They heard footsteps on the wooden porch. “Are you two coming?” Nils’s mother called out. His father merely looked at him, his expression grim, before turning and walking away.
They ate dinner in silence. Nils could understand his father’s disappointment and frustration that the business had suffered a setback because of him, but he couldn’t accept that he and Tuula were the source of the problem. It was other people who were in the wrong, all those people who felt they had the right to an opinion on Nils’s private life. The atmosphere was tense, and he left early.
On the way home he stopped by to see Tuula.
“The children have just fallen asleep,” she said. The kitchen window was open. A gentle breeze made the thin curtain flutter, carrying with it the scent of the roses blooming down in the courtyard. There was a cup of tea on the table by the window, and an open book on the embroidered runner. A loose bouquet of cornflowers and daisies stood in a jug in the middle of the table. The apartment had seen better days,but Tuula had made it pretty and welcoming. It was so much cozier than his own apartment; this felt more like a home.
“I bumped into our landlord earlier, and he told me about a vacant apartment in the building next door,” Tuula said. “A bigger apartment—with a living room! And I think I can afford it. The children would have their own room, and there’s a bathroom.” Her eyes were sparkling.
“Sounds perfect for you.” Maybe perfect for the four of them? Or she and the children could move in with him. He was about to suggest it, but Tuula carried on talking.
“It’s all thanks to you, for taking a chance on me and my bread. I wouldn’t be able to afford it without my baker’s wage.”
Nils shook his head. “It’s all down to you—you’re driven. And talented.”
Tuula picked up a bottle of water from the counter and removed the cork. “Apparently the water has been smelling funny recently, so I don’t dare use it. Aino left me a note, and some bottles of water from the well next door. She and Heikki have gone down to Småland for a few days.” She poured the water into a pan on the stove and heated it up. “Unfortunately Matias drank a glass before I saw the note, but he seems fine so far.” She made Nils a cup of tea and they sat down at the table.
“I can go down and take a look,” Nils offered.
“No, it’s too dark now. The landlord said he’d check our well tomorrow afternoon. How was dinner at your parents’?”
He didn’t answer right away; he couldn’t tell her what his father had said. “It was ... fine.”
She looked at him for a long time before she spoke. “Listen, Nils. I really appreciate the fact that you’re so open with me. And I know you well enough by now to see there’s something wrong. Don’t worry, I can take it, whatever it is that happened over dinner.”
“I ...” He broke off, sighed deeply. Stirred his tea. He really wanted to protect Tuula from all this, but he had to be honest with her. “As you know, my father applied for permission to put up a building with a freezer room, but his application was rejected. He blames us and ourrelationship. And one of our clients canceled his contract with us. But they’re just narrow-minded old men, the lot of them.”
Tuula looked down at the table, then up at him. “I’m so sorry to hear that.”
“If we got married, people wouldn’t be able to say anything.” The words just came out.
Her eyes widened. “Is that a proposal?”
Nils nodded; he had surprised himself. “I think so.”
She blinked a couple of times, then shook her head. “No, I don’t want you to ask like that. And you’ve already said that your family isn’t happy about us.”
“Mommy,” a little voice whimpered from the bedroom. “Coming, sweetheart.” Seconds later Nils heard someone throwing up. He grabbed a bowl from the sink and hurried after Tuula.
She was sitting on the bed with Matias on her lap. The boy was still retching, and Nils held out the bowl. In the faint glow of the bedside lamp, Nils could see that the child’s face was pale. Matias sank back against the pillow. Nils helped Tuula to undress him and change the sheets. Tuula gently cleaned him up and found him a fresh nightshirt.
Nils went into the kitchen and turned on the tap with the intention of rinsing the boy’s clothes, but a horrible, almost rotten stench rose from the sink. He bundled everything up in a sheet so he could wash them at home.
“There’s obviously something badly wrong,” he said when Tuula emerged from the bedroom.
“You mean the water?”
He nodded, pointed to the bundle on the floor. “I’ll take everything home, try to get it clean.”
“There’s no need, I . . .”
“There’s every need. Use the bottled water for drinking and cooking.”
“Thank you.”
“I’ll come back and check out the well first thing tomorrow, as soon as it’s light.”
“Thank you. Maybe I should try to get some sleep now—I think it could be a long night.”
