“Only fancy! that turned out to be impossible. He put Varinka’s portrait on his table, kept coming to see me and talking about Varinka, and home life, saying marriage was a serious step. He was frequently at Kovalenko’s, but he did not alter his manner of life in the least; on the contrary, indeed, his determination to get married seemed to have a depressing effect on him. He grew thinner and paler, and seemed to retreat further and further into his case.

“ ‘I like Varvara Savvishna,’ he used to say to me, with a faint and wry smile, ‘and I know that everyone ought to get married, but⁠ ⁠… you know all this has happened so suddenly.⁠ ⁠… One must think a little.’

“ ‘What is there to think over?’ I used to say to him. ‘Get married⁠—that is all.’

“ ‘No; marriage is a serious step. One must first weigh the duties before one, the responsibilities⁠ ⁠… that nothing may go wrong afterwards. It worries me so much that I don’t sleep at night. And I must confess I am afraid: her brother and she have a strange way of thinking; they look at things strangely, you know, and her disposition is very impetuous. One may get married, and then, there is no knowing, one may find oneself in an unpleasant position.’