Do not part with your loved ones ...

II

Two years had passed since Sonia's departure....

Zhenya went to Moscow immediately after graduation, where he had to work for three years because he had studied "on target", Sonya was on a business trip to Ivanovo in textile factories, and what about Sergei?

Sergei could not find a job in his town and had no money to move. His parents died a year ago and he was left alone: no friends, no relatives, no family. Now this is what can be said about Sergei:

In every institution, whether public or private, there are those kind, good people who never fail to help their colleagues with whom they sail in the same boat of boring office routine. Quiet and silent, never arguing with anyone, quietly doing their work and the work they are given, they exist quietly without worrying about difficulties, problems, grievances, political news and all those trivialities that everyone else is hotly discussing. They do not ooh and aah at unpleasant news, do not get indignant at a sudden, out-of-blue inspection or new documents. Such people usually live alone. They are the last to be remembered on holidays, they spend their birthdays alone, and God forbid that anyone should remember them and congratulate them. And this is not out of sociophobia, not out of selfishness, but out of ... God knows what. And if such a person is suddenly gone for some reason, they won't even remember him until the next meeting or when someone needs his help.

This is how one could describe Sergei Mikhailovich Bessonov - a court clerk, and in other words, it does not matter who he is, what institution he works for, or what city he lives in (for there is probably a Sergei Mikhailovich like this in every organisation). His description has changed a little since his studies, and not for the better.

As usual, he worked in the corridor leading from the corridor to the office of his boss - Alexei Petrovich Kozlov. This man, or 'representative of the animal world', as Sergei Mikhailovich ironically called him, didn't come in at nine o'clock as usual, but at twelve. At one o'clock he would go to lunch, return at half past three and, after chasing flies around the office, leave in half an hour for God knows where. Some days he was not at work at all. His clients were lucky to catch him in his office.

It was the ninth hour of the morning, and Bessonov was typing up a judgement as usual. The door to his office was closed. There was a knock at the door.

- Come in! - said Mikhail Sergei Mikhailovich; a middle-aged woman with dark hair and grey eyes came in, - sit down.

- Hello, may I speak to Alexei Petrovich? - she asked, sitting down in the chair opposite the secretary.

- What business do you need to see him about?

- I left a statement, I was told Kozlov had it. .....

- Ah... - Sergei interrupted her, going through the piles of documents.

- A statement about the theft... - she continued, anticipating his question.

- Ah, I remember something, yes, there was such a thing... You see, Alexei Petrovich is not here now... you can wait for him in the corridor or come next time. He's usually in around midday and after lunch.

- OK, thank you.

- Is this it?

- Yeah, yeah, I'm just on this one. - She got up and walked out into the corridor.

About ten minutes had passed when suddenly an elderly woman entered without knocking and asked a little menacingly:

- Is the judge in?

- Well, first of all, hello.....

- Hello. - she said casually, - Is Kozlov in?

- Young lady, sit down, what is your problem?