"Лариса Матрос. Behind the Staircase (англ.)" - читать интересную книгу автора

us to swear we will always come to our staircase at my birthday, despite
anything, even after ten, twenty, ...fifty years."

Anna had laughted as if she forgot about everything. Then she got up
regally, placed her hands on her hips and raised her head proudly. "Anna,"
Rudik proclaimed in theatrical manner, trained at the drama class. 'Today,
on my 15th birthday, under such a wonderful sparkling reflection of the moon
in the sea, in front of Odessa's famous governor, A. E. Richelliett, who
showed such a great love of citizens they built this beautiful monument, I
swear forever..."
"Come on, Rudka! My mom is right to call you Don Quixote. You always
have your fantasies. It is time for you to become an adult. You will get
your passport (4) soon."
Six years later, exactly the same breeze had played with her flared
skirt, which she tried to tame, embracing the skirt and her knees with her
arms, sitting on the second flight of the stairs. The breeze was blowing her
tears away and traitorously spreading the mascara on her face.
"Anna, Annushka, please understand, I cannot live without you,"
repeated Rudik over and over again, sitting below her, resting his head
against her knees. "Ibegyou to leave, leave with us. You will be a member of
our family, and you will never feel we have a different nationality (5). I
promise you, I swear, I will do everything to make you happy. There is still
time to get married here, and there we will have children, which will be
born American citizens. Imagine, our son could be an American president!"
"I have already told you everything. I cannot and do not want to move
anywhere, and I have no right to do this. What would happen to my father? He
has such high status. My parents would not forgive me for this."
" But what would happen if we had gotten married when we were eighteen,
when I proposed to you the first time? What would you do? Would you not move
with your husband? But, I knew we would not get married, because your mom
did not consider me a good enough groom for you."
"Many people say, a first love rarely leads to marriage," Anna tried to
stop her sobbing with a playful tone. "So, statistics show, nothing wrong is
going to happen to you. Be happy." Suddenly she streaked to the boulevard,
ran down to the park and hid in the bushes. She saw Rudik looking for her,
suffering.
Since then they had no contact with one another for twenty years.
Now, she could not explain to herself why she had decided to call Rudik
right away, when she came on a first visit for a business trip to the USA.
Maybe because of her hard work, which had brought her a great success and
title of Professor, together with tiredness and satisfaction. The constant
hard work had also caused a keen desire to experience something, to feel
herself just a woman, desire the constant male attention, admiration, care,
chivalrous patronage, daily surprises, confirming love and devotion.
Everything she obtained from Rudik since she had started considering herself
a female. Now she knew for sure this is what she had been looking for in men
all those years. After Rudolf's departure she had boyfriends, marriage
without children, without happiness.
Once Anne had settled in the hotel, she called her friends to leam
Rudik's phone number. However, the first time when shepicked up the