– I'm preparing an essay on literature, I need to write my thoughts about Bunin and his "Dark Alleys", although for me it's complete bullshit.
Nina tried to look cool, modern and express herself accordingly.
Ilya came closer and sat down on the edge of the sofa. He looked with interest at the girl, who had already begun to turn into an adult woman. She had beautiful skin and bright blue eyes framed by black eyelashes, her hair was more dark brown than light, but still, in general, her face created the image of a young light girl. The figure, not yet collapsible, but having every chance to turn more than one guy's head, was still being formed, as was the feeling of self-confidence at the sight of a male representative. She and Natasha were very similar in their habits and manner of conversation, both calm, not too talkative, even secretive, they talk about such things on their own minds. And if Nina's appearance was bright, then Natasha, the eldest, turned out to be a faded copy. Although the girls had hair of the same color, Natasha often tinted them in lighter tones, and she got gray eyes from her father, less expressive, with the same gray and expressionless eyelashes. Tatiana Sergeevna's husband and the father of Natasha and Nina's sisters was a very good, gentle and kind person. Konstantin Vladimirovich Zotov worked all his life at an enterprise in the Kapotni district, Konstantin Vladimirovich died when Nina was a year old, and Natasha had just started first grade. Tatiana Sergeevna didn't tell the girls much about her father, tried to translate the topic, but she never got married a second time. She worked as a dentist in a public institution, and then moved to a private clinic because of a higher salary, where she remained on a permanent basis. She spoke little about her late husband, but positively. And if you ask the girls what they remember about dad, none of them will really say anything except the general phrases of their mother.
Ilya looked at Nina for a long time until she lowered her eyes to the notebook and blushed up to her neck.
– And I really like Bunin's work "Dark Alleys", there are many stories about love, disappointment and hatred in this collection, – Ilya said softly and put his hand on Nina's knee. The girl twitched as if from an electric current, but did not remove her hand, but on the contrary leaned towards Ilya with her whole body.
– In this collection there is a wonderful story about how a young man had to marry one sister, but secretly loved another. Nina, read at your leisure, it will be very interesting for you.
Apparently hearing Natasha's footsteps, Ilya took his hand away, straightened up and pretended to be looking at the Backstreet Boys poster, while Nina stared at her notebook with an unseeing gaze.
– How are you guys getting to know each other better? Nina, Ilya is so interesting, tell me?
Nina nodded and pretended to be busy with her lessons. Ilya smiled broadly and stood up:
– Natasha, well, is everything ready? You're such a hostess. I can't even imagine what you're going to surprise me with today, honey. Ilya took Natasha's hand, kissed her on the cheek and let her go ahead to go to the kitchen. But before leaving the room, he turned around and winked at Nina, who was staring at his back with all her eyes.
Tatiana Sergeevna was sitting at a set table and was putting salad on plates for the girls and the guest. There was a bottle of inexpensive red wine on the table, Ilya noted to himself.
– Nina, go eat! Tatiana Sergeevna called loudly. Nina went out and sat down at the only empty seat next to Ilya. The kitchen was small and everyone was sitting very closely at the table, sometimes touching elbows with each other. Ilya gallantly poured wine into glasses and made the first toast: "To your amazing daughters, Tatiana Sergeevna."
The poor woman had no idea that it was that evening at the table in her own apartment that the beginning of the end started.
Nina blew her nose loudly into a napkin and continued…
Chapter 5
After dinner and meeting Ilya, Tatiana Sergeevna could not fall asleep for a long time. She decided to talk to Natasha and quietly knocked on the girls' bedroom door.
– Mom, come in, Nina has been sleeping for a long time, and I'm still reading …
– Natasha, are you really sure about this man? It seemed to me somehow suspicious, slippery.
– Mom, well, Ilya is so good, reliable and he says such nice things.
– Natasha, who do his parents work for? I asked him, but he only mentioned his mother, he didn't say anything about his father at all.
– Mom, I don't know, to be honest, I didn't even ask, but I'm not interested. What difference does it make if I love this man and want to marry him. For example, you didn't tell Nina and me anything about our dad. We only know his first name and the last name we carry. And what was he like, what did he love, what did he do, what was his hobby? You've never told us anything. All you keep saying is that he was kind, good, sensitive and responsive, but that's not enough for my sister and me! We also want to know more about our father!
Tatiana Sergeevna jerked as if from an electric discharge.
– Daughter, you would not hurry to get married, your relationship is developing too fast.
Tatiana Sergeevna, hunched over, went to her room, and Natasha heard her mother's restrained sobs and sobs until morning.
Ilya began, allegedly by accident, to run into Nina near the school, in the store, in the yard, and a week later he became the best friend. Nina complained to him about teachers, about stupid classmates, about the hardships of the ninth grade. Ilya listened attentively to all the girl's complaints, nodded sympathetically and understandingly, smiled sweetly, always bought ice cream, and once even took her to the cinema for a matinee. Nina was over the moon with happiness. He seemed to her so grown-up, serious, romantic, beautiful, the best on earth. Compared to him, her classmates were not even gray mice, but something in between an infusoria-slipper and an amoeba. Nina began to make up her eyes, lips, trying her best to look more mature. One day she asked Natasha for high-heeled shoes. The older sister replied with an angry refusal, because the shoes were expensive and branded. But Nina did not give up and when Natasha ran away to work, Nina calmly took her shoes in her bag and changed her shoes before meeting Ilya. Today they have an important date, Ilya takes her to a cafe and she needs to be grown-up and beautiful. She didn't even think about what a ticking time bomb their secret meetings had become. Neither mom nor Natasha even suspected what was happening to the child, where she spent time after school and why her behavior and appearance had changed so much over the past few weeks.
As if nothing had happened, in the evenings Ilya walked with Natasha, whom he picked up from work near her house. He gave flowers to the girl and showered her with compliments. Natasha often went to visit Ilya, where she stayed overnight.
Such evenings Nina just went crazy with jealousy, hatred and anger. Poor Tatiana Sergeevna tried to talk to her daughter, shouted, persuaded, cried, but Nina was as if under hypnosis. The mother begged her to go to the doctor and take all the tests, which only confirmed that the child was absolutely healthy physically. And then Tatiana Sergeevna took Nina to a psychologist, where it turned out that her daughter was in love, and mood swings were just hormonal background of puberty, that there was absolutely nothing to worry about and that all teenagers were like that. Everyone calmed down, but in vain. In fact, it was worth worrying.
At nights, when Natasha stayed with Ilya, Nina dreamed of death, no, not her own, Natasha's. She imagined poisoning her older sister at breakfast in the morning by pouring poison into her coffee or pushing her off the fourth floor when her sister was washing windows. These thoughts calmed Nina, she stopped whining soundlessly and thinking that right now he was hugging her waist and drawing her to him, kissing vile lips, skinny neck and chest, stroking her lifeless hair, they were making love together in bed all evening, night and morning. And at parting, he makes her breakfast and sends her home by taxi so that she has time to take a shower and change before work.
