"And then when you're not around, I'll point out how hilarious your face will be if she actually did wear them for a hot second and then we'll bond over hair braiding and laughing at boys, which the internet assures me is how women have bonded since the dawn of time," Arden declared, because that was a thing you could do when you didn't know someone and they lived in a whole other galaxy.

She started rinsing which, sadly, took her fingers out of his hair entirely. "Cal?" She studiously kept her eyes on his hair in the sink, not on his face. "I know I don't need to actually tell you this, but...if you find a way home that gets you there, even if it means you can't come back or keep in contact or anything...you take it, okay? We'll miss you, we'll worry about you, but you need to be there, with them. They're your family. Take the chance you're given to get back to the people you love. And I mean - I know you will? But I'm just saying, no hard feelings when you do, yeah?"