Without warning her husband, Anna unexpectedly arrived at the cabin. But as soon as she entered the house, she felt like she was about to faint from what she saw….

Anna sat in the train station cafe, stirring her cooling coffee with a spoon. The woman absentmindedly watched the people around her. They were all either newly arrived in this city or preparing to leave.

Passengers. Probably, they thought the same about Anna. A young woman sitting at the table, waiting for her train.

But that wasn’t the case at all. Max had driven Anna to the station, kissed her goodbye, and offered to wait with her for the train. «No, don’t,» his wife smiled at him, «then Matthew will be late for school.»

Max nodded, hugged his wife goodbye once more, and drove off. He left fully convinced that his wife was heading out on a business trip this sunny October morning. Her first one ever.

Anna was an elementary school teacher. The job was responsible, challenging, but very rewarding. It was her parents who suggested to Anna, after she finished high school, to choose teaching as her profession.

«You get along great with kids,» her mom assured her, «teaching is your calling.» «A wonderful profession,» her dad echoed, «noble, necessary, perfect for a woman.» So Anna agreed, and she never regretted it afterward.

The girl’s childhood was spent in a small suburban town. An urban-type settlement with narrow dusty streets, yards overgrown with greenery, where everyone knew each other. As a child, she was quiet and obedient.

It was a bit scary for such a girl to break away from her family and go to the state capital for studies. To a big and noisy city, as it seemed to Anna back then. But in their Maplewood, there was simply nowhere for her to enroll after school.

Out of all options, only the construction technical college. And that direction didn’t suit Anna at all. Anna sighed, remembering her parents.

Her father was no longer alive. The not-yet-old man was taken by a heart attack a few years ago. At least he got to see his grandson.

How Anna got through that year, she didn’t understand herself. Everything happened so swiftly. Her mom was constantly ill too.

Either high blood pressure or heart issues. It was worrisome for her. The only comfort was that next door to her mother lived the family of Frederick, Anna’s older brother.

They looked after her mother, didn’t let her get bored or down. Mom helped her brother and his wife with the grandkids too. And Matthew often visited his grandma.

He liked it there. Anna’s attention was suddenly drawn to a family. A young attractive woman, a guy with a one-year-old baby in his arms.

Something about this trio reminded Anna of themselves—her, Max, and Matthew. They had been just like that not long ago. Happy, carefree, content with life.

From the outside…