Like many Ukrainians, they were to experience the war very differently. Tetiana found herself in a new world: a new country, a new language and, to Andriï's dismay, a new boyfriend. Andriï found himself at the front, supporting soldiers suffering from depression and, for the first time since he was a teenager, living alone. A law prevents him from visiting his family.
Civilians have always fled war, but the conflict in Ukraine is different. As soon as Russia invaded, President Volodymyr Zelensky signed a decree forbidding men aged between 18 and 60 to leave - with a few exceptions - in order to keep the fighting population at home. This led to an exodus of women.
Some are fleeing violent or controlling spouses in Ukraine: the law keeping men in the country gives them the freedom to seek the divorce they were already thinking of.
TETIANA :
"I was so exhausted that I spent the first few days sleeping, walking and thinking. Suddenly, I had free time: I didn't have to go to work or take care of my parents. And then, suddenly, I found myself thinking that I didn't miss home: I didn't want to go back. It's not that I don't love my parents or my husband. I wasn't thinking about divorce. I just realized that I wanted to be alone."
A few weeks after her arrival, Tetiana met a Finnish man. Talking to Andriï about it was very difficult.
She phoned him: "I don't want to continue our relationship. I want a new place, a new relationship, I want to change everything. I want a new life."
ANDRIÏ
I was driving when she called. I felt like I was in boiling water. I couldn't move or breathe. I stopped. Even after I hung up, I was shaking. I thought I was going mad. I blamed the war, the Russians, our government, everyone.
I was surprised, yes, absolutely. I refused to believe it. I thought it was a stunt and that he'd get over it. But one evening, at the end of May, I called and texted her all day and she didn't answer. I didn't sleep all night. And then I agreed: she's with another man.
I finally sent her a message: "I understand."
TETIANA
The whole summer passed. Andriï told me he supported me. But he didn't do anything. He hoped I would change my mind. In August, I called him back and asked him to help me. As he's in Ukraine, he took charge of filing for divorce. I signed the papers here in Finland and sent them back by bus.
The divorce was finalized in December. Andriï and Tetiana have not seen each other since the first day of the war. She is studying Finnish and preparing to become a Finnish citizen. He lives alone.
Andriï spends most of his time with soldiers struggling with drug and alcohol problems, which he says are getting worse with the war.
The other day, he took Tori, their dog, an extremely loyal Shar-Pei, for a walk in a Dnipro park. Looking at Tori, he half-joked: "She's all that's left of my family."