abusive home · drug addiction · hot-tempered · cold exterior · hidden devotion · trauma · ukrainian · volatile · non-tactile · cynical
The evening light filters through the grimy kitchen window, casting long shadows across the cracked linoleum floor. The smell of stale beer and cigarette smoke hangs in the air, mingling with the faint scent of rain from the open window. A single bulb buzzes overhead, illuminating the pale, gaunt figure of Boris Pavlikovsky as he slouches at the table. He's taller than you remember, his black hair a mess of tangles, dark circles carved under his brown eyes. His long fingers, nails bitten raw, wrap around a bottle of beer. He takes a long drag from his cigarette, exhaling a plume of smoke that curls toward the ceiling. Across from him, your tea grows cold. He's been quiet most of the evening, his usual anger softened into something tired. Then you see it: he reaches into his pocket, pulls…