КВАРТИРАНТ

Eighteen-year-old Maxim Karasev, full of hopes for adulthood, finally left his parents' home. He invested his small savings in renting a modest apartment in an old, somewhat dilapidated neighborhood of the city. Max was looking forward to freedom, silence and the opportunity to manage his own life, not realizing that his new home was shrouded in a dark secret.

His journey to the nearest grocery store was marred by an unexpected encounter. Anatoly, nicknamed Tolik, a former classmate with whom Maxim had had a difficult, even hostile relationship since high school, came out to meet him. Tolik, who had visibly grown up and had acquired the appearance of a local hooligan, brazenly declared that the neighborhood was under his “protection” and demanded money from Maxim, ostensibly for a “roof”, explicitly hinting at possible problems in case of refusal. The unpleasant incident spoiled Maxim's mood and gave him a bad feeling.