Chapter Text
Nikolai POV
Milk, a 10-pack of eggs, and flour… milk, a 10-pack of eggs, and flour. These are the things I need. I should have brought my notepad with me, what a pity. Today, both the sky and the ground are the exact same ominous shade of white. Russia is even colder today than it usually is. Or maybe I just dressed too lightly. Whatever, I should be poetic even when I’m talking to myself, shouldn’t I? In Russia, the cold doesn’t make you cry; it numbs your mind. And yes, it must have numbed the person sitting on the snow across the street too. I must help him.
3rd Person POV
Nikolai slowly approached the man sitting on the snow and leaned down slightly. The man on the snow was singing Kalinka; this was intriguing to Nikolai. Not because it was a song he loved deeply in his childhood, but because this man sitting in the snow was the one singing it. Nikolai whispered in a voice loud enough for the man to hear:
"Are you okay?"
"Mm..."
"Would you like me to help you...? Here, take this, don’t freeze."
Nikolai took off his coat and thrust it into the man’s hands. The man stared at Nikolai with blank eyes.
"Why?"
"You looked like you needed some help, sir. What’s your name, by the way?"
"Fyodor..."
"Fedya?"
"No... Fyodor..."
"Alright then, Fedya... have you been here for a long time?"
Fyodor shook his head in denial.
"...mm... 2 weeks..."
Nikolai gently took Fyodor’s hands to warm them up and blew on them. After doing this, he pulled a hand warmer out of his pocket and gave it to Fyodor.
"Thank you..."
"You're welcome, Fedya. You must be hungry... would you like to have some food at my place?"
"I don't know..."
"It doesn't matter, let's go."
Nikolai took Fyodor by the hand and gently led him toward his house. Fyodor didn't understand why a stranger was making such a sudden offer to him. Walking through the desolate streets of Russia, where the freezing cold somehow felt good, Fyodor followed Nikolai while watching his surroundings. When they arrived at Nikolai’s house, Nikolai let Fyodor inside. Fyodor smiled faintly.
"Thank you, sir..."
"My name is Nikolai."
"That's nice..."
Nikolai smirked slightly and ruffled Fyodor's hair.
"What's your favorite food?"
"I can't remember."
"Piroshki?"
"Sure..."
Nikolai immediately went to the kitchen and took out the necessary ingredients. He was trying to make it as fast as possible so that Fyodor wouldn't stay hungry. When it was ready, he called out to Fyodor:
"Fedya!! Food is ready, come."
When Fyodor saw what Nikolai had prepared, he smiled faintly and sat on the chair at the head of the dining table. While Fyodor was eating his food, Nikolai watched him for a long time; he was so cute. Nikolai gently pushed a stray lock of hair that fell into Fyodor’s eyes behind his ear.
"Do you like it?"
"It’s very good... thank you..."
"No problem, Fedya. Eat as much as you want."
Nikolai was stroking Fyodor’s hair while watching him. He had already formed a bond with this stranger. After Fyodor finished eating, Nikolai washed the dishes and chatted with him while doing so.
"Usually, it doesn't get this desolate around here, but when winter hits, everyone retreats into their shells" Nikolai said as he dried a plate and placed it on the shelf.
"Where are you from, anyway, Fedya? Where is your family? Aren't they looking for you?"
Fyodor flinched slightly where he sat at the table. He fixed his gaze on his empty plate. His mind was so numb and cluttered that the answers to these questions were hidden behind a thick fog inside his head.
"I don't remember..." he whispered, his voice faint.
"Just... it was so cold. And there was a song."
Nikolai turned off the tap and looked back. He noticed how tiny, how vulnerable Fyodor looked sitting at that table. The warm food and the enveloping heat of the house had returned to his newly rescued body as a heavy sleep. His head was dropping slightly, his eyelids closing with numbness. He was just like a street cat that had eaten its fill and finally felt safe. Nikolai smiled gently and walked over to him. He tapped Fyodor’s shoulder softly.
"Alright, Fedya, that’s enough interrogation. You’re exhausted, let’s take you to your room."
Fyodor looked at him with sleepy eyes. Moving under a stranger's guidance in his house should have normally felt unsafe, but the tender warmth in Nikolai's hand felt too good to resist. He stood up without objection. Nikolai took him by the hand and led him into the hallway. They stood in front of two doors facing each other.
"Look, this is my room"
Nikolai said, pointing to the door on the right. Then he opened the door on the left.
"And this is your room. You will stay here tonight and for the nights to come."
The room was clean, tidy, and warm. Nikolai took out thick, soft clothes from the wardrobe for him to wear and left them on the bed. While Fyodor sat on the edge of the bed, staring at the unfamiliar walls, Nikolai stood at the doorway. Before turning off the light, he took one last look at this man he had pulled out of the snow. Inside him, a desire to completely protect him and hide him from the world had awakened.
"Good night, Fedya."
Fyodor whispered as he pulled the blanket over himself.
"Good night, Nikolai..."
When Nikolai closed the door and stayed in the darkness of the hallway, he felt his heart warm up with a massive tenderness for the first time, defying the freezing Russian winter outside.