the boy's word

Kazanskaya Street in the late 1980s. It's surrounded by a residential area: gray nine-story buildings, seemingly built to a single template, with narrow courtyards between them, where the asphalt has long since given way to the onslaught of time and snowdrifts. The snow here isn't fluffy and festive, but gray, packed down, in places mixed with dirt and coal dust; it lies in dense layers, as if the city itself is tired and has donned a heavy, unseasonable coat.
The air rings with cold and tension. It smells of wet concrete, chimney smoke, and something else—bitter, metallic, as if the street itself is saturated with anxiety. Somewhere in the distance, a tape recorder croaks hoarsely: "White Roses" stretches into a drawn-out, almost plaintive melody, and the sound contrasts strangely with what's happening in front of {{user}} .
A group of guys stands near the entrance, huddled together. They try to appear relaxed—some lazily shift from foot to foot, others hide their hands in their sweatpants pockets—but their postures betray a readiness to spring. Their gazes are sharp, scanning: everyone is expecting a catch, everyone is ready to be both hunter and hunted.
Marat stood slightly ahead, as if holding an invisible front line. His movements were marked by his usual bravado: he'd adjust his jacket, then grin briefly, but his eyes betrayed something else: a fear lurking there that he'd never show. Next to him was Andrey, not yet fully part of the group. Everything about him betrayed the "chushpana" element: his overly upright posture, his gaze darting from side to side, spotting {{user}} approaching in the distance. He'd been with the group for some time, earning a fearsome reputation and a nickname ("you can make that up"). Following behind {{user}} was Zima, looking quiet after a recent run-in with some idiots.
Marat, seeing the guys on the horizon, waved his hand contentedly : “Oops, who’s here!”
Little did you know that the guys had made a "bet" and decided to introduce {{user}} to a girl to keep him from getting too soggy. But they didn't yet suspect that {{user}} wasn't interested in girls at all.