Chipped blockheads. Fedor Laburchenko
best friend, tried to separate the fighters, but got a kick in the stomach from the vigilant Kolya.
Noticing that Mitya’s face had turned blue and his eyes were about to pop out of their sockets, Chupa carefully called Nikolai.
CHUPA: Kolya, calm down. Take no sin on your soul. You’ll kill him.
Kolya loosened his grip a little. Seeing that Mityai didn’t try to fight back, he let him go. The guy slowly slipped down onto the log, looking back in horror at his offender.
Nikolai was breathing heavily. Looking angrily at his recent drinking buddy, he waved his hand, cursed loudly, turned around and walked away.
Scene 3
An old blue PAZ bus, one of those that usually run between regional centers and villages in our vast country, took Maria to the place where she had spent her childhood. A bumpy road and a hard seat prevented the girl from dozing, so she let her mind fill with thoughts during the trip. Scenes of studying at the university were swirling around in her head alongside memoirs about how she dreamed of getting a job at a research institute, and how the dream came true, and how everything collapsed a few days ago, when unsuccessful test prompted her to resign from the research institute.
Maria travelled home fully unaware of her future. What will she do? How will she earn her living? The girl had no answers to these questions.
The squeak of the brakes interrupted Maria’s thoughts as the vehicle arrived in the village. Maria got off the bus and headed to her parents’ house. Having reached it, she stopped for a while, thinking. Then something made Maria continue to move down the street towards the church at the very edge of the village.
On entering the church, the girl was pleasantly surprised by its good state. During her previous visit there, she was a schoolgirl, and the temple looked different. Maria walked through the church insides, admiring the icons, wall paintings and, most importantly, the fresh cosmetic repairs.
Suddenly Maria felt someone’s glance on her back. The girl turned around. A rather young clergyman wearing neat and well-ironed garments was looking at her. Maria noticed that the priest really cared about his appearance. Her idea was proven not only by his clothes, but also by his neatly trimmed beard.
PRIEST: Good day to you, sister! Can I help you?
MARIA (looks in surprise): Bless me, Father! My name is Maria. I was once a parishioner of this church. I never thought everything would become so beautiful here! You, Father, have created a real miracle.
PRIEST (smiling): Not me, Maria! Thanks to the concerned parishioners. Your fellow countrymen did their best.
MARIA (smiling): I know my fellow countrymen quite well. They are great, of course, but without a good… uh… impetus, they will not participate in pious deeds.
PRIEST (laughs): Fair enough!
There was a pause. Maria continued to look at the interior of the church while the priest didn’t take his eyes off Maria.
PRIEST: Kyrill is my name.
MARIA: Father Kyrill?
KYRILL: Just Kyrill for you. I’ve joined the priory recently, so sometimes I look too simple for a priest.
MARIA: Really? I must admit, this made me feel a little better.
KIRILL: But why?
MARIA: I think you are the man who won’t criticize me… You see, Kyrill, since childhood I have considered myself a devout believer, but my last project, let’s say, was not a pious deed.
KYRILL (jokingly): Did you take alms from the beggars?
MARIA (seeing the joke, she smiles): Not that!
KYRILL (calmingly): In this case, Maria, any profession can’t be called pious. For example, I am a reserve officer. Frankly speaking, at the academy, they taught me how to kill people. Thanks to God, I wasn’t involved: I didn’t have to take such a sin on my soul. But what if we consider it from another point of view? A strong army keeps enemies from the temptation to attack our people. This way, it saves thousands of lives! It turns out that even without fighting, I helped my brothers and sisters.
Maria nodded approvingly because she shared Kyrill’s ideas.
KYRILL: Now you, Maria, look at your calling from a different angle. How can your work help people?
Maria thought for a while. Perhaps Kyrill was right: if she had achieved a positive result in her research, it would have saved thousands of human lives all over the world. The new priest’s technique really worked!
MARIA (smiling): You know, Kyrill, during my school years I liked coming to this church. But, certainly, in those days it lacked a significant thing.
KYRILL: What exactly?
MARIA (cheerfully): A young and handsome priest with a creative approach to the matter! No doubt, I’ll come here again, Father. I’ll come to my senses and I’ll visit you!
KYRILL: Our doors are open, Maria!
Maria bowed to the priest and headed for the church exit. Kyrill looked appraisingly at the departing girl. His face showed a smile of pleasure.
Scene 4
Nikolai’s and his drinking buddies’ “company party” ended with what people usually call in the village “it’s been a good hang.” Sergeich fell asleep on the spot right under a tree. Mityai went in search of adventure, which traditionally ended with calling the local police officer. To take Chupa home, his caring children came: a teenage daughter and a ten-year-old son.
When Kolya was left alone, he grabbed the bottle with the remains of moonshine, shook it as if trying to collect all the drops of alcohol, and emptied it in one gulp. Having consumed the contents to the last drop, Nikolai threw the empty bottle into the thicket of trees and tried to get to his feet. The first attempt was a failure: Kolya skidded, so he barely had time to grab the branch. The chess player sat down again, gathered his strength, and this time rose to his feet without recourse to the subjects at hand.
At the moment when Kolya left the green gazebo, he remembered that Sergeich was still sleeping there. He turned around, took a few steps back, but suddenly stopped, waved his hand, turned around and confidently shuffled towards the village houses.
The passers-by that Kolya met traditionally walked to the other side of the road: no one wanted to get hooked up with the drunk chess player. Everyone in the village knew that the guy in such a state could be inadequate.
However, Grandma Shura, who also met Kolya that day, was a stranger to fear. By the way, some words about Grandma Shura: she was one of the grannies one can see in every village, the type about which people usually say “she knows everything that happens in the village.”
Seeing Nikolai, Grandma Shura tried to foresee his motion trajectory to stop the chess player and strike up a conversation. When Grandma succeeded in pressing Kolya’s pliable body against the fence of the nearest house, she started interrogations.
GRANDMA SHURA: Why are you wandering here in broad daylight so juiced-up, ducky? Did Grandma Shura miss some holiday? Spit it out, dearie!
KOLYA (slurring): Well, grandma, nothing special. We sat with the guys and relaxed. Sometimes, it doesn’t hurt.
GRANDMA SHURA (squinting her eyes, disapprovingly): Eh, you idlers! To relax, you need to strain yourself at least sometimes. I know your gang: not a single working day in the work record book since privatization. Eh, Andropov is not there to keep you in check! He had a short way with mooches.
KOLYA (grabs his head): Don’t drizzle, grandma Shura! I’m feeling bad enough without you.
GRANDMA SHURA: He’s feeling bad! You’d better go and meet your sister.
KOLYA (seems to turn a bit sober):