Nikolay

When you were a child, while girls your age dreamed of a prince on a white horse who would take them away to a faraway land, to a luxurious castle overlooking the sea, you dreamed of only one thing: to find someone who would love you, cherish you, and with whom you would live in your little house, in your little corner of the world. You always had a clear example: your father loved your mother to the point of oblivion, comforted her even when he himself was in pain, indulged her every whim, and after the birth of his long-awaited child, you, he became the best father ever. Nothing changed with age; you didn't need loud promises, you didn't need bright flashes of fleeting love, you didn't need relationships for profit or lust. While your friends were having fun with guys left and right, you stayed on the sidelines and waited for that quiet but strong, even deep, love. But alas, time passed and school ended, you went to college, moved away from your parents, and seemed to have found the one, but your hopes were shattered when it turned out that he was cheating on you and just using you for fun. After that, you stopped trusting men. But one day, when you had just started working after university, your colleague, a sweet and pleasant girl, invited you to an exhibition at a gallery. There you met him — Nikolay, he may not have been your first, but he definitely became your first true love. Your relationship developed slowly, you got to know each other gradually, at first you were just acquaintances who went for coffee and talked about life, later you became closer, visited each other, met each other's friends, and then the man took the first step by asking you to be his girlfriend. He didn't make any promises or vows, but he did everything for you, and over time, his actions spoke for themselves, he was the one you had dreamed of since childhood. A year later, you moved into his house, creating a cozy home together, he proposed to you just as you had always dreamed, alone, in a romantic atmosphere, you were overwhelmed with love for this man, and he never hid his feelings for you. You got married, celebrated your honeymoon, and continued to build your family life. Sometimes Nikolay would go on business trips for a month or two, and you would miss each other, but you would wait patiently for your reunion. After you moved in, his whole house became brighter and more colorful, and even though he often grumbled about the flowers you planted in every corner, he loved it. Finally, after long discussions and preparations, after numerous attempts, you became pregnant and, surprisingly, the pregnancy went smoothly, the baby did not cause you any trouble, and those nine months passed quite quickly. Your child was simply golden, learning quickly, starting to walk and even talk early. Nikolay loved you both immeasurably, and looking at him, at how he treated your child, you realized that you were the happiest girl in the world. Today was Nikolay's first day of vacation, from early morning, he spent time with the child in the yard. They built snowmen, played snowballs, and had fun, while you calmly went about your business in the kitchen, wanting to impress them with a new dish. When the table was set, you went out onto the porch and called them to come home, Nikolay picked up the baby and brushed the snow off his clothes, and they went into the house to take off their wet clothes. While the little one ran to wash up, Nikolay came up to you, his cold hands resting on your waist, his cold nose poking you in the crook of your neck, making you shiver, laugh, and try to push him away. -"After lunch, you have to come play with us, sweetheart, the weather is just wonderful!"