Awakenings: The Greek, The Russian and Me

Chapter 26

We arrive at Erik's house in the early evening, and he looks surprised when he opens the door. "Look who I found!" Olga says as she kisses him on the cheek and steps into the apartment, holding her book bag and several shopping bags.

His eyes are on me, and he smiles and says, "Come in." I walk into the apartment and give him a kiss on the lips as he wraps his arms around my waist. When we part I notice that Ivan and another guy are sitting on the fu- ton, his mom is in the kitchen, and Olga is inspecting the food, sampling random items. I feel my face go hot as I suddenly realize everyone was watching us. He takes me by the hand and walks me over to the kitchen. "You remember my mom," he says with a smile.

"Yes, of course. Hi. How are you?" I reply awkwardly.

She walks over to me and looks into my eyes. It feels strange, as they are the color of her son's eyes except that hers have fine lines around them. She smiles slowly and then extends her arms and gives me a hug. "Try some Russian food. It's all homemade and very good for young people studying."

I smile back and realize that I'm still grasping his hand as I say, "I will, thank you."

She turns and says something to Olga in Russian, and I can see Ivan hold back a laugh as Olga replies. "Well, I have to go. Be good and study hard for the exams," she tells everyone. She heads toward Erik and gives him a big hug as she says something to him in Russian; then she grabs her purse and car keys and heads to the door. Erik is just grinning as he closes the door, and Ivan starts laughing uncontrollably. I look at them, seeking an ex- planation, and Olga says, "She told me to make sure I stayed the night to protect your reputation, and she told Erik that you are very beautiful and she approves of him dating you."

I feel my face get warm again as Erik hugs me from behind and gives me a kiss on the neck. Ivan coughs loudly. "Hey, none of that. We have good Russian food and studying to focus on," he says as he heaps food on his plate.

Then the other guy in the room walks up to me and says, "Hi, I'm Alex. I'm kind of a distant cousin of sorts. Before you ask, no, I don't go to York College; I go to Queens College, but it's become tradition that we all study together." I smile at him, feeling that I instantly like him.

We all sit, grabbing our plates of food, and eat as we talk about upcoming plans and movie releases. I feel part of this group as if I have known them for a very long time. When we finish eating, we break up into different areas and work quietly, reviewing notes, old exams, and items highlighted in the textbook. A good almost three hours pass, and Erik whispers, "I'm glad you are here."

"Me too," I reply.

Olga declares, "I can't look at another page; I've had enough." Everyone agrees to call it a night.

"So what are the sleeping arrangements? I suggest the ladies get the bedroom, and the guys get the living room and guard the food," Erik says with a smile.

"Sounds like a plan," I say. Olga and I head to the bedroom and change into our pj's.

A few minutes later, the guys come in and close the door, and I look at them in surprise. "This is Ivan's re- quest," Erik says as he sits on the piano bench and be- gins to play a song. Minutes later Ivan begins to sing and is later joined by Alex and Olga. They are singing in Russian, and I can't understand a word of it, but I'm drawn in by their enthusiasm. They all laugh at the end of the song and then continue to sing some other ones as Olga comes to sit on the floor next to me. "We used to spend a lot of time together when we were kids, and Erik always loved to play the piano. We would all sing Russian songs and just be silly," she says with a smile. I smile back at her as I stifle a yawn.