"That"s all right--they can live together; only you must move to us to-morrow."
"To you? How so? All right, I am ready."
"Yes, hire a room from us. We have a top floor, it"s empty. We had an old lady lodging there, but she has gone away; and I know granny would like to have a young man. I said to her, "Why a young man?" And she said, "Oh, because I am old; only don"t you fancy, Nastenka, that I want him as a husband for you." So I guessed it was with that idea."
"Oh, Nastenka!"
And we both laughed.
"Come, that"s enough, that"s enough. But where do you live? I"ve forgotten."
"Over that way, near X bridge, Barannikov"s Buildings."
"It"s that big house?"
"Yes, that big house."
"Oh, I know, a nice house; only you know you had better give it up and come to us as soon as possible."
"To-morrow, Nastenka, to-morrow; I owe a little for my rent there but that doesn"t matter. I shall soon get my salary."
"And do you know I will perhaps give lessons; I will learn something myself and then give lessons."
"Capital! And I shall soon get a bonus."
"So by to-morrow you will be my lodger."
"And we will go to _The Barber of Seville_, for they are soon going to give it again."
"Yes, we"ll go," said Nastenka, "but better see something else and not _The Barber of Seville_."
"Very well, something else. Of course that will be better, I did not think----"
As we talked like this we walked along in a sort of delirium, a sort of intoxication, as though we did not know what was happening to us. At one moment we stopped and talked for a long time at the same place; then we went on again, and goodness knows where we went; and again tears and again laughter. All of a sudden Nastenka would want to go home, and I would not dare to detain her but would want to see her to the house; we set off, and in a quarter of an hour found ourselves at the embankment by our seat. Then she would sigh, and tears would come into her eyes again; I would turn chill with dismay.... But she would press my hand and force me to walk, to talk, to chatter as before.
"It"s time I was home at last; I think it must be very late," Nastenka said at last. "We must give over being childish."
"Yes, Nastenka, only I shan"t sleep to-night; I am not going home."
"I don"t think I shall sleep either; only see me home."
"I should think so!"
"Only this time we really must get to the house."
"We must, we must."
"Honour bright? For you know one must go home some time!"
"Honour bright," I answered laughing.
"Well, come along!"
"Come along! Look at the sky, Nastenka. Look! To-morrow it will be a lovely day; what a blue sky, what a moon! Look; that yellow cloud is covering it now, look, look! No, it has pa.s.sed by. Look, look!"
But Nastenka did not look at the cloud; she stood mute as though turned to stone; a minute later she huddled timidly close up to me. Her hand trembled in my hand; I looked at her. She pressed still more closely to me.
At that moment a young man pa.s.sed by us. He suddenly stopped, looked at us intently, and then again took a few steps on. My heart began throbbing.
"Who is it, Nastenka?" I said in an undertone.
"It"s he," she answered in a whisper, huddling up to me, still more closely, still more tremulously.... I could hardly stand on my feet.
"Nastenka, Nastenka! It"s you!" I heard a voice behind us and at the same moment the young man took several steps towards us.
My G.o.d, how she cried out! How she started! How she tore herself out of my arms and rushed to meet him! I stood and looked at them, utterly crushed. But she had hardly given him her hand, had hardly flung herself into his arms, when she turned to me again, was beside me again in a flash, and before I knew where I was she threw both arms round my neck and gave me a warm, tender kiss. Then, without saying a word to me, she rushed back to him again, took his hand, and drew him after her.
I stood a long time looking after them. At last the two vanished from my sight.
MORNING
My night ended with the morning. It was a wet day. The rain was falling and beating disconsolately upon my window pane; it was dark in the room and grey outside. My head ached and I was giddy; fever was stealing over my limbs.
"There"s a letter for you, sir; the postman brought it," Matrona said stooping over me.
"A letter? From whom?" I cried jumping up from my chair.
"I don"t know, sir, better look--maybe it is written there whom it is from."
I broke the seal. It was from her!
"Oh, forgive me, forgive me! I beg you on my knees to forgive me! I deceived you and myself. It was a dream, a mirage.... My heart aches for you to-day; forgive me, forgive me!
"Don"t blame me, for I have not changed to you in the least. I told you that I would love you, I love you now, I more than love you. Oh, my G.o.d!
If only I could love you both at once! Oh, if only you were he!"
["Oh, if only he were you," echoed in my mind. I remembered your words, Nastenka!]
"G.o.d knows what I would do for you now! I know that you are sad and dreary. I have wounded you, but you know when one loves a wrong is soon forgotten. And you love me.
"Thank you, yes, thank you for that love! For it will live in my memory like a sweet dream which lingers long after awakening; for I shall remember for ever that instant when you opened your heart to me like a brother and so generously accepted the gift of my shattered heart to care for it, nurse it, and heal it.... If you forgive me, the memory of you will be exalted by a feeling of everlasting grat.i.tude which will never be effaced from my soul.... I will treasure that memory: I will be true to it, I will not betray it, I will not betray my heart: it is too constant. It returned so quickly yesterday to him to whom it has always belonged.
"We shall meet, you will come to us, you will not leave us, you will be for ever a friend, a brother to me. And when you see me you will give me your hand ... yes? You will give it to me, you have forgiven me, haven"t you? You love me _as before_?
"Oh, love me, do not forsake me, because I love you so at this moment, because I am worthy of your love, because I will deserve it ... my dear!
Next week I am to be married to him. He has come back in love, he has never forgotten me. You will not be angry at my writing about him. But I want to come and see you with him; you will like him, won"t you?