minded, because she was positioned next to a young, dark-haired businessman wearing what looked to be a soft and expensive dark gray suit. “Where did he come from?” she whispered.“Malostranskeˇ stop.”I decided our fellow passengers didn’t really look all that different from Ohioans. Their clothes and faces resembled those of people I’d expect to see walking through the mall on a Saturday. The only exception to this was their footwear. Both the young and elderly were clad in shoes that looked considerably orthopedic. When the metro stopped at Staromeˇstská, Veronica was first off the train. I clumsily dashed out behind her.We rode an escalator up into the daylight. Hurrying down the sidewalk, I realized that we were at the same place where the tour had ended yesterday.“There’s the castle,” I said, pointing across the river.“I’m not blind,” Veronica huffed. “This way. The school is around the corner.” Charles University was old, stone, and impressive. I didn’t remember seeing it on the tour. We climbed a set of shallow stone steps and entered through a set of heavy wooden doors. Veronica immediately began climbing the central stairs. When we got to our room on the second floor, Veronica yanked on the door and then said, “Shit.”“Is it locked?” I asked.She pulled a credit card out of her purse and wedged it into the door near the lock.“What are you doing?” I asked. I was shocked. Unless you count her locker, I’d never seen her break into anything before.The door popped open and she smiled. “Entering. Now, the reason we’re here early is so we can secure our seats strategically.”“Good idea. We should sit by the door in case we need to use the bathroom.”“Yeah,” Veronica said. “Because nothing turns a guy on more than a girl who’s intent on emptying her bladder. Seriously, Dessy, can you try to think like a cheetah?”“Probably not,” I said.“We want to penetrate the guys’ circle,” she said.“You make it sound so sexual. Can’t you just say that we want to sit next to them?”Veronica walked to one of the chairs and smiled like a devil. “This is how it will go. Guy ass. My ass. Guy ass. Guy ass. Your ass. Guy ass.” She walked down the row and slapped the back of a chair each time she said the word “ass.”“How on earth do you know where the guys are going to sit?” I asked.“A lot of it’s mental,” she said.I glanced around the classroom. Things looked dilapidated. Huge maps of Europe hung on every wall except the windowed one. There was an aquarium too, containing a keyboard and several feet of cable. Was this an omen? Veronica remained fixated on the chairs. “And how will that work?” I asked.“Don’t you remember that time that I moved a balloon across the floor using just my mind at your birthday party two years ago? It’ll be a lot like that.” Veronica tapped her temple.“Oh my god,” I said. “This plan is bonkers.”“You’re not going to say that after it works.”“You really think you can control the other workshop participants?”“Yeah.” She plopped down in a chair. “We need to capitalize on every moment. Every second.” She snapped her fingers in quick succession to emphasize, I assumed, the dramatic passage of time. “Do you want to know what I said in my e-mail to Boz last night?”The way she was treating Boz upset me so much that I hadn’t asked her about it.“No,” I said.“I said, ‘I’m enjoying every second of this place.’ And it was the truth. And I will continue to live my truth.”She climbed onto her chair and then up onto a table. She lifted her index finger and jabbed it heavenward. “My truth!” she yelled.“Get down,” I said. “You’re going to freak people out.”Veronica leaped off the table. “Adventurous girls make guys horny,” she said. “That’s why superhero chicks give guys boners.” “Superhero chicks? Are you serious?” I asked.“Hawkgirl, Wonder Woman, Supergirl,
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