– Alexander Pavlovich, follow me! There's a glade near here, I want to show you something.
Sasha led me to yellow untouched grass through the bushes. First snow melted a bit there, and I could stain my coat if I fell over.
Sasha invited me to lie down. With lack of choice and caution I lied onto the ground.
– Can you see the clouds in the sky? – She pointed up with a free hand.
– We're going to guess what they look like?
– Not at all! You see, – she turned her face to me, not lowering her hand, – there are two big clouds and that small one. What do you think, which ones are we?
I sought words.
– You have a lot of creativity, Sasha. I don't even know.
– Try to figure it out! You're older and wiser than me.
Yeah, right, wiser.
– It seems you're more experienced in music than me, so you are the big cloud. And me, I am that tiny cloud, following you.
She showed her teeth, smiling.
– It's not true! You and I, we're those two big clouds next to each other. Alexander Pavlovich, I want to let you know this: Iosif Seraphimovich loves to scold and hates to praise. And so, – she put her hand upon my shoulder and looked me in the eyes with confidence, – please be aware of this as well: even if he underestimates your potential you have for sure, you have to remember that you're able to do whatever you want to. Wonderful studying years and a shiny place on stage are waiting for us. All you need for that is to practice but what's even more important than that is to believe. There's no life without faith.
A few small teardrops appeared in my eyes. I didn't understand why she decided to share these words with me now, for we don't even know each other. What do I know about her? Her name is similar to mine and she's interested in the same instrument. That moment I felt I was blessed from above.
Sasha put me out of my thoughts with her bright voice.
– Don't lie here for too long, you'll catch a cold! – I didn't notice she was long on her legs and finished her bun and I still lied on the grass with my case, crookedly. – Let's get warm at my place? I live near here.
– Well, let's continue what we started.
She laughed.
Sasha lived on the second floor.
What a wonderful place. There were countless paintings and little sculptures, everything looked expensive, even though the walls put a lot of pressure. On the hangers, there was a proud fur coat and a tidy autumn coat. Underneath the closet I saw a bunch of squeaky clean shoes. One of the shelves contained a case, a bit bigger than mine.