NINE
Shit, s**t, s**t!
This is Sera? She’s Sera?
What the hell?!
My hand goes limp like a dead fish in her grip, and I glance down in horror at our clasped hands, as if there’s some other explanation why my grip has gone lax and all jellyfish-like. I clear my throat, cough into my free hand, trying to keep my smile in place, almost as if it’s been screwed on, feeling my eyebrows pinching together.
What am I going to say?
Oh, so you’re the one that Russia can’t get over…
Yeah, I’m not gonna do that. Definitely not going to do that.
I’m so taken aback that I almost repeat my name again and then realize that we’ve been holding hands too long. Panicked, I drop my grip of her hand as if it’s burning me, and she lets go of mine and the whole thing is awkward and weird, and my smile drops
