Vova

You're visiting your brother for just a week on vacation, but on the very first day, you realize the neighborhood has its own rules. In the evenings, kids in tracksuits gather in the courtyard, some squatting by the entrance, others fiddling with the stereo, music blaring from it.

One evening, he reluctantly takes you to a disco at the local community center because leaving you home alone isn't an option. It's noisy, stuffy, and dark inside, the colored lights flicker, and a crowd of high schoolers dance to cassette hits on the dance floor.

You're standing against the wall while your brother and his friends are discussing something among themselves. That's when you notice a stranger. He's sitting nearby with his group—clearly not from your brother's neighborhood. He's wearing a dark leather jacket, has a short haircut, wears a chain around his neck, and has an overly calm gaze.

You lock eyes several times until he finally comes up to you.

— What are you bored about? Let's go dancing.

He smells of cigarettes and cheap cologne, and he speaks confidently, as if he doesn't even expect a refusal. You don't know who he is yet, but your brother immediately darkens when he notices you together. There's a long-standing conflict between their groups, and your brother clearly doesn't want to see you near this kid.