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When Kala’s family moved to the United States, she had mixed feelings. She was going to miss her friends and family in Bombay, but there was something exciting about moving to a new country. Kala had never been to America in person before, only having seen it in movies. She knows it won’t be exactly like those films, but it’s still an intriguing prospect.
Unfortunately, the one thing those movies has taught her not to look forward to is high school. So when she wakes up at 6:30 AM for her first day at her new school, Kala is not exactly excited. Her first few classes go alright – nothing unexpected, just introductions to the class, getting acquainted with the school, that kind of thing. But then lunch time comes, and she feels like she has entered every teenage outcast film she’s seen. Kala stands there with her tupperware container of some of her father’s cooking, and she realizes that she has no one to sit with. This is new for her. Back home, she had always had a large group of friends, and finding a place to sit was never even a question. Now, though, she is alone.
Staring at out at the crowded cafeteria, her heart sinks when she realizes that almost every table is completely occupied. Being unfamiliar with the building, it had taken Kala longer to find her way there. She scans the room. After a few moments, she finds that there is one table that still seems to have free space. Kala walks over and sees that there might be a reason for this. The table is long, with two sections. At the end toward the aisle, there are several students chattering away. But at the other end, there are only two boys sitting across from each other, and one of them has a clear air of stay the fuck away from me about him even as he eats.
Kala looks around the room once more, hoping to find any other table to sit at. But she’s already ten minutes into the thirty-minute lunch period, and the school has too many students for any of the tables to really go unfilled. She takes a deep breath. You can do this, she tells herself. It’s just asking to sit at a table. It’s the only empty seat. It’s reasonable for you to ask. The positive self-talk helps a bit, but it doesn’t completely quell her anxiety as she walks behind one of the boys. (She chooses the skinnier of the two, the one who doesn’t look nearly as angry as his companion.)
Leaning down a bit so she is in both of their line of sight, Kala timidly says, “Um, hello.”
Shock is on both the boys’ faces. It is clear that they are not approached often. “Hello?” the boy Kala stands behind asks, craning his head around to get a better look at her.
“Sorry to bother you, but uh, can I sit here?” she asks. “The other tables are full.”
Without hesitation, the boy grins and scoots over. “Be my guest,” he answers, enthusiasm in his voice. (There is a part of Kala that worries if maybe this wasn’t the best idea, given his excitement. But she doesn’t really have any other options.) “Where are my manners? I’m Felix,” he says, putting out his hand for her to shake. “And that’s Wolfie.” (She is surprised to hear the German accent in his voice. Maybe she’s not the only outsider after all.)
Kala is already shaking Felix’s hand when the other boy corrects him. “Wolfgang.”
“Excuse me?” Kala asks.
“My name is Wolfgang,” he says, and Kala hears that he is German as well.
The intense look in Wolfgang’s eyes when he speaks to her makes Kala’s voice catch in her throat. Felix misunderstands, though. “I know,” he laughs. “I didn’t believe it either. No one is actually named Wolfgang!”
Kala expects Wolfgang to get angry at this, given his demeanor. Instead, though, his face softens into a look of affection. It’s startling, but it also soothes her nerves a bit. She puts her hand out to Wolfgang across the table. “Nice to meet you both. I’m Kala.”
Slowly, Wolfgang brings his hand across the table and shakes hers. His palms are rough and calloused, but Kala notices his grip on her hand is surprisingly gentle. She gives him a small smile, and Wolfgang gives her one in return. (This also surprises her, almost more than his gentleness.) After a few moments, she realizes that she’s probably been holding his hand for longer than is entirely necessary. Kala sheepishly pulls her hand back.
Felix gives Wolfgang a look that is gone too quickly for her to interpret, and then he turns to her and asks, “So, Kala. You’re new, right?” Kala nods, hoping this isn’t going to turn into some sort of hazing. “Of course. I would have noticed someone as beautiful as you.”
Kala puts her hands to her face in embarrassment, giggling slightly. “Oh. Thank you.”
“What brings you here?” Felix continues.
Putting her hands down, Kala smiles. This is easy for her to talk about – she’s proud of her family. “My father received a job offer from a restaurant here.”
“Your dad’s a chef?” Felix asks.
“Yes,” she replies. “He owned a restaurant back home in Bombay, but this one is prestigious and pays very well, so he may eventually be able to start one here if he saves.”
“Oh man,” Felix says. “You’ve gotta let us try some of his food.”
Grinning, she opens her tupperware container. “He made this for me this morning, if you’d like to try.”
“Are you sure?” Wolfgang asks.
For a moment, Kala wonders why he’s even asking. She’s used to sharing her father’s food all the time. But then she looks at the table before her. Neither he nor Felix have much food in front of them – just a few things each from one of the vending machines. Suddenly, Kala wants to give them her whole meal. Instead she just says, “Yes, of course.” She hands them each a samosa with a smile. Before she can even bring out the smaller containers of sauce her father packed, both Wolfgang and Felix have already taken large bites.
“Oh my god,” Felix mumbles through his full mouth. Wolfgang shoots him a disapproving look, and Felix chews and swallows before he speaks again. “Kala, these are amazing.”
“Here,” she says, passing a brownish-red sauce his way. “Try this with it.” Kala grabs a samosa of her own and a light green sauce to dip it in. Felix unceremoniously dips the unbitten corner of his samosa into the brown sauce, then passes the container over to Wolfgang who pours a bit on top of his samosa. They both try it, and Kala is pretty sure she hears Felix moan. “Good?” she asks playfully.
“Fantastic,” Felix answers.
Wolfgang nods, then asks, “What’s the green sauce?”
“Oh, this one’s mint chutney. I wasn’t sure if you would like it, but you’re welcome to try some,” Kala replies. She passes it his way, and Wolfgang pours some on his samosa and takes a bite. He chews it slowly, considering the mix of savory, spicy, and mint flavors. “What do you think?”
He licks his lips and grins. Wolfgang meets her eyes when he says, “I like it.” How he’s looking at her makes her heart jump to her throat, and Kala gets the feeling he’s not just talking about the food.
Felix, who was too busy with his own samosa to be paying attention to their exchange, reaches between them and grabs the mint chutney. The moment ends, and Kala is brought back to herself. “Neither of you are from America either, right?” she asks. She figures she may as well start getting to know these people if she’s going to be sharing a meal with them.
Wolfgang shakes his head, and Felix replies, “Nope. Germany.”
“That’s what I thought,” she says with a nod. “Are you brothers?”
They give each other a look. “May as well be,” Felix answers after a moment.
Kala doesn’t quite understand. “You moved here together?” she asks.
Felix doesn’t answer until Wolfgang nods. “Yeah,” Felix says. “Things were…not so good in Berlin.”
She awaits a further explanation, but when one is not forthcoming she takes this as a cue to end that line of questioning. You’ve just met them, she thinks. What business of it is yours why they moved? So Kala changes topics. “What classes do you guys have after this?” she asks before taking another bite of her samosa.
Kala notices what she thinks might be a grateful look on Wolfgang’s face before Felix groans, “Ugh, algebra.”
Laughing a bit, Kala replies, “Not a fan of math?”
Felix shoots her a look of surprise in return. “Is anyone?”
“I am,” she replies, looking at her hands in embarrassment.
If she didn’t know any better, Kala would think she sees Wolfgang glare at Felix for a moment, but by the time she looks up completely his face is back to neutral. Rather than letting herself dwell on it, Kala pushes forward. “What about you?” she asks, directing the question to Wolfgang. “Do you have algebra?”
He shakes his head. “No, chemistry.”
At this, she smiles wide. “I have chemistry, as well,” Kala says excitedly, reaching into the pocket of her peach-colored jeans to pull out her class schedule. She scans it, double checking the name of her teacher. “Are you with Ms. Turing?” Wolfgang smiles back and nods. Kala has an idea, and she makes herself say it before she loses the nerve. “Would you mind walking me? I keep getting lost.” She notices Felix give Wolfgang a knowing grin of his own, but she tries not to let that shake her.
Wolfgang pays Felix no mind, totally focused on Kala. “Not at all,” he says, then takes the last bite of his samosa. “It’s the least I can do.”
“Oh, please no, don’t feel obligated,” she interjects quickly. “My father makes these all the time, it’s no trouble.”
He shakes his head. “We’re going to the same place. It’s no trouble for me either.” Kala nods shyly in lieu of a reply.
What’s left of the lunch period passes quickly. They finish the food she has left, Felix asking her questions about life in Bombay as they do so. She answers them cheerfully, but part of her mind is still stuck on the idea of Wolfgang walking her to class. You’re being silly, she tells herself. Like he said, he’s going to the same place. Don’t read more into this than he means. Despite her thoughts, though, Kala can’t help the butterflies in her stomach.
Soon enough, the bell is ringing and both boys are standing up. “It was nice to meet you, Felix,” Kala says, wanting to say something before he leaves.
“You, too,” Felix replies enthusiastically before looking to Wolfgang and raising an eyebrow. “See you after class, Wolfie!” And with that, he grabs his backpack and starts quickly slipping between the larger groups of students.
“So, which way are we going?” Kala asks Wolfgang as she grabs her own bookbag.
“Upstairs, room 204.”
She sighs. “I don’t even know where the stairs are.”
Wolfgang just grins and says, “Follow me.” She quickly makes her way to his side of the table, and together they start heading toward an exit in the opposite direction of where Felix went. Wolfgang walks quickly, but he periodically looks back to make sure Kala is still behind him. As they exit the cafeteria and move into the crowded hallway, another student bumps into Kala. She is pushed forward, bumping right into Wolfgang. She stumbles a bit, and before she knows it Wolfgang has caught her hand to keep her from falling. “Are you alright?” he asks quickly, concern in his voice.
She nods. “Yes, thank you.” They stand there for a moment, and then Kala realizes her hand is still in his. “Oh, I’m sorry,” she says, going to pull her hand away.
“No,” he says, and it catches her off guard. “I mean – I don’t mind. Don’t stop on my account.”
“Are you sure?” Kala asks, stomach doing backflips.
Wolfgang grins. “I’m sure.” They spend another second looking at each other, and then another student almost knocking into him brings them back to the present. “Alright. Now let’s get you to class.”
Kala’s always been very studious, but she’s not sure she’s ever been this excited to go to class before.