Alexei shivered as the wind blew past his scrawny figure. He made his way through the deserted alley of Oymyakon as he huffed and puffed swiftly, creating little clouds before his lilac-colored orbs.
He rambled in a slow pace because of the piling snow that reached his knees, but instead of forcing more effort to move to his destination, Alexei paused and looked up at the vast dark sky above him.
He never liked winter; he and his older brother never did.
With narrowed eyes, Alexei watched a couple of snowflakes as they slowly made their way down to the ground.
It was true that he hated this time of the year. He despised the cold and lonely season, yet for some reason, he enjoyed watching the patterned crystals fall from the sky. It relaxed him in some deviant way that he himself cannot explain.
Distracted by the mere distraction, Alexei snapped back to reality and started to strut back to where his family was. It was already late in the evening, and he knew for sure that his mother will be worried sick. It didn't help the fact that his ailing father will be sitting in his usual chair by the door, waiting for his arrival with a grim expression.
He pulled his own large coat closer to his frail body and when he was about to continue walking, he began to cough violently.
His head started to spin, and his body trembled incessantly.
Forcing the last of his energy to move his gradually freezing legs, Alexei found himself slowly losing consciousness.
That night, he wasn't able to return home.
