by Nisha Sharma
And then she remembered they hadn’t talked since their kiss.
“Hi,” he said when he reached her side.
“Hi.”
They stared at each other in silence.
“So,” Winnie said. “Are you heading home?”
“No, to the facilities office first. They still haven’t fixed my stupid locker.”
“At this point, everyone in your hall knows it’s broken.”
“Very true. Uh, I didn’t get a chance to catch up with you after—”
“Yeah?”
“Are you getting back together with Raj?”
Winnie had to shake her head because she wasn’t sure she’d heard him correctly. “That’s seriously what you want to ask me?”
“I have to admit, it’s been on my mind since you told me he fits your prophecy thing.”
“Not at all. Raj and I are definitely history. Sorry, I have to go. It was, uh, nice running into you.”
She tried to leave, but Dev snagged her hand. She jumped at the warm contact of his palm against hers.
“Are you going to homecoming?” he asked slowly.
“Yes. Why?”
He squeezed and his thumb brushed over her life line. “Just wanted to make sure you were going to be there. I think it’s time for a second date.”
She laughed and pulled away. “We haven’t been on a first!”
“I bought you your favorite ice cream, we went on a walk, and we took a romantic ride. I think that’s a pretty solid first date.”
“You ate my ice cream, I dragged you through a crowd, and you wanted to jump off the Ferris wheel.”
“I’ll make it up to you at homecoming.”
Then he did the unthinkable.
He winked at her.
There was no background music or backup dancers. There was no rustling wind or 360-degree camera shot. But with that wink, she felt more with Dev than she’d ever felt with Raj. Winnie liked to think she was strong, independent, and capable. Yet Dev shifted something inside her and her bones melted like goo.
She watched him walk away and then floated the rest of the way to Mr. Reece’s office. The wink was still on her mind when she knocked and Mr. Reece called her in. She sank into a chair.
Mr. Reece sat behind his desk, working at his computer. He peered at her over his rectangular frames.
“Yes, Ms. Mehta?”
“Mr. Reece, have you ever heard of the movie Dilwale Dulhania Le Jayenge?”
“Oh boy,” he muttered, and took off his glasses. “No, I can’t say I have.”
“It’s about this girl who goes on vacation to Europe before her wedding. She meets a guy whose name is, ironically, Raj. He’s a jerk to her at first, but they fall in love. When Raj says goodbye at the train station and hands her a cowbell for her to remember their time together, and boom! The heroine knows she only wants to be with him. The problem is, she’s supposed to marry someone else, and what does she do? Does she follow destiny or run away with Raj?”
“Winnie, what is the point of this story?”
She flung her arms out and tilted her head back. “I think Dev is my Raj because even though he didn’t give me a cowbell, he winked! But Raj, the real one, not the one in this movie I’m telling you about, broke up with Jenny, and he’s not in my love story at all anymore. Oh, and I think that you can still get the auditorium for free this year if Gurinder Chadha is willing to do a master class with the Princeton faculty.”
Mr. Reece chuckled and dropped his head to his desk.
11
DANGAL / WRESTLING
★★★★★
A Bollywood movie, even one about a sport, must have an appropriate amount of drama.
Bridget handed Winnie a pumpkin-spice latte with the name Vinny written on it in black marker.
“Thanks, boo,” Winnie said.
A chill in the air whipped through her clothing and iced her skin. She hunched over her cup, hoping to absorb some of the heat. Her hair gave some added protection since she wasn’t sporting a braid for once, and Bridget had nagged her into taking the time to flat-iron. She could still have used a sweatshirt, though. Long-sleeve shirts weren’t going to cut it.
“Thank Starbucks, Vinny. I’m so happy they have a drive-through down the block,” Bridget said. “I can’t stand the slushy crap they serve here.”
Winnie looked down at a really important white line that she didn’t know the name of. She was sitting in a half-full stadium.
“So are you coming to my mom’s pooja next weekend?” Winnie asked.
“Considering your mom specially invited me to come and pray for your slutty soul, of course I’ll be there.”
“My slutty soul could always use your support. Although it wouldn’t be slutty if I kept things to myself. Telling my mother that I have a thing for Dev was not one of my better ideas.”
“You can say that again,” Bridget said. She looked at her phone screen and then scanned the stadium.
“Is Henry on his way?”
“He’s walking in now. What about Dev?”
“He texted me a few minutes ago to ask what section we were seated in.”
Bridget wrapped an arm around Winnie’s shoulder and squeezed. “Are you nervous?”
“Excited. I feel like I should be nervous, though, only because I have no idea what we’re doing. Am I rebounding because of my super-long relationship with Raj? It doesn’t feel like rebounding, probably because I sort of maybe had a thing for Dev in freshman year, too. Before Raj.”
“Then it’s probably not rebounding,” Bridget said.
“Hey, guys,” Henry said as he approached their row. He smiled at Bridget, not even acknowledging Winnie’s presence.
“Hi!” Bridget said with a little too much bubbly in her voice. She scrambled to her feet so she could give him a hug. They stood in the dimming stadium lights, wrapped around each other for a moment, and Winnie felt a slow warmth in her stomach for her best friend.
“Henry,” Winnie said after the couple pulled apart. “It’s nice to see you outside of work and school.”
“Yeah, what up?”
“Did you see Dev up there? He was supposed to be here by now, too.”
“Actually, he was right behind me,” Henry said.
Someone on the field blew a horn, and Dev dropped down next to her.
He took over the space with his man-smell and confidence. He was so much broader and taller than her that even though they were sitting next to each other, she felt that he was stealing the very air she was breathing. Worse, Dev wore a beanie and a leather jacket.
Holy baby Shah Rukh Khan. No music or backup dancers, but that strange feeling was there again.
“Hey,” he said.
“Hi.”
He tugged on a lock of her hair. “Pretty. What’s that?” he asked, pointing to her cup.
“Oh. Um, a PSL. Why?”
He plucked the cup from Winnie’s hand and brought it to his mouth to take a sip.
“Dev!” He put his mouth right over the spout. If she drank from it now, it would be as if their lips were in the same place and they were kissing again.
“Ugh,” he said as he handed the cup back to her. “That’s such a girl drink.”
“First of all, drinks do not have genders. And second, you ate my ice cream the last time we went out, and I was too distracted to really care then, but this is my latte we’re talking about. If you have a thing against the PSL, don’t touch mine.”
They stared at each other for a moment and then shared a grin.
“Hey, Dev,” Bridget said, leaning around Winnie. Her eyes sparkled with mischief. “I didn’t think you’d be the type to come to a football game.”
“Nope, but I’ve never done the expected.”
“Good point,” Bridget said.
Before Winnie could comment, an icy breeze hit her, and she shivered.
“Where’s your coat?” Dev asked.
“I was an idiot. Completely fo
rgot it.”
After a minute he stood. “I’ll be right back.”
He was gone before Winnie could respond. Someone on the field blew a horn and everyone started cheering. Cheerleaders waved their pom-poms, and the marching bands played something peppy. The teams began pouring from separate corners of the stadium onto the field. Winnie checked her phone and then braced herself for another gust of wind. She shivered harder this time.
“I’m going to warm up on the main level,” she said, poking Bridget in the side. She figured she’d return before Dev got back.
“Do you want me to go with you?” Bridget asked.
“I’m good. Be back in a sec.”
Winnie reached the main concourse, crammed with food vendors and people, and instantly felt better out of the wind. After scanning the crowd for Dev, Winnie headed for the restroom to check on her hair when she spotted Raj and Jenny standing off to the side. From the way Raj was looking at everything but Jenny, arms folded, shoulders hunched, he was totally getting eaten alive.
She tried to give them a wide berth as she passed. Dealing with Raj and Jenny while she was on a date was the last thing she wanted to do. She almost managed to sneak by, but Jenny swung around and stopped her.
“You!” she shouted. “You broke us up because you were jealous!”
Winnie winced. Jenny’s voice carried in the echo of the concourse level, and some people had already stopped to see where the yelling was coming from.
“Jenny, this isn’t her fault,” Raj said.
Winnie looked at the bathroom door in the distance and tried to hustle toward it.
“That’s right, just ruin this and run away!” Jenny shouted. “You only care about yourself and your stupid movies.”
Jenny’s words had her skidding to a halt. All plans for making a quick exit vanished. She stormed over until she was standing next to Raj. “You knew Raj and I had been together for years, and you’re pointing fingers at me? Didn’t he tell you we were on a break?”
Jenny’s bloodshot eyes widened before cooling. Her tongue licked at her chapped lips. “Everyone knows that if you’re on a break, you’re broken up.”
“Why the hell do people believe that?” Winnie said, arms flailing. “But whatever—we’re broken up for real now. I told him that we were over. Your relationship is your business.”
“Well, he wants you back, so congratulations. You won.” Jenny spun on her heels and stormed off.
Everyone was going to hear about this before school on Monday, Winnie thought.
Raj leaned against the brick wall, scrubbing his hands over his face. He looked so miserable.
Winnie hesitated, and then said, “You okay?”
“You’ve been avoiding me.”
“Probably because you and Jenny obviously have something, and I don’t want to get in the middle. I never thought I’d say this, but you should try to work things out.”
“I broke things off with Jenny because you matter to me. You’re still the love of my life. It’s not just your prophecy and future at stake; it’s mine, too, since I think we’re destined here.”
“If that’s the case, then you wouldn’t try to change me. I’m going to NYU. If you really had feelings for me, you’d help me solve this film-festival problem instead of thinking that I’m the problem. We’re officially over and in the past.”
“If what you’re saying is true, then you would’ve gotten rid of my bracelet with my movies. But you kept it.”
Her cheeks warmed. “I’ve been trying to give it back to you for weeks! You’re the one being a butthead about it.”
He pushed off the wall and stepped closer until they were only inches apart. He looked down at her, and for the first time in all the years she’d known him, he had a cockiness on his face that she’d never seen before.
“You may think I’m doing this because of your horoscope, but I’m actually doing it for me, too. For us. We’re good together. I just have to remind you of that.”
“Nope. Sorry. Not gonna happen.” She turned to leave, but he gripped her arm and pulled her back a step. It felt nothing like Dev’s touch.
“I’m fighting for you, Winnie,” he said, louder. “Like the heroes in your favorite movies. Which, by the way—I know them all. Does anyone else? No one. Maybe not even Bridget.”
Before she could pull away, his hand was ripped off hers, and he grunted as she heard a smacking sound of body meeting cement.
Dev pinned Raj to the wall with his forearm pressed against his neck. He had a sweatshirt draped over one shoulder, and his other hand was pushing against Raj’s chest.
“Dev! What are you doing? Let him go,” she hissed. Her heart pounded as she watched them press closer, struggling against each other. Raj was a lot thinner and shorter than Dev, but he was able to push him away.
“Touch her again, and I’ll do more than put you in a choke hold, asshole,” Dev said through clenched teeth.
Raj shoved Dev, and Dev braced himself to do the same.
“Raj, Dev, stop it!” Winnie yelled. This was getting out of hand. “Dev, let’s go. Raj, go home.”
Dev looked at her, then at Raj. “Stay away from her.”
“Screw you, asshole! You’ve always been jealous of us.”
Before Dev could move in again, Winnie pushed them away from each other. “I will seriously hurt you both if you don’t stop. I took kickboxing once, and I could do it.”
She gripped Dev’s arm, intending to lead him to the bleachers. Raj let out a humorless laugh. “Wait a minute. Are you kidding me? The rumors are true! You’re actually dating him?”
“We’re not dating,” Winnie said. “Come on.” She motioned to Dev.
“Why does it matter to you, dickhead?”
Raj crossed his arms over his chest. “Winnie and I are getting back together.”
“No, we aren’t.”
“Three years and you’re still clueless,” Dev said to Raj. “And yeah, we are dating.” He reached for her hand and linked his fingers with hers.
They maneuvered through a swarm of people until finally they reached the archway that led down to their bleacher section. Winnie pulled him to a stop.
“Dev, you can’t jump people like that!”
“I thought he was hurting you.”
“And what, you think I can’t take care of myself? I know him better than you do. Raj may be misguided, but he’s not violent.” Winnie shivered when the brisk wind rushed up her back.
Dev took the sweatshirt off his shoulder and passed it to her. “Here,” he said. “I was going to give you my jacket, but I figured no sense in both of us being cold.”
It was soft, and it felt worn in, like it had gone through the wash a few times. She almost brought it to her face and buried her nose in it. She hesitated before slipping it over her head. The sweatshirt smelled like him, and in that moment she knew she was never going to return it. Some of her frustration ebbed.
“Thanks.”
“Winnie?”
“Yeah?”
He brushed a strand of hair off her face. “I’m not going to let freshman year happen again, okay?”
“Freshman year?”
Before she could stop him, Dev touched her chin and pressed the softest, quickest kiss against her mouth.
“Wh-what was that for?” Winnie asked when she could make coherent sentences again.
“I’m not going to ignore Raj while he tries to make another move.”
“He can’t. He won’t. I don’t want him to. But, Dev, this is too much, too fast. I just got out of a thing with Raj.”
Dev raised an eyebrow. “Are you sure you’re over him? Because having destiny on his side is a pretty strong argument.”
“I’m spending time with you, not him,” she said quietly. “Doesn’t that count for something?”
“Yeah. Yeah, it does.”
She linked her fingers with his again and led him toward the stadium seats. “Maybe at halftime you can buy me nachos a
nd not eat them.”
“And maybe you’ll wake up tomorrow hating Bollywood movies.”
She laughed. “Okay, okay. I can forgive you for taking my nachos because you tried to defend my honor. I appreciate you fighting Raj, but it’s not necessary.”
“Your doucheweed ex doesn’t know what he’s up against. He may have the prophecy on his side, or so he thinks, but so do I.”
Winnie stopped halfway down the stairs. The hair rose at the nape of her neck. “What does that mean?”
“Nothing. There are some things I should probably tell you because of this whole prophecy thing you have in your star chart, but you have to trust me when I say that it doesn’t matter. After all, you don’t believe in the prophecy anymore anyway, right?”
“Uh, yeah, I guess not.” When they finally sat down next to Bridget and Henry, Winnie tried her best to watch the game and her friends, but something Dev had said wouldn’t stop circling in her mind. What did he have to do with the prophecy?
Like any Bollywood heroine worthy of her role, Winnie spent the rest of the game wondering if the hero she was with had a more tangled backstory than the one who’d gotten away.
12
YAADEIN / MEMORIES
★★★★★
Personally? I don’t think all the praying in the world on the part of the father could’ve saved the heroine and her sisters from looking like idiots.
The most common element in all Bollywood pooja scenes was the number of people in attendance. That was because in real life, poojas could potentially involve a gazillion family members, friends, and distant acquaintances.
Winnie hated all the prep work that went into it. A pooja meant the furniture had to be moved to the front sitting room. Then the living room had to be swept, mopped, and dusted. Every single area rug in the house had to be moved into the living room, vacuumed, and then covered with blankets and sheets for people to comfortably sit on the floor. Lastly, the coffee table had to be pushed against the far wall and then draped in a bright red mesh cloth to display the statues from the small temple upstairs.
