"Mina, what did I tell you about putting that chessboard away?"
"Wait, why? I still want to play tonight!" She responds to Pyotr while jumping on the large green bean bag.
"But I'm tired, won't you have a little more mercy on your big brother?" He fell onto the bed.
Mina sighs stopped jumping and lay her head on the cold grey porcelain window stool. Overlooking the high monotone residence blocks, similar in every direction. Her eyes suddenly shine with joy, seeing small snowflakes fall, illuminated by the blending yellow streetlights way down.
"Hey hey, can we go out to make a snow Angel? Pretty please?"
"Come on, it's midnight Mina. You don't want Mrs. Klebe to scold you again for coming late to your Russian lesson. Do you?"
"Please...?" her eyes intensively stares into his.
"Ugh, alright. Wear your big coat and don't forget your scarf and gloves."
"Yay." She laughs, running to the coat hanger, not able to reach her coat.
Pyotr lays a helping hand, dressing Mina in the black long leather coat.
"Ok, like I taught you. Now the shoes, okay?"
His hands gesture the moves on how to tie the lace.
"Got it," she smug.
She grabs one end and the other trying to replicate what Pyotr showed her. First laying a X-Shape with the laces, grabbing one, leading it under the cross and pulling both ends tightly. Now the hardest part for Mina, she grabs the now tight lace and tries to lead it through the hole, effectively completing the lace for the shoe. Although she can visualize it in her thoughts, she fails miserably in the end.
"Ughh, I don't like these boots anyway!" She shouts while shoving them away.
Pyotr, standing beside her, laughs uncontrollably.
"Oh, dear god, you are such a brat."
Her smug smile turns into a deep frown, asking for help.
"Alright, last time. Next time you will tie them alone, okay?" He sighs and ties her boots tight.
"Okay." She thumbs up, giving Pyotr a big smile.
"Let's make some Angels!" He opens the door to the monotone brick hallway, with Mina rushing to the elevator, calling it up to the 13th floor. Impatiently, she jumps around, waiting for the elevator to arrive. Pyotr is walking slowly to the elevator and calming her down, notices the elevator not arriving.
"Again? These technicians can't even finish their job." He mumbles furiously at himself.
"Yes, fuck them!" She shouts, responding to Pyotr's frustration.
Pyotr looks down to Mina with a blank look, still jumping around as if nothing was said.
"Mina. Where did you learn that word?" He asks her calmly.
"Uhh, from Llorenc."
Oh man, why is this generation of kids so vulgar. How will I even make her stop saying that. This Llorenc kid is trouble enough and her turning into that, is a bad omen already.
Pyotr looking up to the ceiling, placing his hand against his forehead and thinking how to best teach Mina, that some words are not better said. He squats down, holding her down on the shoulders.
"Mina, if you stop saying that word, I'll buy you any book you want." he says to her with a serious look.
"Okay dokey."
"Good, now I'm back to the real problem. This elevator is not working."
Oh no, not the thousand steps of doom. I hate the stairs.
Both walk over to the stairs, spiraling down various floors. Mina sighs holding the red railing against the wall, stepping down several stairs.
Arriving at the ground floor, she pants hunched overlooking down to the floor. Pyotr taps her back, walking past her.
"Come on, brat."
She stops panting, walking over to him, but she is briefly stopped by his hand stopping her opening the grey patterned glass door.
"Hey, not yet. You don't want to catch a cold, do ya?"
Mina grunts, suddenly squatting down and grabbing down the door handle, rushing out to the snow filled streets.
"Yay!"
"This sneaky brat!" He follows up quickly, chasing her down the sidewalks covered in deep snow.
She runs to her favorite playground with a big hill beside it, not too far from their residential building. Climbing through the thick snow, she conquers the hill, falling to the snow with arms span across, creating snow angels. She laughs at the sky. Pyotr joining in creates an angel beside her. Laughing in unison, enjoying the warmth of the moment, in the ice-cold snow.
"Why does it snow?" she asks
"Why it snows? Well, in the book it is said that every speck of snow you see, it is one speck of an Angels' feather."
"Is that why we make snow Angels?"
"Yes exactly. We make snow Angels out of the fallen specks, hoping one day, it may come to live."
"Ohhh that is so cool!"
"Can I become an Angel too?" She glances at Pyotr, looking up at the sky.
"You already are, just make sure not to fall, Mina." he smiles at her.
With a wide grin she stands up and announces:
"I'm Archangel Mina. And I'll punish evil doers!" She shouts on top of the hill, reaching with her arms to the sky.
Ok, now I'll do my next favorite thing.
Her face now serious, falls on the snow on the edge of the hill, slowly rolling down.
"HEY" Pyotr shouts at her
Already halfway down the hill, he follows up with him rolling down too. Racing each other down who arrives first. Although she had a headstart, it was a very close finish for her. Mina proudly jumps up, covered in snow, and shouts her glory into the world.
"LOSS." She laughs while pointing fingers at Pyotr.
"Alright, enough snow. Time for bed."
She stops laughing, hanging her head down.
"Okay." she silently mumbles to him
At the apartment, she rushes to her mattress with a tv hanging from above, while Pyotr lays on the couch besides the balcony door. He turns off the lamp placed on the small wooden table in front of the bean bag and lays to sleep.
Mina laying on the white mattress, stares at the ceiling, trying to sleep.
She turns over to Pyotr on the couch, already asleep. And she closes her eyes, trying to dream again.
Although whispering in her right ear wakes her suddenly up, the balcony door wide open. The cold air flows into the small one room apartment, in which Mina freezes. Pyotr stands on the balcony, overlooking the streets, with a cigarette in his left hand. Mina, still shaken up by her nightmare, falls back on the mattress, finally resting.
"You still can't see it, right?"