Having driven the motorcycle into the box, I pressed the button to close the gate, but, as luck would have it, they crawled down treacherously slowly. Uritsky didn’t even have to make a signature slide like in popular action movies, when the hero literally rolls into a narrow gap between the lowering gate and the floor. No, he calmly parked his bike, turned off the engine and entered the garage with only a slight bow of his head.

“What the hell, Polina?

Inside, everything shrank from the thought that in a few seconds the gate would finally fall and he and I would be left alone in a closed space. In a very limited space. It’s not like I’m running, I don’t even have anywhere to retreat. There was barely enough room for my car and my brother's motorcycle.

“Come on, you’ll save me from the lecture that it’s not good to take other people’s things, but I promise that I won’t do it again and we will peacefully disperse on this, huh?”

“What the hell were you thinking when you came into that corner?” Are you tired of living?

And just as my black-black heart began to thaw at the thought that he cares about my health, he added:

“I thought suicide attempts were a thing of the past.

It was a blow below the belt, but I remembered all my father's lessons from the category of “keep your face in any situation” and tried to fake a smirk.

“I thought I left you in the past too.” But here you are again, for the second time in a day, please note. So it's still a moot point who is more disappointed.

- Enough swearing. And how long have you, I wonder, been hanging around here in the absence of Max?

- If I answer that today was my first time and in general, I had never approached motorcycles before, would you believe me? I gave him my most innocent smile.

The smile, as I had supposed in principle, had no effect on him. He continued to rapaciously approach me, and I involuntarily took a step back and realized that, by and large, there was nowhere for me to retreat, the back rested against the hot side of the bike.

“I think you should be more worried about what your brother will believe… or better yet, what your father will believe when I tell him how you spend your free time.”

“Wow, how far have you fallen. Are you really bullying me with daddy right now? I'm not a schoolgirl anymore, Gleb.

“I see,” Uritsky’s gaze swept over my entire body, covered in leather equipment. He swallowed loudly and even shook his head slightly, as if disagreeing with his own thoughts.

— At school you had other entertainments, as far as I remember. Although in terms of drama, your extreme driving fits in well with the overall outline. One thing is unclear, why so few viewers?

“I didn’t want to embarrass you, I thought you would feel embarrassed that you blew the race to the girl. Next time we will definitely gather more spectators. Just name the date.

“Wait a second, I’ll just check with your father about his schedule. I'm sure he'll want a front row seat.

- I understand that my father is your only trump card? Tell anyone, anyway, Max will return soon and the road to the track is booked for me. The button to open the gate is on your right, be a good boy, press it and get out of here. I need to change.

- Seriously? Are you giving up so quickly? You won't even try to talk me into keeping this a secret?

“As far as I remember, you and secrets don’t really go together. I won’t be surprised if the whole university finds out about this tomorrow,” I waved my hand in the direction of the motorcycle. But like I said, we're not at school anymore. You won't be able to ruin my life a second time.

- Ruin your life ... I already forgot how much you like to dramatize everything. I dare to remind you that in terms of destruction you have no equal. I just told everyone why you missed a month of school. Your friends were worried, worried, it would be inhumane to leave them in the dark.

- The truth? I just smiled bitterly. “You told them your truth, Gleb. My truth stayed with me. It makes no sense to try to convey it to strangers even if you and Max refused to listen to me. So do us both a favor, press the damn button and get out of here.

Flaring his nostrils angrily and continuing to drill me with a mocking look, he blew the air out of his lungs with a noise:

- Okay, I'm ready. Let's pretend that I was not there four years ago and I did not see anything with my own eyes. Tell me what really happened there.

— No. Four years ago you didn't give me a chance to explain anything, now I don't give a damn what you think of me.

And since he did not make the slightest movement towards the exit, I decided to press the button to open the gate myself. Adrenaline was still seething in my blood, I was afraid that if I stayed with him in a closed space for even a minute, I would express everything that had been accumulating inside all these years or even worse, I would want to smear his nasty grin on a pretty face.

“That's all you are,” Uritsky exploded and blocked my path to the lifting mechanism with his hand. Most importantly, more drama. Grow up, Polina.

It seems that he was still saying something, but I just looked at his hand, which lay exactly on my chest. I managed to unbutton my leather jacket before that, and now through the thin top I distinctly felt the heat emanating from it. Noticing that I did not answer, he followed my gaze and, it seems, only now noticed how “successfully” his palm landed. But for some reason he was in no hurry to remove it.

“Remove your hand, Uritsky,” I said angrily.

“Are you sure this is what you want?” he asked, and I noticed a muscle twitch in his neck.

I was about to say something along the lines of “Of course, you jerk,” but I realized that my mouth was so dry that I couldn’t squeeze out a word. Lungs were filled with the smell of mint with an admixture of leather gear. I exhaled noisily and licked my dry lips, while Gleb eagerly followed my every move. He turned me around, placing his other hand on my waist.

“There were times when you would have sold your soul to have my hands on you.

“But they were replaced by times when I would have sold my soul to never see you again,” I said in a barely audible voice. But she didn't try to take her hand off. Damn adrenaline! If the smart guys are to be believed, it should be over by now, so what the hell is going on with me? Why does my heart keep pounding and I feel like I can still feel the motorcycle vibrating in my stomach?

"In that case, close your eyes," he whispered close to my ear and kissed me.