“Don’t worry,” I say. “It’s how every movie works. They have to turn off the lights so you can see the screen better.”

“Oh, yeah, right.” Ross relaxes into their purple recliner and takes their hand from mine. The sudden absence of it makes me realize how much I’ve missed someone else’s touch. Dominic and I always had our fingers laced together, or if we were sitting doing homework or watching a movie, he’d absentmindedly run a finger up and down my arm, making patterns in my hair, like he couldn’t stand to be in the same room and not be touching. I need that kind of contact, and now that I’m so focused on my hands being empty, I don’t know what to do with them. I settle on just folding them in my lap, which really fits my Upset Accountant vibe.

“And don’t laugh at me,” Ross goes on, thankfully worried about their own embarrassment instead of my awkward fidgeting. “How am I supposed to know how a movie works? It’s not like we have these things where I’m from.”

“I promise I won’t laugh again,” I say, but thinking about their mini freak-out makes a smile creep up my lips that I can’t resist. Ross punches me in the shoulder as the previews kick in, their attention drawn to the screen. Normally, this would be when Dominic and I would snuggle in together, D resting his head on my chest, his body weight a comforting blanket against my shoulder. But this pod is cold. There’s no one around who we need to perform the cuddly-partners act for, so it makes sense Ross is keeping to themself.

BOOM!

An explosion in the preview for the latest Fast and the Furious movie blares on the screen, cars screeching through the flames.

“WHAT THE FLICK!” Ross screams. Suddenly their hand is back in mine, but instead of it being sweet and cuddly, they’re squeezing my fingers so hard I think my pinkie just broke. Horror is written all across Ross’s face. It’s so hysterical seeing Ross look at Vin Diesel in terror that the Donkey Laugh bursts out of me.

“Ha ha,” Ross says, punching me with each syllable. “I’m glad my panic is amusing to you.” They look back at the screen where Vin is dodging bullets. The annoyance on their face floats away as their forehead furrows with concern. “Does anyone get hurt in these things? Because they’re all real people, right? Like in YouTube? That sneezing panda really sneezed, didn’t it?”

“YouTube is real, for the most part, but movies are all made up. Nobody gets hurt. It’s all camera angles and special effects and trained stunt doubles. A good director will make everything look like it’s really happening, but it’s all smoke and mirrors.”