Feburary 22, 1964: Tselinoyarsk, Russia - Confessions, Part III

It still feels surreal, what happened in Liadov's room.

I can't believe I did that.

Guess I'm not too old to learn something new after all.

What did Liadov say to me the first time he hit me up? Oh, yeah: "You might surprise yourself, old man."

Well, I did. Not in the best way. All I wanted to do was get home and see Isaev, tell him what happened.

But I wasn't exactly expecting what I found when I got there.

In more ways than one.

( 'An ugly story,' Andrei said, coolly, and his own icy tone resonated in his ear, thawed crystals of memory in the loam of his mind. 'About a man who carved out another man's heart and shoved it in a box.'  )

Feburary 22, 1964: Tselinoyarsk, Russia - Confessions, Part IV

Well. Things turned out all right.

That's starting to surprise me less, actually, when they do.

I don't know what this means for Vitya and me, if maybe someday we can be friends again. He and Isaev are friends.

...obviously.

Guess I'll find out, as time goes on.

But as far as me and Isaev go, things are good. Better than good. And I wouldn't trade that for anything.

(  'Then I'll take you, in front of him and god.' )