Chapter 26

First Konstantin's eyes were blinded by daylight, then his ears were pierced by a telephone ring. Kostya found himself on the bed still wearing his suit. He got up, made his way to the telephone, which lay where he had dropped it the day before.

"Yes," Kostya spoke into the phone in a weary voice.

"Hello, I called you yesterday, where were you?" came Henry's voice.

"I was somewhat occupied," Kostya answered evasively.

"I wanted to talk with you more about our meeting yesterday. Will you be in the office today? We still need to discuss one matter related to those excavations we planned last month. Funding and all that," Henry reminded him.

"Why don't you handle it yourselves somehow. I'm feeling rather unwell, give me one day off. Besides, I need to think some things through," Kostya informed him, and the friends said their goodbyes.

Some time later Kostya made himself presentable. He tidied up the kitchen, which had been devastated the night before, as much as was possible. He remained in a euphoric state of imperturbability and insensibility. He had given vent to all his possible emotions yesterday; today he felt somehow emptied. He had no desire to read, or write, or watch films. The telephone rang. "But I asked for a day off!" Kostya complained mentally. He picked up the telephone; Liza was calling him.

"Hello, decided to invite me to the wedding after all?" Konstantin asked sarcastically.

"No..., there will be no wedding," Liza answered sadly.

"Are you crying?" Kostya asked, hearing her voice.

"No," Elizabeth lied.

"What happened? Why? Where is he?" To his own surprise, Kostya asked these questions with alarm and indignation.

"I don't know..., he wasn't answering his phone, and then a message came from him...," Liza sighed heavily without finishing.

"Where are you? Do you have work today? Oh damn..., what work, today is a day off. Come to my place, shall I come pick you up or will you come yourself?" Kostya began to realize what had happened, but he found it rather unpleasant to hear his Friend's voice so distressed.

"No..., don't. I'll come myself. I need to put myself in order. I'll come by later, I don't know where else to go anyway," Elizabeth answered, trying to give her voice some confidence.

"All right, I'll be waiting then. See you soon." Kostya hung up.

For two hours Kostya paced back and forth across the room. He was not prepared for this. "There will be no wedding. There will be no wedding," he repeated to himself. "She's coming here. So, the room seems to be in order. The kitchen is somewhat in disarray, but generally in order. I haven't seen her in a long time, haven't spoken to her. The last..." He tried to remember how long they had not communicated. "The last four months, only brief phrases. Where? What are you doing? Nothing of substance. Since the time we quarreled more than a year ago, we haven't spoken properly even once. Do I know her now?" Konstantin began to grow nervous. "Of course I know her, this is Elizabeth. This is Liza, with whom we once spent three years nearly day by day."

Konstantin stood before the mirror in the hallway. He recalled the previous night. "Did I dream all of this? No, it was not a dream. I am not sleeping now, am I. Everything cannot be so simple, yesterday hell, today paradise." Many more thoughts were being born in Konstantin's head. It seemed he had never had so many thoughts simultaneously, not even when he was writing books or reviewing reports from the SRPS department heads. It was unclear how much longer Kostya remained in such somnambulism, perhaps an hour, perhaps two, when the doorbell rang. Konstantin opened the door.

He thought of nothing more. All the thoughts that had just possessed his head blended into a jumble. Before him stood Elizabeth in a black half-coat.

"Hello," was all Konstantin could utter in his amazement.

"Hello," Liza answered with embarrassment, and stepped across the threshold.

She entered the room to the left, removed her coat and laid it on the armchair. Kostya meanwhile made his way to the kitchen. "I should have asked for her coat. Some gentleman I am," he thought, and when Liza entered the kitchen, he asked, "Would you like something to eat? I'll try to prepare something now, and I should have some wine as well."

"Yes, that would be nice, I can help you with that. I don't think you've learned to cook since we last met," said Liza, examining Kostya's food supplies in the refrigerator, "but I really wouldn't refuse some wine, if it's good," Liza added with a slight smile.

"Of course it's good. Lately I can afford such luxury," Kostya answered boastfully.

Some time later they were eating, recalling certain moments of their past. The two of them particularly remembered well the carefree times of college.

"And you know, at first glance you seemed to me the most foolish of the boys in your group," Liza recalled with light mockery, sipping some wine from her glass.

"How deceiving first impressions can be. There were only three boys in my group," Kostya parried without taking offense at the mockery, "and yet Karolina Anatolievna for some reason still advised you to get acquainted with me."

"That was later already, we had already met ourselves. She said something else then as well," Elizabeth related mysteriously.

"And what was that?" Kostya asked with interest.

"That your wife would be fortunate," Elizabeth answered.

"Strange, and why would she say that? And why to you specifically?" Kostya too took a sip of wine with embarrassment. "In any case, had she known what our friendship would lead to, she wouldn't have advised getting acquainted with me. But do you remember what I asked you the first time?"

"Something about the mystical. I used to dress in gothic style then. It was such a period in my life."

"Yes, we used to talk for long evenings on that subject then," Kostya smiled, recalling pleasant moments. "And then that diary of mine, which I gave to you, and you returned it to me unread."

"I did read it," Liza confessed quietly.

"Honestly? Then why did you tell me you hadn't read it?" Kostya asked with surprise.

"Simply, I didn't want to spoil anything... And besides, how could I not have read it, I'm curious by nature. You read parts of it to me later as well," Liza recalled.

"Yes, that's true. Later I burned that diary. I still regret it. It always amazed me that so many events fit into such a relatively not short period of time," Kostya sighed, recalling those adventures yet again.

"Recently I found our film about the demon exorcism, with Henry's participation," Liza chuckled.

"Ah, yes, exactly. I laughed then as never before. That whole week was unforgettable, actually. And do you remember how we visited your friend in the hospital? Henry was the first to laugh at that strange old man. Although before that we had been restraining ourselves as best we could, with all our might," Kostya reminded her of the amusing incident.

"Yes, I remember," Elizabeth laughed.

"Henry was always straightforward. And even now he never restrains himself. Always says what he thinks. He might call certain high-ranking persons fat geese. But sincerity is a good trait, you see the unconcealed countenance of the one you rely upon," Konstantin concluded.

"I think moderation in this matter wouldn't hurt either," Liza supposed. "It's hard to believe that you actually achieved something, despite all your past escapades. I remember how once you walked to my place for a whole hour, though you were no more than a kilometer away. You were so drunk then."

"We simply never fit into the system of social prescriptions, and then we created our own, in which we succeeded," Konstantin declared proudly. "After all, all great people are prone to this, and to various other kinds of madness. For instance, Torquato Tasso, the Italian poet, said 'I do not deny that I am mad; but it pleases me to think that my madness comes from drunkenness and love, because I do indeed drink much.' Long before him, Aristotle spoke on this subject, saying that there has never been a great mind without an admixture of madness."

"But then, how many madmen there have been without an admixture of mind," Elizabeth parried wittily.

"That is true," Kostya agreed, and then, moving to more pressing matters, asked, "How are you feeling?"

"Well, somehow, nothing right now. It's hurtful, of course, I had already adjusted, reconciled myself. And then...," Liza was ready to cry, but in the next moment took hold of herself and continued, "And how are you? Haven't found a girlfriend yet?"

"There were a couple, but...," Kostya wanted to continue "there is no you in them," but instead answered, "I had no time. The SRPS statute requires nearly all documents to be sealed with the Magister's signature. And while you check everything, while you conduct several business meetings, several private sessions, there's no time left for a personal life. And are you still there, working as an accountant?"

"Yes, but after recent events I'll probably want to change jobs after all," Liza informed him.

"And rightly so. I'll help you, you'll become whatever you want. I remember, back in college we had an argument about psychologists. You defended them, while I called them useless liars. You could go study to become a psychologist, I'll arrange it. And if you understand it well, you could then join us. Roman Mavrodiy is our head of the psychology department, a good man, his books are becoming more and more popular, he'll soon overtake the Magister himself," Kostya said cheerfully, pointing at himself.

"Perhaps we'll see later," Liza answered in a calm tone. Kostya looked at the clock. Ten o'clock in the evening. More than six hours had passed since Elizabeth's arrival.

"If you like, we could go somewhere to take our minds off things. You can choose the place yourself, whatever your heart desires," Konstantin said in a concerned tone, looking at Elizabeth. "Just a year ago I couldn't have made you such an offer."

"I don't want to go anywhere," Liza raised her eyes to Kostya.

There was that gaze. Konstantin thought he would never see it again. It was as if he were standing with Liza again on that hill where he had not dared to kiss her. "No..., this time everything will be different," Kostya thought, and pressed his lips to hers. The sweet, long-awaited kiss of a sufferer tormented by time. Konstantin no longer possessed himself; he caressed Elizabeth tenderly and yet passionately, his Elizabeth. The external world spun in furious gusts. Something overturned from the table, crashing to the ground. They caught something else in the hallway, but who cared about everything surrounding them? In the next moment they were already kissing in the room.

Without following every minute of this long-awaited night in Konstantin's life, it must be noted that on this very night he rearranged all his priorities of life values. In this list, the SRPS, philosophy, science—did not occupy the first places.

Konstantin never drew the curtains. There is no particular need for this when the apartment is on the fifth floor, and the windows do not face the windows of buildings opposite. Elizabeth stood half-naked, at a distance, looking out the window. Konstantin observed how the moonlight enveloped her tender body. This moment reminded him of exactly such a moment in the past. Despite several hours of bliss, he still wanted to be near, still desired to feel her flesh beside him. He rose from the bed and, approaching, embraced her waist. A very familiar moment. Elizabeth turned to face Konstantin. "Could those same words now sound?" Kostya thought.

"And what if I hadn't worn black clothes then? Would you have noticed me?" Liza asked pensively.

These were precisely those words, word for word. They resounded in Kostya's head like an echo of the past; he wanted to say much, but this time was not a time for words.

"I would have noticed," Kostya merely answered quietly, and he embraced Elizabeth more tightly. Everything was exactly as it had been that one time during their three years of inseparable friendship. There were only two differences: firstly, this time everything was much more serious, and secondly, Kostya could not shake the feeling of someone third being present...

***

Morning. As usual, Kostya was awakened by a telephone ring. He sat up in bed; turning around, he did not see Liza beside him, but immediately calmed down, hearing that someone was in the kitchen. Kostya fell back onto the bed, picking up the telephone.

"Will you at least be there today?" Henry's worried voice sounded.

"And hello to you too," Kostya greeted his friend, "is there such a need?"

"How shall I put it, you have classes in logic and philosophy today," Henry reminded him.

"Come now. Ask someone from our department of philosophical sciences to give a couple of lectures," Kostya instructed.

"Well, all right, that's one thing. There's also..., one scientific society says it has found a way to achieve cold nuclear fusion. They're asking for funding," Henry informed him.

"And what's the problem? No one receives funding from the government if they don't have a certificate from us. Send Chadaev and Newton there," Kostya said lazily.

"They're already there, only this society is asking for funding not from the government, but from us."

"Interesting..., but in any case I won't be there for a week," Kostya decided, and before Henry could object, added, "Henry, I'm with Elizabeth."

"A week?! And what are you doing with Elizabeth?" asked Henry, suspecting nothing.

"Elizabeth and I are together," Kostya whispered so that Liza wouldn't hear him from the kitchen.

"What do you mean together? Like, as boyfriend and girlfriend?" Henry was surprised.

"No, damn it..., as girlfriend and girlfriend," Kostya joked sarcastically.

"Hah..., well then, congratulations. You've finally achieved everything you desired," Henry rejoiced sincerely. "But will you at least be at the SRPS meeting this week? They can't do without the Magister there."

"I'll be at the meeting, but on other matters you be in charge for now," Kostya decided. "And actually, how about a restaurant this evening? Bring some girl, there's been one running after you lately, I remember, we'll sit, we'll talk. It's time to enjoy a little the position we're in now."

"All right, we'll call this evening, otherwise I'm late for the theology class. I do love filling the students' heads with it," Henry concluded the conversation.

Konstantin straightened his back, got out of bed and headed for the kitchen. Today he wanted to see only Elizabeth, not his colleagues from work.