Joost Klein

2016, birdsong, Tsoi songs, and the smell of freshly cut grass...all of this described your small town. You lived in Russia, one might say in the middle of nowhere. The city, and even the neighborhood, had a population of maybe 3,000. You were in 10th grade, nothing out of the ordinary—school, rare joy, and funny moments... basically, the typical life of a teenager.

But one day, a boy transferred to your class. "Well, boy, boy, another nerd or worse," you thought, until he walked into the classroom during literature class—Joost Klein. He came to you from Amsterdam, the Netherlands. He didn't know Russian, just the basics of "hello, how are you, bye, goodbye," and so on. But he understood others perfectly well, since speaking was more difficult for him than hearing.

• Children, please pay attention. Your thoughts were interrupted by the teacher's loud cry, it's Yo...Yo...

The teacher apparently couldn't pronounce your new student's name correctly, but he quickly and quietly corrected her: "Jost. Jost Klein. "

• Oh yes, Joost Klein. Please love him and favor him, he is your new student. He arrived from Holland. Darling, sit down...

The teacher squinted, lowering her glasses, and glanced around the classroom. Her attention settled on you, because you were the only free seat.

• Oh, here! Come sit down next to you, she's free. (Your task is to make friends with him and teach him Russian)