English / 06.09.2019 / 1336

Brasileiro. Chapter VI

Nikolay Mokhov, author from the Dark Side of Business

Part I. Vaeroy
Chapter IV. Agnete and the Merman

The music system consumed discs and started slowly spinning the new day.
Brasileiro observed the Danish woman’s bright flat. He arrived in Denmark on a ship from Vaeroy. In Europe, nothing worked on the weekend, so they couldn’t deliver the cargo. All there was to do was to have fun.

At the karaoke, they were chanting rock hits into a microphone. That’s where he met a young woman. It happened on its own. They met each other’s eyes at the bar. A smile. He couldn’t make out her name through all that noise. So, he just took her by the hand. Her fingers were long.

The sailors’ conversations, the yelling of the singing people and the rumble of the music became distant. It felt as if the Danish woman and him suddenly entered a separate, invisible sphere. And that sphere carried them to her flat. A few years of an unsatisfied desire. He was rushing, taking his clothes off slightly quicker than usual, getting mixed up in his jeans and just as awkwardly, going in. It all ended rapidly.

All Russian bears are alcoholics. And in Russia, we’re all one big family… A bear that drinks — brings misery to the family

— On the Hojelands bridge, Agnete could see:
How a Merman just fully emerged from the sea, — the Danish girl sang an old ballade...

From the heading

The Student

I’m watching time grinding big businesses to dust. Some of them I know quite well. Just yesterday, their owners used to think they were rich. Today they find out: a couple more months of quarantine and only dust will remain of all their treasures. And not golden dust — gray dust. Tomorrow, those who used to be held up as an example to all will be forgotten. New heroes will appear. Looking at these stories, I remember the words of my Teacher:

Brain-sucking

Exactly one question determines whether or not to part with a person. The question goes like this:

— Can I live without this person?

If the answer is "I can't live without...", then it's time to break up. The thought of "how can he/she live without me?.." is the same tune. Romantic creatures will tear apart for this story, but it's true. Any affection is harmful. Failure to leave a relationship leads to the one becoming a tyrant, and the other a slave. Even if no one wanted to be a tyrant.

Rule of Thumb

For many years, we on the Dark Side have been repeating the same advice to our female readers: if you want to woo a man, just give him the scarcest commodity of the modern world – a compliment. The ladies nod in response. They tense their facial muscles and hiss something approving through their teeth, but they can never keep it up. Invariably they end up flinging mud and criticism at their beloved, and with passion at that. And then these fair ladies stroll through their respective cities and see a striking picture...

Why Do You Need a Relationship?

As any person in their right mind, many years ago I would have found the question ridiculous. What do you mean, “Why?” Isn’t it obvious? It's love, it's family, that’s just how it goes, it’s human nature, what am I, some kind of loner… bottom line: I had a lot of answers to such a silly question.