Tatiana and Alexander: A Novel(69)

They had an hour together until Grinkov came back with a girl and wouldn't take no-it's-not-your-day for an answer.

After they dressed, Alexander walked Dasha to the sentry gate. "So, tell me," she asked, "are you going to remember my name next week when I come by?"

"Sure...Dasha, right?" He smiled.

Next week she came by with her friend again; unfortunately Dimitri had already gone with someone else, and Dasha didn't want to leave her friend in the lurch. The three of them ended up walking down Nevsky Prospekt together. Then--finally--her friend caught a bus back home, and Alexander took Dasha back to the barracks, where it wasn't his turn and his quarters were already full.

"You've got two choices," Alexander said. "You can either go home, or come inside and ignore the other soldiers."

Dasha looked at him. He couldn't quite tell what was in her eyes. "Well," she said, "why not? My mother and father have to ignore us kids as we pretend to sleep. Are they sleeping?"

"Not even close," said Alexander.

"Oh. That's a bit too strange for me."

Alexander nodded. "Do you want me to walk you home?"

"No, it's all right." She came up close to him. "I had a really good time last week."

Alexander paused. "Me too," he said. "Let's go to the Admiralty Gardens." Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html

The third Saturday night he met her, they found a quiet place under the embankment of the Moika Canal, where the boats quayed. It was secluded enough and Dasha didn't make any noise, and Alexander had certainly trained himself not to utter a sound. There was nowhere for Dasha to lie down, but Alexander could sit.

"Alex--do you mind if I call you Alex?" she asked.

"No," he said.

"Alex, tell me something about yourself." Dasha smiled at him. "You're very interesting."

They had finally finished, and he was hoping to get back. He wanted to sleep. His Sunday morning began at seven regardless of how late the girls kept him up. "Why don't you tell me something aboutyour self?"

"What do you want to know?"

"Many soldiers before me?"

"Not many." Dasha smiled. "Alexander, you don't want to be havingthat conversation. Because then I'll have a question for you."

"All right."

"Many women before me?"

He smiled. "Not many."

She laughed.

He laughed, too.

"I tell you what, Alex. Since I met you three weeks ago, I haven't been able to stop thinking about you."

"Really?"

"Really. And I haven't been with any men since then." She paused. "Can you say the same?"

"Absolutely. I haven't been with any men since then either."

She punched him lightly. "Stop. You have time for more?"

"No." He didn't want to tell her he didn't have another condom. "Come and see me next week. I'll have time then."

"Come on," she said teasingly, her hands on him. "I promise it'll be quick."

"No, Dasha. Next week."

After Dasha left and Alexander returned to the barracks, he found a girl in the corridor that he had been with back in May, a girl who was friendly and drunk and attractive and who would not stop or would not Generated by ABC Amber LIT Converter, http://www.processtext.com/abclit.html

leave until he unbuttoned his trousers. Alexander unbuttoned his trousers.

And the week was long, and during the week, Alexander had sentry duty which included a couple of girls Dimitri had set up for them. When Saturday night came, Alexander went to Sadko, having only a cursory interest in getting together with a girl, as in, it's Saturday night, so he might as well. He ran into one he hadn't seen for a while, and after having a couple of drinks and buying her a couple of drinks, he went to the back alley of Sadko and had her against the wall, and when she said, "Aren't you going to throw your cigarette out?" he was surprised it was still in his mouth. He sent the girl home and returned to Sadko.

He felt arms go around his head and a voice say, "Guess who."

It was Dasha. He smiled. She had come alone this time.

He thought he was finished for tonight. But Dasha's evening was just beginning, so Alexander felt obliged to buy her a few beers and talk to her. They smoked, joked a bit, and then she pulled him out of the bar. "Dasha, it's getting late," he said. "I've got to be up tomorrow at seven."

"I know," she said, rubbing his arm. "You're always in a hurry. Always rushing off somewhere. What's the hurry, Alex?"

Sighing, he looked at her with wearied amusement. "What are you proposing?"

"I don't know." She smiled. "Same as last week?"

He tried to remember. For some reason last week had flown out of his head. He could see that if he didn't remember it would upset Dasha, and so he tried. But between last week and this week there had been...he tried to focus his mind. There had been much talk of imminent war.

"Don't you remember? Down by the parapets on Moika?"

Now he recalled. He had taken her down by the canal. "You want to go there again?"