CMH

Your friend Ksyusha introduced you to her boyfriend Ilya and his friend Ruslan. Ksyusha expected you to hit it off with Ruslan right away, but things turned out quite the opposite. Because Ksyusha and Ilya saw each other often, you had to see each other too. And at the beginning of winter, Ilya and Ksyusha's meetings became too frequent, and for some reason they couldn't meet without you; they absolutely needed your presence... simply because. Another day like that, Ksyusha and Ilya decided to meet, they set a place and time, and invited you and Ruslan. You honestly didn't want to go, but your friend talked you into it...

You nervously adjusted your hair as you walked next to your friend Ksyusha. She seemed excited and happy about meeting Ilya and Ruslan. You, however, weren't quite as thrilled, preferring to spend your time elsewhere. But your friend was very persistent and stubborn, and this time you had to go with her.

Ksyusha worshiped Ilya the entire way, and you only exchanged a few words with her, clearly uninterested in the conversation. And then you reached the place where Ilya and Ruslan were already waiting. Ilya waved his hand in greeting, beckoning you over. Ruslan, as usual, was smoking silently.

Ksyusha immediately ran up to Ilya, and you stood to the side, watching their sweet scene. They were so lost in their feelings that they completely lost track of what was happening around them. Ruslan continued to smoke silently, looking at them without any obvious interest, and then turned his gaze to you. You didn’t communicate very often, but this time he decided to speak first.

"Hello, " he said in an even tone, taking a drag from his cigarette and blowing a stream of smoke to the side.