Love, Mischa

by Desiree Hart

  "Who?" Lisa's eyes grew round with curiosity.

  "There's this guy named Bruce at the hospital. One of the orderlies. A total dweeb. Well, anyway, he asked me if I liked the flowers he sent. I couldn't believe it! I told him yes just to get rid of him, and he asked me if I wanted to go to dinner with him this weekend."

  "No! You're kidding! And what did you tell him?"

  "I told him I had a date."

  "And did you?"

  "Yeah, with this book I've been wanting to read for ages. I'd rather stay home and do something on my own than go anywhere with him." We both burst out laughing.

  Soon we arrived at the mall. I hit all my favorite stores: the women's and children's clothing stores, the stationery store, the toy store, the sock store, two book stores, and the party supply store. For lunch Lisa and I went to the fast food restaurant next door rather than eating at the overpriced food court at the mall.

  Overall, my shopping trip was successful. I bought three new shirts and two pairs of pants for myself, four new outfits for Sage, five for Meadow, nail polish, lip gloss, and ten pairs of earrings for ten dollars. In the CD store, I saw a copy of Tchaikovsky's 'Swan Lake' and, on impulse, bought it.

  "I don't know what got into me," I said to Lisa on the way home. "I don't even like classical music."

  "Maybe it reminded you of someone," Lisa teased me.

  "Never!"

  ✽✽✽

  One day the following week, I had to run an errand to the basement. I always hated going down there because it was dimly lit and deserted and kind of creepy, especially since I had to walk right past the morgue. Hoping to get the chore over with as quickly as possible, I was hurrying down the hallway when I felt someone grab me and pull me back. The next moment I realized that, to my horror, I was alone in the morgue except for a sheet-covered body...and Bruce, who held my arm in a vise like grip.

  "If you scream, I'll break your arm," he warned me.

  Scared out of my wits, I began to whimper.

  "Don't worry." Bruce stuck his face into mine and I smelled the onions he'd eaten for lunch. "I'm not gonna hurt you. I'm just gonna fuck you."

  "The hell you will!" Swiftly I brought my knee up into his groin, and as he doubled over in agony, I pushed the gurney holding the body right into him. One arm fell to the side and dangled limply beneath the sheet covering it, but I didn't have time to scream. In a flash I was down the hall, up the stairs, and running the length of the hallway of the first floor, where I ran right smack into Mischa, who was walking in the opposite direction.

  Chapter 4

  “W

  hoa! Tracy!" Mischa laughed as he grabbed both my arms and steadied me. "Are you all right?"

  "Bruce...just tried...to rape...me..." I panted.

  "He did? I'll kill him!" Mischa exclaimed. "Where is he?"

  "Downstairs...in the morgue..."

  "Calm down, Tracy. Calm down. You're safe now." As he embraced me and rubbed my back, I slowly felt myself begin to relax. After a few minutes, he led me to a small office and told me to sit down and rest. "Can I bring you a glass of water?" he asked.

  "Please don't leave me!" I exclaimed. After what had just happened, I was terrified of being alone. What if Bruce somehow found me again?

  "It's all right, Tracy," Mischa said soothingly, gently holding both my arms. "I'm not going to leave you, but we have to find out if Bruce is still inside the building so that he can be apprehended."

  He called for a couple of his co-workers on his walky-talky thingy, and when they arrived, he sent them to the basement to find and apprehend Bruce, if he was still there. Then he had me fill out a form giving all my personal information and describing in detail what had happened.

  In the meantime, my supervisor had found out about the incident and asked me if I wanted to take the rest of the day off. I was definitely too badly shaken to continue working my shift, so I took her up on the offer.

  Somehow I made it home to my children. "Did you get in trouble, Mommy?" Sage asked me when he saw me.

  "No," I told him.

  "Then why did you come home early?"

  "I...um...something really scary happened, and it made me so upset that I had to leave, but it's all over with now, and I'm fine. How was your day at kindergarten?"

  "It was fun, Mommy! We learned about the letter 'U', and about how caterpillars turn into butterflies."

  "That's nice."

  I watched TV with the kids for a little while and then fixed dinner. I'd just put the last clean dish away when I heard the doorbell ring.

  I knew it was going to be Mischa before I checked the peephole. I opened the door and told him to come in.

  "Mischa! You came back!" Sage cried happily as he ran up to him.

  "I had to," Mischa told him. "I missed you guys."

  "Mischa! Mischa!" said Meadow.

  "Hey there, princess!" Mischa picked her up and kissed her cheek, then set her back down.

  "Hey." He gently touched my cheek. "Are you OK?"

  "As well as can be expected, I guess. Did they ever find Bruce?"

  Mischa shook his head. "We ended up having to call the police. If they find him, you may have to go down to the police department and give them a statement, like the one you gave me at the hospital." He shook his head. "I'm just so glad he didn't really hurt you, Tracy. If he had..."

  "Who tried to hurt my Mommy?" Sage demanded.

  "A bad man at the hospital," Mischa told him."But he's gone now. Your Mommy's safe."

  Sage seemed satisfied with that answer.

  "Would you like something to drink?" I asked Mischa.

  "No, thank you," he told me. "I'm fine." He sat on the sofa holding Meadow, with Sage sitting beside him. I sat on his other side. Suddenly it felt just like it had the day it had rained and he'd caught the tree frogs for Sage.

  "You know, we never did take that trip to the zoo like we planned," Mischa remarked.

  "No, we didn't," I said, feeling a tiny stab of pain at the thought of why we hadn't.

  "The next day we both have off," Mischa said to me with a smile. "And this time, it had better not get messed up. If you still want to go, that is," he added hopefully.

  "Sounds like fun!" I agreed. I still felt a bit apprehensive about leaving the house, but I knew that if I didn't fight back against that feeling, I could be left permanently crippled emotionally.

  ✽✽✽

  The police caught up with Bruce a couple of days later. He'd fled to a neighboring state. As Mischa had predicted, I did have to go down to the police station to make a statement. They asked me if I wanted to press charges, and I told them that I didn't. He hadn't really hurt me, and I couldn't bear the thought of having to face him in court.

  I told Mischa of my decision when he called me that evening. Ever since Bruce had attacked me, he'd called me every day. Although I assured him over and over again that I was all right, he was still very protective of me. I didn't mind, as to me, it seemed a way of making up for what had happened with Tina.

  "Are you sure you don't want to press charges against him, Trace?" he asked me now. "It might would prevent him from being able to do it to another woman."

  "I know." I sighed. "I suppose I'm being selfish," I told him. "But I just can't stand the thought of having to face him in court."

  "Oh, I don't blame you," Mischa said quickly. "If you don't want to face him in court, then you shouldn't have to. No reason to feel guilty about that."

  "I just want to put the whole thing behind me," I sighed.

  "You're a brave girl, Trace," he told me.

  "I don't always feel that brave," I admitted. "Sometimes I feel really scared."

  "Well, you know I'm always here for you," he assured me.

  Later, after we'd said good-bye, I felt kind of disgusted at myself. Where had the tough-girl exterior I'd intended to present to Mischa from now on gone? I couldn't believe that I'd just admitted
to him that I felt scared. What would he think of me now? Would he consider me to be a weak, helpless female who needed a big, strong man to take care of me? I felt angrier than ever at Bruce for what he'd done to me, for the side of myself I was showing to Mischa now.

  ✽✽✽

  I was eating lunch in the cafeteria when Mischa stopped by my table. It was the first time he'd done that since the business with Tina. I'd seen him glance over at me longingly a few times over the past few weeks, as if he wanted to ask if he could sit beside me but was afraid I'd turn him down, but now he seemed to have finally gotten up the nerve.

  "Is it OK if I sit here?" he asked.

  I shrugged. "Sure," I said, making room for him.

  "I've got tomorrow off," he told me. "How about you?"

  "I'm off tomorrow too," I told him.

  "Great! It's supposed to be nice and sunny, so I can finally take you and the kids to the zoo like we planned."

  "They'll like that," I replied.

  "And you?" He smiled hopefully.

  I giggled. "I'll like it too."

  Our luck held out, as the sun was shining brightly when I awakened the following morning. I woke the kids up early. "We need to get ready fast," I told them. "Mischa's taking us to the zoo today."

  "Yippee!" Sage shouted, jumping up and down excitedly. "Hear that, Meadow? We're going to see the lions and tigers and bears!"

  "Bears!" Meadow giggled.

  I fed the three of us cereal and got the kids dressed, then got dressed myself and put on makeup. I was applying eyeliner when I heard the doorbell ring, and went to let a smiling Mischa in.

  "Mischa!" Sage cried, running up to him.

  "Hey there, little buddy!' Mischa exclaimed, scooping my son up and holding him.

  "Have a seat," I told Mischa. "I'll only be a minute."

  I went back into the bathroom to finish putting on my makeup, appraised myself in the mirror and decided that I looked acceptable, and went back to the living room to find Mischa holding both children and singing to them in Russian.

  "Wow, Trace, you're gorgeous!" he said when he saw me.

  "Thank you," I said with a smile.

  "Shall we be off, then?" asked Mischa. I moved Meadow's car seat from my car to Mischa's, and we were on our way.

  "What was that song you were singing to the kids?" I wanted to know.

  "It's called 'The Little Grey Wolf'," Mischa told me. "My Babushka, my grandmother, used to sing it to me when I was little."

  "Is your grandmother still alive?" I asked.

  "Yes," he said. "She lives with my parents in Moscow. Is yours?"

  "No. One died when I was eighteen, and the other died when Sage was a baby."

  "I'm sorry to hear that."

  "I was really close to my grandmother on my Mom's side," I told him. "She lived right around the corner from us the whole time I was growing up. I used to see her just about every day."

  "It was the same way with my grandmother," Mischa told me.

  Soon we were at the zoo. I took Meadow's stroller out of the trunk and put her in it. Mischa paid for admittance for all of us, and we went in.

  We went to the monkey exhibit first. Sage imitated them, which caused Meadow to laugh hysterically. Next was the petting zoo, where chickens, pigs, sheep, and goats would walk right up to you. A sheep licked Meadow's face, which made me cringe but caused her to giggle. Sage asked for a quarter to buy dried corn to feed the animals, and Mischa gave it to him.

  Next was the giraffe. It's neck was so long that there was a ladder which visitors could climb to pet it. Then there was the elephant, which Mischa rode with Sage while Meadow and I looked on.

  After that we looked at the big cats in their cages, then went through the reptile exhibit, and then rode the train that went all the way around the zoo.

  By then we were hungry, so we went to the food court. Mischa bought hamburgers and French fries for himself, me, and Sage, and I took Meadow's food out of the diaper bag for her. We were about halfway finished eating when Sage jumped out of his chair.

  "Aunt Patty!" he shouted. I turned my head in the direction he was pointing to see Jeff's sister Patty, her husband Matt, and their children Rachel and Daniel sitting at a table on the other side of the little cafe. I groaned inwardly.

  "It's Jeff's sister," I told Mischa in response to his questioning look.

  By now Matt and Patty had seen us, so there was nothing else to do but to go over and say hello to them. "This is Mischa," I told my former sister-in-law and her husband.

  "How do you do," Mischa said pleasantly.

  Patty frowned. "What country are you from?"

  "I'm originally from Russia, but I've been here in the United States for the past four years," Mischa told her.

  "So you're a Communist?" Patty's voice showed her disapproval.

  "I used to be."

  "So what are you now?"

  Mischa obviously didn't know what to say. I felt sorry for him.

  "We don't get into politics," I said firmly. Mischa looked grateful.

  In the meantime, Sage was having fun chatting with his cousins. Rachel was about five, and Daniel was about three.

  "Mommy, can Sage and Meadow come over for a play date this evening? Please please please?" Rachel begged.

  "Well, I don't see why not," Patty agreed.

  "Hurray!" Rachel and Sage shouted together.

  Mischa and I looked at one another and smiled. We both knew what this meant, that we'd have several hours on our own, without the kids. For all her faults, I knew Patty would take good care of Sage and Meadow, and I looked forward to my first real date with Mischa.

  Chapter 5

  F

  or some unaccountable reason, I felt very nervous as I prepared for my first evening date with Mischa. I spent much longer than I usually did on my make-up and hair, wanting everything to be just right for him. Even so, I finished getting ready well before he arrived.

  When I opened the door to him, I couldn't believe my eyes! I'd never seen him looking so gorgeous before. He wore dark blue slacks and a light blue shirt with a tie. He had on black patent leather shoes, and his hair was slicked back perfectly in place. He was wearing expensive cologne and carried a bouquet of flowers. I also noticed that his hands were shaking slightly.

  "Tracy!" he exclaimed. "You're beautiful!"

  "Thanks," I replied. "You look very nice as well."

  "These are for you," he told me as he held out the flowers.

  "Thank you," I said. "I'll get a vase for them."

  Quickly I found the vase, and then we were off. He took me to this incredibly classy restaurant. The interior was dark, and there were candles on each table. A violinist played romantic music, and at several tables, nicely dressed couples chatted quietly over their food. Wow, this place looks really expensive, I said to myself.

  Mischa led me to a cozy little table in the corner, and a waiter with a French accent came to take our order. Mischa ordered for both of us, as I had no idea how to pronounce most of the items on the menu.

  After the waiter had gone, Mischa reached across the table and took my hand. "You can't begin to imagine how long I've wanted to take you out like this," he said. "After the stupid thing I did with Tina, I was so afraid I'd blown my chances for good."

  "I knew I couldn't let you languish in the friend zone forever," I told him. We both laughed.

  "The waiter won't be back for awhile," Mischa told me. "Would you like to dance?"

  Several other couples were already on the floor. "Sure," I said.

  He took my hand and led me onto the floor. Standing so close to him, with his arms around me, I felt a warm glow of desire begin to stir inside me. I wondered whether Mischa could feel it too. I rested my head on his shoulder as we moved in time to the music. One of his hands came up to gently massage my back. I felt weak in the knees because it felt so nice.

  "My sweet Tracy," he murmu
red.

  We'd been dancing for maybe half an hour or so when the waiter brought our food and we sat down to eat. Whatever I was eating, it was delicious. When we were finished, Mischa asked me if I wanted dessert, and I said yes.

  Dessert was sweet little biscuits topped with berries and whipped cream. It tasted better than strawberry shortcake, which I absolutely love. Mischa held my hand as we walked back outside into the cool air after we'd finished eating. It was a clear night, and you could see the moon and all the stars in perfect detail.

  "Did you enjoy that?" Mischa asked me as we made our way back to the car.

  "Very much," I told him. "Thank you for taking me out."

  Mischa grinned. "Hey, thanks for going out with me!"

  I should have known that I was having too good a time for it to last, and sure enough, when I arrived home, I found an urgent message from Patty. "We had to rush Sage to the hospital. He started running a high fever and complaining with an earache. We need you to come to the hospital as quickly as possible. They won't treat Sage without your permission."

  "Oh, my baby!" I cried.

  "I'll take you to the hospital," Mischa offered. "As upset as you are, you're in no condition to drive right now."

  I nodded gratefully and followed him back out to his car. We practically flew to the hospital, and Mischa dropped me off at the emergency room entrance before going to search for a parking spot.

  I dashed inside to find Matt and Patty standing beside the triage station. Patty was holding Sage, whose eyes were closed.

  "My baby!" I cried, reaching for him.

  "Mommy," he mumbled as he held his hands out to me.

  "He's burning up!" I gasped, shocked by how hot he felt to the touch.

  "Where's Meadow?" I demanded.

  "With Mom," Patty told me.

  Within moments an emergency room physician was there, pushing papers in front of me for me to sign, and then they took Sage back into an examination room. Mischa and I followed.

  ✽✽✽