Katerina froze, her spoon halfway to her mouth.
«Pay you back for what?»
Roman pulled his phone from his pocket, tapped the screen a few times, and turned it toward her.
«Here, take a look. I kept track of everything.»
A spreadsheet glowed on the screen—neat columns filled with dates, amounts, and notes. Groceries, utilities, diapers, medicine, clothes for Misha, a winter jumpsuit, a stroller, a car seat. Three years of their life together, broken down into line items.
«Nine hundred and forty thousand, if we round it off,» Roman said calmly. «Almost a million, Kat. I’ve been carrying this family by myself the whole time.»
Katerina looked at her husband and didn’t recognize him. It was the same familiar face—the mole on his cheek, the dimple on his chin that Misha had inherited—but behind those features sat a complete stranger.
«Roman, I was on maternity leave,» Katerina said, her voice sounding like it belonged to someone else. «I was raising your son! Our son!»
«Right,» Roman nodded, looking like a man who had prepared for this exact argument. «And you did a great job. But we’re a family, Kat. And in a family, everything is equal. You didn’t work for three years while I busted my ass for two. Now it’s time for you to pay back that debt. It’s only fair, right?»
Misha fidgeted in his chair, asking to watch cartoons. Katerina mechanically wiped his mouth with a napkin and sent him off to the other room.
«I’ve been wanting to trade in the car for a while,» Roman said, reaching for a second helping of soup. «So, when can I expect the money?»
Katerina swallowed the bitter lump forming in her throat.
«Just wait a few more months,» she said. «I’ll pay you back what’s owed.»
Roman beamed, satisfied with her answer, and began chatting about work, his new boss, and next month’s office party.
Katerina nodded in all the right places, poured his tea, and cleared the table. But deep inside, where an hour ago there had been gratitude for a «provider» husband, something new was taking root—something cold and sharp.
It wasn’t resentment. It was contempt. Contempt for this man with a calculator where his heart should be, who had spent three years logging every diaper bought for his own son into a spreadsheet.
A month later, Roman brought up the debt again. It was casual, like he was asking about the weather.
«Kat, what’s the word? Any day now?»
Katerina nodded, avoiding his eyes.
«Just a little longer. Soon.»
She waited patiently for her day off. As soon as Roman left for work in the morning, she began. Methodically, she packed Misha’s things—t-shirts, pants, his favorite stuffed bunny, his picture books.
Then her own—there wasn’t much to show for her years of marriage. Two suitcases and three bags. Her entire life.
The small studio apartment met them with silence. Katerina had been skimming money from her paycheck, counting every cent, and denying herself even a new pair of tights to scrape together the security deposit.
Misha ran around the empty room, delighted by the echo bouncing off the bare walls. Katerina sat directly on the floor, leaning her back against the cold windowsill. Only then did she let herself cry.
The phone rang exactly one hour later. The screen lit up with «Roma.» Katerina stared at the vibrating device for several seconds before finally swiping to answer.
«Where are you?» Roman was barely containing his rage. «I just got home and the place is picked clean. Where are your things? Where’s Misha?»
Katerina pressed the phone tighter to her ear and took a deep breath.
«I’ve decided to divorce you, Roman.»
There was a silence on the other end that lasted several seconds, followed by a harsh, nervous laugh.
«What? Have you lost your mind?»
«You’re the one who said I owe you nearly a million,» Katerina said, her voice steady even though her heart was pounding in her throat. «So, go ahead—try to collect that debt through the courts. Meanwhile, I’m filing for child support. Let’s see who ends up owing who.»
«Unbelievable!» Roman exploded into a scream, forcing Katerina to pull the phone away from her ear. «You mercenary brat! I fed you for three years, and all you can think about is money!»
Katerina hit «end call» and silenced her ringer. The phone continued to vibrate—once, twice, three times—but she set it aside and went to help Misha arrange his toys in the corner of the room.
There would be time for worrying and overthinking later. Right now, her son was happy in his new home, and that was all that mattered.
The divorce dragged on for three months. Hearings, paperwork, testimony. Roman showed up to court with a lawyer and his infamous spreadsheet, printed out on ten separate pages.
The judge, a tired-looking woman in her fifties, flipped through the pages with a completely unreadable expression.
«To clarify,» she said, looking at Roman over the rim of her glasses, «you are attempting to recover expenses spent on your shared child from your ex-wife?»
«For the maintenance of the household,» Roman corrected. «She didn’t work for three years!»
«She was on maternity leave for three years caring for your shared child,» the judge said, setting the papers aside. «There are no legal grounds for the recovery of these funds. The claim is denied.»
Katerina sat on her side of the courtroom, watching her ex-husband’s face shift from smug confidence to utter confusion and rage.
Child support was set that same day—a fixed monthly amount. Since Roman’s official salary was peanuts while his real income came under the table, the judge, seeing through the games, ensured the amount was fair.
Roman stormed out of the courtroom without so much as a glance in her direction. Katerina gathered her documents, tucked them into her bag, and headed for the exit. On the courthouse steps, Galina Petrovna caught up to her.
«Kat, wait.»
Katerina stopped, braced for anything—accusations, yelling, or tears. But her mother-in-law—now former mother-in-law—stood before her looking completely lost.
«I’m so sorry,» Galina Petrovna said softly, keeping her eyes down. «I don’t know how I raised such a foolish son. I’m ashamed of him, Kat. Truly ashamed.»
Katerina remained silent, unsure of how to respond to such unexpected sincerity.
«Can I still see Misha?» Galina Petrovna finally looked up, her eyes glistening with tears. «Please. He’s my only grandson. I can’t imagine my life without him.»
Katerina paused for a few seconds, then nodded.
«Of course, Galina Petrovna. I divorced Roman, not you. Come by whenever you like. I’ll text you the address.»
Katerina started her walk home. Today was the first day of a brand-new chapter…
