“Youre no longer my daughter,” she said. “Who he is and where he comes from, I dont know. I’m ashamed of you. Move into Grandmas house and live like an adult. Own up to your actions.”
“Olga, did you hear? Some people were sent on a business trip to help us. How about we hit the club tonight?” Masha gushed, collapsing into a chair.
“Masha, what are you talking about? And what about Vladykwho will I leave him with? Should I take him with me?” Olga laughed.
“If we ask Aunt Lyuba?” Masha asked cautiously.
Olga waved her hand helplessly.
“What’s the point? She still cant forgive me for giving birth to a son. She wanted to marry me off to Andriy, but I went to the city instead. I didnt enroll, but I came back with a belly. She stayed angry with me all year, only started talking to me two months ago. So go find someone, maybe youll get lucky and meet a decent guy.”
Masha sighed.
“Fine, Ill go with Tanya. Ill tell you everything tomorrow.”
Olga put her son to sleep, then stepped onto the porch. The thumping music drifted to her house. Wrapped in a shawl, she imagined everyone dancing and having fun. Masha was probably wearing her tiger dress again. Olga smiled quietly, looking like a tiger caterpillar in it. She sighed with regret and went to bed.
At dawn, Masha burst in. As if on cue, Olgas mother also showed up as a guest. Olga pressed a finger to her lips, but there was no stopping Masha.
“Its a shame you werent here yesterday. There were a lot of boys. One of them, Vova, even walked me home. Hes chatty and funny. Im going on a date today,” Masha blurted in a single breath.
Olgas mother asked judgmentally, “Hes probably married?”
Masha shrugged. “I havent checked his passport. If he is, at least theres something to remember.”
“Ah, girls, what are you up to? Andriy could be a groom. My own chance at happiness slipped away, but you, Masha, could still spin his head around,” Aunt Lyuba chimed in, excited by the idea.
“Come on, Aunt Lyuba, what are you saying? Who needs him? And his mother, too. God forbid such happiness!” Masha shouted.
She turned back to Olga. “There was a guy there, couldnt take my eyes off him. All the girls were enchanted. He hung around with his friends then left alone, didnt even ask anyone to dance.”
Then something unexpected happened. Aunt Lyuba mused, “Olga, you should go to the club too. Ill stay with Vladyk. Maybe youll meet someone serious and reliable. Vladyk needs a father. Just dont look for married menthey can smell a lonely woman. Got it?”
Olga, unable to believe her luck, nodded vigorously and smacked her mother. “Go away, you clingy one.”
Olga, in her best dress, stood with her friends, chattering merrily about how she missed carefree times.
“Look, here he comes again,” the girls whispered.
Olga glanced his way, her legs trembling. She turned sharply and whispered to Masha, “I think Ill go home. Vladyk is probably crying without me.”
She was startled. “Olga, what? You just left the house for a dance and now youre running home? You havent even danced once.”
Olga answered firmly, “Im leaving. Your Vova will probably come after you. You wont be bored without me,” and headed for the exit.
At the doorway, a hand suddenly grabbed hers. “May I have a dance, miss?”
Olga tried to pull away without looking, “I dont dance.”
But the suitor persisted. “Just one dance, please.”
She finally turned, and her heart skipped. It was himthe same boy whose chance encounter would irreversibly change her life. He didnt recognize her, but a spark flickered, and she smiled, “Alright, just one, Im in a hurry.”
He spun her around. “I suppose your husband is nervous?” he asked.
Olga replied flatly, “Im not married.”
He winked, and she felt her breath catch. “So I have a chance?” he teased.
Olga stepped back, “Dont even think about it,” and fled the club.
She walked home sobbing, realizing shed remembered him for the rest of her lifeperhaps even fallen in love instantly, though he didnt know her.
Later, on a train, they crossed paths again. She was returning home, dejected after failing exams. He was traveling to visit his parents. Seeing her gloom, he tried to cheer her up.
“My name is Max. Mom calls me Max, my nephew is Masha. Choose what you like.”
Olga smiled. “Masha sounds more interesting.”
He extended his hand. “Were almost introduced. And what should I call you, beautiful creature?”
She answered, “Olga.”
Max nodded seriously, “I thought so. A regal name.”
Word by word, she explained how shed failed her institute exams and how her mother would keep reminding her of it for years.
“Then study over the winter and try again,” Max advised.
Olga beamed, “Good idea. I hadnt thought of that. Thank you.”
He stared thoughtfully, “Youre welcome. Has anyone ever told you how beautiful you are?”
Olga blushed, “Just an ordinary girl, dont overstate it. But thanks anyway.”
Max moved closer. “Its true,” he said, then unexpectedly kissed her. Olgas head spun. What followed was both embarrassing and sweet. Max left early, promising, “Ill definitely find you.”
Only later did Olga realize, with a pang, that he never even asked for her address.
Eventually she discovered she was pregnant, and her mother, disgusted, declared, “Youre no longer my daughter. Who he is and where hes from, I dont know. Im ashamed of you. Move into Grandmas house and live like an adult. Take responsibility for your deeds.”
Olga, before giving birth, took a job at a library and worked until maternity leave. When she left the maternity ward, Masha was there to meet her. Her mother didnt show up. Five months after Vladyks birth, her heart finally gave in and she appeared.
“Its not our kind,” she pronounced.
But she began visiting more often, bringing toys for her grandson.
“Whats so early?” her mother asked. “There was nothing interesting there. Hows Vladyk?”
Her mother smiled. “Your child is sleeping. Since youre here, Im home.”
Olga closed the door behind her and tried to fall asleep, managing only until dawn. Sleepy, she fed her son, who refused his porridge.
“If you dont eat, you wont grow like your fatherstrong and handsome.”
“Is that about me?” a voice from the doorway asked. “Nice to hear that. So is that my son?” Max replied.
Olga handed him a spoon. “You? How? From where?” Max smiled.
“I told you Id find you. I just didnt know Id have a son in the meantime. I was so stunned I forgot to ask where you lived. Maybe fate decided we were meant to be together,” he said, making a funny face at Vladyk.
The boy laughed heartily.
In the morning, Olgas mother found a happy Olga with an unfamiliar man carrying a contented son on his shoulders.
“Is that him?” she asked.
“Yes,” Olga replied, smiling brightly.
Her mother approached Max and extended her hand. “Im Lyubov Georgievna. Ill keep a close watch on the man and father you become.”
Max shook her hand firmly and nodded. “Understood.”
