Imprint of Heart. Illumination with love

“Come to my place tomorrow at seven o’clock in the evening. The father will be at home, and I will introduce you. But please do not be late, as I have already warned my father,” Lucya lied, “he does not like being late.”

“Okay, I’ll be at seven.”

“Have agreed,” Lucy has disconnected phone and with relief sighed.

She had not yet warned her father, but she hoped to do so. “Anyway, I’ll say, even if he’s in a bad mood,” she decided to herself.

The working day flew by unnoticed. A new chip, developed by Sveta Erengeld, was introduced into processing and it was necessary to keep under control how manufacturing of products went on the conveyor.

By dinner Lucy had a little headache. The bee buzz of electric motors and fluorescent lamps, to the sound of which she had already become accustomed, was cut short.

Lucy began flipping through the Internet. The implementation of the scheme went slowly. Not all workers immediately realized how to build setting-up. It was especially difficult for the young. Experience was not enough with them, mastering the new technology took more time than the same operation for experienced workers.

A conveyor is not a simple matter. At a hitch or breakdown on one table there was a delay of all course of working process. On that day, the iPads were collected notably less, this means that the earnings of the workers will be rather less, but with the development of the last operation, more wares will be produced, and this will pay off a temporary failure.

Even at the university, Uvarova paid more attention to physics than mathematics. And faced with unfamiliar phenomena, she had to repeatedly access the Internet. They had enough literature in the department on electronics and it was easy for her to comprehend something that was not clear.

Returning home from work, she straight away decided to tell her father about her intention. Her father was busy, as usual, reading books. He drove his fingers through a sheet of thick paper with a lot of holes. Lucya went to his room.

“Dad, my good friend, Alexey Izmailov, will come to us tomorrow. We work together at the factory. He is modest and handsome. Maybe I’ll marry him. I want you to like him. He will be exactly seven.”

“If you want to introduce us, Lucy, I do not mind. I’m interested in who you spend your free time with. I guess Alex will like me. Do you say that you work in a factory together?”

Father spoke slowly, making a stop after each word, so that what he said was better reached the listener.

“Yes, I do. He is a master-adjuster in another department; he graduated from college and is going to study further. He is talented and managed to make two proposals.”

“So, the work is done, the father is warned,” it made her feel better. “We need to think about how best to meet Alex. I’ll cook something delicious. It will be necessary to look great, so that under the eyes without dark circles. He’s attentive and will immediately notice if I’m tired. Hairstyle in the hairdresser, in the first place, will take a lot of time, and secondly, I will have too formal appearance.”

It was decided to make permanent curls at home. On Friday, she worked on the first shift. At the beginning of the working day Alexander Dmitrievich approached her.

“I see, Uvarova, you cope with your duties, if things go on like this, then a quarterly bonus is guaranteed to us. Keep it up, well done!”

Torobov approvingly patted her on the shoulder. She right away wanted to sing. Then Nina Vasilievna approached with a severe air.

“You look very pretty today.”

Lucy was confused. Korbutova, noticing Lucy’s embarrassment, hurried to justify herself.

“As soon as I saw you, I immediately realized that we would work together. Look,” Korbutova showed Lucy in the laptop additional corrections to the schemes. “Pay attention to the notes in red color.”

“If there are any questions, I’ll turn to Razumov.”

“You are right, these are his changes.”

* * *

After work, Lucy went to the supermarket and bought a bottle of vodka, dry Bulgarian wine and some of the products. It was necessary to buy fruit. In the vegetable department she bought pepper, next to her lay grapes and watermelons. A gray-bearded old man jumped to her.

“How do you choose a watermelon? Take this one, probably ripe,” the old man pointed to a large watermelon, lying not far from her. “Here, pay attention, the tail is dry, it means ripe. And knock on it.”

Lucy hit the watermelon with her indexed finger several times; the watermelon rang as if it was empty inside.

“Ok, indeed, the old man is right. This watermelon is ripe.”

Everything that was needed was bought; she paid for the fruit and left the store. It was hard to bear. She called a taxi, comforting herself with the thought that Alex would appreciate her care, and her father wanted to do something nice.

Preparation of dinner did not take much time. For about six hours the banquet was ready.

She fried potatoes with onion and meat. Meat cooked as for shish kebabs, soaked in advance in water with vinegar. She covered a white tablecloth; put wineglasses for wine and vodka, wine glasses for water, plates for the second and salads. Wine and fruit were put in the center of the table. Then she put knives, forks and napkins to each plate. Now she had to change dress and comb her hair.

Lucy wore a glamorous, light pink dress with white chrysanthemums from Piero Moretti. A thin belt emphasized the waist line. She stabbed her hair with tortoiseshell comb, has pinned sapphire brooch of her mother. White Italian sandals, French perfumes and elixir “Nina Ricci” had completed the image.

There was a ring at the door. Lucy rushed to the door and, without asking, opened it. On the threshold stood a neighbor on the staircase – an elderly woman in a colored dressing gown with a small, trembling, gray kitten on her hands.

“Lucy, do you happen to need a kitten?” she whispered.

“No, Nadezhda Sergeevna.”

“Okay. Forgive me, Lucy, what an amazing perfume you have. Where did you buy them?”

“In Moscow,” the girl began to get angry at the intrusiveness of her neighbor. “Sorry, now I’m going to the theater,” she did not know what else to lie, so she did not intelligently close the door right in front of the guest’s nose.

“It remains to have a kitten for a complete happiness,” she thought, and looked at her watch.

Ten minutes later the doorbell rang again. On the threshold stood Alex with a beautiful bouquet of chrysanthemums. A new blue suit, brown shoes, a white with a blue striped shirt, a blue tie with brown strokes from Mastai Ferretti. He brushed his hair and handed her a bouquet.

“Put it in the vase, please,” his words aroused her sympathy.

She let the guest go into the hallway, where he looked self-assured in the mirror.

“Do not worry; my father’s name is Nikolai Nikolaevich. Try to be more polite to him.”

She led Alex to the table, sat him next to her father.

“Lucya told me about you. Pour all a little. I want to drink for our acquaintance.”

She put the flowers in a thin, metal vase of Turkish production in the middle of the table, she sat down beside her. Alex poured the wine in the glasses and, raising his wine glass with champagne, said the speech prepared beforehand:

“I want a word,” he said. “I like your daughter, we work together, and we are going to get married. Let’s drink to our friendship!”

“Alex, you said something early about marriage, I did not give consent,” Lucy interrupted him solemnly. “Engagement is a good thing…”

“And we will not ask you. You go with him and that’s it,” her father said.

She did not expect the collusion to happen so quickly. “It’s even better, we will not wait,” she thought, and barely audible said:

“I do not mind, Alex likes me. The best friend and life partner I do not need.”

“For this we’ll drink,” they all supported happily.

Lucy turned on the receiver, and a smooth melody played. She was courting her father, applying a salad, then the second. Alexey also did not suffer from a bad appetite.

“It turns out, Lucya, you are a great cook,” Alexey praised. “Eat it yourself. I’m a bad gentleman; I do not know how to take care of anything.” He took her plate and put a little salad in it and the second one, poured vodka to everyone and happily said:

“For the meeting!”

The music sounded. Alex was courting everyone. He invited the girl to a dance and poured a little wine into a glass of the future father-in-law.

“I will not interfere with the young,” her father said, and went into his room.

The couple danced and did not notice how her father left them. They forgot that tomorrow they go to work, the melody completely captured the space, and they began to kiss and hug.

“Soon we get married, would you mind?” Alex asked gallantly, hoping for a compliment in his address, since the costume he bought himself in Italy for the euro of the same firm as the tie, cost him a decent amount.

“No. I agreed,” she replied, enjoying the intimate atmosphere.

“You know, I’m a very self-interested person, think it over and over, could you get along with me?”

The words of the guy hurt her. He stayed with Lucy until ten o’clock. They finished their champagne, danced several times. At the beginning of the eleventh, Alexey said:

“The evidences are collected. Soon the court will be. Lieutenant-colonel Kiryanov advises you to come too, to confirm that you were at the post office on the day of encashment.”

“It is necessary, so it is necessary, I will come. Send greetings to the detective Tanya Ivanova.”

Alexey put on his jacket, which had to be removed, as he felt hot.

Lightening disappeared from the apartment, and she went to the balcony to see how he would go out into the corner. A minute later he appeared, stopped a free taxi, got into the car and drove away. She stood on the balcony for a long time, escorting Alexey thoughtfully. She sighed.

“Well, Alexey is not Alain Delon, but he loves me, so I love him, too.” She remembered poems written by her friend, dedicated to her, and opened a poetic notebook. At the top of page it was brightly displayed “For a friend”, and next to it there was a signature of the author:

Friend

Life said the word at last.We broke up too quickly.So why should I think so fastAbout you as an old friend weekly?Our holidays and everyday life, don’t cryWill be remembered by others,Parted, well, goodbye.We’ll never forget mothers!So much Talmuds are written.Have read many volumes old.I don’t recognize your death.I’ll forget and leave the world.The winds that blew to meetDisappeared forever in the night.The candle melted quickly from the kit.Remained only cold white light.To open the window widely.To breathe of old friendship balsam…Everything happens in this world.I will not give you to anyone.

The girl was angry with these lines. She began to read the notebook further, trying to find something appropriate to the mood. Finally, stopping her gaze on the amusing poem, she read aloud, standing in the pose in front of the mirror, portraying the poet:

Wedding Bouquet (fable)

Ringing, wedding bouquetKeeps the bride from possible need.Let this truth is not new,There no other has we view.A brave rabbit found a rich she-wolf.He would not believe this deep gulf.But the rogue was too greedy,And in the ringing of coins he was not weedy.He would have forgotten and refused,He ran in love to her face confused.“Wolf, darling, be my wife!And we will not part with you in future life.We will live in contentment and prosperity,Love we both will have in short priority.”The wolf fell open his mouth with surpriseAnd the swallowed little rabbit was not wise.

Lucy laughed at the irony and humor and read further:

Conversations

Only the day will come again,The talk always hinders us.There, the rivers start backwards,They do not end arguing here thus.Conversations, persuasion, slander, lamentations…Why is any suffering, as if knowing ahead?Flashes a week again. We take the trouble in returnTo say morality the guidance forget.Politics, music, sports.From now on, everything became one.Whoever was crawled,That mind also ruled the world.Covenants, slander, loss…All this is not for boss.When the fanfares are silently,Headlights flicker obstinately.Showcases temptingly shine.What a beautiful wine!And how much they payFor the cycle way?Weekdays, concerts, holidays,Shows, vanity and pragmatism.Ah, why do give advice?!Everyone will think about cubism.

Turning over the notebook, she looked for the most vivid and colorful moments. The mood increased significantly, and she continued reading, forgetting about time. She liked the syllable and rhyme, but especially admired that the verse resembled a goblet. Mentally she put in this vase flowers presented by Alexey.

She, as a mathematician and programmer, was familiar with the exact number of characters needed to write poetry and versification. On the basis of mathematical formulas, it would be easy to create more complex figures, which is easy to achieve by following the mathematical logic.

But Lucy was disappointed when she took the next page and realized that the poems were dedicated to the fan-knight in the helmet.

Modern Knights

Who you are? Can you fate decide?Or maybe you are builders, the tamers of universe!Perhaps your name will be calledShip, park, institute or other world.You, the knight of the future, standBefore me so handsome silent on land.In business, in my thoughts, it’s time for meTo understand the essence of human being.Forget the sorrows until the morning,Let us sound the harmony!I collect all the stars in the palm of my handAnd I’ll throw them over your head.And with a blue mane a white horseIt will leave my long path.To him I will affectionately sayTo be faithful to the end anyway.Only tie the mane near moundI will not ask the bright crown.Whether will I succeed in melodies?More fully convey than in words?Or I’ll be in helping of a few,While walking on the morning dew?Removed the visor and the fire gun.You do not know the fear run.This is a true living steel.Be glorified in the ages will!

Such a flowerish poetry gamut she liked more and inspired to talk with Alexey. She dialed his number, but then deleted it.

The autumn evening evoked memories of police visits, interrogations, signing of papers, a meeting with the accused, a private detective and policemen. A gentle breeze stirred the leaves on the street, and it seemed that the leaves tell each other something important and interesting. Her head hurt. She turned off the music, picked it up from the table, and washed the dishes. Having finished her household affairs, she looked into her father’s room, where they sometimes met with Alex. The father slept with the sleep of the righteous. She closed the door and took the first book that fell into her hands and began to read, trying to find in it answers to the worried questions. She read “Walking on Torments” by Tolstoy not for the first time, and knew some places almost by heart.

Thoughts constantly jumped on the poetry of her girlfriend, and this poetic notebook worried more and more. She put the book aside, and her gaze fell on another page. Lucy read carefully:

Fatigue

Tired hands and feet, headache from rumor.What’s a steep road? I do not mind more.As if a pink bouquet, donated once,I bear the dream for many years of wearisome hopes.Frozen stormy sounds and words,Ghosts disappeared in the night.And now the story beginsWith the beautiful music and might.How many varieties around,Exciting songs and bounty wide.So, that frightens me and boundSuddenly, pushing and carries aside.After all, the nice holiday will be ahead —Wonderful days so stunning and mad.But I’ll say to myself some:“Go. Your day will come.”Do I need much glory then?If I will put off only the pen,All the torments of Tantalus hellWill want to do a struggle as well.Hand writes, brain works a few,For a bully is more interesting with worry.Fatigue will answer: “What are you,There is nowhere for you to hurry!”

She was fond of philosophy within the limits of the program of the candidate’s minimum, but these lines were touched for the living.

An example of complex orthopedic treatment of her moral appearance, she laid on verses, hoping to subsequently refer to them as questions arise in her personal life.

But the pressing everyday problems were added with catastrophic speed… They expanded the space and worsened the relationship between subjects of intraplasma reality, facilitating the amendment of the ritual of investigation and the initiation of criminal proceedings for a specific medical examination of all postal employees in order to achieve their full justification and confirmation of alibi.

7. Happy Hours Are Not Watching

That day, Tanya Ivanova laid out on the table their dice and dropped numbers, the significance of which confirmed the correctness of the actions regarding the killer of mail employees. A long term was waiting for him ahead, but Alexey had questions to him, so she called and invited him to come into the office on a confrontation with witnesses and criminalist to prove Zheka’s sanity. At the same time to find out who is to blame for the murder of the second victim. The warrant for the arrest and search, she had already used in these vicissitudes of fate.

The next day Lucy worked with enthusiasm. Contact was found with Alexey, not today or tomorrow they were going to marry. She wanted to do herself charming, to look attractive. The shopping trip was postponed until Sunday. All the working day, instead of the schemes and drawings in the head, the shapes of dresses, shoes and coats were turning. She had to look more closely at the computer to understand what changes had been made.

The deputy chief of the workshop approached, looking at the modern interior of the design department in a businesslike way:

“You look tired. Try it. If you are sick, go to get well.”

“I feel fine,” Lucya has embellished her state of health.

Nina Vasilievna was outdone. Lucy looked at her watch: it took two hours to break. She did not want to relax; she gathered her thoughts, hoping that Torobov would not notice fatigue and make no comments.

“Sveta, do I really have a tired look?” she asked a friend in the cafe.

“Something is there,” the colleague said cautiously, hoping for a continuation.

“Yesterday I introduced my fiancé to my father, and we stayed a little longer.”

“I suppose you were going to get married, right? Who is he? Are you pregnant?”

“No, it seems. He is Alexey Izmailov – the master-serviceman of the tenth workshop.”

Lucy breathed heavily, Sveta realized that she was experiencing something, but did not continue to ask questions. After dinner, the girls strolled around the park near the factory. The sun was shining, it was warm and quiet. They did not want to go to the shop. But work is work. They returned home together.

“Lucy come to me on Sunday to visit, somehow we will go a big company to the nature. There will be co-workers of the husband and some of the relatives. Take your fiancé with you.”

“I’ll try to come. I want to sew a new dress or order from Armani or Valentino, to be fully armed.”

On the way they went to the supermarket and bought a lot of tasty things: canned food, cheese, smoked sausage, coffee, steamed veal, Hennessy brandy, sweets. Back they walked on foot. The leaves on the trees darkened and covered the asphalt with a light, yellow, lacy pattern. Flowerbeds and bushes in the parks lost their summer completeness and brightness, but were no less attractive to the inquisitive glance of the artist. The girls had a cheerful mood.

“How cool everything is, it turns out,” Lucya reasoned naively, “Alexey’s friendship, your invitation, an interesting company, songs of bards with a guitar.”

“Honey, you have not seen my husband and children yet.”

“You know, if I have children, when we get married with Alexey, they will become as glorious as yours,” Lucy praised.

In the evening, Alex did not call. It upset her, but she knew that he would call later after an urgent matter or a swim in the factory pool. She admired his athletic build, heard from him that he used anabolics based on deer antlers.

Really to go shopping her alone was boring, she wanted to consult with someone, choose an expensive cloth for a wedding dress and make a stylish model from a the purchased material.

Pattern of mode was taken from the fashion magazine, which she carried to the tailor, inveterate gossiper. Two days later the dress was ready, it was very elegant, with flowing folds.

It remained only to decide length of the dress: elongated or slightly behind the knee. “The elongated dresses are fashionable this season, but since my legs are even, I can sew a little shorter,” she reasoned, staring at herself in the mirror. So it was decided.

Personal life has always evoked the envy of girlfriends, but their connections somehow interested a little, except for some details of an intimate nature. What she would prefer was the partner’s reaction to treason.

Constant modifications in the schedule of classes and visits with a barely perceptible bridegroom or a teacher caused her irritation and response to plunge into relaxation or go to the end of the world such as Italy or Cyprus, where there would be no one except the sun, sea and fruit.

When she called Alexey, he did not answer. She decided that he fell ill, and she will have to go to Sveta without him. She examined and tried to put on the old decorations of her mother and admired the taste: a silver necklace with amethyst inserts, made of old coins, like a gypsy monisto, looked delicious.

She kept it in her safe in the form of an English-Russian dictionary in the closet, which only her father knew. There were also several hundred dollars in a pack, an expensive diamond ring, earrings and a pendant with sapphire insets.

Lucy phoned Alexey again two hours later, but it has happened that he was not there. “So he will not go to work. The holiday will be broken,” she thought.

That November day was difficult. They were offered tickets from the trade union committee to the hall of philharmonic society right on the territory of the concert parlor of the plant. Everyone happily agreed and in the break they ran to brush their hair to the nearest stylist.

Lucy also preliminarily visited the Beauty Salon combed her hair in a fashionable wave style. At the solemn meeting they announced a prize for helping sponsored farms in harvesting. The director of the enterprise congratulated all present with successes, wished all the very best in their work and in their personal life, diplomas and valuable gifts were presented to the leaders.

Following the solemn part was a concert that did not last long. During the concert, she accidentally noticed Alexey in the second row. Lucy wanted the concert to end as soon as possible. All attention was turned to Izmailov. Half an hour later, after applause, everyone rose from their seats and began to walk towards the exit. She waited while Alexey came closer, called him. He turned around, saw Lucya, her eyes shone, and he smiled. He looked more elegant than ever, and she thought: “It’s a pity that we had known each other so little. Why didn’t we meet before?”

“My employee Sveta Erengeld invited me to visit her. Will you go with me as a groom?

Instead of an answer, he involuntarily embraced her. She shrank and fell silent.

“If you do not mind, we meet at six at my house on Sunday and go to Sveta,” Lucy said, worried.

Alexey nodded in agreement. She felt so well and happy that she wanted to kiss him, and she could hardly restrain herself. They walked home together, admiring the illuminations in the factory territory.

“Shall I escort you?” he asked Lucy in the wardrobe room, giving her a cloak.

“You will,” she answered shortly. “You look beautiful. Has you a haircut?”

“Is it noticeable?” Alexey answered feeling pleasure.

In the evening it was cool, and Lucy was wrapped up in a warm scarf. Romanian gloves, she hid in a brown, lacquered handbag in accordance with the color of long boots. Alexey held his hands in the pockets of a bright, English cloak from models of Poul Richard. They walked in silence.