He fell in love with her at first sight, when he saw her beautiful young face looking out of the carriage. Since then he had made thousands of attempts to find her, but she seemed to disappear.
One sleepless night he was strolling the streets and glancing at the lines of similar houses. He saw his ladylove come up to one of the windows with fluttering her fan. She was in her long black evening dress and looked as attractive as the abyss, when you stand on its edge. She took no notice of him.
It was frosty and the winter chilled the lover's veins, but he was still looking at the window, although the young woman had already gone away surrounded by courtiers. The man wanted to come in, however there was someone in the doorway, who had an appearance of a person both rough and solid like a rock. The lover couldn't afford to name himself as a rich fellow. Quite on the contrary he was poor and rented a tiny room in one greedy owner's house.
Anyway, love spread its wings and nothing could stop the lover. He made up his mind to break the chains of his ordinary life and was dying from unbearable desire just to see her again or even to talk. He had no idea, what they might talk about, but he wanted to hear her gentle voice. There was no doubt this young fellow dreamt to send his sweetheart all the beauty and the wealth of the world and a lot more. A large bunch of roses with a request to give him a chance could be a brilliant start. But he had no money to buy it. Suddenly he remembered that there was a garden of one of the most influential person in a town, where marvelous flowers grew. The lover decided to pluck the roses out there.
He got over the fence, but alas! as soon as he stood on the ground, he was caught by the guard.
The young fellow had been being kept for a long time at the police station, where he was blamed for all human's sins and threatened to be put in prison. The lover was almost accused of stealing, but only as he had stolen nothing he was set free the next evening.
In the hours of sadness the lover preferred to stroll along the gravestones and dreamt of love. Suddenly he noticed a bunch of flame-coloured roses, lying on the grave of the influential person's wife. The young fellow had been hesitating for a quarter of an hour. Finally, he took it.
Next day he asked a great number of passers-by and learned his ladylove's name, her address and, without a doubt, a lot of gossips about her life. Then he dropped into the nearest post office with the bunch and after a while he appeared again without it. There was a small nameless note among the roses with the fervent request to meet.
I can't say, whether she came for fun or to satisfy her curiosity, but it was plain that when she saw his worn-out coat, his mistress realized her mistake. She looked at him in a proud way and said with a scornful smile that red roses would not go with her new dress. Then the young woman quickly turned round and went away without waiting for an answer. The young fellow turned pale, his heart sank. He was shaking and his eyes filled with bitter tears.
That moment a shot rang out. The lover fell dead as mutton. There was a jealous rich man hiding in the shadow, who courted that woman and watched her every step.
It was the day, when the minister was going to visit that town. The dead man had neither relatives nor friends. Nobody liked him, because he was a born philosopher in his melancholic mood. He seemed to be boring to everybody. His body was buried under a tree without a coffin and a gravestone. Nobody cried on his funeral. Later the minister arrived and there was a festival in the town.