In a dark closet, behind a heap of unnecessary rubbish, behind boxes of abandoned belongings, behind bags filled with rags and forgotten toys, there lived Shame. No one had ever seen him, no one knew what he looked like, how old he was or what his voice sounded like. And only sometimes, it was not clear from where, came a sound similar to the crackling of an old radio. It was his heavy sigh. The Sigh of Shame, whose presence no one suspected. On dark nights, to take a breath of fresh air, Shame would get out of his closet and quietly approach the open window. He stood bent over, barely breathing, small, pale and very lonely. Despite the fact that Shame had never seen his reflection in the mirror, he considered himself an ugly monster, whom everyone in the world was afraid of. Every day, every now and then the words came to his closet: “What a shame!” This is just terrible! - This is just a shame! Shame and disgrace! - Shame and disgrace! You can burn with shame! - I’ve completely lost my shame! - Shame! Especially the last word was heard by Shame like a monster. That’s why he never showed himself to anyone, considering himself an ugly monster. No one looked into the littered closet. Only occasionally would another box of unnecessary rubbish be thrown into it, the door would immediately close, and absolute darkness would set in. And then one day, when Shame was dozing peacefully in his corner, he woke up from the loud voice of one of the household members: “Sit in the dark and alone, my boy, where you won’t be ashamed to cry. The door opened, some fuss was heard, and then quickly slammed shut. A few seconds passed, and Shame heard that someone had appeared in the room. This someone was breathing intermittently, sniffling and often sobbing. For some time, Shame, listening, sat motionless in the corner and peered into the pitch darkness to see his new neighbor. But in vain, he could not see anyone. At first he felt awkward, then he felt sorry for the crying man, and finally he could not stand it and quietly cleared his throat in order to be able to say something. Just as he was about to open his mouth, he heard the thin voice of a little boy .-Who’s here? Shame hesitated at first, but overcoming his shyness, he answered. “It’s me, Shame,” and was immediately confused by the sound of his own voice. It sounded like the creaking of a rusty door hinge. “And what are you doing here?” - asked the Kid, without a shadow of fear. He had already calmed down and instead of sobbing, Shame heard curiosity in the boy’s voice. “I live here,” Shame answered, blushing and turning pale with embarrassment. “And how long have you been living here?” - the boy did not let up. - A long time ago, ever since people settled in this house. - What are you like? I've been wanting to look at you for a long time. - I'm very scary, a real monster, but I can't describe myself to you, because I've never seen my reflection. - How then do you know what you look like if you've never seen yourself? - But because all I hear is terrible shame, shame, terrible shame. “They tell me this about you too, but I’ve never seen you and that’s why I really want to meet you.” “And you won’t be scared?” “No, I’m not afraid of you.” Mom says I'm not afraid of anything. I don’t know what fear is and what it can be like. And when I cry, they tell me that it’s a shame and a disgrace. Now I’ll reach out my hand, turn on the light bulb and finally see you. And if I get scared of you, then I’ll finally know what fear is. - So are you crying? – Little Shame asked. “No, I cry sometimes.” But in general, I am cheerful and brave. The kid extended his hand and pressed the switch button. The room lit up with bright light, and he saw in front of him a small creature covered with sparse white fluff. It looked at the Kid with its big, kind, sad, gray eyes. Behind his back were small white wings that swayed with every breath. His long eyelashes trembled, and it seemed that he was about to cry. Shame also saw for the first time a little boy, with cheerful eyes and playful freckles on his upturned nose. The kid looked at Shame with interest, and there was not a shadow of fear in his eyes. They stood for a while.