NIKOLAI
EUGENE, OREGON
In the cold winter of December, a little Russian boy came to visit family in Oregon. His name is Nikolai, he has dark brown hair that falls over his face. Eyes a stormy grey-blue, almost the color of ice. But a dopey smile was fixed on such a handsome face.
His mother told him to play with the other kids on the block of his grandma's house. So he went out, he wanted to make friends. But all the other children disliked him. Disliked his eyes which reminded them of ice. Frowning on his dark brown hair. And especially disliked his smile. They picked at him, calling him names. Making fun of the thick Russian accent he had. Making a game out of him chasing them.
The more they ran away, the closer they got to the lake.
"Hey Russian invader, give me your glasses!" A girl asks as they stop on the shores of the lake. The girl is blonde and skin pale, with pink hues coloring her face. Freckles dotted her rotten face. And a mischievous grin worked up that rotten face. Nikolai furrowed his eyebrows. "I can not, I am sorry, I need glasses to see" He spoke in a wobbly tone. Other kids giggled at the way he spoke, his English choppy and not perfect.
"I don't care! Give them to me," she snatched off the frames from his face. Surprising him and causing him to fall onto the snow. He tried getting up but easily got pushed down by three older and bigger kids.
"какогоw черта!" What the hell!
"Speak English! You're in America!"
"Yeah, say that in English dog-face."
"I do not know how-" he tried to say before being cut off. "You guys, if he's a dog... let's see if he'll fetch!" She throws his glasses onto the frozen lake. Making it land right in the middle.
"Oh no!" Nikolai wails, stumbling up and running towards his glasses. A rumble of laughter echoes behind him. He could feel the tears swell up in his eyes. He trips and slips on the ice before making it to his glasses.
"Now come back doggy!" The girl yells while patting her thighs. The kids around her giggled and made sounds as if he were a dog.
Nikolai took one step and the loud sound of cracking could be heard. His face went pale as he looked down to see the ice break from underneath him. Just minutes after cracks spread to the shore of the lake.
"HELP! YOU PEOPLE PLEASE!" Nikolai shouts in horror, trying to stay as still as possible. His eyes dart from the cracks to the other kids. Some had already started crying, so the older children rushed away with them. As more and more children left, Nikolai got terrified. Soon almost all the children left. Leaving the rotten little girl.
"PLEASE HELP ME! please..." He cries as tears rush down his face. She stepped on the ice once and it had cracked under her feet. That alone is enough to scare her away. Leaving only Nikolai all alone on the cracked lake. "Спаси меня, пожалуйста..." Save me, please...
He took an effort to move, which triggered the ice to break underneath him. Swallowed him whole and sank him under the freezing water. He splashed around, trying to grab the ice to pull himself up. But it was no use, winter coat and layers only pulled him down. The more he struggled, the more listless he felt. At some point, he just stopped and let his body sink. His version went black. His body was cold, his heartbeat slowed down, and his lungs felt like they were burning.
