"I've been weeping into my pillow every night," said Andrei wryly, with a hint of a smile.

Merciless teasing was the best way to make a brother feel loved.

"Actually, you have been missed. I'm used to hearing you jerk off through the wall next to my bunk. Makno does it too, I'm sure, but he always bites his tongue. It's been way too quiet at night."

Andrei was only half joking, but he knew it could easily be dismissed by Gurlukovich as a crude soldier's jest. They tossed around such words and accusations like verbal confetti.

After all, when Ilya said 'fuck your mother', he didn't usually follow through.