Expectation

A merry company - three guys and three girls - were driving to the golden beaches of Florida. They were waited by the gentle sun, warm sand, blue water and the sea of ​​pleasures. They loved and were loved. They gave joyful smiles to those around them. They wanted everyone to be happy.
Next to them sat a pretty young man. Every burst of joy, every burst of laughter, with pain responded to his gloomy face. He shrank all over and shut himself even more.

One of the girls could not stand it and sat down to him. She learned that the grim man's name is Vingo. It turned out that he spent four years in a New York prison and is now going home. This even more surprised fellow traveler. Why is he so sad?

- Are you married? she asked.

This simple question was followed by a strange answer:

- I do not know.

The girl asked, confused:

“You don't know that?”

Vingo told:

- When I went to prison, I wrote to my wife that I would be absent for a long time. If it becomes difficult for her to wait for me, if the children start asking about me and it hurts her ... In general, if she does not stand up, let her forget me with a clear conscience. I can understand this: “Find yourself another husband,” I wrote to her. “You can even not tell me about it.”

- Do you go home, not knowing what awaits you?

“Yes,” Vingo replied with difficulty concealing his excitement.

The gaze of the girl was full of sympathy. Vingo could not share the main points:

- A week ago, when I was told that, thanks to good behavior, they would let me go early, I wrote to her again. At the entrance to my hometown you will notice a large oak tree by the road. I wrote that if she needed me, then let her hang a yellow handkerchief on it. Then I get off the bus and go back home. But if she does not want to see me, then let him do nothing. I'll pass by.

To the city was very close. Young people took the front seats and began to count kilometers. Voltage on the bus was growing. Vingo closed his eyes in exhaustion. It remains ten, then five kilometers ... And suddenly the passengers jumped up from their seats, began to scream and dance for joy.

Looking out the window, Vingo became petrified: all the branches of the oak were covered with yellow kerchiefs. Trembling with the wind, they greeted the man who had returned to his home.

Boris Ganago