23
Alice woke up to find Ivan Chilikov sitting on the bed next to her, his hands on her arms, trying to shake her awake.
“You were screaming,” he said.
“Ja, it’s called having a nightmare. People have them when experiencing severe trauma.” Alice sat up, yawned and felt the welcome pop in her eardrum from the dissipating pressure.
“I am sorry for this,” Chilikov said as he slowly removed his hands from her bare arms.
“You keep saying you’re sorry, but you still won’t let me go. So what’s the point of apologising? It doesn’t change anything.”
“And for this too, I am sorry.”
“Whatever.” Alice shook her head and swung her legs off the bed, turning away from him.
“Are you hungry?” Chilikov asked. “There is much food.”
“But I thought you could only find a few things in the kitchen?” Ali
