This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are product of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual events or locales, or persons, living or dead is entirely coincidental.

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A WINTER NIGHT IN ROMANIA

That night, was the coldest night which Andrei and his concubine had gone through.The thermostat was showing -13 with possibility of getting even more colder the next day. They both were curled up on their bed, not wanting to move an inch. The curtains were whipping back and forth because Andrei forgot to close the window. As much as he hated Romania's winter, he couldn't leave.He needed to secure a permanent job. The year of vagabonding had ended. He could no longer went on a crazy adventure, far east with all quirky food and cheap rent. Meanwhile, his concubine had to attend weekly therapy session, which cost them quarter of their savings. It was better,than she had to drink up the depression away with countless whiskey and vodka in the pantry.

' Andrei, can you please move and close the window?' the girl asked. She rolled up facing Andrei, demanding him to close the window.

' Tomorrow, we should probably go to the bar" He walked up closing the window and wore his shirt

' Where are you going?, It's late, already'

' Anywhere but this room' He shut the door while his concubine pulled the blanket and covered herself fully.

Andrei, went to the kitchen grabbing the last bottle of whiskey from the pantry. He heated the leftover pizza inside the microwave and went for smoke in balcony. As he blew out another puff, he reminisced the old time, when he and his concubine had a conversation about a cat.

' I want obedient cute little cat, the kind that doesn't poo anywhere'

'Nu, Anne, we can't have a cat, we don't have a permanent place and our income wouldn't be enough'

' But, I want a cat ' , ' I still want a cat no matter what' she insisted

' curvă încăpățânată ' he murmured while walking away from his concubine.She was dumbfounded looking at his expression. And just when she was about to utter a word,Andrei left the dining table.

His thought were distracted by the sound of microwave timer. He rushed to the kitchen and pour the whiskey on the glass. Andrei slowly chewed the pizza and flipping his phone, encrypting his memory containing conversation with Anne,when it was still joyful and promising. He never thought, he would be madly in love. They both met during spring in far east, She was adventurous petite girl and he was a quiet boy. It was just in a rooftop cafe overlooking the ocean, where Anne was sitting, reading her book and chewing her caesar salad on a drizzly afternoon.

' Can I take a seat here?'he asked

'Sure' Their eyes were locked in a shared understanding

She was attracted with kush pendant on Andrei wrist and his sleepy huge blue eyes. As he took of his jacket jeans, She gave him, her brightest smile and began a conversation. Out of the blue, they were already celebrating their first anniversary together. Anne, who had no fixed residence, decided to relocate to Romania, where Andrei was raised and make a living. As time goes by, they both were seeing the world as unpleasant reality. All the teachings about positivity they learnt through so many gurus in far east, still couldn't retain their optimism seeing the world. It was all gone, seeing the life through paycheck and savings which won't last longer for another year.

It was 3 am. Anne woke up to a sound of broken glass bottle. She was startled and instantly getting out of her bed, running to the kitchen. ' what did you do?' she shook Andrei who was laying on the floor and were too drunk to stand up. She stood him up and brought him to the living room with all strength she had. Anne covered him with a thick blanket and went back to her bed.

She laid on the bed, staring sightlessly into the darkness. Her thoughts wander on a conversation at the bar just last week with Andrei.

' Aș dori două beri, vă rog ! '

' Nu, I'll have water, I can't drink beer anymore'

' It's a lovely night' Anne said, beginning a conversation

' I was just fired from the job, how could that be lovely?' he remarked a cynicism

' Our neighbor had a lovely kitty, I think that we soon will have one' She sip the water and looked at him.

' La naiba, curvă încăpățânată' he murmured while looking away

' You know Andrei, Just two years ago, If i had the chance to do whatever I want, I could do it. But I choose to be with you, and leaving all possibilities of who I could be. But I am content'

' You can't be that way, You need to wake up and find a job'

' I thought, we both were going to have it all, I thought you would love me, I thought happiness has no end'

' It has an end. Happiness, has an end, where's the logical girl I know?' said Andrei

' What about things you told me when we first me? was it all false? was it all just another baloney of yours?

' We can't have it all, It is just not our world anymore, you have to understand. Stop, just stop misinterpreting things I said or do. For whatever reason, I'll still love you, but we can't have it all'

' I am stranded here, in a foreign land. You're the only family I have. I want you to understand'

' Can't we maybe stop talking? ' he gave a cold gaze and sip his beer.

' I just want you to understand, where is this train headed to? what am I going to do? what are you going to do?. Everything I tried to do, seemed to contradict your beliefs. I always had no choice than to drop them else you'd frown the whole day or leaving me'

' You're really kidding me. Stop thinking that I am going to leave you. Just do whatever it takes, to get money. We need money, that's our current reality'

' But I can't work, I can't work with the thought of my only reason will be leaving me'

' Stop, just stop.Can you please please stop talking?' he walked away leaving the bar and Anne dumbfounded sitting alone.

Anne was looking at her purse and glanced the test pack wrapped in a pink ribbon. She was really excited in the morning and decided to tell Andrei, during their weekly date out at their favorite bar. The tram was passing by in front of her and it was difficult to walk, leaving the bar that time.

She moved on and gathered courage to hide the news. Even that night, Andrei still didn't aware of any third person in their life.It was just endless fight, coldness and boring routine, both of them had to endure. The love was hidden. Somewhere between the clouds, where nobody but them could see. Anne grab the drink from the table, and went to a blissful sleep.

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Special thanks to a Romanian friend, who helped me with showing a little glimpse of Romanian's culture.

Image courtesy : Here