A few weeks before 11th grade was officially over, Anina’s father was assigned back to Germany. If Anina was inconsolable, she sure was good at hiding it. We had to have drinking sessions
at Maryam’s (she would sneak out some champagne from the panic room) to pat Anina on the shoulder and tell her that maybe she and Stevan could go to the same college, and that long-distance
relationships are very possible although we knew that there was no chance in hell it was going to work out now. Stevan had proven himself a loyal boyfriend when they were at the same place, but he
was a man after all, and an absent girlfriend is almost like a non-existent girlfriend no matter how a man swears to all the Hindu gods that he will never love another but her. I never drank any
alcohol during the session
