Sohrab chewed on his bottom lip for a second and squished the newspaper until it was a tiny sphere.
“You seem very sad.”
“Oh.”
“Are you mad about Laleh?”
“No,” I said.
And then I said, “Not really.”
Sohrab nodded and waited for me.
I liked that about Sohrab. That he would wait for me to figure out what I wanted to say.
“Me and my dad used to watchStar Trekevery night. You knowStar Trek?”
Sohrab nodded.
“It used to be our thing. But now he wants to watch it with Laleh instead.”
“He doesn’t want to watch with you too?”
“No,” I said. “I don’t know.” I sucked on one of my tassels for a second and then spit it out when I realized I was doing it in front of Sohrab.
I didn’t want Sohrab to think I sucked on my tassels.
“It’s just... it’s not just theStar Trekthing. Like, with Farsi. She can speak it and I can’t. And everyone here likes her better. So where does that leave me?”
“Darioush,” he said. “You remember what I told you? Your place was empty before?”
“Yeah.”
“Laleh can’t take your place. Why would you think that?”
“I don’t know,” I said.
“Sometimes I just get stuck thinking things.”
“Sad things?”
I nodded and played with the hem of my shirt.
I didn’t know how to explain it any better than that.
“It’s hard for you? Your depression?”
“Yeah. Sometimes.”
Sohrab nodded.
And then he put his arm across my shoulder and said, “But you know what? Laleh is not my best friend, Darioush. You are.”
My ears burned.
I had never been someone’s best friend before.
Sohrab swayed me back and forth.
