Day 3

Scene 1

Frame 1
*The living room has a black plaque with text on it.

Author.
A little over a month has passed since we spoke to Vlad.
We went to classes and spent time together with Nika on weekends. Because I was able to finally say goodbye to that traumatic situation, I had more energy and found a part-time job.
I don't think I've mentioned it anywhere. I'm not bad at chess, I even took the first category when I was a kid, though I never decided to take the KMS.
Now chess is my part-time job, I work as a coach for children. We learn openings with them, play games and prepare for tournaments.

Nika has also enrolled more students in her English classes. She's doing great, and she's happy, although we don't spend much time together on weekdays because of this. She goes to her students almost every day after class and then comes back very tired in the evenings.
But despite all these difficulties, I think we are moving in the right direction.

Nika
Good morning! Why are you so early today?

Author.
Nika found me in the living room. I was reading a book.

Yura
Good morning. My student has a competition next weekend. I decided that since he is preparing and working hard, I, as his teacher, should prepare twice as hard.
On Monday we will play the Spanish game Fischer-Spassky.

Nika
I am sure that with such a teacher he will definitely take first place, and then win the world championship.

Yura
It won't be easy, but everything is possible. By the way, why are you here so early today? You wanted to get some sleep.

Nika
But today I have an extra lesson with one student. She has exams coming up, she's going to study in another country as an exchange student, so she wanted to study more.

Yura
You're pushing yourself too hard, and we were planning to go to that new Japanese restaurant with you. I even made a reservation.

Nika
Oh, shit. I completely forgot about that... What time did you make the reservation?

Yura
It was 17. Two weeks ago. They are always packed.

Nika
I think I'll make it to five. Everything will be fine. I'll just take a taxi from there.

Yura
All right, then. If you say so.

Nika
No offense. I was just running around all week, so it slipped my mind.

Yura
No problem, it's just that you suggested it. If you changed your mind, you could have said so.

Nika
Of course, I haven't changed my mind. It's just that everything has been so overwhelming lately. Don't pout. I'll do everything quickly and be on time.

Yura
Okay. Go get ready, you're going to be late.

Nika
I will not be late for anything.

Author.
Nika packed up and left in about half an hour.
I don't understand, she's known me as long as I've known her. Does she think I don't notice when she lies?
But okay, I could have played along, because tomorrow is our anniversary, and she's probably preparing some kind of surprise. She had already done this a year ago. However, she came up with a better excuse. "I have some classes with a student at 9 a.m. on Sunday, until five. Besides, I know all her students, and there are no girls there.

Frame 2
*photo of a mirror in the hallway

Author.
We're leaving soon. I hope Nika won't be late, otherwise it won't be fun.
Shit!
I almost forgot a gift for her. I bought it a few weeks ago and changed the place of hiding it almost every day so that Nika wouldn't find it.
I spent all the money I had been saving for quite some time. Maybe it's a bit early, but I'm sure... Even if not now, it will be a kind of promise for the future....

*Sound 15, 16 or just 16

Frame 3
*Slide show of streets to Restich, everything ends in Restich

Author.
I looked at my watch. It was ten past five. I'll wait for Nick here for a while. The weather is so nice today.
(clock ticking)

Yura
It's already five o'clock. I'll probably wait for her inside.

*Sound 20*

(clock ticking)

Frame 4
*The time on his phone is 19:26

Yura
Oh.... The takoyaki were delicious. Probably they would have been better in a company. But I guess I'll never know.

Frame 5
*restaurant hall

Yura
Can I have the bill, please!

Author.
I called her about 15 times, but never got an answer. Haha, apparently it's a very important lesson and preparations are going on very actively. I'm curious to hear what she has to say when she gets home.

*[Beep 16]

Frame 6
* evening street

Author.
We've never had anything like this happen before. I was worried that something had happened. But her phone was on, just probably on silent.
And it showed that she had logged into messengers not so long ago.
This is very unpleasant.... Very......
We will need to have a serious talk, but only tomorrow. I don't want anything else today.

Yura
Since we have a date with ourselves today, we might as well go for a walk. It's been a long time since I've done a detox like this.

Author.
Late autumn evening. Fallen trees, freshness, and a few puddles here and there.
Pleasant coolness.
I see that man over there almost every day. I think he works at a law firm not far from our university. And that elderly couple are our neighbors from the third entrance. They seem to have been together for over 60 years.
It's so calm. Except it's a deceptive feeling. I impose it on myself in order not to pay attention to the pustule inside, which is spreading its black tentacles, to my whole soul.

Yura
Okay. Nothing terrible happened. She just stayed late in class, or maybe the jackpot surprise for tomorrow is so big that she sacrificed tonight's date for it.

Author.
It turned out that I walked around until 10 p.m. Nika logged on again 15 minutes ago.
Maybe it's time to go home?

Yura
I don't want to go home.

Author.
I want to stay longer in this pleasant, albeit deceptive, calm. Come to think of it, autumn itself is deceptive.
Red, yellow, and burgundy leaves are falling from the trees, enveloping everything around with color and beauty, but this is their farewell dance before they die.
Sad....

Frame 7
*The entrance hall of the house

Author.
I returned almost at midnight. On the way to the house, the windows in our bedroom were on fire.
Nika is already home.

Nika
Where did you go for so long?

Author.
She tried to put on a disgruntled face, but she definitely felt guilty, even though she hid it.

Yura
....

Nika
Why didn't you call me? And why did you turn off your phone?

Yura
I called.

Nika
By the way, speaking of dates.

Yura
I'm not interested.

Nika
You don't understand. It's just that my student has an exam in a week, and she asked me very strongly to work with her intensively during this time.

Yura
Oh well. That's too bad.

Nika
Seriously! You're mad at me because I stayed late at work and didn't go out with you, even though we do it every weekend. Oh, my God! We live under the same roof!

Yura
No. It's okay. I'm sure your student will do well. With a teacher like you, she's sure to pass all her exams. By the way, how long have you been studying?

Nika
It's been two months now, why?

Yura
What is her name?

Nika
Her, uh, her name is Marina.

Yura
I see. How old is she?

Nika
Is this some kind of interrogation? She's 16.

Yura
I see.

Nika
Why are you asking all these stupid questions? Don't you believe me?

Yura
No, no, no. I was just curious.

Nika
What do you mean?

Yura
You're just lying to me. While I was walking, I was reading and found out that in Ukraine you can have sex reassignment surgery from the age of 25. And Marina is only 16, so it turns out you're lying.

Nika
What is this nonsense? What have you been drinking?

Yura
You may have forgotten, but you keep a spreadsheet of your clients' payments on my laptop. Besides, I helped you set it up. And as far as I remember, last Wednesday, when you filled it out, there was no Marina there.
There were only 4 guys there, all junior high school students.

Nika
Я..

Yura
So I thought it was quite strange. It's hardly possible that you could not put it in the table if you've been practicing for two months. You can't be that forgetful. Unless one of those guys became Marina.

Author.
She didn't expect me to slip up on such a small thing. Maybe she thought I would just put the brakes on it, pretend I didn't notice? Or would I just sincerely believe what she said?

Yura
(whispering) Naive.

Nika
What?

Yura
I'm going to take a shower and go to bed.

Nika
You always do that! You just go away again.

Yura
I don't want to communicate with liars.

Nika
Am I the liar?

Yura
If not, then show me this Marina. Let's go right now. Or easier, get your preparatory materials, textbooks, notes out of your bag. Come on!

Nika
I don't have any! I did not study with any Marina.

Yura
Then where were you?

Nika
What difference does it make! I don't know where you've been all this time and haven't answered my calls.

*Sound 21*

Yura
(sound of fake laughter) That was strong.
I don't want to continue this conversation.

Nika
You're not going anywhere until we talk!
What's going on in general?

Yura
There is no point in talking. You didn't come to our meeting today, even though you promised in the morning that you would. And when I came home, you attacked me for some trivial thing without saying a word about it.
So what do you want from me?

Nika
Я...

Yura
What are you doing?

Nika
Please sit down! I can't take it anymore! I'm tired of everything. I don't have the strength... . (starts crying)

Yura
Can't I k?

Nika
I was with a guy... .

Yura
With whom?

Author.
She must be joking.

Nika
I can't say.

Yura
And what did you do with it?

Nika
Yura .... I don't want this relationship anymore.

Author.
Later, replaying this scene a thousand times in my head, I remembered that in her eyes there was no sadness or longing, no pain, but rather a scream, she begged me to fix everything.
She screamed with all her might through the soundproof glass and begged for help.
"Yura! Yura! Yura! Save me! Save us! Do something!"
Maybe she was hoping that I would quickly wrap gauze around the hole in her heart and mine.
I'm going to put gauze on both of us so that we can't get separated and do something stupid. So that we don't make mistakes that will cause us so much pain.
They did not destroy what we did not even build, but life itself. And we, as vain people who have tasted the fruit of truth, took everything and broke it, simply not realizing the value and complexity of everything we had built.
I don't know. What would I have done if I had heard it in time....

Yura
Nika , do you no longer want this relationship?

Nika
I'm confused... I don't understand anything anymore.... You are such a valuable and necessary person, but you are so far away....

Yura
Are you saying you don't love me anymore?

Nika
I didn't say that! I don't understand anything myself. I just don't want to be around you. But when I imagine being without you, I feel pain, unbearable pain inside. And then I see you again and I feel disgusted.

Yura
Do I disgust you? So it's me, not you, who's seeing someone else behind your back?

Nika
I had no choice! I don't understand anything! I'm scared! This whole situation with my parents, the institute, living on my own, a mountain of responsibility - it's all so complicated! And then there's you and Vlad, walking around like the living dead forever. And you don't notice that a gap is growing between us!

Yura
Any problem can be solved before it grows into something bigger. Until the point of no return is passed. Tell me, Nika, have we passed it?

Nika
Yuro ...

Yura
But before you answer, it turns out what? All these years, all these days, all these words you said. Yesterday, this morning, then on the playground, as a child, at my brother's funeral, on our anniversary, on New Year's Day, on Christmas and Valentine's Day. Thousands of words-are they all ashes to you now? Garbage? Sand that needs to be shaken off? Do I understand correctly?

Nika
It is not!

Yura
If none of this is true, then why did you go out with the leftist guy? Why did you lie to me? Why didn't you just decide to talk to me and run away?

Nika
I didn't do anything wrong! I just...

Yura
You are simple. So all this time you were "simple" and I was complicated. That's the problem!

Nika
None of this is true! I really loved you, and I love you now. I will always love you. I just don't want to be with you anymore.

Author.
Even though I knew internally that it was over, my head still thought it was a joke or a dream and continued to cling to anything I could grab onto.

Yura
Have we passed the point of no return?

Nika
What are you talking about?

Yura
You understand. Did you pass it?

Nika
Yes...

Yura
...

Nika
I'm sorry. It wasn't supposed to be like this. I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you.

Yura
Well... That's it.

Author.
All the emotions would catch up with me later. I had this little backlash, a little adrenaline pause, during which I could run as far as possible. So far that all the stupid thoughts, experiences, emptiness and hellish pain would not catch up with me. And I just wanted to run. To run at full speed. To run away from all the familiar landscapes, from everything that could spoil my illusion that this was not a dream.

Nika
Don't be silent! Please. Say something. We won't become strangers to each other, will we? Please, Jura! I'm sorry.

Yura
I won't be able to look at you and smile anymore. Alas, we are strangers now...

Author.
I don't know how long this conversation lasted. I don't know what day it is and what day it will be tomorrow. I don't know anything. I only know that I have to go.
I never looked at her again. I just couldn't. Instantly, she became unreal to me - an illusion of consciousness or a mirage.

Nika
Where are you going?

Yura
...

Nika
Don't go!

Author.
All Nika could hear was the slam of a closed door.
(sound of the door closing loudly)
Maybe she heard the sound of her own heart, or maybe she heard her downstairs neighbor wake up and start arguing because of the loud noises.
I don't know.
I don't think I know anything else.