Book One: 1805 - Chapter XIII

by Leo Tolstoy

　　When Natasha ran out of the drawing room she only went as far as theconservatory. There she paused and stood listening to the conversationin the drawing room, waiting for Boris to come out. She was alreadygrowing impatient, and stamped her foot, ready to cry at his notcoming at once, when she heard the young man's discreet stepsapproaching neither quickly nor slowly. At this Natasha dashed swiftlyamong the flower tubs and hid there.

　　Boris paused in the middle of the room, looked round, brushed alittle dust from the sleeve of his uniform, and going up to a mirrorexamined his handsome face. Natasha, very still, peered out from herambush, waiting to see what he would do. He stood a little whilebefore the glass, smiled, and walked toward the other door. Natashawas about to call him but changed her mind. "Let him look for me,"thought she. Hardly had Boris gone than Sonya, flushed, in tears,and muttering angrily, came in at the other door. Natasha checkedher first impulse to run out to her, and remained in her hiding place,watching- as under an invisible cap- to see what went on in the world.She was experiencing a new and peculiar pleasure. Sonya, mutteringto herself, kept looking round toward the drawing-room door. It openedand Nicholas came in.

　　"Sonya, what is the matter with you? How can you?" said he,running up to her.

　　"It's nothing, nothing; leave me alone!" sobbed Sonya.

　　"Ah, I know what it is."

　　"Well, if you do, so much the better, and you can go back to her!"

　　"So-o-onya! Look here! How can you torture me and yourself likethat, for a mere fancy?" said Nicholas taking her hand.

　　Sonya did not pull it away, and left off crying. Natasha, notstirring and scarcely breathing, watched from her ambush withsparkling eyes. "What will happen now?" thought she.

　　"Sonya! What is anyone in the world to me? You alone areeverything!" said Nicholas. "And I will prove it to you."

　　"I don't like you to talk like that."

　　"Well, then, I won't; only forgive me, Sonya!" He drew her to himand kissed her.

　　"Oh, how nice," thought Natasha; and when Sonya and Nicholas hadgone out of the conservatory she followed and called Boris to her.

　　"Boris, come here," said she with a sly and significant look. "Ihave something to tell you. Here, here!" and she led him into theconservatory to the place among the tubs where she had been hiding.

　　Boris followed her, smiling.

　　"What is the something?" asked he.

　　She grew confused, glanced round, and, seeing the doll she hadthrown down on one of the tubs, picked it up.

　　"Kiss the doll," said she.

　　Boris looked attentively and kindly at her eager face, but did notreply.

　　"Don't you want to? Well, then, come here," said she, and wentfurther in among the plants and threw down the doll. "Closer, closer!"she whispered.

　　She caught the young officer by his cuffs, and a look of solemnityand fear appeared on her flushed face.

　　"And me? Would you like to kiss me?" she whispered almost inaudibly,glancing up at him from under her brows, smiling, and almost cryingfrom excitement.

　　Boris blushed.

　　"How funny you are!" he said, bending down to her and blushing stillmore, but he waited and did nothing.

　　Suddenly she jumped up onto a tub to be higher than he, embraced himso that both her slender bare arms clasped him above his neck, and,tossing back her hair, kissed him full on the lips.

　　Then she slipped down among the flowerpots on the other side ofthe tubs and stood, hanging her head.

　　"Natasha," he said, "you know that I love you, but..."

　　"You are in love with me?" Natasha broke in.

　　"Yes, I am, but please don't let us do like that.... In another fouryears... then I will ask for your hand."

　　Natasha considered.

　　"Thirteen, fourteen, fifteen, sixteen," she counted on her slenderlittle fingers. "All right! Then it's settled?"

　　A smile of joy and satisfaction lit up her eager face.

　　"Settled!" replied Boris.

　　"Forever?" said the little girl. "Till death itself?"

　　She took his arm and with a happy face went with him into theadjoining sitting room.