Friendly solidarity
Of Vasily Podkova, cheerful,
smiling every joke or apt word a man, do not recognize. During the day he is
stupidly silent, avoiding communication with colleagues, at home becomes
unusually irritable, and at night for a long time looks at the ceiling, unable
to close his eyes. When he finally goes into a sleep, he starts moaning,
mutters something incomprehensible as delirium, loudly screams, waves his hands
and legs, as if trying to run away from someone.
Beloved wife Nyusya, left
the conjugal bed and for several months she has slept alone on the couch. But
every time Basil starts screaming in sleep and writhes in agony, she wakes up,
comes to her husband's bed. "He's running away from someone again,"
she says quietly. And two teardrops roll down her face. Returning to herself,
she lies down on the couch, turns her face to the wall and plunges into a heavy
anxious sleep.
“Vasily, you would you go
to the doctor," she said to him one the morning.
"That you all pester to
me with your doctors! I'm tired at work, that's the whole disease!” Said,
Vasily. And, having breakfast quickly, he goes to work. Nusya escorts Vasily
to the door, baptizes him, but so that he does not see. And comes back to the
room, with tears in his eyes. Yes, her female endurance can only be envied.
To the factory where Basil
works, it is necessary to get, into several modes of transport: to the bus, to
the tram, to the trolleybus. But he likes that. In human totality, he is
distracted from heavy, oppressive thoughts for a while. However, once on the
territory of the plant, he again returns to the world of his nightmares.
Passing through the central
entrance on the enterprise, where he worked after graduating from a vocational
school about ten years, Horseshoe each time faced a nose to nose with a unique
sculptural composition. This was a
monument which is mounted on five cast-iron, cast supports, which in turn rest
their ends on the rays of a cast-iron, five-pointed star, which serves as the
basis for the entire structure. This еhis composition was crowned by a bronze
bust of Vladimir Lenin mounted on the pole of the globe. Such a metaphorical
and allegorical monument to him cannot be found in all the vast USSR! This
monument in all its harsh beauty began to appear to Vasily at night. But not just
as a symbol of the immortality of the leader of the world proletariat appeared
for an ordinary member party, what would be understandable. No, it was not so!
Every time its coming accompanied by various ugliness, which is unusual for the
metal structure.
This monument in five of its
cast-iron lag followed, behind Vasiliy on the apartment so that the floorboards
under its weight bend and crack and the walls go walker about. And in several
steps from have run, the Vasily flies like the rolling sounds of heavenly
thunder: “Tovarishch Podkova, where is your off party ticket?!”
Hearing him, Vasily shudders to look back. And as to be in family shorts and T-shirt jumps out of the
stairwell, runs out of the house, running through the streets, and behind his back,
a heavy tread is heard the metal monster. But he can't break away from the
persecutor. And when this monstrous transformer, having overtaken Vasily,
begins fast sort through of the cast iron legs, intending to trample him,
Podkova shouts in horror and wakes up all wet from cold sweat...
These troubles began after
Basil a few months ago, having with his comrades drank too much, after which,
so securely hid their the party ticket, that cannot remember when? This is
despite the fact that every communist should wear his party ticket at a breast
pocket with the left side of his chest - near the heart. And to protect him is
better than the apple of his eye.
This red ticket with Lenin’s
profile on the front cover not only testifies to the fact that its owner belongs
to the vanguard of Soviet society - the CPSU. He also gives the right to
advance up the career ladder. And is the bearer of some secret, if you want, of
a party’s secret: on its internal pages, the amount of contributions to the
party cash desk is recorded monthly, which, after a mandatory check, is sealed
with the seal of the secretary of the party organization.
And if accidentally this
document put in hand getting of an interested person, say, the beloved wife of
Nusa, she will easily figure out what kind of salary her husband receives and
how much money he actually brings to the house. And if, God forbid, this
happens, will a family scandal. The difference is sometimes striking! And it’s
good if it will cost only, are of a family scandal. Offended in the good
feelings, a wife can complain to the party organization that her husband is
registered with, and after that troubles could fall on him off very big. Up to
a strict reprimand. Therefore, of course, many communists hid the party ticket
to hell. Systematically have done it and ship repairman Vasily Podkova. And
everything would be ok, if not for this annoying case.
Time passed, but the search
for a party ticket did not yield results. Vasily, a man in all respects
obligatory and disciplined very worried. As and evidenced by his nightmares
with the terrible transformer. Unknown how all this would end if it were not
for comradely solidarity.
When, after the next the exhausting night spent with the transformer, Vasily came to work, he was met
with the secretary of the party organization Viktor Lensky.
“Vasily Sergeevich! For half
a year now how you violate party discipline. Give me your party ticket, I must
check the number of your contributions to the party cash desk and “sanctify”
them with my seal, as required by the charter. To have, we won’t get into
trouble. We don’t need it!”
Vasily understood that
Lensky right, but once again dismissed his legitimate demand. “Come on,
Petrovich, will postpone this matter until better times,” he told the
secretary, and, having collected the instrument, he left for the ship, which to
was in the repair.
Lensky, also a kind man, but
also obligatory in all respects - and these impudent and constant delays of the
colleague are already tired of the order. Suspecting something was amiss, he
assembled the bureau of the guild party organization, inviting Vasily Podkova to
him. Then everything got out! “And what has the memory completely disappeared?”
He asked sympathetically Vasily.
“Absolutely,” he admitted. “I
rummaged through the entire apartment, trotted through all the books in his a rather poor library, carefully examined the “Short Course in the History of the
CPSU”, between the pages of which I usually hid it — there was no party ticket!
“Have you tried to get drunk
again to the same extent?” Asked the faithful Leninist Ivan Sidorovich in turn.
“Sometimes it enlightens the brain”.
“I tried it,” Vasily
honestly admitted. “Did not help…”
The members of the workshop
party bureau, old friends of Vasily, were very saddened. And they thought. It
was a pity to lose such a reliable companion, proven by years of work and drink.
And for the loss of a party ticket a strict reprimand will not cost, they can
expel from the party...
“Well, let's drown him,”
said Ivan Sidorovich, the wisest and resourceful in their party cell, for which
he received the nickname Socrates.
“Whom shall be drowned,
Vasya?” Lensky asked in a whisper, experiencing genuine horror at such an
offer.
“Yes, not Vasya, but his
party card!” Socrates grimaced displeased, surprised at the lack of
understanding of his comrades.
“How do you drown him if he’s
not there at all?” Replied philosophically another member of the party bureau,
Gennady Khorev, dozing in a corner, and before that had not uttered a single
word.
After that, all the members
of the party bureau and those invited were silent and looked at Ivan
Sidorovich, waiting for explanations from him. Socrates, wrinkling his mighty the forehead of the thinker demanded that everyone swear that "nobody and
never."
“Honest party! Nobody ever!”
All members of the party bureau vowed. After listening to the oath, he set out
to his comrades, the plan for further actions...
The next day, when, after
the shift was completed, the crew of ship repairmen was returning along the
pontoon passage from the floating dock in the workshop, Vasily Podkova
unexpectedly slipped on the ice crust and, not having time to grab the safety
fence, fell into cold water. Wadded pants and a sweatshirt, which kept Vasily
afloat for some time, got wet and began to pull him to the bottom. And he just
waved his hands, opening his mouth, unable
to pronounce anything.
“Man overboard!“Shouted
someone of the workers.
Ivan Sidorovich, in one
motion, removed the lifebuoy from the fence and aptly threw it to the drowning
man. Vasily, floundering in cold water like a one-year-old puppy, grabbed a circle
with both hands and, awkwardly, swelling, swam to the concrete pier. There,
comrades, on taking uh him up from two
sides and dragged him to land. As soon as his trembling feet stepped on solid
ground, Vasily, trembling from the cold began frantically fumbling his hands in
the pockets of his padded jacket, repeating in a hoarse tragic voice: “Ticket!
Where is my ticket!?”
Ivan Sidorovich and other
participants in yesterday’s party bureau meeting jumped to him.
“Vasya, what's wrong with
you? What else a ticket?” Asked him the secretary of the party organization
Lensky. Vasily, continuing to frantically fumble with his hands over his chest,
repeated as if in prostration: “Here, on the left side, in my breast pocket, I
had a leather purse, and in it was my party ticket... God, what will happen to
me now?”
Several workers take-up
Vasily, who was barely standing on his feet and crying, by the arms and led at
the workshop. In the locker room, they helped him free himself from a wet,
heavy robe, and took his comrade to a hot shower.
Other taking shovels and
hooks kept raking the littered surface of the water near the pontoon, in the very place where their friend had just barely didn't drown, trying to catch the
wallet, in which was the party ticket. But and they, being not found anything,
across of half-hour dispersed.
Coming back to home, Ivan
Sidorovich, nicknamed Socrates, who came up with, organized and carried out
this performance, smiled rather: “Well, the actor, Vaska, played great! He can
would be acting in a movie, instead
of work webbing at the factory..."
What happened to a member of
the Communist Party, foreman Vasily Podkova received had a great response. This
case was heard at meetings of the party committee of the plant, the Black Sea
Shipping Company and the regional committee of the party, he was investigated
by a specially created commission. But nothing reprehensible was found in the
actions of the drummer of Communist labor, an exemplary family man Vasily
Podkova. On the day the incident occurred, he was sober and adequate. This was
confirmed by his many colleagues and comrades in the party. However, for
negligence, the loss of a party ticket, Podkova was reprimanded with the entry
in the registration card. It couldn’t be otherwise!
Six months later, the
secretary party organization of the workshops Lensky, without any fuss, in a narrow circle of comrades, handed Vasily a brand new party ticket with Lenin's
profile on the front cover.
When everyone involved in
this case gathered to traditionally drunk his successful completion, Ivan
Sidorovich went up to his younger colleague and patted him on the shoulder in a
friendly manner.
“Well, I hope, Vasya, now
you understand what friendly solidarity is?” Said triumphantly Socrates, who
loved spectacular scenes.
Vasily was smiling guiltily,
showing tacitly sincere gratitude to his comrades for all they had done for
him. The main thing, he thought, now he will not be disturbed by this terrible
transformer. Finally, his beloved wife Nyusya will return to the marital bed,
never knowing the cause of his "illness".
August evening was quiet and
peaceful. Vasily Podkova has been
blessedly smiled walked slowly in the sycamore alley, purring something under
his nose. From the excess of feelings, he wanted to make happy, if not the
whole world, at least his beloved wife Nyusнф. And from the breadth of the
feelings gushing over him, he bought a huge bouquet of bright orange
chrysanthemums. Pleased with myself, he entered the house, runs up on the fifth
floor and kissed wife, which opened the door, on the cheek with
uncharacteristic his elegance. And handed her a bouquet of blazing fire...
Nusya, was surprised by
such a change in her husband’s mood, gave served him a hot dinner. And, very
happy, quietly retired to her room. Vasily, with appetite gobbling up roast
beef form both cheeks, drew attention to some strange object lying on his
kitchen table to his left. It was reminding him of something very familiar. His
heart started beating fast, fast, like a thief caught in a crime scene. Ceasing
to chew, he looked around, and, not seeing his wife next to him, timidly held
out his hand. Sensations did not deceive him: it was a party ticket which he
had lost!
“Nusya! Nusya!” Shouting he,
choking, and not yet knowing what he would tell the wife and what he would
answer him.
“Where did you find him?”
Asked he wife in a voice, in which united in one and fear of exposure, and
shame, and a plea for mercy. And he showed Nusya the ticket. “Where-where? I
cleaned the apartment, pushed the bedside table to clean, have a look, and
there he lies covered in dust," answered she. And looked at her husband
with her blue innocent eyes. And Vasily clearly realized that his free life
ended. Now, he will have to report to the wife for every ruble spent. At the
same time, he was incredibly grateful to the wife that she did not a scandal and
did not ask about anything else. That night, for the first time in several long
months, Vasily and Nyusya shared the conjugal bed.
After stormy lovemaking, they
lay in bed, looking at each other in the eye, not talking about anything. From
today, they have been connected by one terrible secret. And this secret was more
than their long-term love...
