A Second Chance At Love

[Angela]

It was in early March. The heater in little Kyril Potemerenko's nursery had been malfunctioning, but because it was finally starting to warm up, there seemed little need to get a new one. One freezing night was all it took. When the heater did not turn on, Katya let the eleven-month-old sleep with her and Zhenya, and decided to get a new one the next day.

Unfortunately, Katya had a doctor's appointment, and of course Evgeni was working with his students. This left Maria to get the heater. She was going grocery shopping and had to run to the bank anyway, so it was no trouble for her.

The trouble was, she really didn't know what kind of heater to get, and Zhenya and Katya didn't really go into specifics about what they wanted. They just wanted a safe, reliable heater.

She stood in the specific aisle for heaters, looking at the various brands and features of each one. Some of them claimed to be safe, some had guarantees, but she wasn't sure whether she should trust them. She sighed, looking nearby to see if there were any employees nearby, but found no one. She went along the aisle again, taking another look at the heaters.

"Can I help you?" a male voice asked.

Maria turned and blinked. The man was a tall, handsome, muscular redhead, about forty-five or so, and was wearing a grey sweatshirt and blue jeans. He was not an employee, but a fellow shopper, judging by his shopping cart he had with him.

"Ah... Do you know much about these heaters?" she asked shyly. "I'm trying to find a good heater for a nursery, and I do not know which would be good..."

Maria had been in the country for seven years, but was still self-conscious about her English. It showed in her mannerisms and could be heard in her voice.

"Well, I don't work here, but-" He stepped next to her and pointed to one of the heaters. "This is the kind my daughter uses in hers."

Maria nodded slowly, thoughtfully, as she looked over the various features listed on the box.

"Well, you see, because it is for a nursery, we want to make sure that we do get a safe heater. We don't want to risk a fire starting in there," she told him with a slight shrug and tilt of her head.

"Oh, well, you're in luck," he told her with a shy smile. "I'm a fireman. I wouldn't let my daughter use anything that didn't have some safety precautions. This has several great features. First, it has a timer, so you can leave it on for a certain amount of time and then it will shut off. Another feature is that it can be set at a maximum temperature, and when the temperature in the room gets to that point, it will turn off. And, if you want, you could set it to turn on and off at different time time intervals, say every fifteen minutes for example, that way the room can maintain heat. It also is energy efficient, which can save money on the electric bill." He shrugged.

"Well..." Maria was clearly impressed, looking at the heater, then back at the man. "Then that is what I will get." She smiled, and reached up to get the box. The man got to it before her, and set it in her cart.

"Allow me," he said gently.

"Thank you!" she said happily.

"I'm Nathan."

"Maria," she introduced herself.

"Maria, the most beautiful sound I ever heard," Nathan said with a flirtatious twinkle in his green eyes and a smile as he held out his hand, she held out hers, and he kissed the back of it.

"Oh!" Maria whispered, putting her free hand on her chest and ducking her head slightly in embarrassment as she smiled and giggled a little. "Thank you..." She knew the words were not his own; they were from West Side Story, but still, it was sweet of him.

"So where are you from, Maria?" Nathan asked, releasing her hand.

"Russia," she replied.

"Russia, really?" Nathan asked, blinking in surprise. "That's nice. What brings you to America? Freedom?"

Maria laughed slightly, not sure if she should take this seriously or not.

"No, I came to live with my son," she answered.

"Oh yeah? How long has he been here?"

"He has been here about ten years," Maria answered casually.

"Oh, wow, and how long have you been here? Same amount of time?" Nathan asked.

"I've been here almost seven years," she answered.

"Oh, I see. Still a long time," Nathan reasoned. Maria nodded.

"Where are you from, Nathan?" she asked.

"I'm from Cape Cod originally, Massachussetts, but I've lived in Pittsburgh for about twenty years," he answered.

"Oh, I have heard about Cape Cod, it is supposed to be beautiful," Maria said thoughtfully. Nathan grinned.

"It is. I go there a few times every year for vacation. I have a cottage there and a boat," he told her.

"That sounds wonderful," she said wistfully.

"So where in Russia are you from, originally?" he asked.

"I'm from St. Petersburg," she said.

"St. Petersburg, huh?"

"A very beautiful city," she said with a nod. She giggled a little. "A little crowded at times though."

Nathan nodded. "Lot of cities are," he said with a chuckle. He raised his eyebrows. "Listen, I don't normally do this, but would you like to go out for coffee?"

Maria blushed and ducked her head a little with a small giggle. "Well, that would be very nice, Nathan... I just need to check to make sure I have everything." She pulled out a list, written in Russian, and looked over every item carefully. She looked at Nathan and nodded. "I have everything. I just need to check out. Ah, that is, if you would like to go now..." She blushed redder as she realized he didn't ask when they would like to go out.

"Sounds great," Nathan said with a grin. "There's a Starbucks about five minutes away. We can go there after we check out. I'm ready if you are." He shrugged.

Maria laughed softly. What the hell am I doing? she thought. "I am," she answered with a nod. Together, they went towards the checkout area.

"The least I can do is help you to your car," Nathan said with a grin as they finished paying for their items.

"That's very nice of you," she said with a smile.

They walked out to the parking lot and Maria led him to the blue minivan. Nathan lifted the heater and put it in the back.

"Thank you," she said with a warm smile. "So, I will meet you at Starbucks in a few minutes?"

Nathan nodded. Sure! I'll see you then!"

Maria smiled as she parked the car and Nathan's red Dodge Durango parked right next to her.

"Nice truck," she observed.

"Thanks," he said with a grin. "Shall we?"

"So you're a fireman?" Maria recalled as they stepped inside.

"That's right," Nathan answered with a nod. "I've been doing that for about thirty years or so."

"Goodness! Are you ever scared?" she asked.

"Sometimes, I won't lie. You'd have to be a fool not to be afraid at least once. But it's how you control that fear, how you react and deal with it. You know what they say. It's okay to be scared, but when it comes to saving other people, you have to find a way to put that fear aside."

Maria nodded. "Oh, yes, of course. Well, you must be very good at your job, to have done it for so long," she reasoned.

"Thanks. I like to think I am," he replied with a chuckle and a grin. He had perfectly straight, small white teeth behind thin lips. "Grande caramel machiato," he told the cashier, then turned to Maria. "What about you?" he asked. Maria blinked. "It's my treat," he added.

"How sweet," she said with a giggle, and paused. "Ah, large white chocolate latte, please," she said bashfully. She decided on a size that was not the smallest, and not the biggest. She didn't want to offend him by taking the smallest size, and she didn't want to make a pig of herself by taking a bigger size.

"Whipped cream on them?"

"Yes," the two answered simultaneously, and laughed softly simultaneously.

"Please," Maria added with a giggle.

The two of them moved aside and sat down at a nearby table.

"So, how old is your son?" Nathan asked as he pulled out a chair for her. "What's his name?"

"His name is Evgeni, he will be twenty-nine in June," she answered with a smile, folding her hands on the table.

"Oh, that's nice. Interesting name. Do you have any other children?" Nathan asked.

Maria took a breath, and cleared her throat. "No... I had a daughter, but she passed away almost ten years ago," she answered sadly.

"Oh, I'm sorry," Nathan said, his voice echoing the solemn tone in hers. "May I ask how old she was, how it happened?"

"She was twelve... she died of cystic fibrosis," Maria answered with a sigh.

"Oh, I am so sorry," Nathan said, shaking his head.

"Her name was Nadyezhda... We called her Nadya. She would have been twenty-two years old today," she continued, but said nothing more.

"Beautiful name," he commented. "Once again, I'm very sorry for your loss. It must be hard talking about her..."

"I don't mind so much," Maria answered with a small smile. "She was my daughter, and I loved her dearly... too much, at times. I was pretty over-protective of her," she admitted.

"Parents of disabled children often are," Nathan said with a nod. "I completely understand. So, your son, does he have cystic fibrosis?"

Maria shook her head.

"Huh... Isn't that hereditary?"

"Yes... but I'm not his biological mother..." Her voice trailed off.

"Oh, I understand. I'm sorry, I didn't mean to pry," Nathan said at once.

"It's all right," Maria said with a sigh. One of the girls at the counter called out their order, and Nathan went over to retrieve their drinks. "Thank you," she said as she accepted the drink. She waited for it to cool before she would sip it. "What about your daughter? How old is she? What is her name?"

"She'll be twenty-seven on St. Patrick's Day, tomorrow," Nathan answered with pride. "Her name is Caroline. She's very lucky. I'm full-blooded Irish, even though I was born here. Her mother's Irish too, only she was born and raised in Kelly. So to be born on St. Patrick's Day, and be full-blooded Irish, is very lucky," Nathan said with a broad grin.

"Really? How wonderful!" Maria said with a laugh. "That sounds very lucky indeed. So, how did you meet your wife?"

"Gwen and I met when I went to visit Manorhamilton for my great-uncle Sean's funeral," he explained. "I went to a pub to relax, and she was a waitress there." Maria laughed.

"I too met my husband while being a waitress," she recalled. "I lived in Moscow at the time. I worked at a cafe right across from where the Bolshoi Ballet practiced. Alyosha came in for coffee and, well, we hit it off from the start..." Her voice trailed off. At least, I thought we did, she thought somewhat bitterly.

Nathan laughed. "Really? Talk about ironic. So what did he do for a living?" he asked.

"He was a ballet dancer," she replied, sipping her coffee. She smiled in satisfaction. It was delicious.

"Wow," Nathan commented with a chuckle. "Never expected that."

"He danced with the Bolshoi for about ten years," Maria explained with a slight hint of pride and wistfulness in her voice.

"Amazing. What does he do now? He doesn't still dance, does he?"

"No... he passed away ten years ago," Maria answered with a long, deep sigh. "He'd had a heart condition for all of his life. My son has it as well. For a long time, he wasn't able to afford proper care for it, so he just lived as best he could with it, and then when we gradually started being abloe to afford proper care for him, the doctors couldn't identify what it was or how to treat it."

"That's terrible," Nathan observed, giving her a piteous look. "You'd think with all the great doctors in the area they would have found it, or at least referred him somewhere."

"We lived in Russia at the time," she explained. "And we could not afford to travel or to get better doctors." She sighed.

"Oh... I am so sorry," Nathan said sadly. He realized that by her saying that her husband had died ten years ago, and so did her daughter, how horrible the year 2001 must have been for her. "Well, at least it's not too late for your son, he can get the help he needs here," he continued, trying his best to lighten the mood.

"Oh, yes, he takes medication, doesn't stress himself, eats healthy," Maria replied with a nod.

The conversation seemed to last for hours on end, yet Maria felt that she hadn't spent enough time with him. Her cell phone started playing Meditation from Thais.

"I'm sorry, please excuse me," she said bashfully as she answered it. "Allo?" The conversation on her end continued in Russian for a few minutes, then she hung up. "I'm sorry. That was my son. I should be heading home. He's expecting me." She shrugged.

"It was nice meeting you," Nathan replied as he stood up with her. "Can I... give you a call sometime?" he asked. Maria smiled, surprised.

"I would like that very much, thank you." She gave him her number and he put it in his cell phone.

"I'll give you a call soon," he told her as he walked out with her to her vehicle.

"I look forward to it," she said with a nod as she climbed into the driver's seat.

[Angela]

Maria drove home and listened to the radio on the way. All she could think of was Nathan. He was charming, chivalrous, caring... She sighed as she paused at a stoplight. Aleksei was like that too, when he first met her. And Nathan was married. Yet he'd flirted with her! Hadn't he? She hadn't asked him any questions about his wife except where they met... For all she knew, they could be divorced, he could be a widower...

Her mind mulled over these things until the horn honking from the car behind her brought her back to reality. She looked at the stoplight. It was green, but before she could release the brake, it turned red again.

"Fucking moron!" a teenage boy screamed out the window from the car behind her.

Maria had studied English for a few years, but had not studied curse words. The word was not unfamiliar to her, but she didn't know how it translated to Russian, and she wasn't sure she wanted to. She paid attention to the light this time, and the moment it turned green again, she moved forward. The boy behind her almost crashed into her when he moved forward and screamed another obscenity to her.

"You fucking colorblind, bitch?"

Maria looked behind her this time, then kept her eyes on the road in front of her. She was determined not to let him bother her.

The car attempted to pass her.

"Go back to Driver's Ed!" he called to her. "Green means Go!"

With that, he sped off - about twenty miles over the speed limit.

Maria shuddered and shook her head.

"Americans," she muttered. But she didn't care. Nothing could spoil her day.

When she got home, the kids were playing outside, and Zhenya and Katya were keeping watch over them on the porch. Zhenya stood up as Maria pulled in. He went over to help her.

"Hey," he said, kissing her cheeks. "We were getting kind of worried. You were gone for about three and a half hours."

"I was?" Maria asked, surprised at herself. It should have taken her one hour at most. I guess the conversation with Nathan lasted longer than I thought! "Well, I ran into someone, and I just got caught up in conversation. He helped pick out the heater, though. He's a fireman. When I told him my concerns, he pointed out the features and said this was what his daughter uses in her nursery."

Zhenya raised his eyebrows. "So, the man at the store also works as a fireman?"

"No, just as a fireman. He didn't work at the store." Maria told him and Katya, who had just come over, about Nathan.

"He sounds very nice!" Katya said with a grin.

Zhenya crinkled his nose, but said nothing.

"He is! He was so sweet, offering to buy me coffee, putting the heater in the car, asking me questions-"

"What kind of questions?" Zhenya asked suspiciously.

"Just about myself, about my family, you know, normal things like that," Maria explained with a shrug as Zhenya got the heater out of the car.

"That doesn't sound 'normal' to me," he mused.

"Zhenya, when you first start getting to know someone, it is normal to ask them about their family," Katya said rolling her eyes. "So, he's full-blooded Irish, huh? Does he have an accent?"

"It's a small one, but yes, he does," Maria replied as she made her way to greet her grandchildren. Zhenya sighed and brought the heater into the house. Setting it down, he looked at the features listed on the box. He huffed. Despite it having everything that could possibly be needed for a nursery heater, he didn't feel any better that it had come on recommendation from a complete stranger who wasn't even an employee of the store...

But was that what was really bothering him? Zhenya didn't bother to ask himself.

"So, he said he's going to call you? That's wonderful!" Katya said cheerfully. "You know, Mama, you hardly have any friends outside of us." She shrugged.

"What do you mean, hardly? I don't have any friends," Maria replied with a laugh. "And he was so charming, Katya. I hope you get to meet him soon."

"Poor Mama," Katya said with a small chuckle as she patted her shoulder. "Well, I'm sure when we meet, we'll all like him."

The following afternoon, at about three-thirty, the telephone rang. Katya took the liberty of answering it. Maria had answered every call since she'd come home, and decided it was silly, childish, waiting for a call like that.

"Allo?" Katya asked.

"Uh, hello? Is Maria there?" Nathan asked, self-conscious at the accent.

"One moment, please," Katya said gently. "May I ask whom is calling?"

"Nathan, Nathan O'Donnell," he answered.

Katya grinned. "Just one moment, Mr. O'Donnell." She set the phone aside for a moment while she went into the kitchen to get Maria, who was dicing carrots for stew.

"Mama?" She paused as Maria looked at her. "It's Nathan, on the phone."

Maria felt the knife slip from her hand and almost cut herself. He gasped.

"Really?!" she exclaimed, shocked. "Is my hair all right? How's my breath?"

"Calm down," Katya said with a laugh. "You're on the phone, you don't have to worry about those things. At any rate, you're fine," she told her, ushering her to the phone.

Maria took a deep breath as she took the phone in her hands. "Good afternoon, Nathan," she said.

"Good afternoon, Maria! How are you?"

"I'm well, thank you for asking," she replied with a smile. She sat down. "How are you?"

"I'm good," he answered. "Listen, I was wondering if you were free this Friday, or Saturday? In the evening? I'd love to take you out to dinner."

Maria opened her mouth, and laughed. "I'm available, for either evening," she said, trying to keep her voice steady and calm, even though her heart was pounding and her body trembling.

"Well, maybe Friday? I can pick you up at seven at your home, we can go out to a movie and dinner?" he suggested.

"That would be wonderful," she answered. "What kind of restaurant?"

"Well, I did some searching, and found a Russian restaurant in Pittsburgh. Have you ever been there?"

The Russian restaurant was actually a very ritzy, expensive, formal place. Still, Maria wasn't complaining.

"Of course, that sounds wonderful," she said with a grin. "You like Russian food?"

"To be honest, I've never had any that I know of," Nathan replied with a chuckle. "But you can recommend some things when we get there."

Maria laughed. "All right then. And what movie shall we see?" she asked.

"Well, I was thinking of a few in particular, but I'm not sure. I thought Jane Eyre might be a good one, and I also thought of Red Riding Hood, The Lincoln Lawyer, and The Adjustment Bureau. What do you think?" he asked.

Maria hadn't seen any of them advertized yet. She giggled. "Red Riding Hood, ah? Sounds cute. But perhaps something more... appropriate for our age?"

"Well, Red Riding Hood is not for children," Nathan explained. "It's about a... a werewolf."

"A werewolf?" Maria asked, surprised. She cleared her throat. "I see... Well, I don't know if I could handle that one, I'm afraid," she confessed.

"Of course, I understand, that's why I asked." Nathan chuckled.

"What is The Adjustment Bureau?"

"It's about a congressman who falls in love with a ballet dancer, and these people try to keep them apart."

"Well," Maria said, definitely intrigued, "I think that sounds perfect. It sounds very interesting!"

"Yeah, it does. It has Matt Damon in it. I'm not sure if you like him or not."

"Oh, he's a fine actor. I look forward to seeing you, and him, on Friday." She smiled.

"All right, see you then. Could you give me directions to your home?"

Maria gave him the directions, and they bid each other farewell. Maria hung up the phone and leaned against the couch. She put her hand on her still racing heart.

"Oh, my God... I think I have... a date!" she whispered in Russian.

Maria sat there for several minutes, before Katya came over and sat beside her.

"Well?" she asked insistently.

"He... invited me to dinner, and a movie, on Friday evening," Maria said, feeling as if her throat was dry. Katya blinked.

"Really? Oh, Mama!" She embraced her and kissed her cheek. "I'm so happy for you!"

"We're going to Roxolana's Garden, and we're seeing a movie called The Adjustment Bureau."

"Oh, that sounds wonderful!" Katya exclaimed.

"What does?" Zhenya asked, coming in from outside. He'd been planting flowers.

"Mama has a date!" Katya exclaimed.

"A what?!" Zhenya asked, staring at his mother.

"A date! With Nathan!" Katya continued.

"It's not a date," Maria disagreed, bashfully ducking her head.

"Mama, he's taking you to a fancy restaurant, then to a movie, it's a date!"

Zhenya stared at his mother, then at Katya, then back at his mother.

"Oh, really?" he asked. "When is this?"

"He's picking me up on Friday at seven. Oh, dear Lord, what will I wear?"

"Come on," Katya said, standing up. She grabbed Maria's hands and pulled her from the sofa. "I'll help you pick something!"

"Katya! Mama, don't you think you're overreacting?"

"Oh, Zhenya, let her have some fun! You know she doesn't have much of a life outside of our family," Katya said with a shrug.

Maria sighed. "That's true, Zhenya. At any rate, I'm not expecting a relationship, just some fun times out."

"We can give you that," Zhenya said with a shrug.

"She needs more in her life than just us," Katya pointed out with a shrug.

"She's right," Maria said. "I love you all very much, but I would like some friends my own age, or at least near that, and I would like to spend some time with them, away from you. You have time with Katya away from your children, why can't I have the same?"

Zhenya lowered his eyes. "I never knew you felt that way, Mama. I'm sorry..."

"Well, I do, and now you know it," Maria said with a shrug. She put her hands on his shoulders. "I love you, and your family. But as Katya said, I need more than that in my life. Nathan is a very pleasant man, at least he is so far, and I'd like to get to know him better. I'm not looking for anything serious, just someone to have some fun times with. That's all."

Zhenya nodded. "I'm sorry, Mama. I hope you can forgive me."

"Of course I can, darling. Now, Katya, do you want to help pick out what I'll wear?" Maria asked her daughter-in-law.