Geek Abroad by Piper Banks

year.”
    “Sounds like fun,”I said. I noticed that there was a line queuing in front of the ticket booth. “We should probably buy our tickets.”
    “I already got them. I bought them online,”Henry said.
    “Let me pay you back,”I said, pulling my wallet out of my coat pocket.
    But Henry waved me off. “Don’t worry about it.”
    I hesitated. “Are you sure?”
    He nodded. “You can get the popcorn,”he said.
    We went inside, and I purchased an extra large tub of popcorn and two sodas, and then Henry and I made our way to the theater where our movie was showing. The movie theaters in London worked differently than they did back home; instead of picking which seat you wanted when you went inside, you were assigned a seat when you bought your tickets.
    “But what happens if you don’t like your seat? Or if someone really tall sits in front of you?”I asked. “Can you move?”
    “Sure. It’s not like the seat assignments are enforced by a police presence,”he said.
    “There isn’t a Movie Special Ops?”
    “Not that I know of. If they exist, they must be top secret,”Henry said. “One of those government agencies that you need clearance to even know about.”
    It wasn’t until we were sitting down and companionably digging into the tub of popcorn that it occurred to me: Henry and I were on a date . At least, I thought we were. After all, he’d asked me to go to the movies with him, and he’d bought my ticket. Maybe his friends really did back out at the last minute. . . . But maybe they were never really planning on coming in the first place.
    I wished for the ten zillionth time that I had more experience in guy-related matters. My stepsister, Hannah, might not be able to calculate the square root of the number one, but she’d certainly know whether or not she was in the middle of a date with a cute guy. And right about now, her brand of genius would really come in handy.
    After the movie, Henry and I went to Pizza Express for dinner. We each ordered our own pizza—I had the Quattro Formaggi and Henry ordered something called Il Padrino, which turned out to be a pizza covered in chicken, tomatoes, and vegetables. Henry didn’t seem horrified that I ate as much, if not more, than he did, which was another point in his favor. I’m not one of those girls who can eat a few lettuce leaves and pretend I’m stuffed.
    “Did you like the movie?”Henry asked as we ate.
    “It was great,”I enthused. “I especially liked the chase scene with the helicopter, the high-speed train, and the motorcycle. How about you?”
    “Yeah. I thought it was brilliant,”Henry said. “I really want one of those pens that double as a grappling hook.”
    “Because you have a pressing need for grappling hooks here in London,”I teased him.
    “Hey, you never know when you’re going to have to scale the side of a building.”Henry folded his slice of pizza and took a big bite. He swallowed before speaking again. “Look at James. He got a lot of use out of that thing.”
    “Yes. Although, to be fair, he was chasing down an evil oil tycoon’s henchmen after they tried to kill him with a high-tech laser gun,”I said.
    “Well, yes, if you’re going to argue semantics,”Henry said. “So, give me your top three bad guys.”
    “In real life or fiction?”
    “Fiction. It’s less depressing.”
    I thought about it for a few minutes. “Well. The White Witch from The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe would be on my list,”I said, thinking of Peyton, who bore more than a passing resemblance to that cold-blooded witch. “And the Queen from Snow White . Actually, all of the evil stepmothers. Cinderella had a nasty one, too.”
    “I’m sensing a theme,”Henry deadpanned.
    I grinned at him, and then inspiration struck. “Number three is Hannibal Lecter from Silence of the Lambs ,”I finished triumphantly.
    “Not bad, not bad,”Henry said. “I would put Hannibal on my list, too.”
    “Who else?”
    Henry pondered