3

Opera House

It may be strange to meet in one day, out of forty thousand people, precisely those two who lived in neighboring houses. To some, this might even seem suspicious: deserving of special attention and some caution in communication. However, it’s not that Leah didn’t fall into the number of suspicious paranoids; now she was rather barely worried about the very fact of the existence of a new acquaintance, not to mention his proximity and obvious desire to get closer.

After she got out of the water, the air temperature seemed to drop by ten degrees. Sharp, angry gusts of wind forced her to shiver from the cold: they pierced through her long summer cardigan with a large knit, blew their cool breath on the wet fabric of jeans and slip-ons - they did everything to make her teeth beat out the ragged tap dance.

Wrapping herself tighter in her jacket, Leah ran up the stairs, leaving behind her a trail of wet sole impressions and damp sand on the steps. She tried to keep her mouth slightly open so as not to attract attention to herself so obviously and loudly.

In turn, Neil did not lag behind a single step, practically stepping on her heels and breathing down her back. Every time he managed to catch her gaze, as soon as she glanced fleetingly over her shoulder, it was as if he himself had never taken his eyes off the back of her head for a second.

The indecently frank interest on the part of a handsome guy flattered most girls. And even if they were not interested in a particular young man, being, for example, in a relationship, this did not stop them from fluffing their tails with the look: “I’m all so unavailable.” Leah belonged to that category of eccentrics who did not enjoy this kind of thing at all. And on any other day she would have been sincerely indignant that she again found herself a target for the lustfully boring beady eyes under the relaxed arches of expressive eyebrows. But the morning memories of the brainstorm that my mother had organized because of her unkempt appearance still echoed faintly in her memory, calling out to her quiet gloating.

“I take it you will follow me all the way home?” - Leah said without turning around.

- Why do I need it? I already know where you live.

“Persecution implies an intent other than simple surveillance.

“If I wanted to cause harm, I wouldn’t miss a lot of opportunities.” For example, you could accidentally slip on those stairs.

“Well, it’s hard to break a neck here,” she said with a grin, looking back at the steep wooden steps surrounded by high railings. “But I’ll pretend that I’m a little scared.”

“It wasn’t my intention to scare you,” Neil responded mysteriously, deftly catching her elusive gaze.

He was clearly waiting for Leah to want to clarify what was included in his plans then, thereby giving the go-ahead to embark on an exciting game of flirting with each other. It's amazing how one seemingly harmless question could serve as a straightforward invitation to flirt.

Stopping near a metal pole not far from the intersection, she involuntarily touched the raised letters on the lower sign while reading the unfamiliar names. Pointed signs looking in different directions apparently referred to neighboring cities within a radius of two hundred kilometers. These pillars would be much more useful if they helped to navigate inside the city - otherwise, they were a useless accessory, near which only tourists could take pictures.

“In general, I only know one way home and I doubt that it’s a short one,” Leah honestly admitted.

Suddenly Neil laughed. His laughter had a sensual hoarseness that sent a pleasant shiver through her hands, rushing into her momentarily frozen heart. And the look that followed the laughter completely disarmed her. There was a childish, sincere joy and genuine admiration in him - with similar glances he looked at desired puppies, magnificent fireworks and modest but pleasant lottery wins.

— Would you like to take a walk to one place first? - He closed his eyes, took a deep breath, as if he was sniffing something, and briefly commented: - The smell of ozone has become stronger.

Leah looked around, noticing that there was not a soul on the streets. The city died out, and the thunder that thundered in a rolling crescendo helped her understand why.

“Let’s run, it’s about to rain,” grabbing her wrist, hidden under the long sleeve of her cardigan, he rushed diagonally along the unusually empty road. And it doesn’t matter that at any moment a car could appear, emerging from behind a dense row of miniature houses.

The city was built on the hills. That’s why, walking along the narrow streets all the time, you either climb a mountain or fly down without much effort. And only from the beach could one fully enjoy the wonderful view. A view that made your hands itch, anticipating work on the painting. Lost between tall, overgrown trees, the town crawled onto a hill with many small passes and stepped slopes. And the gray and red tiled roofs of the buildings successfully diluted the richness of the greenery that was still untouched in autumn.

On the opposite sidewalk they passed several more houses. We turned towards a building that was huge compared to the rest and barely had time to dive under the visor at the back door; the rain poured down like a thick wall. If they had not found shelter, they would have been soaked to the skin in a matter of seconds.

Neil took out a key from under a stone hidden behind a flower pot and opened the door, letting Leah, who was looking back incredulously, into the dark and dusty room first.

She walked unsteadily in the pitch darkness after being deprived of her only source of light - an open doorway, and expected that her foot was about to bump into steps or at least a wall. But no matter how many small steps she took, she still remained completely unaware, with a slowly growing sense of anxiety.

However, not only could Leah not even distinguish the silhouettes, but her hearing was deaf: she heard nothing except her own shuffling steps and deep breathing. Neil definitely remained on the other side of the door, leaving her alone with loneliness and darkness, surrounding and spiritual.

— Are you going far? — a hoarse whisper scorched his ear with hot breath.

Startled, she turned around abruptly and tried to push him away, but in reality she only succeeded in waving her fearfully raised hands in the void.

“I see you’re partial to jokes that frighten others,” Leah said slowly, trying to add indifference to her voice, while simultaneously feeling the space around her.

Finally, her fingertips barely touched something soft and smooth with a sliding movement. And she, as if afraid of losing something tangible in the kingdom of darkness, pressed her palms to the warm cotton fabric. But as soon as she felt the hard male chest underneath, she immediately pulled her hands away in embarrassment.

Leah didn’t even have time to squeak, the next moment Neil leaned forward, and she found herself pressed by someone else’s body against the rough wall.

“Who knows what I’m partial to,” he said hoarsely.

The switch clicked, and the fluorescent lights flickered noisily and gradually lit up, illuminating the long corridor at the beginning of which they stood.

It took some time for the eyes to adapt to the bright light after being in the dark for a long time. And the first thing she could clearly distinguish was the brightly outlined lips stretched out in a roguish smile: the upper one was thin, but expressive, and the lower one was plump and slightly chapped.

Neil did not take his eyes off her, his hypnotically affecting eyes, so bottomlessly black that it was hard to believe in the existence of such a dark iris.

Warmth spread across my cheeks; Leah turned her head, burning with the desire to hide her treacherously flushed face behind her palms, and asked laconically:

— Lenses?

- And you?

- Well, yes, heterochromia is in fashion now.

Chuckling quietly, he took a step back and waited until she, still struggling with signs of embarrassment, pulled away from the wall, casting a quick glance at him - perhaps too eloquent, flattering his vanity. But, alas, you can’t see yourself from the outside.

“Let’s go,” Neil put his hands in the bulging pockets of his jeans and headed forward along the corridor.

She liked walking behind Leah much more, having the opportunity to quietly look at him from behind. From the back of the head with hair crumpled after sleep to the fringed ends of the trouser legs that covered the heels of the sneakers. No matter how you look at it, he’s her type.

Neatness in clothing, conservatism in hairstyle and straight posture have long lost their popularity among young people. They were replaced by artificial sloppiness and careless carelessness in movements. Perhaps she was a typical product of her time, wrapped in oversized sweaters and cardigans, combining incongruous things: floral chiffon dresses with rough ankle boots that made her mother's eyelid twitch nervously - but she had already formed her own sense of beauty.

However, unlike Kayla, she did not seek to impose her tastes on anyone. She didn’t look askance with contempt at girls and women who pulled on dresses so short that they barely covered their panties, and didn’t look down on neatly dressed excellent students in shirts that were perfectly ironed and buttoned to the last button. She respected other people's choices. And I expected the same for myself.

Slowing down at the door, Neil opened it slightly and looked out through a small crack. He opened it wider and said in a whisper:

- Try not to make noise.

He hit another switch; all the lamps in the corridor went out. Again, he grabbed Leah by the wrist in a possessive manner and pulled Leah towards the huge marble staircase.

Contrary to expectations, they did not rise to the very top. Neil led her into a huge room with high arched windows, filled with expensive-looking wooden tables, soft chairs, corduroy armchairs and sofas. Not far from the entrance there was a long bar counter, an empty distribution line and cabinets with shelves open for goods - it was towards them that he moved.

- As I understand it, your actions do not smell of legality? — Leah asked indifferently, sitting down on a high stool at the bar.

“They smell like risk and fun,” Neil answered without turning around, diligently rummaging through the shelves with rustling packages. — Are you not at all disturbed by what is happening around you? You behave so phlegmatically, as if such outings are a common thing for you.

- Should we?.. If we are caught, I’ll pretend to be a hostage.

- Cunning. But we are unlikely to be caught. You see, Wednesdays are a legal day off here, and there is no one in the entire building except the security guard on the first floor. Video cameras are installed only in front of the central entrance, and the old man rarely makes the rounds.

- What kind of place is it? Everything around is so expensive and luxurious. The only thing missing from the ceiling is stucco.