We married not for love, but rather out of calculation. She came from a respectable family, and I was a man of wealth. Our meeting was accidental, and after a few dates we decided to join our fates.

A month after we met, I asked her to marry me, and she agreed. That was the beginning of our life together, which has lasted for over eighteen years.

We have two wonderful children — a daughter and a son. Over the years, we have become closer and closer. My wife has become the dearest person to me. Of course, love exists between us, but it is not like the romanticism shown in movies.

We did without flowers, confessions, and surprises. We did not need them, because we were happy in our quiet and stable world.

One day, returning home from work, I witnessed a scene in front of a store. A young couple was standing in front of the window. The girl, with tears in her eyes, begged her boyfriend to buy her a beautiful dress.

— Look how wonderful it is! I have always dreamed of such a dress! Today is my birthday! she said. The dress was really beautiful.

This scene made my mind start to fill with things. It was our anniversary, and I suddenly realized that in all these years I had never given her a present. And that’s when I decided to fix it and do something special.

I looked into a women’s clothing store and saw it – a red dress. It reminded me of how my wife used to look in a similar outfit. It was irresistibly beautiful. The dress wasn’t cheap, but I thought, “She deserves it.”

However, my wife’s reaction was a complete surprise to me. When I got home and gave her the present, I saw her eyes filling with tears. She smiled, laughed, and cried at the same time. At that moment I understood how much such simple but sincere gestures meant to her.

Sometimes even the smallest gesture, made from the heart, can mean more than a thousand words.