You knew? He showed up unannounced with a Yule-log cake!

Parisa

He sent me a picture of it. The boy is nothing if not determined. Swooooooob.

*Swooooon. But Swoooob is a cool new word, too.

Gabriela

He was wearing a mask when he knocked, but my moms were super pissed that he thought it was okay to swing by in the middle of a pandemic.

They only let me wave to him from the window and even though I could really only see the top of his nose and his eyes, it was really nice to see a friendly face.

Parisa

He risked imminent death to knock on your door and see you! That is some Fault in Our Stars caliber romantic gesture.

Gabriela

IDK. But, man, he can bake! The taste of a nonvegan chocolate cake almost made me cry.

Parisa

Pretty sure his grandma made it.

Gabriela

Then I’m going to lose my virginity to her.

Parisa

He loves you forever. I ship you guys and I’m going to start calling you “Gasley.” Hahahaha. That’s so dumb, I’m sorry.

Gabriela

What’s the latest with you? How are college apps going?

Parisa

They’re not. But Neda asked Gideon if he would help me with my essay…

Gabriela

OMG. This is how affairs start!

Parisa

Stop! He’s my sister’s bf and that makes him completely off-limits and basically has made me not attracted to him at all anymore.

Gabriela

The lady doth protest too much.

Parisa

I heard them fighting last night. Neda was PISSED because it took him 3 hours to respond to her texts. And then when he did, he just sent the thumbs-up emoji. Which, BTW, means “fuck you” in Iran.

Gabriela

LOLZ. That is too good.

Parisa

OMFG, my mom just called me. She wants me to do a Peloton ride. Kill me now.

Gabriela

Moms. Ruining our lives since the beginning of time.

Parisa

Tell me about it. TTYL. Xoxo

GABRIELA

Time seems to function differently in quarantine—not exactly faster or slower, just more elusive. Every morning when I wake up, it takes me a few seconds to remember what day it is, what month, what season. I guess that’s why New Year’s Eve felt like it came out of nowhere. Not that I was looking forward to it. I’m not sure why everyone thinks the pandemic will magically get better once the clock strikes midnight and this year is over.