Tsvetana Alekhina "Vodoroten"

– Are you laughing?

– Unfortunately, no. This creature has been walking around the city for about ten days. There were no attacks, but people are in fear. He also robbed Auchan, stole food and clothes. The young woman stood in fear as well as all the locals.

– Stay with me. A man’s voice calmed the landlady of the apartment. Gena was waiting for everyone to leave.

– I have restored the tabs!

– «Not that. The story dragged on for an hour. Gena felt himself falling apart. Fortunately, for him, no one used the kitchen faucet.

– Interesting pages. We are dealing with a mutant. In my opinion, this is not just a police matter.

– I underestimated her. It turns out she has a man. Gene thought, exhausted from the heat of the drainpipe.

– I found his social page.

– «Not that. Varya! A heart-rending silent scream rang out. Gena was flying down the drainpipe. Unable to remember himself from fear, he was already swimming against the current on the Oka. Here it is the right tributary of the Oka. The return route was already more or less known by its names. It was not far from Moksha to Tsna. – Consider me home. Gena did not make stops and reinforcements. All his thoughts were occupied with Varya.

– With the onset of December, the air temperature dropped significantly lower. The water was getting colder. A growth of ice could be seen from the shores. To his surprise, Gena did not feel the cold, or he simply had no time to feel it, he hurried to Varya, afraid not to make it before the police arrived.

December. The city was fully prepared for the New Year. In every park and square, near every ice palace, in every shopping center there was an elegant Christmas tree and pleased guests and residents of the city with its beauty. Performances were held in youth theaters. In the evening cafes, it was impossible to sit down; there were not enough free tables. Varya enjoyed the decoration of the city with all her appearance. Deep down, she was afraid to admit that she liked the hustle and bustle of the city and preparing for the holiday. Correspondence with Gena disturbed her peace. The girl was waiting for the next messages, but they did not arrive. Realizing that something had happened and Gena could not write, Varya patiently waited for him to act. Dasha’s pressure made her agree to meet the New Year in Tambov. Parents fully supported this idea. – That is right. Well done. Varya looked at her father in surprise. The father understood that the holiday with the family would turn into mourning, and the unfinished house under the windows would be an eternal grave that their daughter would forever mourn. In fact, it was. Varya did not know any other life. They had been friends with Gena since they were five years old. Varya not only did not know another life, she did not imagine another life. Just a few months ago, Varya did not even imagine that she would celebrate the New Year without Gena, with some little-known guys. If someone had told her about it, she would have considered it complete nonsense.

One thing is for sure that inВ one village on the outskirts ofВ the city there lived two inseparable children who dreamed ofВ getting married when they grew up, their love was childish, pure and immaculate. And just aВ few months before the wedding, each ofВ them began life with aВ clean slate. Only for each one individually. Only love remained inВ the air and did not know where toВ hide.

Gena arrived just in time. Varya was called to the police for questioning. – Where have you been?

– Gena spread his hands. Varya gave him a piece of paper.

– I cannot talk. Do not be afraid. Say you do not know anything.

– What have you done?

– Robbed a store. I need to sail away.

– Where to?

– I do not know yet. Perhaps to the Caspian Sea.

– «So far away?»

– The climate suits me. Varya’s lip was trembling. Her eyes glowed with tears. She could not stand it and clung to the transparent creature. The crystals of the Genes lit up with brighter colors. Not feeling the warmth of his body, Varya tapped the transparent statue with her fingers.

– You are zero. Gena raised his palms up, asking. – Your body temperature is zero. Gena shrugged his shoulders. Once again snuggling up to feel what she was used to, the girl felt an unpleasant sensation. – Solid water. How can this be? Where are you going now? My friend is not here today. Gena joined both palms into one fist. As a sign that this is good news. I will soon. Varya pressed her cheek against the once familiar warm body and left the apartment.

The police interrogated Varya as a dangerous criminal. – You know Gennady Stolyarov.

– Of course. We were going to get married, and he went missing.

– Not missing yet.

– He will be missing in a month.

– As far as I know, you have an active correspondence.

– It is not a fact that it is he. This needs to be proved.

– That is, you are covering him.

– What exactly can I cover?

– «Who is he?» What is he? Where is he?

– About what is he? An interesting question. I know as well as anyone that he is missing. If he had come back, we would have been together.

– The dialogue on the social network indicates that it is he.

– I thought so too. Then he disappeared. And did not appear again. Interesting facts indicate that your boyfriend is not completely healthy.

– What is wrong with him?

– I cannot say. Nothing is clear yet.

– Maybe. Varya was sitting with such a serious look; it was obvious that she was not mentally here. – After he was taken out of the water, he had a serious cut on his leg. It was going heavy bleeding; I had to bandage the wound.

– Unfortunately, I have nothing more to ask you. Varya politely left the office.

Varya flew home as fast as she could. Opening the door, she scattered her shoes and entered the kitchen dressed. Empty kitchen, empty bathroom. – Where are you? Varya came into the room. Gena was sitting on a chair at his laptop. Varya breathed a sigh of relief. – In short, the police know that you are you.

– I know. I wrote a Gene at Microsoft.

– What are you going to do?

– Hiding.

– Where? How?

– I came to say goodbye to you. I am sailing away forever. Water is my home. The lines were placed on a white sheet. To Varya’s eyes, they were blurry gray spots. It seemed to her that she was reading a death sentence.

– How? What about us?

– How do you imagine everything? I do not know who I am, and what will happen next.

– I will make you normal. We are going to the hospital. Varya’s words sounded like a conversation with herself. After the last words, Gena burst like a soap ball, splattering her and the room. Varya came to her senses.

– THIS IS THE END. She read it. Sitting on her knees, Varya looked like a novice who bowed her head in confession.

– I am sorry. It is my fault. I did not listen to you. I took a swim during a thunderstorm. The doorbell rings. Varya shuddered. Gena pointed to the door with his hand. Varya went to open it.

– Who?

– The police. Varya came in and looked into the room. Gene turned off the laptop, a second later many inconspicuous silicone snowflakes appeared on the window, shimmering with bright colors. Varya opened the door.

– Search. The police were scouring the rooms trying to find clues.

– What are you looking for?

– We do not know ourselves. The interrogator said with a laugh. Varya humbly watched the search.

– He is not here.

– And what is this? The interrogator pointed with his hand at the girl’s wet clothes.

– I was washing the tiles in the bathroom for the holiday. I have the right. Varya was confident. It is, as he does not understand what is going on.

– Is there a tile in the room? Where is the TV? The interrogator pointed with his hand at the wet TV.

– I spilled a basin of water when I was washing the top of the closet.

– It does not look like it. The interrogator raised his voice. —Where is he?» The interrogation turned into an ore. – Did you wet the keyboard too? The man pressed the button. The laptop was turned on just that.

– I was listening to music.

– And hastily turned off the laptop with wet hands. And you listened in the Word program.

– I will hire a lawyer. You are slandering me.

– And you are good. The man approached the girl in a tight. —You are too smart for your age. The tip of his finger lifted the girl’s chin. At that moment, one of the snowflakes fell off the glass.

– I do not live here alone. I have witnesses that Gena was not here. Is the wet floor proof?

– For your wet friend, this is direct proof. Alternatively, do you think I do not know who he is? I saw a video of him robbing a store.

– I do not know what you mean. And here is a wet friend and a store. And what I have to do with it. What are you even talking about? Are you out of your mind?

– We will meet again. Do we understand each other? Isn’t it? The interrogator looked intently at Varya and reluctantly left the apartment. As soon as he came out, Gena found himself next to Varya. The doorbell rings again. The gene has disappeared. Varya hastily wiped the wet floor.

– Who?

– The police. Having examined the apartment once again, the man silently left. The door slammed shut. This time, Gena was not around. The window in the room was open. The marks on the mirror said that he would come back. Varya was standing with a rag in her hand. Their dialogue remained unfinished. She did not want to clean up the traces of Gena and especially the police. She loved one too much, hated the other too much.

– When it is all over. Gena promised to spend the night with her. But for some reason, he suddenly disappeared.

The roof ofВ the police car was covered with aВ viscous substance. They did not know about it. It was not difficult for Gena toВ stretch out like aВ pancake on aВ plate. Gena was not interested inВ the case brought against him as aВ mutant. He firmly knew that it was impossible toВ catch him. This so-to-speak whirlpool was driven byВ hatred caused byВ jealousy. Gena firmly decided toВ take revenge for such an unacceptable treatment ofВ his beloved freckled young lady. On the way toВ the police station, Gennady managed toВ partially eavesdrop on the conversation. From what he overheard, he realized that the danger was more threatening toВ Varya than toВ him. The investigator leading the case decided toВ mock Varya and use her toВ get on his trail.

The Tambov police themselves could not advertise that they were looking for a mutant. Gennady Stolyarov was wanted. Since January, this person could be officially considered missing. There was not much time left. Accordingly, the police were confused, a video posted on YouTube where an unknown person drank beer in one of the night bars of Ryazan and burst blew up the Internet. There was only one thing that could unite this monster and Gena – it was a correspondence in contact, the direct text indicated that something supernatural had happened to Gennady. And breaking into a woman’s apartment without breaking in. The traces left behind indicated not a one-day stay in the house of an incomprehensible creature.

2. IВ am theВ best

Dark evening of December was somewhat similar to the polar night. It’s also cold, it’s also dark. Of course, there was not much snow, but the cold and darkness came on time and forced the townspeople to hurry home even not so late in the evening. After the end of the working day, a hated enemy appeared on the threshold of the police station. Sitting behind the wheel and turning on the engine to warm up the car, the man lazily watched as the wipers wiped the frozen windows. Meanwhile, the viscous liquid spread over the roof of his car. On the way home, the side and front windows were covered with film. Ruslan braked sharply. A sharp blow from behind forced me to step on the gas. From that moment on, Ruslan drove at random. He failed to open the side window; the tight film tightly tightened the glass. Ruslan opened the door on the move. The viscous liquid completely covered the front window. The side and rear cars honked, making it clear that the driver’s strange action interferes with movement. Despite the crowded traffic, Ruslan had to stop the car. Outside, he rushed to the front windshield. Touching the layer stuck to the glass with his hands, he tried to peel it off. Anger seized the already aggressive man. Ruslan no longer knew what he wanted more to catch or destroy the water mutant. Of course, first catch, and then destroy. Not having the right to stand in the middle of the highway, Ruslan picked up a non-freezing liquid and splashed it on the glass. The colored tortilla bounced like a live fish in a frying pan. This picture caused many cars to slow down. Artisans filmed videos on the phone. Always hurrying somewhere nervously honked. There was a traffic jam on the Astrakhan Bridge. The colored cake took the form of a man. Purple crystals displayed a bright red color, indicating the resulting burn.

– Who is this? Gena jumped down from the bridge without thinking twice. Unfortunately, for him, the water in the river was covered with a crust of ice. This did not prevent him from escaping and hiding from human eyes.

The eyewitnesses who saw the fantastic picture did not take long to wait for Word of Mouth ran through Tambov. A short video was walking on the Internet. Gena was beginning to realize that he had no place among people. In the summer, it was much easier for him. Walking along the night beach in his village of Goreloe, he felt at home, and thought that this would always be the case. Summer ended, taking with it the body and the comfort of home. There came a merciless cold and cruel persecution. Every day Gennady became unsociable. Only an incomplete love for Varya kept him in Tambov. The cold did not bother him much. Gradually, his body lost sensitivity to subzero temperatures. Only occasionally, it did not need heating for a long time. Having lost track of the investigator, Gennady did not know where to spend the night, at Varya’s? Alternatively, say goodbye to your native places? Weighing all the pros and cons, the cup of love outweighed the native places.

Thanks to its viscous consistency, the Gene got from Astrakhan Street to Internationalnaya Street quickly. Having made his way through the hole in the bathroom, this was his main entrance to Varya’s apartment, Gena knocked on the door of the room. – Come in. Varya said with a laugh, knowing who was knocking. The transparent man walked around the apartment as a permanent resident. Opening the refrigerator, he stuffed meat products into his mouth. Varya looked at him with the same loving eyes, as if nothing had happened. From the outside, they actually looked like husband and wife. A hungry husband and a loving wife at the refrigerator. The meal was over without heating and serving food on the table. – How great! And you don’t need to cook. You can be fed semi-finished products. Gena stroked his stomach with his hands. The incoming food instantly dispersed through the body, turning into small dots. The crystals shone with a bright purple color, as a sign that everything was fine with the body. Varya, putting her fist to her chin, looked mysteriously at the small particles. – What else can you turn into besides snowflakes? A huge cake appeared in front of Varya, shining with bright lights. – Great! Varya clapped her hands. Gene wanted to talk, but he could not. Taking a pen in his hands and now he and Varya were already trying to write a synopsis of the Gene, wet fingers hindered him in this matter.

– I need to leave. I cannot stay here.

– But why?

– I do not belong in this city. The world. I need to sail far away.

– I need you. I will become like you. Gena put his finger to her lips.

– It is impossible. You need to arrange your life. I will be in your way. It is hard for me to be here. Our love will remain in childhood. She is not dead. She will live in the past. Varya burst into tears. She believed until the last moment that Gena would return eventually. But after hearing and reading his words, she could not swallow the lump that rolled up to her throat. These lines were reminiscent of a melodrama, only not of a book she had read, but of her life.

– That is not true. Varya punched Gena, her hand went through his body. Abruptly withdrawing her hand back, she examined her fist and from under her eyebrows looked at the tightening hole in the chest of the water statue. Sitting down in a chair, she continued to sob. Gena wiped her tears with wet fingers. Suddenly his body began to spread out, and he ran to the bathroom. – What happened? The sound of the shower turned on made the girl look behind the curtain. – Ice water? You feel bad from the heat. That is the reason. Varya’s head was splitting apart. Since the development of these events, a sedative and analgesic appeared in Vari’s first aid kit. After drinking both, the girl calmed down a little.

Gena understood that he had no place inВ any city. Wherever he is, there will be panic everywhere. Every day an animal instinct developed inВ him. He wanted freedom more and more, and he lost the need for people. Confident that when he leaves Tambov and stops contact with Varya, the police will leave Varya alone, and talk about the monster will eventually subside.

It was a sad night. The farewell to Varya, or you can say it with undead love, was imprinted in the memory of each of them as an unlamented mourning. Dawn has not come yet. A key turned in the door lock. – This is Dasha. Gena waved goodbye and disappeared into the bathroom. Varya did not have time to say anything in response.

– Hi. You are not sleeping! I brought so many delicious things.

– That is you by the way. I ate everything. Varya covered the night guest.

– Replenished the spent reserves!

– Exactly. All right.

– I do not want to go to class so much. Maybe we will take a walk. Varya had been thinking about it since the night before.

– Come on. I do not want to crawl out into the street either. My friends stayed at home. Having made the table sweet, the girls warmed themselves with hot coffee. «Dasha couldn’t stand it and asked,» tell me honestly, did anyone come to you?

– What makes you think that?

– It is just that the smell of the built is very strong.

– Yes. And what does it smell like? If it is not a secret.

– «I don’t know. Either by dampness. Either with salt. Some kind of man. Varya laughed in response.

– You will not believe it. But the police came here yesterday. With a search. They were looking for a Gene.

– Yeah, well. So what?

– Like what? Is he here?

– Of course not. But no one saw him dead. So he’s alive.