Love is almost hopeless

Chapter Two

One class soon went by, then another, and another, until the school day was over. Through all 6 classes she had been in, she was thinking of what Ivan had said to her. The words played over and over.
She was walking to the spot that Ivan told her to meet him at. It was near an old pine tree behind the school in the courtyards no one used.
By the time Monika got there, Ivan was already there. He sat at one of the benches with his coat on and his scarf covering his mouth. Even sitting down he looked tall. Monika was only 5'6, while Ivan appeared to be 6'3 or so.
She stood a little ways away from him and she held her hands around her lanyard nervously. "Hello, Ivan.." She smiled a little and began walking towards him again. "Why did you want to meet me here?-"
She was interrupted by the Russian. Ivan had grabbed her by the waist and was just looking down at her. The towering man above her said nothing, but even so this made Monika blush uncontrollably.
He smirked and leaned down, not to kiss her, but to whisper in her ear. "Tomorrow, meet me here again." He let her go, grabbed his things, and walked away.
Monika didn't know what to call this. She had just moved here and already she possibly had a crush on someone. What made it worse, was he was Russian. If her grandmother found out, she would have Monika's head. But she shook the feeling and headed home.
The entire walk home she was thinking of him. The way he talked, the way he looked, the way he walked, the way he just stood there and teased her. Everything was in her mind, circulating, trying to find an answer.
When she reached her home, she walked inside through the garage since she only had the key to the garage door. Inside was her grandmother making dinner.
"Hallo Oma." She walked over to her grandmother and smiled. Her grandmother, or Oma, was a small women with short, curly grey hair. She wore a bonnet type thing on her head. She had a floral, knee length dress on under her white apron. On her feet were a pair of white slippers. "What's for dinner?"
She shook her head. "Nothing special, enkelin. I am just bowling potatoes and cooking some wurst." Her grandmothers accent was thick. It was easy to tell she was born and raised in Germany.
"Do you want any help?"
She shook her head, "no no. You go do homework or unpack. I will make dinner."
"Alright... But if you want any help, don't be afraid to ask. I'll be in my room unpacking."
Monika rushed up the stairs to her room. Her room was still full of boxes, still to be unpacked. She grabbed her box cutter and opened a few boxes. The boxes were filled with old toys and shelf decorations her mother had gotten her when she was young.
She picked up a small music box. When Monika opened it, a small ballerina popped up and began spinning to a gentle tune. Monika sat down on the floor and hummed along with it. This took her back to when she was a child, before her mother was sick and before her father had left them. It was a happy life. But happily ever after never lasted long... not for Monika at least.
A few minutes had passed and she still sat there on the floor with the music playing. She would rewind it every time the music would stop playing. Without realizing it, Monika had teared up, now on the verge of crying. She stood and placed the music box on the shelf. She smiled at it and whispered quietly, "I'll make you proud, mutti." Monika kissed her hand and placed the kiss on the top of the music box.
"Monika! Dinner is ready!" Her grandmother called out for her from the downstairs dining room.
"Coming Oma!" Monika rushed downstairs and walked to the dining room. She sat in a chair at the table as her grandmother served the wurst and potatoes. She mashed her potatoes and ate her wurst. This gave Monika a feeling of warmth. It reminded her of home, when she and her mother would make this together and have picnics at sunset.
"Monika? Are you alright? You spaced out." Monika's grandmother waved her hand in front of Monika's face.
"Huh?" She had been day dreaming. "Yes, Oma. I'm fine. Just... thinking."
When dinner was finished and the dishes were cleaned, Monika headed back upstairs. She pushed all the boxes into a single corner. When that was done, she laid quietly on her bed. Her head faced the window. She watched the tree gently sway with the nightly wind. Behind her, her phone went off suddenly. Even so, she ignored it. Then it went off again, she ignored it still. When it went off a third time she turned her head to see what it was.
"An unknown number?" She spoke silently to herself. "That's weird..." As she was about to set it back down, it went off again. She answered this time. "Hallo?"