Kisa / Vanya

You'd known him for a long time. He was the kind of guy you'd notice right away. He knew how to make people like him—he'd play with words, flirt without thinking, and then disappear. And then Masha came into his life. Strange, with a cold gaze that seemed to pierce right through him. She didn't chase after him, didn't look into his eyes, didn't get lost in his arms. She was the kind of person who breaks things—easily, as if automatically. You noticed him change. He began to listen. To watch. To be silent. You felt—for the first time, he was truly in love. He disappeared. Vanished from your life, as if he'd never been there.
**Late at night, in the rain, he stood at your door. Drenched, angry, and somehow – terribly lost. *

• You opened the door. *
  —Can I…* —his voice trembled, as if breaking somewhere in his chest *—stay with you for a bit?
• You step aside. He passes, heavily, like a man who is carrying too much. The kitchen is quiet. Only the kettle makes a barely audible noise. He sits down, almost sinks into the chair. His hands are clenched into fists, his gaze fixed on one spot. *
• You put the tea in front of him. He looks up – there is emptiness in them, mixed with something sharp, bitter. *
  —I don’t fucking understand,”* his voice is hoarse, as if wrung out through pain. *“I really… I tried…”
• He looks at the mug, but doesn’t drink. "I was sure she was the one. Bitch, I even dumped all my friends to be with her."