HOME | DD

Description
Who would have thought Kostya would be able to hold Elya in his arms again after fifteen years apart...

What if they hadn't been spotted kissing on that beautiful spring day when the apple tree blossoms offered much less cover than they'd hoped for?

What if Elya's younger sibling Ratmir, then a cold-hearted young adult brainwashed by Father, hadn't threatened to tell dad about that out-of-the-blue fling between his best friend and his sister? "This relationship contradicts our family values," he'd deadpan, avoiding looking Kostya in the eye.

What if Kostya had been someone else, a much more suitable person for Elya?

What if he didn't have to tell Elya he didn't love her anymore in the hope of preserving that shallow friendship with Ratmir, hoping to build that bridge with Elya again one day... But as a military academy junior driving an old car and still living under the same roof with his mother, his only choice would be to stand by for as long as he could, until he could help her out of all this mess. What if he hadn't been so short-sighted..?

I understand that it is just one perspective, and it is set in a post-Soviet world where traditional gender roles still persist. It's unfortunate that Elya has so little awareness of her power in a world largely dominated by men. Despite all the challenges she faces, she works tirelessly to raise her children and survive under the pressure of her father, who wants her to marry a man from their community for the second time, even after all the abuse she endured from her first husband.

Description
Who would have thought Kostya would be able to hold Elya in his arms again after fifteen years apart...

What if they hadn't been spotted kissing on that beautiful spring day when the apple tree blossoms offered much less cover than they'd hoped for?

What if Elya's younger sibling Ratmir, then a cold-hearted young adult brainwashed by Father, hadn't threatened to tell dad about that out-of-the-blue fling between his best friend and his sister? "This relationship contradicts our family values," he'd deadpan, avoiding looking Kostya in the eye.

What if Kostya had been someone else, a much more suitable person for Elya?

What if he didn't have to tell Elya he didn't love her anymore in the hope of preserving that shallow friendship with Ratmir, hoping to build that bridge with Elya again one day... But as a military academy junior driving an old car and still living under the same roof with his mother, his only choice would be to stand by for as long as he could, until he could help her out of all this mess. What if he hadn't been so short-sighted..?

I understand that it is just one perspective, and it is set in a post-Soviet world where traditional gender roles still persist. It's unfortunate that Elya has so little awareness of her power in a world largely dominated by men. Despite all the challenges she faces, she works tirelessly to raise her children and survive under the pressure of her father, who wants her to marry a man from their community for the second time, even after all the abuse she endured from her first husband.