The Superfluous Woman

“You’re beautiful,” Yazgulov said. “Smart. It’s just… I don’t need you, do you understand?”

I swallowed. I understood everything perfectly well. I was an extra detail in the mechanism—I'd known that for a long time— but…

— And what about my pregnancy?

— You made a mistake by inventing it. You ruined everything with it, Anya. I’m divorcing my wife now because she wants children, and I can’t have them.

The world around me collapsed with a roar, showering everything with fragments.

— I’m really pregnant! — I exclaimed.

— If you decided to get pregnant by someone to keep me, you missed. I’ll transfer you money so you can solve this issue.

I’ve already solved that issue. I’m thirty, and a child inside me is everything I have. I may be extra… but I’m strong, I can handle it.

— Goodbye, Yazgulov said.

— Goodbye, Marat, — I answered.