One

“Such things” offer readers a new story by Alexei Motorov, the author of the novels “Young years of the nurse of the steam locomotive” and “Crime of Dr. steambozov”

Many years later, I said that all this happened due to the fact that I decided to take a trifle control in English. Although what is English to me.

Our English woman was boring, but not at all a beast. She did not even put the doubles to the third year, but Vitya, if she knew anything, is the prices of port. This is not Anna Andreevna, a mathematician. Anna Andreevna, that, if grabbed, does not let out alive. That's who handed over deuces. Not only did she do this with some unheard of generosity, so after it necessarily demanded a diary. It wasn’t enough for her to just draw a deuce, she circled this couple three more times so that her parents immediately struck her eyes. And no tricks acted on it. Although always some particularly naive began to vine:

- Oh, and I forgot the diary of the house!

With Anna Andreevna, such numbers never passed, she laughed at a time at a time:

- Have you forgotten your head at home? March to the director!

And she dragged himself to the director for the first floor. Probably because of her I never fell in love with mathematics.

In short, the control in English was only a pretext. It was possible to boldly go to her, not afraid for performance. The main thing is this book.

Uncle Vova gave me on the eve of the "kidnappers". Only three days. He rarely gives books to read home, but then made an exception. True, I wrote it into a special card, as in the library, that by the end of the week I should return this book.

“Admit, Alyosha, because you only think how to stick me.” I probably decided that the uncle would not think anything, give you a book, and then forget. And your uncle is not a fool. Your uncle is a doctor of science.

The book turned out to be what was needed, about adventures in South Africa, I opened it in the subway, so I almost drove my station. So then I thought: eh, if not for the school, it was possible to read all day without being distracted by anything. And I still had a ruble, so I already presented how I drive into the store in the morning, buy a pound of Koskhalva there, arrange a feast for myself for the whole world and I will read the book.

I have a ruble left with waste money. Today, in the waste paper, everyone was simply obsessed when they began to give books for it. You will hand over twenty kilograms - and you can purchase a scarce book in the store in the stores. Isaak Naumovich supplied me with maculatory, grandfather’s neighbor and grandmother at home in Granovsky.

Isaac Naumovich wrote out a lot of newspapers, his entire apartment was littered with newspaper packs. He also constantly listened to the Voice of America and BBC, however, when I went to him for the waste paper, Isaac Naumovich immediately turned off the receiver, but since he was a little deaf, the radio always screamed throughout the porch.

For a couple of months, I dragged all his old newspapers to the reception point of reception on Arbat. There, in addition to coupons, they also gave money for the waste paper, two kopecks per kilogram. I honestly tried to give money to Isaac Naumovich, but he said:

- Leave them to yourself, young man! At your age you need to have fun.

How I overdid it

In order not to go to school, I needed a temperature, albeit very tiny. Thirty -seven exactly. Then I would have a sick with a clear conscience. And although I coughed a little, it was grown in my throat, without a temperature of this it was clearly not enough to convince my mother to leave me at home.

But my friend, Andrei Fishov, only I told him about my plan, assured that it would easily help aggravate my slight malaise. He instructed me in detail, and I did everything as he ordered. Andryukha was an experienced guy in such matters, although we were peers, he looked, and he behaved just like an adult, he had already smoked, he told that he tried beer, and often made me a different music on the tape recorder that was on the tape recorder of an older brother.

After the lessons, I only ran home for a moment, threw off my jacket, put on a flimsy sweater and went out into the street. Follow the instructions. Despite the middle of October, the cold stood fierce, the wind knocked down, and I felt with satisfaction as I was wandering every second. In half an hour, imagining himself with Amundsen, bravely walking to the pole through the thoroughs, I got to the subway, bought, as Andryukha ordered me, ice cream, grabbed a waffle glass with her fading fingers and began to bite it with large pieces. The ice seal drove his teeth and fell into cold insides with a stone. And although Andryukha advised to pick up at least two ice creams, I decided to get by alone, and it was a pity for the money.

As soon as I moved on the way back, a blizzard began on order. The snow baby flew into the face, clogged into the eyes and sweater, the bones were breaking out of the cold, and I tried to determine how I had the case with temperature, noting with annoyance that instead of warming up, I, on the contrary, cool down rapidly.

But only an hour later, the cough was already real, the throat was rushed various inside. Andryukha still advised to wrap himself in a wet sheet and stand so on the balcony for about five minutes, but, frankly, it was too lazy. And so it will do.

In the evening, with my mother, I tried to take the most unfortunate look and coughing around all the time, theatrically putting his hand to her chest, noting her growing anxiety, which followed the aspirin tablet and hot tea.

Everything went according to plan.

In the morning, only I torn my eyes and scored more air to joyfully report: “Mom! And I got sick! ”, Instead of a voice there was some strange barking. Then I felt a hot forehead with a hot hand and did not understand anything. Then a mother appeared with a thermometer. At first we thought that the thermometer broke down, as he showed forty and five. Mom ran to the neighbors after another thermometer, but he showed forty and seven.

I seem to have overdid it.

How I got into boxing

Then everything twisted and entertained. Doctors, an ambulance, an ambulance. There were so many doctors that in my feverish consciousness it began to seem that they were standing in a long line on the stairs to look and listen to me. The last doctor was with a large black beard and black sad eyes. He said to his mother:

- You need it to the hospital as quickly as possible. False cereals, here and to asphyxia is nearby.

And although I was half -forgotten, I started a little from this word “false”. How did this doctor guess that I did not really get sick, but only pretend to be a recipe for Andryukha Fishov? But soon there was no strength left even to think. Only when I was shifted to a stretcher, I reached for the shelf to take with me the “diamonds of diamonds”. But the doctor gently took away my hand and shook his head:

- You still have a rest from reading!

And he sighed sadly, sadly.

Then I closed my eyes - and when I opened it, there was already a hospital, I was sitting on a white couch in a white room, and I lacked air. Everyone ran around, but it didn’t get easier from it, and my mother was terribly worried. Then someone main ordered:

- Urgently it is intense!

In this intense, they ran much less, but mothers were no longer nearby, they did not let them go. They immediately began to stab me and in half an hour they drove everything. I horrified how I did not like injections, but for some reason I didn’t even lead an eyebrow. Breathing became a little easier, but something still prevented the air.

Then the main thing that ordered me to deliver me here ordered the rest:

- Prepare everything for intubation!

Those instantly dragged some kind of pipe from red rubber, a terrible metal thing, similar to a sickle, and laid out all this on the nightstand.

Then I was forced to sit over the steam, and the nurse stood nearby and said:

- Come on, dear, try, breathe, otherwise we will put a pipe for you.

I tried, mowed an eye on the nightstand and really breathed with fear.

And then I, sitting, fell asleep and did not even react when they pricked me and changed the dropper. In this intense I lay for a couple of days, and then I was transported to the first floor to a special ward, boxing.

Illustration: Lyalya Farchatdinova for TD

In boxing, I was completely alone, it was impossible to visit there, only the programs were allowed. With me, everything turned out to be not glory to God, they also found pneumonia of the lungs to the heap, and therefore they were not going to write out. The longing was mortal, it only remained that it was wandering from corner to corner, sleep and read. The most annoying thing is that the “kidnappers”, because of which everything happened, the mother did not dare to convey that Uncle Vova would not worry.

And so the days passed, one similar to the other, until Fedya appeared.

How I was friends with Fedya

Then I found out that he was Fedya. And then the nanny brought some baby after dinner, flopped him onto the crib and went about her business, banging the door. He sat-sidel, blinking in confusion after her, and suddenly cried bitterly.

- Hey! Why are you roaring? I asked, a little bewildered. - What is your name?

He shuddered in surprise, turned to me and immediately stopped crying. My question remained unanswered - still, a very small guy, he probably was a year, or a little more.

I did not know how to talk with such peanuts, and just in case I decided to entertain it. He pouted his cheeks and stared his eyes. He wiped his tears with his hand and stared at me with great interest through the rods of the crib. Then I showed him the tongue. He smiled and reached for me. I got up, went to the crib and took it in my arms. He touched me with his palm and suddenly laughed. So we made friends with Fedya.

And my life has instantly changed. In the morning, Fedya woke up with the roosters, got up in his crib and guarded, just like a dog. He looked at me without looking up, and only noticed that I opened my eyes, he immediately smiled joyfully, demonstrating two lower teeth, impatiently shifting from foot to leg.

I immediately grabbed him in his arms and dragged him to wash. Then he brought it to the window, he loved to look out the window, and when he saw a crow or a dove, he poked a finger in the glass. We played tirelessly, I read a lot to him aloud, all in a row - from Jules Verne to Conan Doyle. I even organized a puppet theater: I pulled a sheet along the bed, and crumpled pillowcases served as dolls. In the repertoire of our theater there were fairy tales, tested by time: “Three Bears”, “Turnip”, “Teremok”. In addition, I desperately improvised, I had Carlson there, then Chipollino, then Santa Claus.

Honestly, Fedya's plot was not interested in the plot. Most of all he liked when I was hiding behind the sheet, and then suddenly seemed to appear. Then he laughed and slapped his hands on the crib.

Fedya also constantly entertained me. Once, for example, I saw a photo of a lemon on the cover of the magazine "Young Naturalist". The lemon was large, beautiful, yellow. Fedya tried to grab him. He stroked the picture, and scratched his nails, and looked under the magazine. Until he completely exhausted the cover - and then his hands scattered guiltyly. I laughed and told him:

- Eh, Fedya, Fedya, what a fool you are!

And he, seeing how I am having fun, immediately began to flood himself.

And in general, I couldn’t succeed, so as not to constantly squeeze it. Fedi had thick cheeks, huge brown eyes, and he himself was elastic, like a ball. And most importantly - Fedya was cheerful. You can’t even say that he was sick with something serious. He was also small, but patient. And when he had injections, only a minute or two cried and immediately calmed down. It was inconvenient for me to show pain immediately with him, and each time I smiled at a do, demonstrating what kind of nonsense these injections, although by that time I had just turned into a sieve.

I had neither younger brothers nor sisters, but I somehow quickly got to Fedya. As soon as one of the nannies showed how to feed it, we instantly began to control without it. In addition, the nannies were always in a hurry somewhere, throwing Fede ten spoons per second. And we had nowhere to hurry. It was a pleasure to feed Fedya. He was distinguished by an excellent appetite, obediently opened his mouth and smacked funnyly. After eating, I washed his physiognomy, and at that moment he protruded his tongue, licked my wet palm - and I was tickled. And at night, when Fedya was asleep, I got up several times, approached him, straightened the pillow and covered with a blanket. I even learned to swaddle him. The nannies rarely came to us, so the first time Fedya was almost always wet. I guarded the nannies at the door to the box when they rushed along the corridor, like a courier train. The nannies were very unhappy, and every time some of them grumbled angrily:

- A healthy forehead! I would have learned it myself for a long time!

Surely in my twelve I seemed to them lazy Buga, a simulator.

And once I said:

- Okay, teach!

The nanny was a little embarrassed, but I repeated. Then she suddenly stopped rushing and, incredibly inspired, began to show me how to wash Fedya under the tap in our bathroom, how to dry, sprinkle and make a diaper from a diaper. Then she dragged a fair supply of diapers and went with a light heart about her business.

I won’t lie, I couldn’t come out of the perfect nanny, but since then Fedya has always been dry and clean.

Your child and other people's children

Once, after doing this, his parents caught me. Visits in boxing were prohibited, and they ran around the corps for an hour, searched. Then they adapted some kind of box to look into our half-painted window. And since the walls in boxing even in the bathroom are glass, they saw how I Fedya, I wipe it, conjure with diapers. They were so impressed that on their next visit they asked to open a transom and threw me a chocolate. They began to come often, every time I reported them in detail how Fedya feels how he eats, how he plays, whether he has a temperature. He took him in his arms and brought him to the window. Fedin's mother immediately cried, and dad laughed. And although he was young, he had a little more tooths than that of Fedi himself. And Fedya hugged my hands by her neck, looked at dad with his mother, frantically had fun and twisted his head.

How I was left alone

And then Fedya was taken and discharged. We only had breakfast, as a nanny with some bit suddenly appeared here, instantly put on Fedya in home clothes, put on a fur coat on top and carried away. He was so taken to another building for research several times, but it turned out to be home. I didn’t even have time to tell him “goodbye”.

Illustration: Lyalya Farchatdinova for TD

All day, until the evening I didn’t read, I didn’t lie, I wandered aimlessly through the ward, looked out the window, once again all the tattered “young naturalist” turned around.

Fedya became my closest friend for these months. And they didn’t even let me say goodbye to him. And now, when I was left alone, I felt how I miss him. There is no one to feed, there is no one to entertain, there is no one to talk to, there is no one to pinch the cheeks. Apparently, from longing for the second day, my relapse began. Concerned doctors ran away, listened with their tubes, shook their heads. I was taken to an X -ray and put a dropper. Again they began to stab four times a day. And I suddenly do not understand why I demanded that they are not in the ass, but in the legs, but they were, without that, they were thin as matches, and I also lost weight.

Very soon, I barely managed to get to the bathroom, by the end of the week my legs completely stopped holding me, they were constantly reduced, and they hurt so that there was no effort. And when the time came the next evening injections, I gave up. Not only did I put my ass under the syringe, I still complained about this unbearable pain. I had no one to portray persistence before. The night nurse, very young, turned out to be a sincere girl, not without reason I liked her more here. I immediately painted me with iodine, promising the heating pad before going to bed. And indeed, after half an hour she brought. She extinguished the upper light, turned on the nightlight, sat down on a free bed and began to linch some papers, laying them in front of her.

I lay, looked at her, covering her eyes, she sat and wrote something, the light of the lamp fell on her face, on the white cap, it was good and comfortable, the heating was pleasant warm, the pain retreated. I really wanted her to sit like this longer. It was strange quietly, even so ordinary here children's crying was not heard from the corridor.

Who was a unit

I almost fell asleep when the door opened - and another nurse silently entered. Also young, well, maybe a little older than that. They always worked in one shift.

- Here you are! She said in a whisper, - otherwise I searched you. Come on, everything seems to be calm, I already brewed tea.

They thought I was sleeping, but I looked at them through the eyelashes.

“Yes, my summary does not converge,” the girlfriend said with annoyance. - I broke my whole head.

“Come on, let's see,” she went closer, she bent over the papers, “what's you have for a unit.”

And after half a minute, pleased with herself, she said:

- Look! Forty -five were, six entered, three were discharged, two were transferred, one died. Forty -five and remained.

Here.

The first one hit herself on the forehead with her palm:

- Exactly, he died alone!

“Well, all, let's go to drink,” said the second.

And they both went out, trying not to make noise, only the glass in the door was slightly trembling. Blood caught in my temples, and immediately fell ill in a solar plexus. Died??? After all, here, except me, almost all the kids. After all, the kids cannot die in the hospital! They are being treated here, doctors, nurses. How did they allow this to happen? And after all, this baby has a mother and dad. Those who loved him more than anyone else in the world told fairy tales, read books, about the turnip, about Carlson. And when he fell ill, they probably did not find a place for themselves, ran around the corps, looked out the windows. How will they live now?

“The resource is not infinite”

А эти двое сейчас говорили о смерти ребенка так буднично, так равнодушно. Они ведь добрые были всегда, хорошие. Что с ними вдруг произошло, если они могут сейчас чай пить? Да они переживать должны, плакать! А их лишь цифры в сводках занимают. Сидят, складывают, вычитают! Хотя они здесь работают, значит, уже привыкли. Но как можно привыкнуть к такому?

Ужас охватил меня, и стало трудно дышать. Я никогда раньше не задумывался о смерти. А она оказалась совсем близко. И это не кино, не книжка. Этот малыш умер где-то рядом, может, в соседней палате. Пока я непонятно чем занимался и ныл из-за какой-то ерундовой боли от уколов, тут рядом со мной умер ребенок. И если бы умер я, они бы так же спокойно пошли пить чай и мир бы не перевернулся. Но что если бы Федя мой? Для них и Федя тоже был бы лишь цифрой в сводке? Вот этот смешной маленький мальчик, к которому я так привязался? Как они там сказали? Единичка!!!

Я завыл, кусая подушку, чтобы не было слышно. Но они услышали. Прибежали, распахнули дверь, включили яркий свет.

— Ну ты чего? Неужели так ноги болят?

Вот оно, спасительное. Не говорить же им.

- Yes. Болят.

— Ну подожди, сейчас мы тебе еще грелку принесем!

— Не надо, — проговорил я, смотря в стену перед собой. — Не надо больше грелку приносить. Everything has already passed.

Меня выписали перед самым Новым годом. В школу я пошел лишь в середине февраля. «Похитители бриллиантов» показались мне совсем детской книжкой. Я много занимался дома и даже умудрился не отстать ни по одному из предметов. Только с математикой у меня было не очень. Математику я так и не полюбил.

Moscow. June. 2019.