Berlin blood

Early summer 1939. Stuttgart The station is illuminated by the bright sun from glass showcases through which warm light seeps. Hilda runs to her friend, who is about to leave town. She is unlikely to see it again, and is very worried that she cannot find the right carriage. She is wearing a jacket that she bought today, a white and brown skirt. The hair is short, but not too short. Large eyes the color of viscous molasses are looking for a friend, she lost work precisely because of her. It was noisy and crowded, Hilda did not have time to realize at what moment, having unsuccessfully stepped on an uneven surface near the wall, she twisted her ankle. — Oh, damn, how can that be! — She looked annoyed at the broken heel. — They are almost new! And where should I look for others now? Damn this Ilsa with moving. Why was she going somewhere at all? — Hilda was beside herself with indignation and accidentally grabbed someone’s hand. — Fraulein, what are you doing? — a voice from somewhere behind made her understand that these were not some handrails or metal railings, but a living person. Hilda looked at him, at his hand, and again at the guy, who looked the same way and immediately let her go. “Sorry, I didn’t do it on purpose,” Hilda was about to break off the conversation, but the guy smiled friendly and asked: — Are you having problems, Fraulein? “Tilike noticed how she was holding her leg up and extended his hand to her. “I broke my heel, as you can see.” The girl turned out to be quite pretty, and he especially remembered her bright eyes: large, brown. Whiskey colors? No, more like chocolate. He looked at them for a long time, becoming more and more enchanted with each passing second. Then I came to my senses: “Let me help,” he grabbed her by the arms and put her on one of the small destroyed stone structures that once should have been benches. He lifted her foot and removed the shoe with the heel that had fallen off, then looked up at the girl. She watched with curiosity and thought, how will he help her, what will he do? He looked at the shoes, looked back at the exit from the station, then at her. “Wait a minute,” he said and walked away to the station map. How the map could help him, Hilda didn’t understand; she couldn’t make out anything about it at all. Meanwhile the man returned. “My name is Hilda,” she was discouraged by the man’s behavior, because he didn’t even bother to ask her name. — Tilike. There is a shoe store nearby. If you tell me your size, I’ll buy you a pair and won’t leave you sitting here until the evening. — What will happen if I refuse? — You will have to walk barefoot down the street, and this, you know, is not very pleasant. — But I’m uncomfortable. Let me give you money to buy? — Stop it, I didn’t have enough to buy the girl shoes at her own expense. “Only if you insist,” she breathed. Hilda did not want to accept an expensive gift from a stranger. Moreover, she did not like Tilika with his rude manner of speaking, and brown-eyed people were not her type. Wants to buy it? Well, let it be. He can’t buy her love anyway. “Of course I insist,” the man left. The man disappeared at the exit of the station, and Hilda continued to sit and wonder if he would really find the right shoes for her. The whole situation made her dependent, did not allow her to control what was happening, which made the girl feel uncomfortable. Thielike ran through the streets. His memory cannot fail him; there must be a small shoe store here, very close by. Leaving a girl without shoes would be the height of bad manners. He didn’t have any manners anyway. But so… “And here he is,” Tielike walked into the store and, looking around, saw a pair of lovely shoes. Of course, they were not like the ones Hilda had. However, they will also fit. It was past noon when the man returned to her. Hilda was just about to leave, albeit barefoot. He showed up at the last minute. “I’ve already decided that you left without waiting for me,” he took the shoes out of the box and placed them in front of her. “I was going to leave, but I decided not to get my beautiful feet dirty,” looking at the shoes that Tilike brought her, she noted that he had good taste. Dark burgundy, with a small strap, and a medium heel. — And where were you in such a hurry that you broke your heel? — the question was on his tongue from the very beginning, but he did not dare to ask it. — To a friend. I wanted to say goodbye, but apparently it wasn’t fate, the train left. Where were you in a hurry? — Hilda got down and, straightening her skirt, looked into the man’s eyes. — Frankly, I also went to see a friend, however, just like you, I missed the opportunity to say goodbye to him. — Forgive me: I brought problems. You also had to buy me shoes… — Little things. Besides, he was nothing more than an acquaintance to me. I’ve already exaggerated this. — Then bye! — Hilda extended her hand to him in the hope of ending the unnecessary awkward conversation as soon as possible. — Yes goodbye. But I think we’ll see each other again,” Tielike followed her with his gaze to the very doors of the station. *** Hilda is rushing to work. She’s already late and now she’ll have to work extra hours at night, which she doesn’t like. Hilda works as a waitress in a restaurant that is no different from most in the city. And Hilda herself is an unremarkable girl. She finished school, goes to work and dreams of moving to Berlin. She got a job at the restaurant through an acquaintance and that’s enough for now. The girl rents a small room on the outskirts of the city and in the morning she has to travel an hour to get to work, but this is not the main problem. Money is all she needs. Hilda dreams of living in luxury, like those rich people passing by. She would like to have time to get married successfully, but there are still big problems with this. They have to work, in the hope that someday a rich single man will come to them, fall in love with her and take her with him to a luxurious, chic and rich life. Entering work, she immediately noticed another friend of hers, a girl with whom she dreams of wealth together. Louise Hayti is taller and slightly older than her, with long hair and blonde with bright blue eyes, full lips and wide hips. As Louise herself says: “I am the dream of every man and the standard of an ideal woman.” However, this is where her words end. In addition to work, she is also involved in prostitution, saying that she does not get any pleasure and does it only for money. — Louise, hello. So, did you have a rough night again today? — Hilda hugged her. — Oh, damn, don’t talk. When will I be able to save enough money to leave here forever? “I don’t understand why you’re not satisfied with our city.” “He’s big enough to hide,” Hilda teases her friend for fun. “But this is not the capital, and there’s not much to do here.” “I don’t know, I’m happy with life,” Hilda says outwardly carefree. — Yes? Don’t you keep dreaming about a wonderful rich man who will pull you out of poverty? “That’s right, I don’t want to leave myself—they have to take me away.” This… These are different things. “Lie to yourself,” Hilda pinched her side, and she squeaked. But, noticing the owner, both immediately fell silent and Hilda came out to the visitors. — Good evening, what will you order? “Hello, please, please…” the voice turned out to be too familiar. — It is you?! — in front of her was the same guy who ran into her at the station today. “Yes, it’s me,” Hilda did not react. She didn’t think much of it. — Okay, then take my order. And tell me, are you busy today? “I’m working until twelve o’clock, I don’t think you’ll wait for me.” — It’s up to me to decide. I’ll wait for you, besides, it’s a city at night… What could be more beautiful? The most wonderful things happen at midnight. We can go to that bar across from the store in the next block. You won’t refuse me, right? “Hilda bit her lip, she wasn’t eager to go somewhere today, and besides, she didn’t want to intersect with him anymore, but her subconscious worked faster. — No, I won’t refuse, we’ve already met twice. This can’t be just a coincidence. “I agree,” the guy smiled at her words. “Okay, then bring me this,” he pointed to a simple dish. Louise didn’t even think that he would actually wait for her. Having served him the dish, she went to join the other visitors. At the end of the shift, Tielike was still sitting on the chair and watching her spin around the tables. There was an air of ease and ease in her actions. Her gait made her stand out from other waitresses, and perhaps from women in general. She moved easily among the tables, raising her head proudly. Most likely she doesn’t like the work, but this can only be understood by the slightly arrogant expression that appears as soon as the girl turns away from the visitors. She was one of the few women that Tilika had previously come across and whom he considered beautiful. He wasn’t sure that she was his happily ever after, but he was counting on it. — Is he really going to wait for you? “No idea,” Hilda took the drinks and went into the hall. She kept believing that he would leave, her patience would run out. But he turned out to be stronger than she could have imagined. Or does he really want to walk with her through the city at night? At the end of the shift, she gave up. I was so tired that I didn’t want to do anything but get home and go to bed. Louise, of course, left early, leaving everything to her. Hilda hates it when her friend does this. “So, your working day is over,” Tielike appeared behind. Hilda almost screamed and covered her mouth with her hand. — Crap! Were you taught that you shouldn’t sneak up on girls from behind? Or did you grow up on the streets? Hilda turned around and realized from Tilike’s eyes that she had hit the sky with her finger. Really? The girl felt awkward and continued wiping the table. “I grew up on the street… There’s nothing like that.” — How did you live? — Hilda looked at him in bewilderment. “I worked a lot, and somehow I survived,” he plopped down on a chair nearby. — I don’t envy you. —Where did you grow up? — At home, among toys and parents who didn’t care about me. Meanwhile, the girl, as if trying to avoid an unpleasant dialogue, kept moving away, walking with a rag over all surfaces. — Reason? — Tilike shouted to the end of the hall, where she was clearing the last table. — Don’t you want to know a lot? And anyway, why do you need this? “Well…” he scratched his head. — In order to know why you left if you were a good daughter. Is it just because your parents didn’t care? — This is personal and I don’t want to talk about it! Tilike, raising his open palms up, as if admitting defeat, fell silent, realizing that he had crossed the forbidden line. “Then can I take you home?” — he waited. He waited until she, standing under the lights of the establishment where only the two of them were, said “yes.” — Okay, but the first and last time! And you seemed to be planning to invite me to a bar? — Hilda hoped that after this the guy would just leave her alone. She had no intention of meeting him. She did not feel the slightest trepidation towards him, and he was clearly unable to provide the desired luxurious life. A guy from the street… She was looking for something completely different. She was looking for a man with a fat wallet, who, although he would not love her for her beautiful soul, would provide for her for her young body. Tilika may be good for her for training while she is young. “I’m afraid you’re not the right person for a bar,” Tielike remarked surprisingly gallantly and led her out into the street. They walked along the long night alleys of the city, illuminated only by dim lanterns. Hilda hardly looked at him, but did not walk too fast, so that the young man would not think that she was running away from him and that his presence was a burden to her. — Tell me, would you like to leave here? “Yes, I would like to,” Hilda was thinking about how to quickly get rid of unnecessary questions. “Then when we get married, I will take you to Berlin,” he said clearly. Hilda almost lost her step. He said exactly what she might have wanted to hear from someone else. — What? Are you crazy? Why did you decide that I would agree to be yours? — she was surprised by inertia. “I see the future,” Thielike laughed. — No, you are mistaken. The fact that I allowed you to walk me home now doesn’t mean anything,” Hilda quickened her pace and walked up to the door of the house. — And that’s what it means. I liked you, Hilda. Know that in the future you will become mine. True, I don’t know when. — Why? — You know, I’m going to volunteer for the army and become a tank driver. — If they take you. Who needs you there? And why go there? — Well, for example, in order to conquer you. — What do I have to do with this, it’s your choice… “I will return with money and title, and then you will definitely choose me,” Hilda snorted and went into the house. At home, naturally, no one was waiting for her: emptiness and the only lamp that illuminates the room. There is a bed and a nightstand, wallpaper, like everyone else, with a flower pattern, which irritates her to the point of horror, and also neighbors who are completely fed up with quarrels. Yes, Hilda wanted to see a beautiful and luxurious life where she would not have to work. However, until her prince appears, she has to endure hardships. She took a diary from her nightstand and wrote down: “Today I met a guy. I don’t even know what to write about him. He looks thin and has eyes like two porcelain saucers. He smiles a lot and made a bad joke about me becoming his wife. What an idiot! I will only marry a rich man who can provide for me. Although… one could give him a chance… No way! I can’t just throw myself into anyone’s arms out of loneliness. He’s strange. Although he’s kind of cute.” Hilda went to bed, thinking that she would never see him again. And if he does see it, he certainly won’t take another walk along the alley leading to the house. *** However, Hilda was so wrong. From that day on, she thought about him more and more often, and his image became fixed in her head. And she was angry about it. She chalked it up to loneliness, but she realized that she was blatantly lying to herself. A week later, Tilika began to appear in her dreams, but Hilda was angry not because of this, but because she did not see him anymore. And I wanted to see each other again, hear laughter and stupid jokes. And fate finally came down. God bless! He entered the cafe early in the morning, wearing a uniform, which is why Hilda didn’t recognize him — he had become prettier since their last meeting, and the uniform suited him very well. They locked eyes and he moved towards her. She didn’t even move. How, after all, she was looking forward to their meeting. “Hello,” Tilike, seeing that this time she was in the mood for conversation, moved closer to her. — Hello. I didn’t recognize you. Have you decided to go serve? — She was shocked by herself. What is she doing? Why does he talk to him like that? Where is the girl who told herself that she wouldn’t look at a guy who doesn’t have a car or an apartment. — Oh, you mean that. I’m going to become a tank driver. As I already said. Did you think I was joking? “You will leave the city…” she sighed sadly. — And not only from the city. Will you accompany me today? — Tilike looked. — Why me? Don’t you have anyone? “No,” Hilda was shocked. She thought that last time it was definitely a joke. But she agreed without showing it. They agreed to meet near the same ill-fated station where they met. Hilda walked and did not want to let him go. For the first time in her life, she wished that someone would stay for her sake and give her a reason to stay. It’s a pity that she didn’t find him herself during all this time. If she had known he was leaving, she would not have waited a whole week. “I hope it won’t be so bad,” she told herself. And indeed, they met at that very place. There were a lot of people at the station, everyone was crowding, because today the recruits were going to serve. The station building is an old building, with high arched windows separated by colonnades. Some of their windows are broken and darkened against the background of the glare of whole glass. Chilly. End of summer. Many are dressed in coats, mostly straight-cut, with large buttons and wide belts. Women wear warm coats, decorated with fur, and elegant hats, from under which tightly curled curls are wrapped. Some men stand out sharply from the background of secularly dressed people: they wear uniforms with a pointed turn-down collar and caps. There are many more of them than those dressed in civilian clothes. Thilike approached her and said quietly: — Hilda, I promise that I will come, and you and I will walk like all normal couples. “Do you think I’ll really miss you?” “Oh yes, you’ve already done this, and for a whole week,” with these words he kissed her. — Remember your words. — I have a good memory. He smiled as he walked away from her and boarded the train. I peered at her beautiful eyes and face for a long time to capture the image in my head. Thilike understood that the path ahead was long and difficult. He chose it himself, which means he must go through it.