There's Something About Sweetie(23)

Ashish nodded. “It actually does.”

“Good. So … back to your question.” The words seemed to flow out of her in a gush. “The reason I texted you last night is I heard your mom say my weight didn’t bother her—or you. So, now that you’ve seen me and my body doing what it does best”—here Ashish had to force his mind out of the gutter—“I wanted to ask you if it was true, what your mom said. That my weight doesn’t bother you. Or do you subscribe more to my mom’s train of thought, that a fat girl and a thin boy will only be cause for mockery?”

Ashish looked at her, a little taken aback. She’d obviously given this a lot of thought. And to just put it out there like that without knowing him at all was … really brave. He’d never met a girl quite like Sweetie, and no lie, he was really, really intrigued. Ashish thought of a million charming things he could say in response. Just more of you to love or Supermodel-thin just ain’t my thing. But in the end he settled for the simple truth. “I think you’re beautiful. And I don’t mean on the inside, though I’m sure that’s true too. When you run … I see power and passion. I see focus and dedication. I see someone who isn’t afraid to break people’s expectations. And to me, that’s way more attractive than the number on your weighing scale.” He paused and then continued in a rush. “Okay, and also I think you’re really just straight-up pretty. I want to lay it all out there in the open, and it’s all one hundred percent true.”

Sweetie studied him in silence. He wondered what she saw in his eyes. After a moment she graced him with a tiny smile. “I believe you.”

“Great. So … is this your way of asking me out?” He jutted his chin toward the track in front of them. “Dueling me and making me lose?”

She narrowed her eyes at him. “If that were true, that would mean dating me is the loser’s punishment.”

He froze. “That’s totally not what I meant at all—”

She laughed, a delightful sound like a bell pealing in a temple. “I’m kidding. But … yeah. I mean, I know my mom doesn’t want us to date, but …” Shrugging, she tugged on her ponytail. “You ever get the feeling you just want to say ‘screw it’ and do whatever the heck you want once in a while?”

Ashish laughed, a little hysterically. “You’ve basically described my life and why my dad had an ulcer two years ago.” More calmly, he added, “Actually, recently I’ve been more willing to let my parents take the lead. Hence my mom ambushing you and your mom.”

Sweetie smiled. “She didn’t ambush us. Your mom’s lovely.” After a pause she said, “So what happened, then? To curb your rebellious ways?” She asked it in a joking manner, but Ashish couldn’t quite bring himself to return her smile.

“Ah, nothing I want to bother you with. But yes.” He looked at her. “Let’s do it.”

She beamed. “Really? You’re on board to go behind our parents’ backs and everything?”

He took her small, warm hand in his and smiled. “Absolutely.”

She stared at him and his breath caught. Suddenly her hand seemed to be made of electricity, arcing across his skin. There was an interesting beat between them.

Her phone trilled.

She jumped back and pulled it out of her pocket. “Sorry. It’s Amma. Achchan’s coming back from a business trip today, and I’ve got to go get ready. …”

Ashish ignored the disappointed thud of his heart. “Sure, no worries. But can I call you later?”

Putting her phone away, she smiled up at him. Then she squeezed his bare arm, sending a wave of something warm rolling through him. “Yeah. I’d like that.”

So, Ashish thought as he watched her walk away, this weekend had turned out a little bit different than he’d expected it to. He had a feeling he wouldn’t be sipping a Coke despondently on his balcony tonight. Ashish sat there at the track, whistling to himself, long after Sweetie was gone.




Sweetie drove back to her house, a smile on her face the entire time. That had gone way better than she’d even hoped. Seeing how kind Sunita auntie was and then hearing that she and Ashish apparently didn’t have the same hang-ups about her weight as Amma did, she’d thought he deserved a chance. And she hadn’t been wrong.

She turned up the Hindi love song “Bol do na zara” and sang at the top of her voice. Okay, this had been their first meeting. But there was something about Ashish Patel. Something completely and utterly compelling. It wasn’t just his physique, though it had been hard to keep her eyes off those ridiculous biceps and broad shoulders. It was something about him … Behind the cocky smile and the easy laugh, there was something vulnerable and almost sad. Definitely something lonely, especially when she’d asked about what had curbed his rebellious ways. Whatever had happened, it had made him softer and sweeter, someone she wanted to get to know better.

She already couldn’t wait for him to call her. Where would they go on their first official date? And was she really keeping this from Amma and Achchan? She felt a thread of guilt wrap around her brain, but it was immediately broken by excited anticipation. This was for her. This was to show herself that what she knew in her heart—that she was beautiful and worthy—was absolutely true. Sweetie laughed. Her first real act of rebellion at nearly seventeen years old. It was about dang time.