staring into the void.<\/p>\n
When she came to her senses, it was already dark outside. The apartment was silent.<\/p>\n
Five days later, Marina was walking to a private clinic to sign up for an abortion. During these days, she had made a firm decision\u2026<\/p>\n
Andrei came home only once, just to collect his things and tell Marina they were divorcing.<\/p>\n
It turned out he and Alla had been seeing each other for six months, and it was love.<\/p>\n
Marina didn\u2019t tell Andrei about her pregnancy. She realized her husband was serious about the divorce and didn\u2019t want to hold a person with a child who no longer loved her.<\/p>\n
She thought long about whether to keep the pregnancy or not and decided she didn\u2019t want anything connecting her to the traitor, not even a child.<\/p>\n
Moreover, she understood that she couldn\u2019t handle the baby alone. And no one could help: her parents lived in another city, and her salary wouldn\u2019t cover a nanny.<\/p>\n
Remembering all the events of the past week, Marina reached the clinic. She sat in a chair in front of the office, waiting for her turn.<\/p>\n
A few minutes later, a patient left, and from behind the door, the doctor\u2019s voice called out:<\/p>\n
\u201cCome in!\u201d<\/p>\n
Marina entered. The doctor looked up from his papers.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnton?!\u201d she exclaimed in surprise. \u201cIs that really you?!\u201d<\/p>\n
Anton had been her classmate and first love. In the eleventh grade, Marina was secretly in love with him but never dared confess her feelings.<\/p>\n
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\nAt graduation, he asked her to dance, and at the end of the evening, he timidly kissed her on the cheek.<\/p>\n
Her heart skipped from happiness, but she was so embarrassed that she didn\u2019t even let the boy walk her home, which she later deeply regretted.<\/p>\n
After graduation, Anton moved to another city to study medicine, and since then, they hadn\u2019t seen each other, although Marina often thought of him.<\/p>\n
And now here he was sitting in front of her\u2014grown up, matured, and still so handsome.<\/p>\n
\u201cMarishka! What a meeting!\u201d<\/p>\n
Anton was clearly glad to see her.<\/p>\n
He stood up from behind the desk, approached, and hugged her.<\/p>\n
This unexpected meeting so surprised Marina that she momentarily forgot her troubles.<\/p>\n
For about ten minutes, the former classmates chatted animatedly.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, Anton remembered:<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, what are we talking about! You\u2019re here for a consultation! Tell me, what brings you in?\u201d<\/p>\n
This phrase brought Marina back to reality, and her face saddened again. She sighed heavily and told her former classmate about her husband\u2019s affair, her friend\u2019s betrayal, and the unexpected pregnancy.<\/p>\n
\u201cAnd you\u2019ve decided to get rid of the child?\u201d Anton looked at her attentively.<\/p>\n
\u201cYes!\u201d she said firmly.<\/p>\n
After the examination, Anton offered his former classmate:<\/p>\n
\u201cMarina, let\u2019s go to a cafe this evening, sit down, talk. After all, an abortion is a serious decision, you can\u2019t just make it like that. You don\u2019t mind?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOkay.\u201d<\/p>\n
She wanted to talk to Anton, to learn more about his life.<\/p>\n
That evening, Marina and Anton sat in a small cafe and talked about everything under the sun. They reminisced about their school years, joked, and laughed.<\/p>\n
For the first time in the last week, Marina felt good. She enjoyed talking to Anton and didn\u2019t want to leave.<\/p>\n
Suddenly, Anton brought up Marina\u2019s pregnancy. He tried to persuade her to keep the baby, saying that she would regret it because the baby was innocent of her husband\u2019s betrayal.<\/p>\n
\u201cDo you have any children yourself? Are you even married?\u201d Marina interrupted him.<\/p>\n
\u201cI was\u2026 But I can\u2019t have children. My wife left me when she found out.\u201d Anton said quietly, looking down.<\/p>\n
A pause hung in the air. Anton averted his eyes. When he looked at Marina again, tears were streaming down her cheeks.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know,\u201d Marina whispered, \u201cI actually want this child, but I\u2019m afraid I can\u2019t handle it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cNonsense! You\u2019ll manage! And if it gets tough, I\u2019m always here.\u201d The friend reassured her with a smile and patted her hand encouragingly.<\/p>\n
The conversation ended with Anton offering to become Marina\u2019s personal doctor and oversee her pregnancy\u2026<\/p>\n
For the first time in recent days, Marina slept peacefully. It felt like a weight had been lifted off her shoulders.<\/p>\n
\u201cAh, if only I had been braver back then, at the school graduation, maybe Anton and I would be together now\u2026\u201d she thought as she drifted off to sleep.<\/p>\n
The next evening, there was a knock at Marina\u2019s apartment. She opened the door and froze in surprise. Anton stood on the threshold with a bag of fresh fruit in his hands.<\/p>\n
\u201cCame to visit my patient!\u201d he said, a bit shyly, smiling. \u201cMay I?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cHow did you know my address?\u201d Marina asked, perplexed.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s on your medical card!\u201d laughed the friend.<\/p>\n
\u201cWell then, come in!\u201d smiled the hostess.<\/p>\n
Marina and Anton sat in the kitchen, drinking tea and talking.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou know, Marisha,\u201d Anton suddenly said, \u201cI was in love with you in school. But I was afraid to confess. Then, at the prom, when we danced, I thought I had a chance. But you ran away from me.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOh, if you knew how I scolded myself for that!\u201d Marina replied fervently. \u201cI was in love with you too, but I was very shy. I often remembered you afterward, regretting that you moved to another city.\u201d<\/p>\n
For a few minutes, Anton was silent, thinking. Then he looked straight into Marina\u2019s eyes and said seriously:<\/p>\n
\u201cMarisha, maybe it\u2019s not too late? Maybe fate is giving us a second chance?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I\u2019m pregnant\u2026 by another man.\u201d Marina said, bewildered. \u201cWhy would you want someone else\u2019s child?\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cSo what? I\u2019ll never have my own children anyway, but I want to be a father.\u201d Anton smiled warmly.<\/p>\n
\u201cI agree.\u201d Marina said shyly and felt like a lovesick high school girl again.<\/p>\n
Anton moved closer to her, hugged her, and kissed her. Marina clung to him tightly. Tears streamed down her cheeks. But this time, they were tears of happiness.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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