continual desire. [ Sheds a tear ] And I’ve always loved you, my angel, as if you were my own son. May God give you both — His help and His love and so on, and so much hope... What am I behaving in this idiotic way for?
I’m off my balance with joy, absolutely off my balance! Oh, with all my soul... I’ll go and call Natasha, and all that. : [ greatly moved ] Honoured Stepan Stepanovitch, do you think I may count on her consent?
C HUBUKOV : Why, of course, my darling, and... as if she won’t consent! She’s in love; egad, she’s like a lovesick cat, and so on. Shan’t be long!
[ Exit. ] : It’s cold... I’m trembling all over, just as if I’d got an examination before me. The great thing is, I must have my mind made up.
If I give myself time to think, to hesitate, to talk a lot, to look for an ideal, or for real love, then I’ll never get married. Brr... It’s cold! Natalya Stepanovna is an excellent housekeeper, not bad-looking, well-educated.
What more do I want? But I’m getting a noise in my ears from excitement. [ Drinks ] And it’s impossible for me not to marry. In the first place, I’m already — a critical age, so to speak.
In the second place, I ought to lead a quiet and regular life. I suffer from palpitations, I’m excitable and always getting awfully upset; at this very moment my lips are trembling, and there’s a twitch in my right eyebrow. But the very worst of all is the way I sleep. I no sooner get into bed and begin to go off, when suddenly something in my left side gives a pull, and I can feel it in my shoulder and head...
I jump up like a lunatic, walk about a bit and lie down again, but as soon as I begin to get off to sleep there’s another pull! And this may happen twenty times... [ Natalya Stepanovna comes in .] N