Read Online Vita Nostra by Marina Dyachenko, Sergey Dyachenko - Free Book Online Page A

called the Institute of Special Technologies. It’s in the town of… Torpa.”
    Mom turned to face her. Two hair pins stuck out of her mouth, like thin vampire fangs.
    “I’ve already been accepted,” Sasha repeated. “Since things did not work out with the University. I’ll stay in Torpa for a year. And then maybe I’ll transfer.”
    She came up with the transfer just then, staring into Mom’s darkening, wide open eyes.
    “What town?” Mom spat out the pins.
    “Torpa.”
    “Where is it?”
    “It’s not far,” Sasha lied. “The room and board are free. And I’ll have a stipend.”
    “The Institute of what?”
    “Special Technologies.”
    “What technologies? You wanted to be a philologist!”
    “Specialized… Mom, it’s a normal decent college. It’s not in the capital, fine, it is in the provinces, but…”
    Sasha faltered. Mom stared at her like an ant would stare at a burning anthill.
    “Sasha, tell me you’re joking.”
    Sasha took out the yellow printed letter, sometime ago warped and wrinkled by rain and tears, but since then smoothed out with a warm iron. Mom glanced over it and looked at Sasha.
    “Listen, it’s dated last June. Where did you get it?”
    “It was mailed to me.”
    “When?”
    Sasha held her breath. Lying to her mother’s face was difficult, not something she was used to.
    “A couple of days ago.”
    “Sasha, you’re lying.”
    ‘Mom, it’s a real document! I was accepted! To the Institute of Special Technologies! And I will be a student there!” Sasha’s voice trembled. “I need this, do you understand?”
    “I understand.” Mom leaned onto the table. ‘I understand. You’re jealous. You—a grown woman—behaving like… like a nasty, spoiled child. Since I… You can’t forgive me, can you? You can’t forgive me and you are being demonstrative about it.”
    “No!” Sasha choked on her tears. “This has nothing to do with him! It’s just that, well… It just happened that I was accepted. I am going to Torpa, and…”
    “You are not going anywhere,” Mom’s voice was packed with February ice. “You will be a normal student, under normal conditions, at a normal college. I’m very sorry that I raised such a selfish creature, but I will not allow any more extreme behavior. Thank you for a pleasant chat.”
    And she turned back to face the mirror.
    ***
    After two days of a cold, tense communication, Mom came home unusually cheerful, pink-cheeked and happy. It turned out that the university had opened a part-time evening option, and Sasha could be accepted there.
    “And you can work in our office,” Mom chattered, setting the table, doling out the stew. “I’ve already made the arrangements. You can work during the day, then go to your evening classes. And then you can transfer to the regular department. I’m sure you can. Your sophomore year, or maybe junior.”
    Sasha was silent.
    “Tomorrow morning you need to go talk to the admissions office. Room 32. Are you listening?”
    “I’m going to Torpa,” Sasha’s voice was barely audible. Dead silence hung over the dinner table.
    “Sasha,” Valentin said with reproach. “Why are you doing this?”
    Escaping, Sasha got up. She left her food untouched, went to her room, crawled under the blanket and pretended to be asleep. Mom and Valentin spoke loudly, and snippets of their conversation carried over to Sasha through the walls and blankets.
    “Calm down,” Valentin was saying. “Just calm down. Independence…”
    “She’s underage!”
    “They get older… They want… It’s not the end of the earth…”
    The voices grew softer, the intensity subsided. Sasha closed her eyes. Everything was coming together beautifully. Mom and Valentin would enjoy being alone in the apartment. Right now they are going to talk it over, and then they will agree to let Sasha go to the unknown Torpa, where who knows what was expecting her…
    She felt torn in half. If Mom agrees easily, Sasha will be