Valentina

“Are you getting ready for work Valentina?”
“Sure am Liga.”
“Do you like work?”
“It’s tough at times, but yes, I like it.”
“Huh. I’m not sure I like school.” Valentina laughed, her stark blonde hair listing softly as she shook her head. She sat in front of her old oak mirror, brushing her hair. Liga apparently didn’t think it was that funny.
“I’m serious. The boys pick on me and I’m no good at math,” She said with a pout.
“Oh Liga, you can’t let them pick on you. And I’m sure you’re plenty good at math, you just need to work hard.” Valentina finished brushing her hair, then quickly and expertly tied it up in a tight bun. She stood up quickly with a determined grace and grabbed her white lab coat. Pulling it around her, she slipped it on over her shoulders and began buttoning it up.
“Why is it always white, why not a pretty color like blue or purple?” Liga asked, now playing with the brush on the small desk.
“I think white is pretty. Like snow or a baby’s skin.” She walked over to her door, and hanging on the back was a large brown ¾ length parka with fur lining the hood. She pulled it around her again and looked over at Liga, whose attention span robbed her interest of the brush and made her drift to smelling the different perfumes that stood there in their glass bottles.
“I like purple. When I grow up I want a purple coat,” the little girl said, now peering over the largest bottle, trying to get a gentle whiff of its contents.
“I know you do. Now quick run downstairs and see to papa. He’s got breakfast ready for you.”
“Awww, all right,” Liga folded her arms and stomped off, pouting again, before she rushed back and gave her big sister a swift kiss on the cheek.
“Have fun at work.”
“And you have fun at school.”
“Not likely…”

“Miss Valentina? Valentina, may I talk to you about something?” She looked up from her notes, a project she was working on for the lab. MIR Labs was known as Moscow’s authority on chemical engineering and was built in connection with the Russian Science Academy. It was a bit of a commute from Solntsevo to Moscow, but it was where she was raised all her life. She took the job with hope that soon she’d be able to move her family out of their small apartment into a safer town on the other side of Moscow. But who could really escape the gangs nowadays? Her boss was kind enough to give her a chance, a large scientist and businessman by the name of Alexander Fedorov. He always wore a blue collared shirt with red suspenders, which had the effect of keeping his enormous gut from spilling over his black pressed slacks. Today he was wearing his lab coat as well, as he was increasingly these days. The economy couldn’t allow for too many to be hired, as meager as their wages were. So with budget cuts and layoffs, work was increasingly more difficult and stressful, making even Alexander don his coat and finish projects. It wasn’t uncommon for him to call Valentina in his office frequently. Alexander knew her father very well and Valentina grew up with his daughter before she moved to England to study business and finance. She pulled off her lab goggles, and set them carefully on her desk. As she walked in, he turned in his chair and motioned her to sit down. She crossed her long legs in the upholstered yet uncomfortable chair and took notice of the deep circles under her old friend’s eyes. He had not gotten much sleep lately and was showing many signs of stress. She felt a deep feeling of worry wallow in the pit of her stomach, not only for her friend, but she was playing out the worst case scenario in her head.
“Valentina, I need to tell you something. You have been one of the best scientists I have ever worked with. When I ask you to do your task, you do above and beyond. When I ask you to do above and beyond, you somehow manage to still exceed my expectations.”
“I’m not sure…thank you.” She was unsure as to what he meant by this, but she expected the worse and could already feel the crushing sorrow beginning to swell.
“How’s your American boy, Daniel? How’s he doing?” Alexander asked.
“He’s doing fine, Mr. Fedorov.”
“Listen, I have had to make a decision I don’t like. I’m going to give the Ivanov boy your project.”
“Dimitri? But he’s barely a year out of the academy!” cried Valentina, louder than she even herself expected.
“I know, but you know who he is. The school and subsequently the government fund this lab. You know I have to keep the president’s son, and yet they keep cutting my payroll. I can’t support all of my technicians. The one person I pay the most is you, and for good reason, but I can’t anymore.”
“Well then cut my pay, we can manage. We always have.”
“It’s not that straightforward. The directors of science at the academy say we’re paying you too much, but for the work you do, it would be criminal to pay you less. So they asked me to work on transferring you to another lab. Perhaps Novosibirsk.”
“Novo..! Are you serious?! I can’t move all the way to Siberia.” Valentina nearly jumped out of her seat, mouth open in livid surprise, fighting her emotions getting the best of her.
“Well that’s why I ask, how’s that Daniel doing.” It had finally hit her. Like the surf rising against the beach before it dashes itself against the cold hard sand. Then as her emotions crested, she wept. How could this happen? She had worked hard all her life, she had done her very best at all she could to be the most successful in her career. The political fancies of a corrupt leader had robbed her of her livelihood and the hopeful future of her family. What had she done? What could she do? In rapid fire all these things ran through her mind, making the swirling mass of her sorrow spin all the faster. When she could gather her composure and becoming aware of the torment she was causing her friend at his decision, she choked a question between sobs.
“What, must I do then? The Americans won’t accept my degrees.”
“Well…”

“Valentina, pass that bottle there will you?”
“Da, I mean yes.” She nimbly passed the large bottle over to her co-worker, while she was occupied with her work. It had been two years since she moved to the United States, and she had been married to Daniel for that time, living on the campus of the private school he worked at. The winters were much like they were back home, but the summers were nothing like she experienced, and she still was unaccustomed to it. She moved her fingers quickly, her instruments flying expertly in her hands as she worked on her project. She had become swift, and learned the art very quickly, especially for someone so young in the craft. She was making significantly more than she was at the Labs, but she couldn’t help herself when she wanted to mix the strange bottled substances and see their reactions, or figure out the basic elements of the compounds she commonly used. The fact was, she was miserable. She hated every minute of her job, but she couldn't go back to Solnstevo. Justifying her torment, she kept back a sob as she returned her focus on her current project.
“Be sure you cut it straight in the back there, last idiot that did it she cut it all crooked and I looked like a fool for weeks,” said the man in the chair. He hadn’t torn his gaze from the T.V. screen in front of him replaying highlights from the football game this weekend that he missed. He had complained about that too. She quickly finished her work, tried to appreciate it like it was art, then brushed him off and removed the small tarp that covered him. He sighed and hastily stood up with a determinedly proud look on his face. It made Valentina laugh a bit to herself as she saw his face and could see the thousands of little hairs that had been left behind from her work. She took him to the register and processed his pay. When he asked for change back, she couldn’t help but say, “No…” and then caught herself.“No what? No tip? No. It feels crooked in back and you didn’t talk the entire time. Like talking to a brick wall. You want a tip? Get a real job you idiot.” Laughing he walked out the door and stuffed his fat wallet back into his back pocket. She stifled a tear and finished writing down the transaction. Sadly she turned around the corner and returned to her station, sweeping everything up and putting things away.

To be continued...