Her Russian Millionaire

“I never met him. Okay, that’s a lie. I saw him once before he died. He was out walking around the streets of Russia in his underwear, screaming at children and throwing rocks at people. Apparently, he was diabetic and had been refusing medication for so long that his blood sugar was near eight hundred. I saw it on the news and then later on social media.” Erik shrugged. “This was before I had immigrated to America and obtained dual citizenship, so he’s probably dead by now.”

“What was your mother like? I remember that she told you to say she was your best friend so that I would fall in love with you.” Jalisa giggled, the feeling of love blossoming inside of her and reducing her to a lovesick schoolgirl.

“My mother was a complex woman. She was extremely proud and independent. Her first husband said that she could not buy a house she wanted, so she worked hard and bought it her damn self. At other times, she was soft. I would often lay awake in my bed as a child and listen to the muffled sobs coming through the walls. I knew without getting up that she would be sitting at the kitchen table, a cup of tea and a mountain of crumpled tissues in front of her. I assume she mostly cried about money. We were just another poor family in Russia, struggling to make ends meet. It put a lot of pressure on her.

“Sometimes my father’s voice could be heard comforting her. The only times he would not comfort her is when he was too drunk to do so. He most likely would have passed out on the couch. I think they had a happy marriage. I never saw them fight and I only heard them fight through walls about money. My father would drink up the water bill and we would have to collect snow and boil it to bathe for school and church. My father was goofy and would just make it into a joke or assure her that it was just money and they could make more of it.

“My favorite memory of my mother happened when I was about twelve. We were very poor, and it got a lot worse in winter. That November, my brother and I tried to save up money to get her a Mother’s Day present. There was this little locket she had been eyeing in the department store. It was fake silver and fake rhinestones, but it was still too much for her to buy for herself.

My brother and I made a pact to not eat lunch at school and save up our lunch money for it. The problem was that we were growing boys, and we ended up caving and eating every day. My brother and I would sit on the bus going home and show each other how much money we had saved. It was never more than what would equal a dollar, but we kept at it. We ate some scraps from our friends and shoveled a few driveways.

“I wish we had had a camera to capture the look on my mother’s face. She cycled through emotions faster than anyone I had ever seen. She was shocked, then delighted, then angry. She thought we had stolen it. She was furious, demanding we go back and apologize to the manager. Through tears, my brother and I explained that we had not been eating, and she cried. We got the biggest hug I have ever seen, and one swat on the bum for not eating.” He ran a pale slim finger around the rim of his glass while he spoke. “She wore it everyday from then on. When I video chat with her, she is always wearing it. It has been repaired so many times that the repair cost far outweighs the cost of just getting her a new necklace, but she won’t have it.”

“Could I meet her?” Jalisa asked. “On video chat, of course.”

“She doesn’t speak English.” He rubbed his chin. “But I suppose I could translate for you two.”

Jalisa was just about to ask her question about the possibility of a Russian wife or lover when Marie and Stone butted in. The two stood too close for comfort and glared rather aggressively at the two. Marie gave them a sickly sweet smile.

“Hey, guys.” Her voice was being more and more annoying each time Jalisa heard it. “I’m so glad you guys are getting along so well. Having friends is sure to help Jalisa settle in easier.”

“Don’t worry, Marie, you’ll still be my best friend.” Jalisa was just as fake as Marie. The two girls laughed together.

“Hey, Erik, I got something I want to discuss with you. In the other room.” Stone grunted. Everyone present looked around at each other, gauging each other’s reaction to the loaded situation they were in.

“All right.” Erik pushed his almost empty glass toward Marie. “Will you keep this safe? Jalisa made it special with cherries.”

“Sure.” Marie set it behind the bar. A new bruise wrapped around her wrist showed Jalisa that she had been fighting with Stone some more.

Jalisa watched with a heavy heart as Stone and Erik disappeared into the break room. The same room that Erik and Jalisa had become intimate in not very long ago. She had no idea what they were going to talk about, but she didn’t have a good feeling about it. Marie placed one manicured hand on her shoulder.

“Want to go shopping later?” Marie always wanted to go out with Jalisa. Jalisa kept a neutral face while she weighed the options. On one hand, she wanted to be as far away from Marie as possible. On the other hand, Marie had to think positively of Jalisa so she would not get suspicious.

“So long as we aren’t out too late,” Jalisa said. Marie started chatting about new winter fashions and who was wearing what on the red carpet. Jalisa picked up a rag and started wiping down the bar, occasionally giving an ‘uh-huh’ or an ‘oh, really?’

The crash was barely audible over the sound of the music. Jalisa and a few customers sitting about looked in the direction of the break room. Erik threw open the door and stormed out of the building without a word. He wiped at something on his face and didn’t even glance at Jalisa. She walked a few steps toward him before she halted. Marie’s eyes burned holes into the back of her head.

“You seem awfully interested in Erik.” Marie’s voice was low. “What’s the reason for that?”

“I mean…wouldn’t you be worried is someone ran out of the room?” Jalisa tried to play it off coolly while her heart beat out of her chest. “I’m mostly ‘interested’ in him because he’s Stone’s boss and what happens to him falls down the chain of command and lands on my lap.”

“I could see that.” Marie drummed her nails on the hard wood of the bar counter, fingers moving so quickly they blurred into a single harsh noise. “He’s cute, isn’t he?”

“I guess.” Jalisa returned back to scrubbing down the already spotless bar. “So, what were you telling me about flannels?”