We had 20 minutes before the movie started, so he went to the bathroom. He spotted the restrooms and rushed inside, heading directly to an open stall. The toilet seat was dirty—ah yes, a guys’ bathroom, he thought. Closing the door behind him, he began his business.

Suddenly he heard voices coming into the restroom. Not the dark, deep voices he was used to in these private rooms. They were light and high-pitched, piercing the air and causing an immediate twist in his head. They gossiped about makeup, the movie, the people they knew. One said aloud how great it was to finally pee.

He panicked inside his stall and stood there quietly, hoping they would leave. But they didn’t.

“Is this door stuck?” someone said aloud, trying to push his door.

He kept quiet and just flushed. He stood there silently, hoping nobody would peek under the door. He flushed again as they left, signaling that there was someone there.

The restroom was finally empty. He poked his head out of the stall. Cautiously, he walked to the door. As he opened the door, he ran into a girl waiting to go inside. She gave him a weird look and he bolted back into the theater in panic.

Sitting next to me, he put his hands over his face. Embarrassed. Afraid that the cops will show up and accuse him of being a pervert. He curled in a ball and asked me to make sure the girl was nowhere.

I walked into a guys’ restroom before, but I didn’t get very far noticing the urinals and backing away fast. I ran into a friend as I was backing out. Laughing I said, “Whoops, wrong one.”

But I think it’s different when it’s male.