04/19/2025
At the bus stop, a woman left me a little girl and a suitcase full of money—I remained silent for 30 years, but I never expected…
“Just grab and run, you know? Immediately…”
“But why me? What’s so special about me?”
Three decades have passed, yet these phrases still ring clearly in my memory, as if spoken yesterday. That fateful evening radically changed the course of my life. Now, looking back through the prism of all these years, I clearly understand—everything in our lives is interconnected.
The winter of 1995 was especially unpleasant and damp. A nasty mix of wet snow and rain turned every walk into a real ordeal. The piercing wind mercilessly hurled sharp, icy crystals into my face. I was standing at the public transport stop, dreaming of nothing more than getting home as soon as possible, settling comfortably in my favorite chair, and enjoying a cup of aromatic hot tea. The workday at the store had dragged on so long that I could barely stand on my feet: a sudden new shipment of goods, a scheduled inventory, and difficult customers had created an unbearable atmosphere. My legs buzzed with fatigue, and my thoughts became entangled in an endless stream of numbers and complaints.
“Marina, are you going to wait for the last bus again?” came the familiar voice of our neighbor, Zinaida Petrovna.
“What choice do I have?” I replied with a slight smile, shrugging. “I just don’t have the money for a taxi.”
“And when is Lyosha finally going to buy a car? He promised, after all…”
“We’re saving up gradually…”
I turned away, hiding a shy smile. All our acquaintances knew very well about our desire to have a child, yet all we managed to do was to set aside money—sometimes for a car, sometimes for renovating the apartment, sometimes for that long-awaited trip to a sanatorium. Time was relentlessly slipping through our fingers. Meanwhile, the neighbor headed toward the store.
It was at that moment that I noticed them—a woman in a worn-out coat holding a small child. She was frantically darting about the bus stop, resembling an injured bird, constantly scanning the faces of passersby. When our eyes met, my heart clenched painfully at the despair I saw in her eyes.
“Please hold her for a moment,” she suddenly blurted out, handing me the little girl. “I’ll be quick… just to the newsstand…”
Before I could even collect myself, I took the child into my arms. She turned out to be surprisingly light and completely calm. Nearby, a battered suitcase materialized.
“Hey, wait…” I started to say, but the woman had already melted away into the crowd of hurrying people.
Seconds turned into minutes. Five… Ten… And I continued to stand there, holding the stranger’s child, utterly confused and not knowing what to do.
“You’ve completely lost your mind!” Lyosha paced nervously in the kitchen, like a cornered animal. “We need to call the police immediately!”
The little girl slept peacefully on our couch, wrapped in an old blanket. The suitcase remained unopened—I was even afraid to touch it.
“Wait a little,” I said, touching my husband’s hand. “Let’s at least see what’s inside.”
When we opened the suitcase, an unexpected discovery awaited us…
Continued in the 1st comment
