I got to the door of my own house with difficulty. On the way, I ran into the supermarket, bought food, and now I dragged them on my own hump, trying to hold both heavy bags with provisions and a pack of documents. Every day I carry reports, contracts, summaries and charts. And how! I have such a crucial period of work at my workplace, and if I "try hard in this boat", I can obviously change from the chair of the lending department of our bank to the chair of one of the deputies of the president. A tempting prospect, and most importantly - the boss is very appreciative of my initiative and dedication. He praises all the time. My husband is fit for me, in the sense that his teeth are biting into his business. He started hard, and now in his small freight forwarding company things are getting on, clients are full. I reassured myself with thoughts of our business struggle with Yurka, because my nerves were at their limit.
- I wonder where Alinka ?! I grumble under my breath. "Must be home already!" Throwing all the numerous bags on the floor, I opened the door and crossed the threshold of my own home. Daughter was not. It's strange! At this time, she is always at home. Moreover, until the moment I get into the apartment, I'll be called back ten times on my mobile and will ask when to wait for me.
I fell into a chair and thought . Alinochka is a homely child, she would not just go anywhere, but Yurka and I ... I remembered my daughter's sad eyes when my husband and I refused to go with her at the weekend to a circus, a zoo, or a movie or a cartoon.
- Daughter, you know, my dad and I are busy. Go for a walk with her friends, - I told Alinka.
"I want with you," her daughter asked. "Everyone is walking with my parents, and I ..."
"Alinka, your mom and dad are serious businessmen, they have every minute on their account," explained Yurka, but the daughter did not inspire these conversations.
- Look, what a wonderful dress I bought for you, - I interfered to somehow amuse the girl, but recently she was no longer pleased with the gifts with which we diligently tried to pay off her for the fact that our time was completely and entirely devoted to work.
- Alinka, you are already big, - somehow I decided to talk with my daughter, as with an adult, - I must understand.
We're trying for you, honey! And I, and dad. We work day and night only so that you can live better than we do. "Do not you live well?" - Alina asked in surprise.
"Do not quarrel ..."
"We do not quarrel, but you can live better, but you need money ..."
"Money?" Is this the main thing? I shrugged my shoulders. By God, I was ashamed, but there were no necessary words to explain everything properly.
"You have a computer, beautiful clothes ... Toys," I wove to Alina, and she looked at me and said nothing. ... I sighed and looked at my watch again. Heck! Already the beginning of the ninth, but Alinka is not! In a flash my husband telephoned.
- Yurka! And you ... - I wanted to ask if he knows where our daughter might be, but my husband did not even listen to me.
"Zhenya, I can not talk, I have negotiations," whispered and switched off the mobile phone.
- Pancake! - I rushed to rummage on Alinka's desk. And suddenly there will be found the phone numbers of her friends? There was nothing! And then I was really scared. Even wanted to call the police, when suddenly I remembered: in the next entrance Alinkin's classmate Seryozha lives. My daughter is not very friendly with him, but suddenly he knows where she can be. The door was opened by Seryozhka's father.
"Where's Alina?" I think in school.
- At school? - I thought that the boy's father was joking. What kind of school is it at half past eight in the evening ?!
- Of course, everything is there today! I wish I could go. But the wife is there ...
"Ah ... what do they have?"
- Festival of school theaters ... - He did not have time to finish speaking, as I already remembered. Fool!
How could I forget , because my daughter several times talked about the festival and that in one play plays a major role. The role of the queen!
"Are you coming to see it?" - Alinka asked, and I shrugged with regret, they say, well, you know, daughter, that I'm so busy ... I remembered and understood: if there is only work for me in this world, then one day I will I'll come home and find out that my daughter has grown up and gone ... Not at the school play, but forever ... It's really scary. I ran to the school and muttered out loud:
- Stuff stuffed! Businessman, damn it! So as not to give your child time! Money ... Status!
- Yurka! - shouted into the mobile phone. "And do not you dare say that you're busy!" I rush to school, and you let me pick up as soon as possible. Do you understand?
"Did something happen to Alina?" Asked the husband in a frightened voice.
- It happened! - I cried even louder and turned off the phone.
In the school assembly hall people - the apple has nowhere to fall. I stretched my head and almost choked with bitterness. My Alina stood at the stage among the other children, only her friends gaily looked around, looked for their parents' eyes, waved at them, and my daughter stood with her head bowed, and was so sad. "My sun, forgive us for being fools," I whispered, trying to make my way to the stage, but it was almost impossible. Parents stood as if dead, and each of them, too, would like to be closer to his child. And here I am ... And at that moment I realized that if Alinka does not see me now, I will never forgive myself for this. And I quietly elbowed the man in front, they say, miss, be a man.
The man discontentedly puffed , but he did not move. "Let it pass," I whispered, and stepping forward stepped on his foot.
- Are you out of your mind? - he turned to express everything he thinks about me, but at the same time a hole in space formed in the general mass, and I instantly jumped forward.
- Nahalka! - The man hissed angrily and painfully kicked me in the back. Having lost balance, I fell right on the crowd of parents in front.
- Oh! - I cried and flopped to the floor, And around emptiness formed. Lying on the floor, she stubbornly continued to look towards the stage and realized: now Alka will see me. Hooray! I noticed! How much surprise and joy in her eyes! Then someone touched my sleeve.
"Yurka?" Where have you been for so long? I whispered angrily to him.
- Here is our Alinka ...
- I see, - my husband nodded to me and did not say anything about his eternal employment, clients, transportation ... He's very clever. I understood everything perfectly.
After the performance, we hugged her daughter, and she was genuinely surprised:
- And I thought you forgot ...
- Wow! How can we forget about the main thing ?! Answered Yurka. Oh, and cunning, he managed to get out the same!