FOUR Jessie

FOUR

Jessie

It had been exactly three weeks since Jessie had started college at Hartceller, and in that time, she learned a few critical things about survival on campus.

The first was to not leave her phone charger unattended, because someone would steal it. The second was to avoid eating any seafood from the dining hall. The third was the hardest pill to swallow. Her arch-nemesis, the man who either took his sweet time leaving her study room or stood around outside her study-room door when her time was up, was the bane of her existence.

Jessie sat across from her roommate, Tanvi, with her salad and Gatorade. "Then after I'm done with all of my sessions, he just walks me back to the dorms in complete silence."

"Every time?" Tanvi asked. She took the top off her burger and squeezed a packet of mayo on the underside of the bun. "Do you guys talk or anything?"

"Nope," Jessie replied. She shook her plastic salad container to distribute the dressing. "He'll stop at the corner of the block and then stand around until I get to the front of the building. When I reach the doors, he pulls out that stupid vape pen and walks away."

"Do you think he likes you?"

Jessie rolled her eyes. The very question of whether someone like Ravi Kumar found someone like her interesting had plagued her for weeks, but like hell she would admit that. She knew that in theory, wanting to spend time with another person was a sign that there was possibly some ... interest. But she was so different from Ravi.

She didn't have the cash flow to keep up with his fancy lifestyle. The tech gadgets he always had on him, the clothes, or the conversations she overheard about winter break vacations skiing in Colorado or summers in Europe. More importantly, he looked at her like she was a nuisance, an irritation that he had to put up with before he moved on for the rest of his day. "If he liked me, he would let me have the room without trying to fight me for it in the booking portal every week."

"I don't know, maybe that's how rich guys show their affection," Tanvi said before she picked up her burger and took a bite.

"By being irritating? If that's the case, it's not working. Besides, it's ... I don't know, antifeminist."

Tanvi grinned. "I think it's working. I mean, every time you come back from your study session, all you can talk about is Ravi Kumar this and Ravi Kumar that."

Jessie gasped at the accusation. "I do not!"

"You do too," Tanvi said with a laugh. "And you mention him after your seminar, too."

That was because he decided to move a couple of rows behind her, so now she was constantly aware of his presence. Even worse, his group of friends, who sounded like they were more dedicated to hanging out than anything else, moved with him.

"I'm just glad it's the weekend," Jessie said. "I could use a break."

Tanvi snorted as she used a fry to mix together a packet of ketchup and mayo. "Not like that would change anything. You're probably going to spend it studying like you've done for the last two weekends."

"It's cheaper that way." She was saving all her work-study money so she could pay for her flights during winter break. There were also emergency expenses to save up for, like if she got sick or if her computer went on the fritz. She refused to call home and ask her parents to pay for things that she should be able to cover for herself.

Tanvi held out a fry covered in the mayo-ketchup mixture. "I should probably stay in the room this weekend, too. I spent so much money last Saturday when I went out for brunch and for dinner and then to that party. It was like in twelve hours, I spent my budget for the week. My mom is all about enjoying the college experience because her parents never let her. She sent me more money, but I'm sure she'll get tired of that real quick if I do it all the time."

"Ahh, the joys of being a third-generation South Asian kid," Jessie said as she took Tanvi's french fry. She smiled at it ruefully, wondering what it would be like to have disposable income where clothes weren't thrifted and pennies weren't pinched. "Your mother did all of the hard work unpacking generational trauma so you wouldn't have to."

"I'll cheers to that."

A student from their dorm floor walked by their table and waved.

"You know," Tanvi said, her eyes sparkling with mischief. "I heard that Ravi Kumar isn't really big on studying in the first place. That he coasts in all his classes because he doesn't need them. I also heard that this is the first year he's been seen in the library so consistently."

Jessie's stomach clenched. "Oh my god," she whispered as she leaned across the table. "Do you think he's stalking me or something? Am I going to be his next victim?" She was probably being paranoid because she'd been watching too many true-crime shows at night. However, it was better to be prepared than to be taken by surprise.

"You actually think that Ravi Kumar has to resort to stalking?" Tanvi said. She tilted her head back and burst into laughter. "I think most of the population on campus would be willing to sleep with him, and he knows it."

"That's ... gross."

Tanvi picked up a fry and pointed to the front entrance. "Let's not forget that according to the juniors in my Wednesday yoga class, he has a long-standing hookup relationship with Sahdna."

Jessie turned around to see the direction Tanvi was pointing toward. There was a group of students walking in, and not a single one looked more noticeable than the next. She shifted in her seat to face her roommate again. "I know that I'm going to regret asking, but who is Sahdna?"

"You poor, innocent creature," Tanvi said. "Sahdna is our local makeup and college lifestyle influencer." She wiped a hand against her jeans, then pulled out her phone and opened an app for Jessie to see. "Isn't she stunning?"

A student their age with shiny black hair and perfectly arched brows applied concealer and color corrector under her eyes. Jessie's mouth fell open. "Holy shit, she got rid of those shadows in, like, seconds."

"Uh-huh," Tanvi said, and dropped her phone back on the table.

Jessie turned around and was now able to spot the real-life version of the woman with fantastic under eyes. She was standing at the center of a group by the front entrance. "Now I see her. She's just as pretty in person."

"People say she's going to work at some marketing company when she graduates, because she's already getting job offers. Apparently, she hooked up with Ravi Kumar when they were freshmen, and she's the only girl that he's ever posted on his public profiles."

Jessie twisted in her seat so she could stab her fork in her salad. "How do you have time for classes and for memorizing all of that biology stuff when your head is so full of everything happening on campus? I have no idea how you keep track of it all."

"It's a gift."

Jessie snorted.

Tanvi sat up in her seat, and then nodded in the direction of Sahdna. "Oh look, it's your stalker right now. I guess the rumors were true about those two."

Jessie could feel the hairs on the back of her neck lift. She debated turning around and then cursed under her breath before she looked over her shoulder. Tanvi was right. Ravi and Sahdna now stood side by side, their arms wrapped around each other's waists. They were laughing at something one of their friends had said. Then, as if Ravi could tell that he was being watched, he looked up, and his eyes met Jessie's.

"Shit," she hissed, and quickly looked down at her food.

"Busted," Tanvi said.

"Do you think it's too late to leave?"

"Oh yeah," Tanvi said. "Especially since he and Sahdna are walking in this direction now."

"You're lying," Jessie hissed.

"Not about this I'm not."

Jessie felt her heart speed up, her back go straight as a board. The pesky hairs on the nape of her neck prickled.

"Well, if it isn't Jessie Jaissi Koi Nahin." There was a flutter of laughter from his friends, who had trailed behind him like paparazzi.

Jessie sighed. "Hello, nepo child."

Her words were like a detonation. Not only did his friends stop laughing abruptly, but so did everyone at the nearby tables. She turned to face him and saw that he was the only one wearing a rueful smile.

"What are you doing here?" he asked.

She motioned to her salad. "What most people do in cafeterias." Then she looked at Sahdna, who stood by his side. "Hi. I just saw your video on concealer and color corrector. The one where you use the lipstick and blend with your moisturizer before setting it under concealer. Thanks. I needed to know that."

Sahdna looked like she wasn't sure if she should make friends with someone who was obviously at odds with Ravi. "Uh, thanks."

"Oh, so you're nice to her but not to me?" Ravi asked.

"She's not trying to steal my study room."

"You're the one who stole my study room."

Jessie crossed her hands over her chest. "I followed the rules, and I booked the room. You just didn't like that someone else reserved something fair and square and you couldn't get it even after pitching a fit."

His eyebrows furrowed. "I did no such thing."

"There's no way you're in a study room," one of his friends said. He was an unwelcome intrusion in their argument. "This has to be some joke between you two. Ravi and the freshman." His cocked hat was almost as obnoxious as his T-shirt with a marijuana plant on it. He was like a walking cliché and a disaster all at once. "Ravi doesn't need to study. He's a genius! Just like his old man."

"Not quite," Ravi said dryly.

"Ravi, do you study alone?" Sahdna asked as she placed a hand on his chest. "I can always meet you. Then we can get something a bit more private for the two of us."

"Yeah, where is this room, anyway?" a third person asked. They turned to Jessie as if expecting her to rat out their friend.

Jessie saw Ravi's jaw clench.

That's when she realized that he never told anyone when he was in the library. He let his friends, hell, the entire school, believe whatever they wanted about him. She didn't know what he was doing in the room next to hers when they studied side by side, but that didn't seem relevant.

She looked up at his friend and shrugged. "Top floor of the library," she said.

His shoulders visibly relaxed.

"Next time I see you walking in that direction," the boy in the marijuana shirt said to Ravi, "I know exactly where to find you."

"Busted," Ravi replied, chuckling. It was such a hollow and fake sound that Jessie was surprised when no one else seemed to notice.

"Hey, your friend should come to the nineties Bollywood party tonight at the house," the person standing next to Sahdna said as she motioned to Jessie then back at Ravi. "I don't know about you all, but I want to get to know the person who's at odds with our man. Maybe we can all convince her that Ravi isn't such a bad guy. If he's joining the family business, he needs his space."

Jessie almost gagged. How much ass kissing were these people doing? It was almost comical.

"You should come," Sahdna said. She smiled, and it looked sincere. "You and your friend," she said, and motioned to Tanvi. "We were first-year students once, and upper-class students brought us into the fold. It's time we return the favor."

"I don't think—"

"We'll be there," Tanvi said. She rested a hand over Jessie's shoulder and squeezed. "Thanks so much for inviting us."

Jessie looked up at Ravi and wasn't sure how to read his expression. "I have plans and probably shouldn't, but thanks."

"Come," he finally said. His jaw clenched again. "We'll consider it neutral territory. It's the building next door to where we had the South Asian Association mixer. House number thirty-two fifty-eight."

"Ahh," Jessie said. She turned back to her roommate with a pleading expression. Tanvi pressed her palms together like she was begging.

And because there were so many people staring at her and waiting for her response, Jessie had no choice but to say yes.

"Fine," she said. Talk about peer pressure.

"Great. See you then," he said.

He winked at Tanvi, who let out a giggle. Ravi then walked away, an arm slung over Sahdna's shoulders. Sahdna waved goodbye over her shoulder before she wrapped her arm around Ravi's waist. Then Jessie and Tanvi were left alone with their lunches.

"Don't say anything," Jessie mumbled.

"Too bad," her roommate replied with a grin. "We're going to an upper-class party!"