“Forgive Me, Love”
TanyaTanya, wait!” A strangers voice cut through the morning air before she could step out of the building.
She froze, glancing at her watch. “Who are you?”
The man hesitated. “Im your… your father, Tanya.”
Her jaw tightened. “Youre mistaken. I dont have a father. Never did.” She turned away, heels clicking sharply against the pavement as she hurried toward her car.
Outwardly, she was ice. Inside, her heart hammered, her cheeks burning like embers.
The engine roared to life.
“Tanya, pleasejust five minutes!” His voice cracked as he lunged forward, hands outstretchedbut she was already pulling away, leaving him standing there, a shadow shrinking in her rearview mirror.
At the petrol station, she gripped her coffee and dialed her husband.
“Slav, therestheres some madman outside. Keep an eye on Yuri if you go out, yeah?” Her voice wavered despite herself.
“What madman?” His tone was light, teasing.
“How should I know? Just some bloke!”
“Admirer, maybe?”
“Not funny.” She exhaled sharply. “Im leaving.”
“Have a good one. Eyes on the little man, promise.”
She hung up.
Work was a blur.
Tanya had no fathernot really. Biology aside, hed never existed. Her childhood was a patchwork of vague memoriesher mothers face, a whisper of warmth, then nothing. By the time she understood, her mother was already gone. The foster home was decent, the carers kind, but shed envied the others. At least their mothers were alive. At least they had hope.
Lunch came.
“Youre miles away,” her colleague Katy nudged.
“Just tired,” Tanya lied.
But the mans face haunted her. If he *was* her fatherwhy now? Why wait decades? By evening, shed buried the thoughts. She had a family: her husband, her four-year-old son, Yuri. That was enough.
Yet when she returned home, the strangers voice echoed from the kitchen.
“Slav, have you lost your mind?” she hissed.
“Listen,” her husband said gently. “Vadim Sergeyevich just wanted to talk. He didnt know you existed.”
Tears pricked her eyes.
The manVadimleaned forward. “Your mother… I loved her. But my mother drove her away. Lied to me. By the time I knew the truth, it was too late.”
The story spilled outa young soldier, a love torn apart by deceit. His mothers deathbed confession. Years of loneliness.
“I found your mothers grave,” he whispered. “And I found *you*.”
Tanya sobbed.
That night, she lay awake.
Morning came. The train station was crowded.
Vadim spotted them first. Their eyes metand for the first time, she smiled.
Minutes later, he held Yuri, voice thick. “Ill be back in a month. Well sort the house paperwork.”
“Well manage,” she murmured.
“Forgive me, love.”
She cried then, collapsing into his arms. For the first time, she felt itthe weight of a fathers love.
The train whistle blew.
“Come back soon,” she said softly.
“I will.” His smile was weary. “Ive been alone too long.”
In the car, Slav squeezed her hand.
“Thank you,” she whispered.
“For what?”
“If not for you… Id never have listened.”
He grinned. “Youre the one who always says everyone deserves a second chance.”
She nodded. “Everyone.”
A month later, Vadim returned for good. The house was hers. And for the first time in her life, Tanya had a father.
