Novinskiy Bul'var, Moscow
Early spring, 1992
Blue sneakers tread the wet asphalt, causing ripples to splash from puddles after the rain has stopped. Walking through the silence of the night through an alleyway, a young man with neatly cut straight blond hair occasionally pulls his bomber jacket close as he breathes in the fresh air that has evaporated after the rain.
It was over 11:30pm, and Noel had just returned from the café where he worked. Noel was one of the part-time waiters there. While speeding up his steps towards home, the young man occasionally rubbed his hands together while wiping his cheeks due to the cold air.
"Hi sweetie!"
A pat landed on the shoulder, Noel Baluev gasped. His gaze immediately turned to see who had just said hello. And squinted when he found a young man like himself. He was wearing a denim jacket with jeans torn at the knees.
A sarcastic voice asked, "Just back from your part-time job, Noel?"
Noel immediately made a displeased face, he only responded to Matt Gilhooley's greeting with a flat question. "None of your business. What do you want?"
A rude snort was heard from Matt in reply to being questioned in an unfriendly tone by the other person. Soon one of his other friends came from behind and immediately reached out to touch Noel's cheek.
"Let's have some fun! Just you and us, how about it?" he asked.
Before the young man's hand could reach his cheek, Noel roughly parried, exclaiming, "Don't touch me!"
Noel ventured a glance at one of them, only to be greeted by Matt's stern jawed face and smirking expression. Two black eyeballs touched him, as if trying to strip him naked. And it succeeded in giving Noel goosebumps. Noel suddenly felt something ominous - as Matt and his friend continued to follow from the side. Noel knew them; the two young men were a gang of teenage delinquents at his school. Even though they weren't in the same class, their delinquency was well known in several schools.
Noel was sure that it wasn't just the two of them, so he intended to run away before saying, "I don't have time to deal with you." Noel refused firmly, and quickened his pace to run away. However, it didn't seem to go as smoothly as Noel had hoped.
In a split second, Matt pulled his arm so hard that Noel staggered backwards almost losing his balance. And at that very moment Matt hugged him from behind as he whispered in his ear. "Hey, what's the rush, hmmnn? We haven't finished talking yet."
Noel's instincts warned him of danger. His heart started racing, Noel struggled. "Let me ... mppfhh-" He wanted to scream. However, before he could do that Matt had one hand over his mouth. Noel's fear grew when the young man forcefully dragged him into one of the dark alleys.
"Arghh you asshole!" A single curse managed to escape Matt's mouth as Noel reflexively bit his fingers.
As Matt's grip loosened, Noel quickly tried to escape. However, his move was immediately prevented as his arm, which was firmly gripped by another larger youth, appeared around the corner.
"Let me go, you want my money? I'll give you all of it." Noel pleaded.
However, his pleas were only met with laughter.
The large young man's hands gripped Noel's wrists like handcuffs. Not wanting anything bad to happen to him tonight, Noel continued to try to rebel with all his might even though it was fruitless because his strength was not as great as theirs. Noel didn't even notice Matt who was already standing in front of him.
A cry of pain escaped Noel's lips when Matt kicked his leg right around the knee bone area. The opportunity was not wasted by the kicker, with the support of his other friend Matt pushed Noel to the asphalt in a dimly lit dark alley.
The pain in his buttocks might have been negligible. However, the pain from the kicks to the legs made Noel whimper. Not only that, fear was also creeping in. Noel jumped slightly in place as the attention of the three boys returned to him. Noel suddenly moved back the second Matt took a step closer.
Clear liquid pooled in Noel's eyes as Matt crouched down, gripping his cheek so tightly that his thumbnail dug into the boy's skin.
Matt watched with a sardonic glance and whistled. "Sure, after we enjoy your body ahahaha!"
Noel finally burst into tears as he choked on the pain. His vision was blurry from the tears, as well as the hard impact of his cheek on the cold, wet asphalt of the street. Noel was trembling, his breathing ragged with fear. He felt two other young men begin to hold his wrists together, and one leaned over him and kissed him on the lips. A stunned Noel bit Matt's lip until it bled.
"Fuck you!" Matt slapped Noel's cheek with all his might. "Wanna play rough, huh?" He pulled Noel's collar hard. Matt pulled something out of his pants pocket, a shiny white object, a penknife. A growing sense of dread gripped Noel to the core as he saw Matt point the knife at his cheek. "Do you want me to scrape this thing across your face?"
Noel shook his head quickly.
Matt smiled. "Good, be a good and obedient boy, okay?" After that, he began to unzip Noel's pants with a little haste, it seemed that Matt could not wait to enjoy the sweet young body.
Noel closed his eyes, with his hands shaking violently, unable to do anything but stay still. Noel didn't have any martial arts skills. If he tried to rebel again the knife would automatically tear the skin of his face.
"Hey take it easy." Matt grinned as he stroked Noel's inner thighs after he managed to pull the young man's pants down to his knees. Before Matt could remove Noel's pants, one hand suddenly pulled his collar from behind.
With no time to dodge, one punch managed to smash Matt's cheek so hard that it left a stinging sensation and a bluish bruise. Feeling still not satisfied-the young man who had just arrived struck again in the same place. This time it was faster and stronger, causing Matt to fall to the asphalt while grimacing.
In the midst of his shocked state, Noel faintly heard the fight through blurred vision. Ignoring Matt who was still down, the young man immediately turned to the young man who was holding Noel's left wrist. Moving quickly, he kicked the punk hard in the stomach. Seeing his two friends fall, another one of them released his grip on Noel's hand and attacked the young man from behind, throwing punches. However, the young man quickly dodged and kicked the punk in the head until his ear bled.
Having managed to get up, Matt lashed out, his attack hitting the young man in the back. However, such attacks were meaningless to him. Not enough, Matt swung his switchblade at the youth again. He dodged so quickly that he only hit the sleeve of his jacket, which was slightly torn by the knife. The young man remained calm.
Another fist landed on Matt's face. The knife slipped out, he quickly picked it up and pointed it at the three punks. "Leave him alone!" he growled.
Matt's eyes widened after learning who the young man was who dared to meddle in their affairs. There was a look of shock on his face along with his two friends. Matt chuckled as he wiped a little blood out of his mouth. He said to his two friends. "Let's go, dealing with him is as good as dead." And immediately nodded by his two friends.
After Matt and his gang were out of sight. The young man approached Noel who was still in shock. "Are you okay?" he asked gently while holding out one hand.
"No, don't hurt me!" Noel screamed hysterically while throwing his bag that was lying not far from his side. However, it was easily dodged. Noel, who saw that his attack didn't work, retreated.
The young man quickly caught Noel's wrist. "Hey it's okay, they're gone, no one can hurt you anymore." The young man tried to calm Noel down. However, Noel still looked uneasy. "Come on, does my face look like a criminal?" He chuckled slightly as he asked.
In fear Noel's sapphire eyes rolled up to stare at the face of the young man who had helped him. Stunned, he almost forgot to breathe. Handsome, one word that came to mind. The young man's figure was so handsome with firm facial lines, his white skin looked like porcelain.
However, Noel shook his head next, putting aside the notion that he could be mesmerized in this state. When Noel realized that the young man's hand was still gripping his wrist tightly.
"Can you let go of me?"
Coming to his senses, the young man immediately released his grip on Noel's hand. "Sorry." He smiled again. "Are you okay?"
The young man's look of concern at Noel's condition was a mess, the slap not only leaving a red mark but also making the corner of his lip bleed. The three buttons of his uniform shirt were undone exposing his neckline and slightly sagging pants. The young man subconsciously gulped down some harsh saliva, trying to tune out any thoughts of nonsense. Taking off the black racer jacket he was wearing to put it on Noel.
"Your body is shaking," he said as he stroked Noel's hair gently. "I'll take you home, I have a motorcycle not far from here."
"No need, thank you." Noel quickly refused.
However, the young man seemed insistent. "I don't accept rejection."
Noel stood up by leaning on the two arms of the young man in front of him with a slight tremble. He looked up without realizing that the distance between his face and the young man's face was no less than an inch. Their eyes automatically met in a tender glance. I don't know what made him realize, Noel reflexively released his grip, stepping back without realizing that his leg was still hurting so that in the second step the stabbing pain attacked him making Noel almost fall if only the young man didn't grab his waist.
"Sorry to trouble you," Noel said softly as he stepped back to erase some of the distance between them while also releasing the young man's hold on his waist.
"It's okay, there's no need to apologize, I'm not bothered at all, really." he said kindly. "Well then, you wait here, I'll get my bike."
The young man left and disappeared from Noel's sight who only stared at his back as he meandered to the left of the alley.
Before long, the sound of a motorcycle engine could be heard in the silence of the night. From afar Noel could see the young man approaching as he waved at him.
"Hey!" The young man stopped the sports bike he was riding in front of the cute boy. "What's your name by the way?" he asked as he opened the helmet mirror.
"My name is Noel." Noel smiled sweetly, showing off his neat row of teeth.
"Nice to meet you, Noel. My name is Walther." A charming smile that seemed cold curved his lips.
Walther took Noel's hand in his, Noel was surprised that the young man's hand was so warm. His fingers were long, his nails neatly trimmed. The slightly rough skin of Walther's palm tightened in his grip, wrapped in Noel's soft palm.
His sweet face flushed slightly as Walther complimented him. "You're cute." Walther handed the helmet to Noel, and the young man could only look down in embarrassment as he accepted the helmet.
"Want me to put it on for you?" Walther asked.
"No need," he replied nervously. After putting on the helmet, Noel rode in the back.
"Hold on tight!" said Walther, guiding Noel's arms around his waist, then started the motorcycle engine.
The night breeze rustled in Noel's ears as the bike sped down the street. This was one of his first experiences on a motorcycle with someone he knew, and hugging Walther's waist tightly made Noel's feelings warm as the bike sped along.
Seventeen years ago, for the first time, Walther Zwick appeared in Noel Baluev's life as a hero. It was a memory that he still remembers in his second life. Noel will never understand why he remembers him, even after his innocence was taken advantage of and his trust betrayed.
In this world everyone always has something they'd like to forget, right? The human brain is not a device that can be erased or filled with various memories at will, they can forget and still remember just like that. It has limited storage space, so as soon as a new memory comes along, the old one will fade away as time passes. However, sometimes unwanted memories continue to linger in the heart and mind even though dozens of full moons have passed through the changing seasons. And now fifteen years have passed.
A pair of blue beads gazed out of the dewy glass window, underneath which was lightly dusted with snowflakes. It was a dark night with no stars, no moon, just cold snowflakes and a strong wind that showered the skyscrapers with sparkling light.
In contrast to the temperature outside, inside the room was illuminated by orange light that radiated warmth. The man turned his back to the window, his eyes looking straight at the man sitting on the cheap sofa. Noel, the man sitting on the somber white sofa, simply turned his gaze to the side as soon as he realized he was being stared at.
For several minutes, neither of them opened their mouths. This unpredictable silence really made Noel feel a great nervousness in his heart.
The man walked over, sitting on the sofa directly opposite Noel. A mahogany table separated them. His face was elegant, with a pair of eyes that looked stern. Noel looked at him, not ready to see the man again. Right now, in this place and time. One more look at Walther.
Walther looked healthy, and fine. As for Noel, his whole body was terrified. Noel looked at him with a look of hate, but also a hint of longing.
There wasn't much Noel could remember about Walther in his previous life. Because of that man, he suffered. Walther was also the one who took away everything Noel had until there was nothing left. He left a scar on his chest.