Under the cold midday sun, Leonid was and still is leaning against the wall, savoring his cigarette as if it were an old friend returning in a moment of weakness.
It had been a long time since he'd given in to his old habit daily smoking. It used to cling to him like a constant shadow, until Charlotte entered his life and, by her mere presence, forced a semblance of discipline on him. Even though, the last time, she said she didn't mind.
But now, after the breakup… he smoked freely.
Every day. Without hesitation. Without hiding.
Strangely, he felt no regret, yet there was a tightness in his chest he couldn't explain.
The sudden separation gave him a strange space of relief and emptiness… a cold relief, accompanied by endless insomnia.
As if something had returned to him something he never wanted.
Content? Maybe.
At peace? Barely.
He exhaled smoke in silence and closed his eyes, trying to calm his thoughts.
If he hadn't heard what he heard from her by chance…
If he hadn't said what he said to her…
If he hadn't taken his anger out on Kaiser last night…
Maybe things would be different now.
This life or more accurately, his life was never free of painful missteps.
"Leonid!"
The sudden shout sliced through his thoughts like a sharp blow, yanking him back to reality.
Leonid opened his eyes and turned slowly.
Charlotte stood a short distance away.
He looked at her, emotions flooding his eyes for a brief moment despite everything that separated them.
If she hadn't hurt his feelings and shattered the trust between them, he never would've brought up the breakup. And yet, part of him still hoped she'd come back to him and finally tell him everything she was hiding.
But she hadn't come to say what he so desperately hoped to hear.
"Put it out. Now!"
Charlotte shouted as she stepped closer, trying to snatch the cigarette from his hand in one swift motion.
But Leonid raised his hand at the last moment, brushing her off lightly.
"Put it out?"
He repeated her command mockingly, eyebrows furrowed, his voice cold and defiant.
"And why should I?"
He gave her a sideways smile that didn't reach his eyes.
"You know smoking is forbidden, and that ban isn't there for nothing! Give it to me, now!"
Charlotte snapped back, her voice tense as she reached again in another futile attempt.
Her tone, her actions they irritated him now.
He had forgiven her, willingly, for flipping him off in the car. And now she returned with shouting and commands?
"I won't."
He replied coldly, placing the cigarette back between his lips.
This girl had forgotten, if only for a moment, who he was.
His sharp tone made Charlotte freeze, but she quickly gathered her courage and reached out again.
Just before her fingers could touch it, he blew smoke directly into her face.
"Oh!"
Charlotte gasped, her eyes widening in shock, then narrowing from the sting of the smoke.
She stood frozen for a second, then began to cough.
She coughed repeatedly, right in Leonid's face, but he remained still, unmoved, while she backed away, waving her hand in the air, trying to push away the thick cloud choking her.
Leonid stood there, staring at her with quiet indifference, continuing to smoke and exhale without the slightest concern for her coughing or how harshly the smoke hit her nose.
"Stop!"
Charlotte cried out, still coughing. It felt like her lungs were burning from the inside.
"That's enough, don't be cruel to me!"
She said with teary eyes, stepping back and as she did, her foot caught on a stray rock and she nearly fell.
"Ah!"
She let out a startled cry, and Leonid lunged forward, catching her wrist and pulling her toward him. The arm still holding the cigarette wrapped instinctively around her waist.
Through the soft breeze between them, Charlotte's eyes widened, and her chestnut lashes fluttered slowly. Her dark eyes locked with Leonid's icy blue ones.
It was just a moment but enough to make her heart race violently.
Then Leonid broke the silence with the deep rumble of his voice:
"I…"
He pulled back gently, releasing her after steadying her, his gaze lingering on the pendant hanging from her neck.
He left her standing there, flustered, then added in a quieter voice:
"I'm not being cruel to you at all."
Charlotte's face flushed as she raised her hands lightly to comb the ends of her braid.
She was losing control of her senses.
Leonid looked away. He closed his hand around the cigarette, unfazed by the burn, and once it was fully extinguished, he turned back to Charlotte.
"Open your hands."
He said it in a calm tone.
"Huh?"
Charlotte looked at him hesitantly, but obeyed slowly.
As soon as her palms opened, Leonid placed the extinguished cigarette on them and said:
"I'm done smoking."
Then, without turning around, he took the cigarette pack and lighter out of his pants pocket and placed them on her open palms.
"You can get rid of them… or keep them, for me, for later."
He paused for a moment, his eyes watching the cigarette he had just finished.
He gave a small nod toward it and added,
"As for this one, throw it away… don't keep it, okay?"
"Keep it?"
Charlotte repeated his words with a wary tone, her brows furrowing in vague irritation.
"What are you doing to me? What is that supposed to mean?"
Did he think she was pathetic enough to keep his used cigarette? She wasn't that obsessed with him!
Leonid simply shrugged with indifference and turned toward the wooden cabin.
"Hey! Come back and explain what you meant!"
She called out, stepping after him, but he didn't answer. He just waved dismissively over his shoulder before entering the cabin and closing the glass door behind him without looking back.
Charlotte suddenly stopped, just an inch away from the door. She stood stiffly but felt as if she had been slapped by his rude attitude toward her.
"Leonid, you are incredibly rude!"
She shouted at him in frustration, then violently dropped the cigarette pack along with the used cigarette and lighter onto the floor.
Leonid stared at her anger through the glass, clearly enjoying it. He opened the door again, leaving it ajar, clicked his tongue, and shook his head as if she were a disappointing child.
He pointed at the ground and said coldly,
"Careless as always."
Then he looked at her with eyes laced with faint sarcasm:
"Rude, huh? I don't think I deserve that title. At least, not after everything."
"Actually, 'rude' doesn't even begin to describe how terrible you are."
"Terrible?! You're exaggerating now, darling."
Leonid leaned his shoulder against the doorframe, studying her angry expression deliberately.
"By the way…"
He smiled lightly, without any warmth.
"Don't you have something to say to me? Something… other than throwing words or apologizing?"
He paused, waiting for her to answer with what he wanted to hear, but as the silence dragged on, his smile faded as quickly as it had appeared.
"Nothing, huh?"
His neutral, cold expression now carried irritation. He stepped forward and closed the glass door behind him, bending toward Charlotte, who didn't back away and kept staring at him firmly.
"Do you enjoy breaking up with me?"
"What…?"
Her eyes widened in shock at his harsh words, and she tried to take a step back, but Leonid was faster; he wrapped his arms around her waist, trapping her.
"I don't want 'what?' as an answer."
He whispered coldly against her lips, his eyes piercing hers with barely contained frustration.
"Answer me properly, and give me what I want, Charlotte Smith."
His closeness made her tremble a contradictory mix of biting cold and suffocating heat.
"You smile and react so boldly. I'm starting to get tired of your pointless circling."
He raised his hand and gently cupped her chin, a tenderness that contradicted the anger in his tone and eyes.
Inside, Lyudmila had just finished arranging the supplies and cold drinks in the fridge. She turned slowly, her arms stiff from exhaustion, but her gaze froze the moment her eyes caught sight of the scene outside the glass door.
She gasped softly, eyebrows shooting up in surprise.
"Oh my God… are they kissing at a time like this?"
From her angle, the two looked completely glued to each other. A perfectly romantic scene or so she thought.
She waved her hand frantically and shouted:
"Daniel! Come quickly! Charlotte and her boyfriend are kissing!"
Daniel rushed down from the second floor, hurrying to her side, staring at her in confusion.
"Charlotte what?!"
Lyudmila pointed excitedly at the glass door.
"Look over there!"
Daniel turned, and his eyes widened in shock.
From his perspective, Leonid was embracing Charlotte, standing so close it seemed as if he were indeed kissing her. But the reality was far different.
Leonid stood still, staring at Charlotte with a dark, unreadable look. His desire to continue was clear, but the feeling of eyes watching him from behind, and the shadow of possible misinterpretation, made him withdraw.
He turned slowly, meeting the eyes of Daniel and Lyudmila, who were staring at them like they'd just been caught red-handed.
Those silent stares wounded his pride, but he inhaled coolly and said:
"We'll talk later."
He whispered to Charlotte as he stepped away from her, then quietly walked off.
Charlotte remained where she was, her cheeks burning red, a faint sorrow flickering in her eyes. She didn't move.
Daniel rushed out to her, placing his hands on her shoulders and asking eagerly:
"Did you two… make up?"
Charlotte glanced at him with a confused look, but didn't say a word.
"Charlotte!"
Lyudmila's voice came from behind as she leaned on his shoulder and quickly asked Charlotte:
"I knew you two were romantic! But who seduced who first? Was it you or him?"
Charlotte slowly shook her head and replied softly, gently brushing Daniel's hands off her shoulders:
"No…"
That was all she said before turning away and entering the cabin with slow, heavy steps, carrying with her a silent sorrow.