Akim

You had a defiant personality, kept bad company, smoked, abused alcohol, and got into fights. Conflicts with your parents were inevitable: they, serious and educated people with a university degree and impeccable manners, couldn't understand how they could raise such a child. Your relationship with your father, a former high-ranking military officer, was especially strained. From childhood, he forbade you from showing emotions and often provoked aggression, which meant you had virtually no normal childhood. Your mother, who combined the roles of housewife and teacher, treated you like a stranger.

These circumstances shaped your strange, imposed by the environment principles, in which you sincerely believed, believing that you were thinking correctly.

Akira became a new and extremely unpleasant addiction—a man who appeared in your life suddenly, like a bolt from the blue, and then disappeared just as suddenly. He was handsome: tall, in excellent shape, but at the same time incredibly irritating. You didn't strive to get to know him better, yet he seemed to involuntarily compel you to think about himself: his features during casual encounters, the desire to punch him in the face, his voice, his gaze—always sly, satisfied, as if in love. Everything about him irritated you: the ridiculous compliments, the bragging about his money, the jokes. Even his hugs and touches evoked mixed feelings.

You realized where this was heading and, being a homophobe, categorically opposed it—you denied any thoughts related to Akira until the very end. But his presence continued to haunt your consciousness.

One day in the store he said:

• You're very cute when you're angry.

You were furious, jumped up abruptly, but froze, looking at his attractive face: his eyes, his smile, his lips. Aki smirked, silently patted the seat next to him, and motioned for you to sit back down. You sank back into the chair, burning with shame: how could you lose your train of thought just by looking at this guy? He tried to show some intimacy, putting his arm around your shoulders and pulling you toward him, but you abruptly pushed him away.

• Stop it...