Chapter 1

“Andrei! When did he say he was coming?” asked Christin.

Christin Vasiliev was currently the most famous model in Russia—Today marked a special day. He was meeting a well-known director, Alik Popov.

The night before, Christin had received a call.

“Hello, this is Alik Popov. Am I speaking to Christin Vasiliev?” the man asked.

“Yes… Wait—did you just say you are Mr. Alik Popov, the director of Lakeside Murder?”, convinced it was some kind of prank.

“Yes, it’s me. I am working on a project, and I would like to offer a role to you. Would you be interested in working with me?”

“May I ask why the sudden proposal—and why me? I’ve never acted before.”

“I understand,” Alik replied calmly. “But, this could be an opportunity to step up your game.”

“Sir… are you aware of my condition?”

“Yes, it’s quite well known. Still, I heard that you wish to recover...”

“And where would you hear that from”, irritation slipping through Christin’s voice.

“No offense, Mr. Vasiliev…,” Alik said. “How about we talk in person?” he suggested.

“Thank you for the offer. I feel honoured that you considered me for a role in your movie. But could you please tell me how you got my number? I don’t share my personal number with anyone,” Christin was still suspicious.

Alik burst into laughter, “I sincerely apologize. I got your number from your previous manager, Aleksandr… ‘Aleki’ is my friend as well. I shared the script of this project with him. He mentioned that you want to recover from your distressing condition. So, Mr. Vasiliev, would you consider giving me some of your time tomorrow?”

“If it’s Aleki, then I suppose I can trust you. Tomorrow works for me. How about two in the afternoon?” Christin finally felt relieved.

“Perfect!”

Christin finished the call and rushed down the hallway to a room on the second floor of his house.

He knocked sharply on the door. “Andrei! Open the door!”

After a moment of silence, he banged on the door loudly.

“What the heck, man! This is urgent. I need to talk to you!” Christin shouted.

‘Andrei’ was short for Anandveer Singh, Christin’s closest friend. The nickname came from Christin, since most people struggled with his name. Their parents had been close friends, and the boys grew up like brothers. Due to recent circumstances, they now lived together.

“Andrei!!!” Christin shouted again.

“What the—what’s wrong with you? Do you know what time it is?” Andrei snapped. He checked his phone and opened the door, eyes heavy with sleep. “For the love of God, it’s 1:17 a.m. You’d better have a good reason.”

Without wasting a moment, Christin blurted out, “I got a movie proposal—from Alik Popov! The director of Lakeside Murder!”

“Why would he call you? Do you even know how to act? It’s probably a prank. Let me sleep in peace. I want P-E-A-C-E.”

“Do you really think I’d wake you up in the middle of the night just to joke with you?”

“Yes, you absolutely would,” Andrei replied dryly. “Now, Mr. Vasiliev, if you may, I’d like to return to the very profitable business deal I was about to close—in my dream.”

“You are such a workoholic!”

Still half-asleep, Andrei stared blankly at his brother-like friend who kept rambling nonsense in the middle of the night.

“Calm down, Anandveer… calm down,” he muttered, reaching for the door to shut it.

“Wait! You didn’t even listen to me!” Christin thrust his phone forward. “Look—this is the call record. I spoke to Alik Popov himself. Just how stupid do you think I am?”

“Extremely, if I’m being honest. So, when did you get his number? What business do you have with him?”

“He called me. He wants me to act in his movie.”

“Okay… what’s the name of the movie?”

“I… don’t know.”

“So, it was a prank call. Great. I’m going back to my meeting—no, my sleep,” Andrei said, trying to shut the door again.

Christin stepped forward, stopping it. “He’s coming tomorrow. At two in the afternoon. I can’t do this alone...”

Andrei sighed deeply, studying Christin’s face. He could tell he was serious.

“So even though you know you have Anthropophobia, you still want to try acting in a movie?” Andrei said gently. “I’m just concerned for you. I’ll support you—but this doesn’t seem realistic. Have you thought about therapy before deciding on an acting career?”

After a moment of pause, Andrei rubbed his eyes. “Let’s head back to bed for now”, he yawned, “It’s almost 2 o’clock. We’ll talk about this properly in the morning—over breakfast. And yes, I’ll be home tomorrow.”

Christin nodded, finally calming down.

The next morning—

Beep, beep!

Christin, still half-asleep, tried to turn off the alarm and glanced at the clock. He rubbed his eyes, and forced himself awake. Dragging himself out of bed, he walked toward the washroom, and reached for his toothbrush.

As he stared at his reflection in the mirror, memories of the previous night came rushing back. His body broke out into a cold sweat. Panic rushed in. He freshened up quickly and dashed toward his brother’s room.

“Andrei!” he shouted at the top of his lungs.

“I’m downstairs, you moron!” Andrei yelled back.

Andrei was an early bird who followed a strict routine, constantly trying—and failing—to instil the same discipline in Christin.

“I warmed up a glass of milk for you, and I’m making pancakes,” Andrei said. “Take the fruits out of the fridge. And don’t you dare touch the ice cream!”

He shot Christin a sharp look as he stood in front of the open fridge, hands dangerously close to the ice-cream container in the freezer. Christin had a lot to say—but wisely kept his mouth shut.

“Hey… you remember what I told you last night, right?” Christin asked as he sat down for breakfast. He paused, then added, “I think this could be a good opportunity for me. You know—killing two hares with one shot.”

He sipped his milk, secretly wishing he could add chocolate syrup, but Andrei would never allow it.

“If you chase two hares, Christin, you’ll end up catching neither,” Andrei warned.

Andrei sat down, took a bite of his pancake, and after a moment of careful thought, spoke in his business-like tone.

“Yes, it is an opportunity—no doubt. But you cannot forget the severity of your phobia.”

Christin’s chest tightened.

“You can’t tolerate strangers—or even acquaintances—near you,” Andrei continued gently. “Sometimes you even lash out to defend yourself.”

He paused, watching Christin carefully, then added calmly, “In my opinion, this offer is risky. Your condition is well known to the public and the media. I hope this Alik Popov has considered all of that before making this proposal.”

Though disheartened by Andrei’s reasoning, he still clung to hope.

“You know… I’ve always wanted to act in a movie—at least once in my life,” Christin said softly. “What do you say?”

Andrei remained silent. He didn’t want to give a careless answer. Instead, he simply nodded.

After breakfast, still troubled by the proposal, they waited anxiously for the director who had disrupted their peaceful weekend morning.