Light streams through the window of Nicky's bedroom as the two girls sit on the floor, backs leaned against the bed. Two plates lay discarded on the desk, vanilla cake crumbs scattered over the dainty patterns of the china. It's Lorna who speaks first – it's always Lorna who speaks first.
"Galina seems nice," she says, her voice full of hope and her expression optimistic. Lorna knows how Nicky usually reacts to new people Marka brings into take care of her. "She's different." Her mind cast back to earlier, when Galina had brought out the beautifully decorated cake, twelve candles sparkling in the darkness of the kitchen, and singing happy birthday. Lorna had grinned goofily at Galina's side, her cheeks hurting from the ever present smile. The brunette simply couldn't help it – the sight of Nicky's wonder made her want to squeal. In all the years Lorna had known Nicky, she had never seen that expression on her face.
Nicky's own mind was replaying the same thing as she nodded in reply, softly mumbling, "Mm." She was remembering Galina's words to her.
"Blow out your candles, then, imeninnitsa!" Red had encouraged Nicky, as she stared at the perfect cake in front of her. What made it even better was the imperfections – the little smudge in the frosting, the slight wobble of one of the lines. Knowing Galina had spent time on the cake – spent time on her – made it instantly better than any cake Marka had ever bought from a pretentious, extortionately priced bakery. After a moment or two, she had gently blown at the cake, as if it was illusion that could have been swept away by a simple gust of her breath. Her eyes closed as she made a wish, her face screwing up in concentration.
Let this be real when I open my eyes.
Finally, Nicky nods. "Red's nice."
Lorna watches Nicky, carefully considering her next words but smiling at the nickname Nicky had given Galina. "Are you having a nice birthday?" The words seem like a safe bet, but by the way Nicky frowns at her she's not so sure.
"You know it's not my birthday," Nicky sighs. Lorna shrugs, her hand reaching out to brush her fingers over the bracelet Nicky wore on her left wrist. A simple string bracelet, black and red in a chevron pattern.
"I know," she smiles. "That's why I gave you your gift already. I'm glad you like it." Her voice lowers to an embarrassed hush. "I never know what to get you. You have everything already. I tried to borrow money from Franny but-"
Nicky shakes her head at this, catching Lorna's hand in her own, and locking eyes with her. "I don't need you to spend money on me." Her voice is gravelly, sincere and she glances down at the bracelet on her wrist. "This is better than any of the bracelets Marka bought me." Her eyes cast over to the velvet jewelry box with a roll, and she shakes her head again. Lorna just smiles and gives Nicky a hug, letting a comfortable silence fall over the room.
The afternoon wore on, the sky fading to a dusky pink. And even though she didn't want her to leave, eventually Nicky says reluctantly, "You should get going."
Lorna smiles at Nicky. "Are you worried about me walking home when it's late, Nichols? You going soft on me?" Nicky rolls her eyes but pulls Lorna to a stand.
"Just go home, Morello," she laughs. "Take a piece of cake home if you want. There's a lot for just two people."
"Will your mom not try some?" Lorna asks. Nicky pauses for a moment, and Lorna instantly regrets ruining the moment. When she had first met Nicky, she had tried so hard to get her to be this relaxed and friendly, and now she was ruining the open affection she was willing to give away by asking stupid questions. Her cheeks burned and she bit her lip whilst Nicky thought. After a moment or two, Nicky shrugs.
"I don't know what Marka will do." Nicky makes a point of not saying "mom". "I probably won't talk to her until the morning anyway." Her tone is resigned and despite her saying she doesn't care, her demeanour changes.
"Oh." Lorna leans forward and kisses Nicky's cheek before Nicky has a chance to respond. She grins back at Nicky's weirded out face and laughs. "We don't need other people anyway."
Lorna's departure came just in time for a late dinner, and Nicky padded down the stairs to the dining room, where Galina was just dishing up. Nicky can't help the smile that appears on her face when she sees what's being served up. A dish of lasagne sits in the middle of the table. Without thinking, she says, "My favorite." She sits at her place at the table, allowing Galina to take the seat across from her, and looking over the kitchen. "Homemade, too?"
Galina laughs. "Not everything has to come from a packet, vozlyublennaya."
"You like cooking?" Nicky asks through a mouthful of pasta. Galina nods, taking a bite from her own plate. "What, were you a chef before?"
Galina shakes her head, and sighs. "Not a chef. My family owned a small bakery, a bit like a restaurant. I baked for that. Mostly pastries, some cakes." The words are heavy to say and hang in the air.
"What happened?" Nicky puts down her fork, turning her full attention to Galina. Galina puts her hands up and shrugs.
"Bad business." She shakes her head. "Sometimes things happen and it's best just to walk away, Nicky. Remember that. Things will get better. Budet i na nashey ulitse prazdnik."
Nicky nods, though she's not sure of the moral of her story nor what she had said in Russian. Still, by the look of fury that had suddenly taken over Galina's once peaceful features, Nicky knew it was best to let it go. Instead, she turns the conversation to something lighter. "How'd you know?" She asks, motioning to her food.
"That it was your favorite?" Galina asks, smiling again. A teasing expression appears on her face. "You can't guess?"
Nicky rolls her eyes, the truth finally clicking in her mind. "Lorna." A smile appears on her face despite the fact that she groaned.
"Sweet girl." Galina says, nodding. "So, malyshka, how has our first day been?" The Russian sounds proud of herself. Nicky isn't surprised. The woman, although clearly not very well off, held herself with such grace and poise. Marka could learn a few things from Galina, even if pearls weren't strung around her neck and she didn't have blonde hair that framed her face.
Nicky smiles. "Surprising."
Galina winks. "I'll take that as a good thing." As she smiled at the girl in front her of, the darkening sky outside caught her eye, and she checked the time. The evening had sneaked up on them both, and Galina frowns, finding it to be after 9PM. "Reliable woman, your mother, no?"
Nicky stares at Galina before setting her fork down and sighing. "She's never home at seven. She tells everyone that. She'll probably be home soon, though. You don't have to stay." Nicky shuffles uncomfortably, and the dark rings under her eyes suddenly became apparent to Galina.
"You look tired."
Nicky shrugs. Truthfully, though she would never admit it to anyone, not even Lorna, her mother rarely came back before 11, and even when she did finally fall through the door, usually with her boyfriend on her arm, Nicky could never fall asleep. Every noise woke her up outside as she lay alone in bed, barely able to breathe as she listened to the hum of traffic and people outside. "Everyone's tired."
If raising three children had taught her anything, it was how to read a face. Galina watches Nicky's eyes flickering, her eyelashes fluttering as she stares ahead tiredly. "Go to bed, vozlyublennaya." Clearly, there was something she wasn't telling her – and wouldn't be willing to tell her – as she trailed to the bathroom to brush her teeth and wash her face, her brown eyes watching Galina as she left, no argument to be heard.
And Galina couldn't help herself as she wondered if it was too soon to be meddling with the child's life. As always, Galina just went with her gut instinct as she ascended the stairs, knocking on Nicky's door. A small, "Come in." awoke her from her thoughts, and she pushes the door open, not knowing whether she was overstepping boundaries.
Galina could have wept at the sight of Nicky in her pajamas, an oversized t-shirt pulled over her head, her mess of curls covering her pillow, her legs covered by her purple duvet. Her soft eyes stare at Galina, confused and conflicted. "May I come in?"
Nicky nods, and Galina sits down on a chair next to her bed. Nicky watches her, still feeling confused, but intrigued. And then she turns on the lamp on the nightstand, and opens up a book. "I saw this earlier when I was out shopping. I was going to give it to you at dinner but I changed my mind. It's a book that I read when I was a little girl." Galina strokes the pages of the book fondly, a small smile appearing on her features as she recalls her own memories of the book.
Her mother reading to her at night when she couldn't sleep, her mind frayed with stray worries and thoughts that wouldn't leave her. The only thing that helped her switch off was having someone read to her. And so her mother brought down the simple book of fairy-tales from the attic from when she was a very small child, and read until Galina's breathing slowed, her mind filled with fables instead of anxiety bubbling at her surface.
"Just close your eyes, malyshka."
Although finding this experience strange, Nicky was too tired to argue and too interested to ignore her. She closes her eyes. Galina lets a small smile appear on her face as Nicky's own face relaxes in the half-light. "Once upon a time in Russia, there lived a princess. Her name was Tanya. She never smiled…"
Half way through the book, Galina noticed Nicky's breathing beginning to even out, her breaths deep and slow. Nicky had surprised even herself. Not known for her trust, Nicky had been able to fall asleep in Galina's presence, and not only that, she had felt totally at ease. Her last thought had been what a strange feeling it was. Quietly, Galina closed the book, and switched off the light, leaving the book of fairy-tales on the nightstand. As she steps down the stairs, feeling weary and tired herself, the front door opens.
Mrs Nichols jumps at Galina's shadowy figure in the hallway. "Oh!" She exclaims, her boyfriend grinning like an idiot beside her. Galina frowns at the pair, minutely shaking her head.
"Shh!" She finds herself yelling in a hushed whisper. "Nicky is asleep." Mrs Nichols frowns but doesn't comment on this, instead ignoring the comment completely.
"You didn't have to stay," she says simply instead. "You can leave at 7PM. Those are your hours." Galina does the same to Mrs Nichols, deciding not to comment on her words. Instead, she leaves wordlessly, shaking her head. Into the darkness of the street, she whispers to no-one in particular.
"She doesn't deserve that child."
The walk to her apartment takes a shorter time now she has some motivation to get home, to get into her own bed. Dmitri is waiting for her at the door, his face creased with worry. Galina falls into his arms, feeling exhausted.
"Galina," he whispers. "How was it, dorogaya?" He guides his wife to a chair, and she sits down gratefully. He bites his thumbnail in anticipation and Galina gives no indication of how her first day went until she is completely ready.
"We can pay the rent," she almost sobs with relief. He laughs, a nervous, almost hysterical howl that sets Galina off. "We're going to be okay, vozlyublennyy."
"It won't be for long," he promises her. "You won't have to lift a finger when I get things up and running again."
Galina shakes her head. "She needs me."
"Who?" Dmitri asks. "Nicole?" He recalls her name from the conversation they'd had earlier. God knows it had been running through his mind ever since.
"Nicky." Galina corrects. "Nicky needs me."
Dmitri laughs, sounding unsurprised. "It's you, Galina. You're as precious as diamonds. Everyone needs you, even if they don't know it."
Galina leans against her husband. "Diamonds are useless, Dmitri. I can't do shit with diamonds. Not here."
Dmitri smiles. "And yet everyone seems to covet them."
"People are fickle." Galina concludes, thinking of Marka and her daughter. "They often don't know what they want."
"I know what I want. Only you, Galina." Dmitri takes his wife's hand.
"I want you, too. Not only you. But you're high enough on the list." With that, Galina takes her husband's hand and falls into bed. Sleep would quickly consume her.
Okay, so I'll translate:
Imeninnitsa – birthday girl, Budet i na nashey ulitse prazdnik – the sun will shine in our street too (apparently a common Russian phrase, who knew haha), vozlyublennyy – love. The others are also used in other chapters and are just pet names.
I didn't actually proof-read this but I hope you like it and that there aren't many mistakes. The fairy-tale is real and it's a traditional Russian fairy-tale called The Princess Who Never Smiled. Thanks for all your reviews! Tell me what you think please. :)
