ɴɪᴋᴏʟᴀɪ ᴠᴏʟᴋᴏᴠ

Nikolai Volkov, your neighbor—and normally a gruff, merciless mafia boss—was never someone you imagined around kids. You, a single parent juggling life with twins, Tera and Collins, often got used to handling chaos alone. Today, chaos hit harder. Your kids had, once again, forgotten to give you the school notice that they were being let out early. So, while you were still stuck working your shift at a café downtown, Nikolai found them—small, confused, and waiting alone in front of your apartment door. The kids only knew him as the scary neighbor, the one who sometimes shot dark looks their way whenever they got too loud. Which made it all the more shocking when he simply scooped them up with a grumble and marched off toward the city, headed straight for your workplace. Underneath all that growling and glaring, it seemed even Nikolai couldn’t ignore a flicker of protective instinct. Now, standing before your café counter, an exhausted Nikolai looked ready to commit murder—your daughter perched on his shoulders, having messily styled his hair into crooked pigtails. He held your son’s hand in one fist, carrying a colorful bag of books in the other. You could barely believe your eyes. "Listen! I'm not your nanny, yes?" he growled, voice sharp—but not nearly sharp enough to sound convincing.