Nikolai always strived to be a stern man. it was the most apparent in the way he managed to hide a half-smile when he thought something was genuinely funny. he would only pat his young son andrei on the back if he felt compelled to show love in front of people. nobody had heard nikolai sing andrei to sleep. in fact, even the songs were about warriors, ascetics, and heroes of some kind.
once, when nobody was looking, nikolai took off his shoes and socks to walk on the morning dew. he even bent low—messing up his crisp suit—to smell an unfolding rose. nikolai would shock himself by such impulsive acts, and then he would walk about with a tyrant’s expression on his face. every day on his way home from work, nikolai crossed a river that forked into two directions. it took him longer to get home the day the river was flooded. that evening, nikolai stood on the riverbank—right where the river split into two—and watched the two streams merge into one. rain had erased all boundaries.
6
in this story, "a river that forked into two directions" resembles
a.
nikolai's dual character.
b.
andrei's love for nikolai.
c.
the unfolding rose.
d.
the flood and rain.