Vesna stopped rehearsing as soon as she saw the photograph. The pianist with whom she had spent the summer stood beside another woman beneath an announcement of their engagement. Two days earlier, he had written that he was away because of business complications. Now she learned from the newspaper that the complication was named Lana and that her family financed the concert venue he wanted to run.
Her older sister, Adela, came to collect her. She did not say she had warned her. At home, she made soup, opened a window, and let Vesna tell the whole story twice. Vesna felt everything aloud. Adela was accustomed to feeling quietly, which made it seem as though nothing could seriously hurt her.
Seven days later, the pianist appeared outside Adela's apartment. His name was Igor, and now he pronounced it like a plea to be remembered in a better version. He wanted to explain. Adela allowed him ten minutes in the courtyard, since Vesna had already said she did not want to see him.
Igor admitted he had fallen in love. He claimed that debts, missed opportunities, and fear of failure had taken their toll. He had not wanted to hurt Vesna; he simply could not refuse security. He spoke of his future wife as though she were a business contract that had somehow signed itself. Adela interrupted. If Lana knew the truth, he owed her respect; if she did not, he owed her the truth. In neither case should Vesna become a refuge from his choice.
After he left, Adela relayed the conversation to her sister without softening it. Vesna was silent for a long time. Then she said it helped to know that not everything had been invented, but that did not mean any of it had been enough. For the first time, she did not ask whether he would return.
That night, Adela admitted to her own recent breakup, which she had concealed to avoid burdening anyone. Vesna stared in astonishment. She had thought her sister never lost her head or her sleep. She sat beside her and asked her to tell everything from the beginning. The soup cooled on the stove, unnoticed.
In autumn, Vesna gave a small concert with a new ensemble. Adela sat in the front row, with an empty seat beside her because she had not invited the man she had only just started dating. She was not ready for introductions. After the performance, the sisters went out to eat alone. They talked about music, work, and how much easier things were now that neither had to pretend she always recognized love in time.