Sixth and Galina

Dedicated to Lena M.

The doorbell made me jump up. Nobody knew about my dwelling, and for a week, while I was chilling in there, nobody rang at the door.

"A lonely neighbor came to get some salt," - I thought walking towards the door, "a blonde, in a white pajama and with blue eyes. And her apartment door has slammed shut."

But no. Instead of a pretty neighbor there was a young guy in a black T-shirt standing on the threshold. On the shirt there was a white angel sitting on the ground. With open wings.

- Hello, - I said, - aren't you freezing like this?

- Hello, - the guy replied, - thank you, but I'm alright that way. I'm on a car. Here is a package for you.

And he handed me a small package which said: "for Sixth".

- What an ancient method of correspondence delivery? - I asked taking the package from the courier and added: - Cool T-shirt.

- There is a planned server transfer at Webazilla in the Netherlands, - he replied. - Neither emails, nor the web will be working in the next 24 hours. And we have an urgent matter here.

- Seriously? Is it really urgent? - I asked mockingly. - For the whole time of my work I haven't had any task which was not urgent. Everything is always urgent. And every single one is more urgent than the previous one.

- A suicide is possible here, - the guy frowned. - A woman. Doesn't want to live.

- Oh, those women, - I growled. - Are you aware that women think about suicide four times more often than men? But at the same time, the number of successful suicides among women is four times less than that of men.

- No, I didn't know that, - the guy said. - They just told me to hand over the package and to tell you it's urgent.

- How long has our courier service been working? - I asked.

- I'm not a courier, - frowned the guy, - I'm an intern. I was assigned a task. To deliver.

- Thank you for the package, - I answered and asked again: - And whose  intern are you?

- The Fifth's, - the guy replied.

- He owes me some cognac, - I said.

- The Fifth warned me that you would say this, - the guy smiled, - he asked me to tell you that he didn't forget about it and will give it back. He surely will.

- I know his promises, - I grumbled. - I'll have to wait for a hundred years.

- But due to time cognac only gets better, - objected the boy.

- Is that it, smart ass? - I asked him.

- That's it, - he answered, - good-bye.

The guy turned and went to the elevator. At that time, the neighbor door swung open and a girl fluttered out of it. As I had imagined a few minutes ago. Blonde, pretty. But not in a robe but in a light coat. She slammed the door, nodded to me and headed for the elevator.

- Should I give you a ride down to the ground floor? - the guy smiled at her.

The neighbor laughed. The elevator doors opened. The guy gallantly let my blonde neighbor go first and entered the elevator. He turned around and waved to me. The doors closed. The elevator moved down.

- Bastard, - I said amiably, - giving a ride to my neighbors in the elevator. And I'm here to work flat out.

I returned to the apartment. Sat down at the table. Opened the package.

Over a pile of papers and folders there was a note: "Galina is warned about you. Her phone is on the file. Good luck. Referent M".

I opened the file. Andreeva Galina, married to Alexey. Married for 22 years. Two children. Nikita, 20 years old, and Alyona, 16 years old. The children currently are studying.

They have a four-room apartment. Mortgaged, but almost everything paid off, the contributions are nominal. They have their own business. Architect's office. Although, basically this was an apartment renovation and redesign company.

I opened the next folder. SMS printouts between Alexey and Luba. Luba is 25 years old. Works in a neighboring office. They met at a lunch break. She was divorced, had no children. She calls Alexey "darling" and "Alyoshka". He calls her "Lubasha" and "sweetheart".

An epistolary novel began two years ago. It was finished when a drunk Alexey called his wife Lubasha. And in this state he told her about this flirtation. Galina was shocked by this. She didn't talk to her husband for a week. After all she talked to him. They both decided that it was a whim and the result of some midlife crisis.

They started all over again. Flowers, family dinners, visits to the cinema and to the theater. For half a year everything was wonderful. Then everything came full circle. Alexey became thoughtful. Stopped paying attention to Galina. Sex has become rare, once a month. Rare and fast. The SMS came back again.  

Galina couldn't resist checking her husband's phone. In his phone she has found a sweet and desired Lubasha. She talked to her husband. He replied: "I can't help myself. I love her!".

- And what about me? - asked Galina.

- You're my wife but I love Luba, - Alexey answered.

The next two weeks Galina lived in a state of delirium. One day she cried, another day she was silent. Alexey came home only to sleep. At work they sat in different offices. Communicated exclusively on business. Dry and without emotions.

Then one of our men disguised as a psychological consultation talked to Galina. She was promised to get help. In the form of a guardian angel. She agreed. Now she is waiting.

I opened the file on Lubasha. Divorced, no children. Two abortions.  Non-smoker. Has a pretty face and normal figure. She lives with her mother in a two-room apartment on the other end of the town. She works in the same building as Galina and her husband, in a plastic windows company.

I put the documents of the file aside. Got dressed: suit, light shoes, silk blue shirt and an gentle blue autumn coat.

Within half an hour I reached the office building where my wards worked. I parked my car there.

I found the window company. Luba was sitting at her desk near the entrance. She saw me, stood up, smiled.

- Are you here about the windows? - she asked.

- Yes, I would like to change my whole life, - I blossomed in a smile, - and I decided to start with the windows. Will you help me?

- Of course, I will, - Luba nodded to the chair. - Take a seat. We'll do everything in spades.

After that we were looking for the windows I needed for like 15 minutes. We found them.

- On Monday our specialist will visit you, take the measurements, and I'll prepare a cost estimate for you, - said Luba.

- And could you come on Monday to take the measurements from my windows? - I asked impudently.

- No, - Luba smiled again, - my business is to take your order and send you an invoice for the payment. And the measurements are taken by an apprenticed specialist. His name is Sergey.

- Well, "no" means "no", - I sighed, - and once the work is completed, may I invite you to a cafe or to a restaurant? To celebrate the windows.

- After the work is done, you may invite me, - Luba laughed.

I said goodbye to the giggly girl and went to the Andreev's office. It was two floors above.

Alexey was at his table. An ordinary man. Little gray hair on the temples. A short haircut, clean-shaved. Dressed in a pullover and jeans. With a band on his right ring finger.

Besides him there was another employee in the office printing something.

I asked Alexey about the prices for the walls painting. I said that I would come in later.

I left the building. Got into the car and sent a message upstairs: "I had to order new windows and walls painting to accomplish the task. Kindly execute the payment. XXX, Sixth".

The answer came immediately: "The accounting department won't accept it, and you know that. Referent M".

I sighed and muttered "at least it was worth the try" and went to the Andreev's apartment.

It was located in a quiet courtyard with a playground in the center and a row of benches. Galina was sitting on one of them. In a blue quilted jacket wearing black boots. Two bags with groceries were standing beside her.

I approached her. Sat down next to the woman. She glanced at me and then turned away. Then she turned her head to me again.

- Are you here for me? - she asked quietly. - From there? I was promised that someone would come today.

- Hello, - I offered my hand to Galina and introduced myself: - Sixth.

- Hello... Sir, - Galina stumbled on the last word, - and why "Sixth"?

- I was given the name in an orphanage, - I explained to her, - that year I was the sixth foundling. The administration was tired of inventing names, so they gave me a number instead of a name. The previous foundlings have had normal names: Ivanov, Petrov, Fedorov, Sidorov and Shultz. And  I am "Sixth".

- This is so interesting,- said Galina.

Although it was evident that she was no longer interested. She was thinking her own thoughts. And her thoughts were painful. The pain was in her eyes. I could feel her pain in her strained pose, in the way she was sitting on the bench. The pain was in her words.

- We were friends since school, - suddenly she began speaking, - and then we fell in love with each other. We were admitted to the institute. In the second year we got married. Then I gave birth to Nikita. It was hard, but we made it. Slowly, we climbed to our feet. Our parents helped us. Then Alenka was born. We worked a lot.

Two women passed by, greeted us. Galina nodded to them. She paused. Then she continued:

- We lived well. Because we both had the brains and we worked a lot. And now we are comfortably off but the life rhythm has remained the same because our children need education and there are lots of ideas and potential for realization. But then this happened. A glassy stare and constant SMS. It's like he became a completely different person. He isn't interested in anything anymore. He's only interested in work and his phone. He barely talks to me. But I love him. He means the world to me. I've been living with him for half of my life. I don't have anyone but him. And the children, of course. But the children are something different.

And Galina started to cry. To be more accurate, a couple of tears rolled down her cheek. She took out a handkerchief and wiped her eyes.

- What should I do? I don't know, I don't know anything, - she said, - I don't even know if he cheated on me with this girl or not. He says that he only texts her. But I don't know.

- He sleeps with her, - I said, - rarely, but he does.

Galina recoiled like from a struck. But she didn't cry. She only crooked even more.

- What should I do? - she asked again. - I don't want to live anymore. Without him I can't and don't want to.

- How did they use to call you in childhood? - I asked her in turn.

Galina looked at me in confusion.

- They called me by name. Sometimes "Galka". My mother called me a "Little Birdie".

- You look like a crow now, - I grinned, - like a battered, old, shabby crow. And surely not like a little birdie.

- Why are you doing this? - she asked offendedly.

- I don't like claptrap, - I answered. - If some person doesn't want to live, they just go and die. Instead of telling the world about it. So you won't die and won't talk about it either. Any questions?

- Yes, - answered Galka, - I do have questions. How should I live on?

- I'm not talking about living, - I said waving my hand, - I'm talking about not living. No talks and thoughts about not living. And how to live on we'll decide now. But you should follow all my instructions obediently. Any questions?

- No questions, - Galka said.

- Then drag your bags home and let's go to a restaurant. We'll hang out and talk there, - I commanded, - it's my treat. At home you have children, unnecessary ears. And next to you there is a very decent quiet place with Czech cuisine. It was recommended to me a long time ago. But I never had the time to visit it.

- But I have to cook dinner tonight, - said Galina.

- Let your children cook it, - I commanded, - give your daughter something easy to do. Will she manage it?

- She will, - Galina nodded, - she likes to cook.

- Perfect, - I said. - In ten minutes I'll wait for you here, on the bench. And don't be too long, it's cold.

Galina rose, took her bags and entered the house. After exactly ten minutes she came out. She looked confused.

- It's so unusual to go to a restaurant with an unknown man in the cold light of day, - she said.

- I'm an angel, you can go anywhere with me, - I said, - and it's always useful to eat, especially for the nerves. Come on, Galka, a nosh-up is waiting for us.

The restaurant was poorly populated. Some light music was playing in the background, piano and saxophone. We sat down at a distant table. I ordered a goulash with bread dumplings, Galina decided on the Shopska salad. We ordered some non-alcoholic beer for drinks. I was going to be at the wheel, and I needed Galina to be sober.

- So, tell me everything, - I instructed moving the dumplings around the plate.

And Galina began to tell the whole story. She didn't tell me anything new. All this I've already read in the file. But she had to speak out. And she spoke out. And by the end of the story she began to cry. Her tears dropped into the salad.

- I'm sorry, - said Galina.

- Go on, cry, - I told her, - cry your eyes out if you need to. You can roar. You need this now.

And Galina broke out into tears. As if a dam broke.

A young waiter hopped over to our table.

- Is everything alright? - he asked in fright. - Can I help you?

- Please bring some napkins, - I asked.

The waiter disappeared, a few seconds later he emerged at the table with a pack of restaurant napkins. I took and handed them to Galina. She nodded gratefully and began to wipe her face. Her sobbing began to fade away.

- Is everything alright? - the waiter asked.

- Nothing's alright - I said, - your Shopska salad is just awful. It's so bad it made my date cry.

- We'll fix it right away, - the waiter squeaked, grabbed the plate with the salad and ran away.

- Why are you doing this? - Galina said through tears. - I haven't even tried it yet.

- Keep crying, - I replied to her.

- That's it. I don't want to cry anymore, - Galina wiped off the remaining tears and took out a powder compact.

Her face was swollen. Her mascara flowed. She looked in the mirror and swanned off towards the bathroom muttering something.

She came back around ten minutes later. By this time, instead of the salad the waiter brought some baked cheese along with apologies from the head chef.

Galina approached the table, sat down and smiled timidly.

- I don't know what came over me, - she said and bit her lip.

- That's normal, - I reassured her, - you got it off your chest and wept yourself out. And together with tears, all harmful substances which spoil our mood and appetite are flushed from the body. So dig in, Galka. Gain some strength.

- Actually I'm really hungry, - Galina was surprised, - and I feel so much better now.

- Everyone needs to pour out their heart, - I said, - you can't keep your thoughts and feelings inside all the time. You let it all out, cried out your eyes, and now you feel better. And it will be easier for you to make the next step.

- And what is his next step? - asked Galina putting her fork aside. - What  step can there be if the person I love more than life doesn't love me anymore?

I handed the napkin to Galina.

- Here, cry again.

- I don't want to, - she answered, - it's enough for today. I want everything to be the same as before, I want my husband to love me.

- Then listen up, - I continued, - listen carefully. And do as I say. But first listen up. Very carefully.

I pushed the plate aside. Paused for a moment. Looked into the eyes of the woman sitting opposite me. And began my speech:

- Remember once and for all: it won't be the same as before. Never. Everything has changed in your life. And it doesn't matter who is right and who is wrong. Just accept this simple truth. It won't be the same as before. He has ceased to love you. And love cannot be brought back. This is not a broken cup that can be glued together. This is love. It comes and goes.

- But I love him, - Galina objected with pain in her voice.

- I told you to keep silent and listen to me, - I repeated, - nobody needs your love anymore. He doesn't need it. I don't know what happened to your husband, and I don't really want to know. But it went the way it did. He doesn't love you anymore. That's it. It won't be the same as before. There will be two people who have been living together for twenty-two years. With a common past and with a different future. Understood?

Galina nodded.

- You have two options. First - to torture yourself with memories, to dwell on the past, to annoy him with your love, which he doesn't need. And there is a second option. Namely to live on.

- How? - asked Galina.

- You need to love yourself, - I said after a pause, - not your husband who has fallen out of love with you. But yourself, the Little Birdie Galka. And you need to forget your husband, at least for a while. Who doesn't even have the courage to resolve this situation. And who just cools his heels.

- He's worried, - Galina protested.

- He's worried because he can't squeeze his Luba all day long, - I objected, - because he has a wife and two children.

Galina gritted her teeth and lowered her head.

- And how can I forget him? - she asked quietly.

- Very easily, - I replied, - leave for a couple of months. Preferably for a beach holiday.

- I can't, - Galina answered, - I have a job, I have kids.

- You can, - I said looking straight into her eyes, - your kids are old enough to cook for themselves. And you'll take a leave from work. I think your husband will be happy to let you go.

- Well, I'm not sure, – Galina said embarrassedly.

- Not sure about what? - I continued. - You have devoted 22 years to your family. It's time to live for yourself now. One and a half months for yourself. With a complete information blackout from your family. Let them have a rest from you and yourself from them. At the same time your husband will sort through his feelings.

- But if I leave, he will...

- Stop, think about yourself, - I stopped Galina, - don't speculate what others would do and how they would live. Think about yourself. Love yourself. You sit here like a shabby crow, cry tears down your salad and at the same time decide what and how someone would do. Ridiculous. You have to get your act together, not the others' acts.

- Are you sure this is going to help? - Galina asked.

- Dead sure, - I answered. - Your situation is not unique. There are hundreds of crows like you, thousands even. Who sit and cry over their faded happiness. But it's more important to live on. You should think about where to go for a holiday.

- And you? - asked Galina. - Will you come with me?

- Do I have any other option? - I chuckled. - At first I'll stay with you, then I'll go back. I have some other business to take care of.

And we began choosing a destination for Galina's holiday. She didn't want to fly far away, for example, to Mexico or Cuba. Thailand and other eastern countries which traditionally host Russian tourists were also rejected. She didn't want any exotic stuff. And then a light dawned on me.

- Greece, - I said, - besides, I have a lot of friends there. We'll send you to some island or somewhere else. In Athens it's 30ºC now, an off-peak season.

I took out my phone. Called a friend of mine from Athens named Julia and got full information on where to go and what to do. In the end, we decided on Crete. In October it was still warm and comfortable there. And Galina's Finnish visa was valid for another six months.

- You have a travel agency in your office building, - I told Galina, - go there tomorrow and buy a ticket. They definitely have some last-minute trafel offers. And today talk to your husband and say that you need to be alone. In Greece. Any questions?

- No questions, - Galina smiled at me.

We had a coffee. I paid for the lunch leaving some generous tip for the waiter. And we went, both our own ways.

I spent the whole evening installing webcams in the rooms. Connected them to one network, set up the remote access. Checked whether everything worked. Satisfied with how the day passed I went to bed.

In the morning I had breakfast. Took a run through the park. Sent a message upstairs about the events the day before. Got dressed and went to the already familiar office building.

First of all I went to the travel agency. It was located on the second floor. A lady of an undetermined age was sitting at her desk all alone and was sprightly tapping something on the keyboard with her long fingernails colored in aggressive red.

- Miss, do you have any last-minute offers for a beach holiday? - I asked her right off the bat.

The woman stopped torturing her keyboard. She looked at me full of interest.

- Right now, about ten minutes ago, a tour to Crete was sold, - she said happily. - Do you like Greece?

- I love it, - I said honestly, - since childhood I have a craving for Greek and Roman mythology. And my beloved has poisonous snakes instead of hair.

- Then you came to the right place at the right time, - the lady told me even more happily. - Which city do you prefer: Heraklion or Chania? And for how long?

- For two weeks, - I answered, - but I have to think about the city. Which city has been chosen by the tourist before me?

- Chania, - the lady answered, - for a month and a half. That was a woman. A pretty one by the way.

- If so, then I'll book the same city and the same hotel, - I winked conspiratorially at the lady, - I'll have someone to exchange words with.

- Oh, are you travelling alone too? - the lady winked back at me. - Kindly give me your passport, I'll book it for you now. Departure is tonight.

And she quickly booked the tour for me. Luckily I had a visa.

Then I went to the window company, to Lubasha.

- Hello, - I said pleasantly smiling, - I ordered windows yesterday.

- Good afternoon, - Luba smiled back at me.

- I won't be at home on Monday, - I said. - I'm leaving for an urgent business trip to Barnaul. For two weeks.

- And what should we do? - Luba was upset. - I've already arranged the measurements to be taken. Your windows will be produced within a week. And will be installed within a day.

- I'll leave you my apartment's keys, - I suggested to Luba, - to you personally. Don't give them to anyone. It's only for the measurements and windows installation. And I'll thank you after my return. Deal?

- Well, I'm not sure... - the girl said.

- I trust you, - I said looking straight into her eyes, - for some reason I trust you, full stop. And I don't have any valuables there. All the valuable things are in my country house. And the apartment is rather used as a hotel.

- Alright, - Luba gave up, - hand me the keys. That's how it shall be, I'll help you.

I thanked and gave her a chocolate bar which I had bought in advance and went home to pack my bag. On my way home I stopped by at a bookstore.

At 1 am I was at the airport. Where we, 20 sleepy tourists including Galina and me were counted and loaded into the aircraft. In the morning we arrived in Heraklion. Then they drove us for a long time across the whole island to Chania. We stayed in a small hotel on the sea front. Our rooms with Galina were at different ends of the corridor.

I unpacked my bag, took a shower. Then I went to Galina and we went for lunch.

I ordered grilled octopi for us. And two glasses of local lemonade.

- Shall we rather take some wine? - Galina asked.

- No, - I answered, - you won't drink any alcohol during the next one and a half months. You won't smoke. And by the way, give me your phone. I'll confiscate it for the duration of the holiday.

- But the children, Alexey, my friends, my parents, - Galina began to enumerate, - they will call and worry about me.

- I'll send everyone SMS that everything is alright, - I answered taking Galina's phone, - you shouldn't worry about that. Everything will be fine. By the way, what did you say about your holiday?

- I said that I had a nervous breakdown and I needed some time-out, - Galina replied, - and no one had a problem with that, not even the kids. And Alexey, in my opinion, was even happy about it.

- Forget about Alexey, - I advised Galina, - forget about the kids, about your friends, about work and daily grind. You are already in Greece, and you have only one concern: yourself.

- What shall I do here? - asked Galina.

- Good question, - I laughed. - The patient is already beginning to recover if she asks questions  about herself. Listen carefully. In the morning you go running along the sea front. For about forty minutes up to an hour. Then you take a shower and have breakfast. After breakfast you walk around the city. Every time you have lunch in a different restaurant. You should try everything from the Greek cuisine. Then you'll report to me. In addition, you rent a car and drive around the island. There are a lot of monasteries here. Don't hurry to look at them just for the sake of ticking the box. Sit in the temple for a moment, have a rest. And walk, walk, walk…

- And what about the evenings? Shall I go to the disco for the folks in their forties? - Galina laughed.

- No, - I replied, - you're here not to look for a man. You're here for yourself. In order to turn from the shabby crow to Little Birdie Galka. That's why you'll read books in the evenings. I brought a dozen of them. I'll hand them to you in the evening.

- Books? - Galina was surprised. - What books? I haven't read anything for ages except for the news on Facebook.

- Let's start with "The Story Of a Real Man", - I said, - authored by Polevoy. Then move on to Ostrovsky's "How the Steel Was Tempered", followed up by Vasiliev's "The Dawns Here Are Quiet". By the way, your notebook will also be confiscated.

- Alright, - Galina sighed, - but may I send only a letter to Alexey?

- No, - I answered, - forget about your previous life. You are on holiday. It's about you and only you. And me, your guardian angel. You'll obey all my recommendations and instructions.

We finished our lunch. We fed the seagulls with the remains of our bread. And then we went for a walk around the city.

Galina was fascinated by Chania. We wandered through the shopping areas, asked for the prices, tried on leather slippers, chose brief-cases. And even almost bought me a snakeskin belt.

Exhausted, we returned to the hotel in the evening. I took Galina's notebook and in return handed her a stack of books.

- I'll probably fall asleep right now, - Galina complained, - I'm so exhausted. And the night flight did its job.

- If you're tired, go to sleep, - I said faltering from fatigue, - in the morning I'll wake you for the jogging. Start reading tomorrow.

And we parted ways to our rooms.

In the morning I woke Galka and we started our jogging. Along the sea front towards the lighthouse. Then we headed back.

Breakfast time, lazy gossip about life. Then packing up and walking tours or trips around city and the vicinity. In the evening I sent Galina to her room and left her alone with the books.

A couple of times she initiated a conversation about Alexey but I immediately suppressed it. Talking about the kids didn't take too long: Everything is alright. Everyone is alive and well. And then I changed the subject.

I was getting pretty tired. Walking around in beautiful places and sunbathing on your own is great but it's a different kettle of fish when you have to force someone else to do it. Controlling my ward and giving  her a full load of stuff to do really depleted me.

Galina gradually got used to my pace. Her face took a tan, her back straightened, the pain almost completely vanished from her eyes. Together with me she read all the books we brought and in the evenings she discussed them with me. Sometimes I told her my stories I had an inexhaustible collection of.

I remembered of the webcams installed in the apartment the day before my departure. In the evening I handed Galina the novel „Megera“, told her I had a headache and locked myself in the room.

I connected to the home server. The image started to show. I enabled „fast forward“.

Here I am, preparing for the departure. I take my suitcase and leave. Night passes, day passes. Everything's quiet. Saturday morning. Miroslava, the housemaid, arrives. Cleans up the apartment. On screen it takes around a minute, in reality it's like three to four hours of work for the girl. The housemaid leaves. It's evening. The door opens up. I disable the „fast forward“. Luba enters the apartment. She takes off her coat. Looks around in the apartment. She calls somebody. After some time Alexey arrives. He has a bag in his hands.

They found a way around really quickly. It's even a little insulting.

Alexey takes out bed sheets from the bag. They do the couch in the living room. Then they have sex on it. Mostly classic. (I look over it on the „fast forward“). They remove the sheets from the couch and leave.

- I'll have to change the couch, - I tell myself in a low voice.

Night. Morning. Day. Evening. The door opens up. Luba and Alexey enter. And the well-known bag is with them. They do the couch again and do what they did last time. Then they drink tea at my kitchen and leave.

Night. Monday morning. Day. Luba and some dude enter. They measure the windows. The dude measures to be more accurate, Luba writes it all down. They leave. Evening and night – nobody's in.

Tuesday. Evening. Luba enters. But not with Alexey. Some other guy enters. Dressed in a suit. Brought some flowers. Flowers are placed in a bowl. They drink wine. They have sex on the ill-fated couch. Without any sheets though. They guy is the first to leave. Luba washes the wine glasses. Takes the flowers and leaves.

Wednesday and Thursday go by without incidents. On Friday Luba, Alexey and the bag show up.

On Saturday the guy in the suit shows up.

On Sunday nobody disturbs the apartment's rest. On Monday some workers enter with Luba and unleash a demolition by removing the old windows. Then they place the new ones. On Tuesday they finish their work. Vaccum after themselves and leave. Luba walks around the apartment for a long time, sometimes she rummages in my belongings, sometimes just chatters on the phone.

On Wednesday she brings Alexey, on Thursday the guy in the suit. On Saturday Miroslava the housemaid comes along and cleans my ill-fated apartment the whole day…

I interrupt the viewing of this entertaining pornographic series and go to sleep.

In the morning it's the same procedure as always – jogging, then breakfast. I get my things packed and say goodbye to Galina.

- I've already got used to you, - she said, - how will I get along here all alone?

- You're an adult girl already, - I tell her, - you'll be alright. Moreover, you and me never got to visiting a monastery. And extend the jogging distances. Go to the gym in the evenings, beef up your body. You have eaten off your ass, just look at it. Anyways, you'll find something to do.

- My ass is just fine, - Galina argued, - and yes, I'll find something to do. Don't worry. Will you pick me up at the airport when I return? Should I hand you my cell phone and notebook?

- Yes, I will pick you up, - I chuckled, - don't worry.

And I flew back to my home town. There I called Luba right away and I expressed my admiration of the new windows for a long time. Then I offered her to dine at a Czech restaurant.

She was only ten minutes late. She got to the restaurant with a taxi. We greeted each other, entered the restaurant. Our dinner was very pleasant. I told her about my trip to Barnaul and about how cold it was there. Luba was delighted by my apartment, said how cozy and warm this place was.

- Maybe let's just get to my place? - I suggested.

- With pleasure, - Luba smiled, - but I need to go to the tea shop first. I treated the workers who changed the windows, and as it was pretty cold they drank almost all the tea.

- It's night time already, what shop? - I argued. - Let's go to my place right away.

And there we went. We arrived, went up to my apartment. I took Luba's coat off. In the lobby she pressed herself against me and solicitously put up her lips for a kiss. I softly escaped after I remembered the records from the surveillance cameras.

I entered the room. Sat down at the table, opened up my notebook. Luba followed me and collapsed on the couch.

- Will you join a lonely girl? - she asked roguishly.

I turned the display towards her and crossed my hands on my chest.

- Why did you bring men to my house? - I asked threateningly.

Luba blushed, then she turned pale.

- You had no right to record me on video! - she yelled from the couch. - I'll sue you, asshole.

And then she hushed breathing heavily.

- Firstly, I could as well sue you back for the „asshole“, - I said calmly, - secondly, you won't sue me because you ain't got the guts for it. And thirdly, you're of no interest for me. I just would like to ask you one question. Why? You're a pretty, healthy and young woman. Why would you do all this bullshit?

- I want to get married, - she stated from the couch.

- Married? - I was surprised. - How do you put „get married“ together with Alexey who has a wife and two almost adult kids? Normally you get married to single men.

- Alexey is in love with me, he's giving me gifts, - Luba started to whine, - he promised me to leave his old life behind and marry me.

- And for how long has he been promising this? - I asked.

- For more than a year, - she sobbed.

- And what does the„suit“ promise? - I asked.

- What suit? - Luba was surprised but then she understood what I mean and said: Ah, you mean Maxim. He's divorced. He would like to marry. But he's lingering over it. He has some property disputes with his ex-wife. And Sergey doesn't have anything to his name. But he also loves me.

- There's also a Sergey? - I was in for a surprise.

- I didn't bring him to you, - I was assured by Luba.

- Good girl, - I praised her.

- And what are you going to do now? - she asked from the couch after a minute of silence.

- Nothing, - I replied, - now you will stand up and leave. Don't forget to leave me the key. Tell your darling tomorrow that you're pregnant.

- Which one exactly? - she inquired from the couch.

- Do you call them the same? - I was surprised once again.

- Of course, - Luba said, - that way I'll never mix them up.

- Good girl, - I praised her again, - pick the same names for your admirers, then you'll be just fine.

- Can I go now? - Luba wheezed from the couch.

- Go, - I said and set her free.

Without saying a word Luba stood up, vanished in the lobby, then went through the door. I accompanied her. She stood by the elevator with her face turned to the wall. The elevator doors opened. Luba went through it almost hitting a man who went out towards the staircase. It was a well-known guy in a well-known T-shirt with a bag in his hand.

- What, server crashed again? - I asked him.

- Nah, I'm not heading to you, - the guy blushed, - I'm heading to your neighbor, Alla. She asked to buy some salt, so I've bought it.

So he approached the next door sideways, opened it and dived through it.

- Asshole, - I said to a closed door, - walking around barely dressed and stealing other people's erotic phantasies. This youth has some nerve!

And I closed the door of my apartment, sat down at the table. Took out the phone, called the hotel on far-away Crete. The reception connected me to Galina.

- Hey there, Galka, - I said, - how are you doing?

- Re-reading „The Story of a real man“, - Galina replied.

- One time was not enough? - I was surprised.

- No, - Galina replied, - it wasn't. The first time I just briefly browsed through it, now I read it with understanding and admiration. Amazing person, amazing book. Thanks a lot.

- You're welcome, - I replied, - anything new?

- I arranged to go to the nearby hotel's swimming pool. The sea is already pretty cold, - Galina started to explain herself, - tomorrow I'll rent a car in order to take a trip around the island. Do you need some olive oil?

- No, I don't, - I replied, - I'll buy it at the duty free. Chill out over there. I have some new business to take care of. I'll call you every other day. Don't miss me.

And I hanged up.

I called Galina almost every day for a month. She vigorously told me about the weather, about the books she read and about how many miles she traversed on the island that day.

On the day of her arrival I came to the airport and mixed with the crowd of meeters and greeters. Galina's husband and children could not be identified. The aircraft landed on time. She went out, all covered by shopping and travel bags. Tanned and self confident. We hugged.

- I'll give you a ride, - I said, - nobody's meeting and greeting you anyway.

- I told the folks a wrong date of return when I left, - Galina laughed, - they are expecting me tomorrow.

We got into the car. I handed Galina her phone and notebook. Our ride began.

- I miss my children, - Galina was the first to break the silence, - how are they?

- I sent them SMS, - I reported, - that everything was okay and that you missed them. And that Nikita's in charge. I didn't answer the calls. In fact, there weren't too many. Only Alexey called once, around three weeks ago.

- Seems like something happened to him, - Galina chuckled.

- What do you plan to do? - I asked her.

- First I'll take a shower, then I'll make a good dinner. The kids are surely home and I brought tons of different delicacies.

- I mean your husband, - I said and turned downtown.

- We'll see, - Galina said, - about the what and why. I wasn't home for around one and a half months. Most probably we'll file for divorce. Why live with a person who doesn't love you?

- Do you love him? - I asked him.

- I do, - Galina answered after she took a moment to think, - but thanks to you I've also learned to love myself. And that's why I'll live my life the way I want it. And I want it to be good for myself. For myself and the people who will stand by me through thick and thin. I don't need a guy who has dropped everything for a young gal. Besides, there's so much more in this life than just love. While I was on Crete I had some ideas about interior design. I'll draft them on my computer and show them to you. They will knock your socks off.

- I doubt that, - I chuckled.

- Why? - Galina was surprised.

- Because we're already here, - I said and parked in front of the entrance  of her house, - and because you don't need me anymore. You're cured, you can take it on your own from here on. I'm certain about that.

- Are you sure? - Galina asked. - I already got used to someone looking after me.

- Dead sure, - I answered, - but I'll have an eye on you either way. So stay on the ball. Little Birdie Galka.

I left the car and took out Galina's shopping and travel bags from the trunk, hung them on her and left. And she went home with lots of gifts.

I never knew what was waiting for Galina, and I never learned it. After three weeks I met her near her home. We drank coffee together. Galina reported on her current situation. Her husband and herself filed for divorce. Alexey rented an apartment somewhere. She didn't know where exactly and she didn't really care about it. He kept the business for himself while paying out a little sum of money for the kids.

She started a business of her own. Indeed she wanted to take care of interior design and not of remodelling. She even had her first customer. Meeting him today.

- That's how I'm doing these days, - Galina said upon finishing her coffee, - life goes on, and it's beautiful. Of course every now and again it comes over me. But then I remember Meresyev from „The Story of a Real Man“ and then I calm down. I'm going to be alright. Don't worry.

- In fact, I really don't, - I burst out laughing.

- Then I'm gone, - Galina hopped up and vanished towards a meeting with her first customer.

As usual, I took out my tablet and sent a message upstairs: "Task completed. Hereby I inquire compensation for a new sofa. XXX, Sixth".