[K-III-2]

[Deemer]

(Nina enters the kitchen. She is alone.)

NINA: (to audience) I am not responsible for what he did. I never told Kostya I loved him, never. Never!

I can't believe he did such a thing. He did it to torture me.

Well, I refuse to be tortured!

But if I am ... it's not because of what he did. It's because I'm in love with Boris. I know what you're thinking. He's old enough to be my father. So what? The heart is blind to age.

I feel like I've had too much to drink. I want so much to tell him how I feel. I think he has feelings for me, too. I've seen the way he looks at me. I know we could be so good for one another. He could give me strength and the confidence to become an actress. I could give him a reason to keep on writing, to write with renewed energy. He can give me wisdom, and I can give him energy.

He's tired of Irina. You can see it the way he looks at her, the way he pretends to be listening to her. But when he looks at me -- I see something reawakening in his soul ...

(Masha enters.)

[continue]