– Olivia, darling, urgently run to me, urgently, I have such a thing here! – Teresa shouted into the phone. – That’s what you’re wearing, that’s what you run in! It’s very urgent!
– Well, I’m actually in my nightgown! What time is it? – Olivia looked at the clock awake. – Are you crazy, it’s Saturday, it’s a day off, it’s only half past eight, what’s wrong?
– Urgent! – Teresa shouted. – Put on a robe, I’ll explain everything, run!
It was not far to run – from one entrance to another, and it was very necessary to run: her closest friend needed help.
They have been friends with Teresa since childhood, since “the yard”, they studied at the same school, though Teresa is a grade higher. Olivia’s mother died when she was still a student, and Teresa’s parents left her an apartment and went to live by the sea. That’s how the two friends have remained neighbors until now.
Teresa is married, sent her two children to their grandparents for the summer, and her husband Mark is often away on business trips.
But Teresa can hardly be called a faithful wife: once she started an affair with Chris, a friend of Mark. For six months they have been meeting when Mark goes on a business trip, but mostly on the territory of Chris. Only Olivia knew these secrets.
Olivia has a six-year-old son, and she recently divorced her husband. Stephen is a good man, but insanely jealous, although Olivia has never even given him a reason. She got tired of his suspicions and kicked him out when the next “boo-boo-boo” started, it’s been a month since they broke up, but they haven’t divorced yet, they just live separately, but they have already started to miss each other.
Teresa stood in the corridor, shaking with fear, and tried to explain everything in a nutshell to her friend:
– Olivia, failure! Mark was supposed to come back from a business trip in the evening! But he called 10 minutes ago, from the station, he is going home, probably already somewhere in a taxi.
Chris in my bed was a bit rowdy last night, I can’t shake him and wake him up, absolutely no way! I beg you, stay with him, as if you have an affair with him and you asked me to change apartments. Like, I’ll watch your son and spend the night at your place, and you spend the night at mine while Mark is away. I have no other options!
– I don’t live with Stephen, but we’re not even divorced yet! I don’t need such troubles! Moreover, Stephen and Mark are still in touch!
– That’s it, then I’m completely lost! – Teresa cried. – You see, this will get us nowhere! Mark will understand you – well, they say, a month without a man, everything happens! I promise, everything will be fine, just save me!
Olivia ran up to Chris and tried to lift him up, but all in vain, Chris just purred and fell asleep again.
– Teresa whimpered, “The taxi is here, I’m lost!
– Yes, run to the floor above, – Olivia commanded and threw Teresa the keys to her apartment, – As soon as you hear that Mark will come here, run to my house immediately. I will deal with this, and you at my house pretend that you slept all night and just woke up, you can’t leave your son.
And so they did. When Teresa left, Olivia took off her robe and lay down under the covers next to Chris. Her heart was racing when Mark came into the apartment, stomped around a bit and opened the bedroom door with a bang.
– What’s going on here?” he shouted.
– “Mark, I’m sorry, it’s me!” Olivia jumped up on the bed and saw Mark’s surprised face. Teresa offered me and Chris an apartment, and she went to my place to sleep and look after my son. We just started an affair with Chris.
– I don’t understand, – stammered Mark, – I called Teresa recently, said I was coming! And Chris told me last night that he left the city for two days. Well, now everything is clear, he justified you. Why didn’t Teresa call you?
– Oh, I left my phone at home, – Olivia began to justify herself, – Apparently, she can’t leave my son for now. Go get her, I’ll be right back, I’ll just get dressed.
It was obvious that Mark was angry, but they believed everything. He left, and Olivia began to shake Chris, who had already started to grumble and move under the covers.
– Chris, can you hear me?” Olivia asked hopefully, “Well, you obviously can, if you’re sitting up! Listen to me carefully.
Chris came to his senses in a matter of seconds when Olivia told him everything. He went to the bathroom, washed his face and shook his head – he understood everything. A little later Mark and Teresa came, and Olivia immediately returned to her apartment. In the evening, an angry Stephen burst into the house.
– “Aha!” he shouted, “I knew you were out, I was sure! As soon as I crossed the threshold, you turned left! Mark called me, he said you’ve been seeing this Chris for a long time and Teresa confirmed it! I’ll keep the baby, I’ll give you a heavenly life!
– Stephen, it’s not what you think!” Olivia tried to insert at least one phrase, but Stephen did not hear anything. Leaving, he slammed the door loudly.
– Teresa, what do you mean? – Olivia indignantly barked into the phone. – You said that everything would be fine, and then Stephen got it! How can I justify myself now?
– Olivia, well, it happened, – Teresa replied sighing, – You don’t care anymore, you and Stephen are going to get divorced, and I have to save my family somehow.
– Yeah, by saving, you’re setting me up! – Olivia was almost crying. – We could have gotten back together with my husband! Urgently call him and explain the situation, Stephen is not a talker like your Mark, he will keep everything a secret.
Teresa seemed to agree, but instead of calling Stephen, she began to call mutual friends and gossip about Olivia – they say she did not have time to divorce and immediately started an affair with Chris. She even asked to swap apartments for the night! They were horrified and made up something else from themselves to make the gossip seem “sharper”.
Teresa was understandable – she is saving her own skin, so she does such things! But Olivia acted like a true friend here – she did not make excuses, she took the whole blow on herself, anyway she would not live with jealous Stephen, but she did not want to communicate with Teresa anymore.
Here the story could have come to an end, if not for one incident. A week later an elderly neighbor came up to Mark and asked:
– What was going on here on Saturday morning? I went out early in the morning to the bus stop to go to the dacha, there was no bus for a long time, so I sat and looked at our house. I saw Olivia running in a bathrobe into your entrance, as if she was being chased. Then you came out of the taxi. And then your Teresa, also in a bathrobe, ran into Olivia’s entrance, and tripped. I laughed so hard! Now I arrived, and I was so interested to know what was going on there, what kind of marathon was it?
Soon everything became clear. Teresa and Olivia divorced their husbands, but there is no friendship between them anymore.
Teresa tried to reconcile with Olivia, but she was categorically against it. Stephen also tried to return to the family, but Olivia is tired of his jealousy and distrust. Olivia doesn’t want this anymore, she needs to start her life from scratch.
