pay attention to him.
– What? – I asked.
– Well, I’m talking about Yura. And his trick.
– Oh, you mean that. It’s OK. I take no offence. I’m used to it.
– But I’ll never get used to it. But he has a reason. His family suffered from… sorry, I mean, from people like you. I’m trying to re-educate him, but to no avail.
– But I’m telling you, it’s okay…
She looked into my eyes the whole time. And I felt something… It seemed. Void dwellers are devoid of feelings.
«So cold,» said Vika.
– What?
– You have eyes. No emotions at all. You know, sometimes I think I would like you. If only the eyes were kinder.
– What about Yura? Are you, as it were, with him?
Vika lowered her eyes and blushed.
– You are right. I’d better go. Once again, I apologize for his behavior.
After class I decided to walk home. The three-dimensional stream of gravikars spread noise over a huge range of frequencies. It’s not so easy to list all the chemical compounds that they emit. We are evolving, and perhaps my children will already be able to conduct chemical analysis with their senses. The sky is covered with a veil of smog, gray, and behind it is a scarlet sun.
Luminescent sign «Souls for hire» A completely legal office, many of them opened after the era of the birth of the void people. When people realized that there weren’t enough free souls for everyone, and most couldn’t buy one for their child even on the black market, he came to people with an offer «that was impossible to refuse.» Usually the devil bought souls for money, careers and other contracts signed blood. But in an era of scarcity, he had competitors among people who were willing to pay several times more for someone’s soul. When one business failed, he found a new way to make money. Many demons are ready to give everything to leave the underworld. But for this you need a body, and such that you don’t need to share it with someone else. A communal apartment is too much even for a demon. This is how another race appeared – the demos. They are almost indistinguishable from people. But instead of a soul, they were inhabited by a creature from another world: a demon, a demon, a devil.
Tell me, who would voluntarily give up the functional benefits of a voidman in order to become a slave to a demon? But then I remembered Vicki’s words: «I would like you. If only the eyes were kinder» I’m an ordinary voidman. But I have something from my mother: sometimes it seems to me that I know how to feel. This happens to me when I look towards Vicky, and especially when I see her eyes.
I looked at the sign for ten minutes and decided to go in anyway.
The interior is lit with incandescent lamps. How wasteful! Although, what can you take from them – people… The man looks about twenty-five years old. Tattoos from head to toe: skull, Latin inscriptions, incomprehensible abstractions. Wanting to stand out, people sometimes do unflattering things with their bodies.
– Do you want to rent a soul? – the man asked me without even greeting me.
– Yes. I’ll take the risk.
– Do you know the conditions? For ten years you will not be able to give up the demon living inside. And then, by mutual agreement, you can renew the contract every ten years. Although, no one has yet given up almost human life.
– Go ahead. Do what needs to be done there.
He sat me down in a chair and began working with a needle. When the job was over, the skull on my left shoulder grinned. I ran my hand over the rough skin. My shoulder still hurt from the needle. The room smelled sharply… you wouldn’t immediately recognize what exactly it was – my sense of smell was dulled, I could not at all distinguish the chemical composition of the air. If the operation was successful, you should smell sulfur oxide. Apparently he is. I looked at the tattoo artist. How could I not immediately notice the blackness in his eyes and the bestial grin. And his tattoos, like mine, were constantly moving, seemingly trying to cling to me with their bony paws. Dems are not so easy to distinguish from people unless you have one of their kind inside you.
That night I had a dream for the first time in my life. Vika appeared to me naked and caressed me, touching me with her soft breasts. I fell asleep thinking about her, and woke up realizing that I couldn’t live without her. If Yura had met at that moment, he would have broken it off. They’ll put you in prison – but don’t you care? How dare he hold her hand?
I lost track of time. Sometimes an eternity passes, but you look at the clock and a minute has passed. Violetta Semyonovna again chirped about the beauty of the paintings. She doesn’t understand anything, the old hag! Titian didn’t want to show «depth of emotion», he just wanted to draw boobs! Also, apparently, at night I had different dreams, and then I sketched my visions. How I want to shut up this old toad with her «richness of color.» Apparently, menopause has already arrived, and no one is looking at her «sweep of strokes.» What am I doing? Have I become angry, I can’t even control myself? As soon as the bell rang, he blew himself up and ran into the corridor.
This idiot is holding my Vika’s hand. Previously, I would not have come within three steps of him: it was logical that he was stronger than me and went to boxing. But how can you reason logically when some degenerate is holding your beloved’s hand?
– Hey you! Get away from her. She will be with me!
– Void? – Yura’s pupils widened in surprise. Why didn’t I notice the grin of his tattoo before? Is he really a dem too? I wonder how long ago? Although, Vika told me something about him. The father became addicted to heroin until one day he had to pay for a dose with his own soul and almost sold his son’s soul. Now I guessed: I sold it after all! And my son became a dem and arranged an overdose for his miracle dad. Every family has its own secrets.
– Although, I’ll look at you, you’re one of us now! I respect your choice.
– And I hate you. But I love Vika, and she will be with me!
– It’s correct to say not «I love», but «I want.» Dems don’t know how to love, haven’t you realized that yet?
Fury has taken my mind. I pounced on Yura and closed my hands around his neck. If he weren’t stronger than me, especially demo, he would have strangled me! But he knocked me out.
I had completely forgotten how to perceive time: there was simply no time in hell, so my new roommate simply did not know how to distinguish seconds from months and millennia. Half an hour ago we were fighting with Yurka, a moment later there was a conversation in the principal’s office, instructions from my parents, more lessons, fights, paintings by Rubens, and now I’m watching Yura pushing Vika into the car. I had never noticed such rage in him before. When – before? A year ago? Half an hour?
– I decided everything! Jerk! I won’t be with you. You’ve always been so cruel. You…
– Who will ask you! If not with me, then you will not be with anyone! Whore! How could you exchange me, a Candidate of Masters in boxing, for this skinny guy with glasses. Look at him.
– But I love him. Understand? Do you hear me?
We talked for a long time with my void father. He is always as logical as I once was.
«Yes, dad, she loves someone else, so I shouldn’t interfere. Yes, dad, you can find a peaceful solution. Yes, dad, I won’t fix anything with my fists, I’ll only make it worse. Yes, dad, I need to finish school and spend time applying.»
I nodded my head, lowering my eyes to the floor, although everything was boiling inside. But no, dad, she doesn’t love anyone else. All this