Chapter ９

When I wake up, there is freshly brewed coffee in the kitchen, but there is no trace of Machel around. I investigate the inside of the home as well as the outside, and I discover that his automobile is gone. As I stand outside Leonid's room and listen, I can hear him snoring softly.

When Leonid finally joins me, it seems as if I've been sitting in the backyard all by myself for a long time. Now that I think about it, quite a few hours have passed. He has a tough appearance. Extremely harsh.

"Morning," he says with a voice that sounds as if it was overworked all night long the previous night. When he leans in for a short kiss, I have to suppress a shiver since I can smell the cigarette smoke on his breath.

"Did you have an enjoyable evening?"

“Yeah!” He lets out a chuckle and then sags back onto the chair that is next to mine. In lieu of providing more explanation, he groans, "Fuck, I'm so hungover."