The lock and its fittings flew off and the door swung open with a terrible crash. A few couples strolling along the corridor recoiled in fright. We flitted past them and plunged into the crowd of dancers.
A minute later we were dancing away for all we were worth and have already forgotten how we got into the hall. All of us, that is, except Eldar. As I danced, I stumbled across his miserable gaze. Because he was so short, it took him a long time to pluck up the courage to approach a partner, and then when he was refused, he was incapable of repeating the attempt for a long time. Girls very definitely did not like Eldar. And he suffered as a result. But he tried to make us believe that he couldn’t stand them…
In the winter of 1961 the lads and I had work practice in Moscow. We lived in t
