They stayed at the restaurant till late and then went to a small hotel on the other side of Leman[9], where Jovan was staying with his family. They stopped on Mont Blanc Bridge, which connected the two halves of the city, admiring the restless surface of Lake Geneva.

The night city sparkled with colorful lights that were reflected in the iridescent water, like in a Van Gogh painting. The fountain that pushed a thick 40-meter stream of water into the sky proudly stood over a small man-made cape.

“Teo, you know, we are not here on vacation,” Jovan said after a moment of silence. He shifted his gaze away from Trevor as he spoke, pretending to stare at the dark waters of the lake. “I’m here for psychological adaptation after treatment for alcoholism.”

The roar of the fountain muffled Jovan’s words, but he continued, a bit louder: “This is the third time I’ve been in treatment, Teo. The third time! But today is 94 days that I’ve been sober. There is a very good psychologist here in Geneva who is helping me. I come here once every three months for a week. I have a session every morning.”

Trevor stared at him in silence.

“Life is not an easy thing, Teo! You dream about one thing and get something totally different,” Jovan continued bitterly. “I got somehow sucked into it. But now I hope that I’m done for good. There is this young woman, a great psychologist, who can induce a state of hypnosis, and she helped me. I was referred to her after I had lost almost everything. I was living alone by that time and practically homeless. Now, things are looking up again.”

Trevor decided to change the subject, as he could tell how hard it was for Jovan to open his heart to him. Yet Trevor felt uneasy.

“Jovan, do you recall how we went to see that touring hypnotist? Remember, we were the only ones he was unable to hypnotize and we were asked to leave the club?” Trevor smiled and continued: “Ever since then I have been convinced that I am immune to hypnosis and other such types of suggestion.”

“Trevor, you don’t understand. She’s got incredible skills! And her looks…” Jovan winked at Trevor and continued: “I can introduce her to you, if you want. She's an incredible woman in every sense. I have my last session with her tomorrow morning. By the way, she is classy and she is single.” Jovan pronounced the last word with a knowing tone and winked.

A real hypnotist, thought Trevor. A classy woman and a good psychologist. Seems like too many praises for one person.

“How about your job? I think I remember you wanted to be in politics,” Trevor said, again trying to change the subject. Then he seemed to remember something: “I think you went to Moscow State Institute of International Relations?”

“Yes, I graduated with honors”. Jovan nodded. “You have a great memory, my friend. After I graduated, I worked, got married, had two children, and joined a small law firm in the center of Prague. The calm, measured life relaxed me and I almost ended up losing everything. But I hope that’s all in the past now.”

“Yes, Jovan, life has a tendency to adjust our plans. Sometimes it seems we are simply watching life go by. So, you are saying you leave tomorrow? When?”

“We leave by train at midday, right after the session. We’ve rested, fortified our constitutions, so enough, duty calls. This time tomorrow, I’ll be in Prague, but don’t worry, we will speak tomorrow. The most important thing is that we found each other,” replied Jovan, patting Trevor on his shoulder.

“Right, and I am really happy we did. It's kinda weird that we so unexpectedly…”