She snorts but doesn’t try to push my fingers away. “There’s always next time.”

“We’re leaving,” I tell her before shooting Emmitt another dirty look. As if flirting with the film club members wasn’t bad enough. “We’re leaving,” I repeat louder.

“Bye, gorgeous!” Emmitt calls, before wrinkling his nose dramatically. “And you, too, Samina, I suppose.”

“I can’t stand you,” I say, flipping him off with my free hand. “Good the fuck bye.”

He chuckles but doesn’t follow as I slowly back away with Anam behind me. When we’re a safe distance apart, I turn back around, releasing a deep breath. “Right. Anyway, what’s your date’s name?”

Anam stares at me with a fond expression. “I don’t think my date is the one we should be worried about.”

I bump into her shoulder roughly. “Their name is...?”

She keeps smiling but allows the change in topic. “Not yet. You’ll scare them off.”

“That’s not true,” I say, my lips turning down in a pout. “I can be nice.”

She raises her eyebrows. “You threatened my last boyfriend with bodily harm.”

“I should have threatened him with worse,” I say. “Maybe then he would’ve thought twice before cheating on you three times.”

My sister makes a disturbed face. “Yikes. Yeah. Okay, fair point.” Then she offers me a sheepish grin. “My date isn’t like him.”

“That remains to be seen,” I say, but squeeze her hand. “Come on.”

Anam abandons me in Aldo, looking for a pair of strappy high heels that I wouldn’t be caught dead in. I’m not particularly clumsy, but I’d rather not tempt fate by wearing shoes higher than two inches.

I browse through flip-flops instead, considering them with a critical eye. New York summers get pretty warm, but I imagine California must be significantly worse.

I’ve never been a huge fan of the beach, but I think I could grow to love it. At any rate, I’m going to need much more beach apparel than I currently own.

If you get in, a treacherous voice whispers. To spite that thought, I grab the shoes I was eyeing and head for the register.

When Anam finds me again, I’m carrying a bag at my side, two pairs of flip-flops tucked away.

“Did you buy something?” she asks.

“Just some flip-flops,” I say, looping my arm through hers. I’ll get into USC and make use of these. I don’t care what anyone says, not even the voice in my head. “Where to next?”

Anam pauses, giving me a strange look I can’t decipher, before she shakes her head. “I was going to head to H&M. Good with you?”

“Sounds great,” I say, and follow her, taking note of various window displays as we go. Anam keeps looking back at me, her eyes cloudy, and I give her an uncertain smile in return.