Their Wonder Years: Fall 98

Chapter 192: Worthy of Them

The afternoon sun had begun to shift - its light turning more golden, shadows stretching just a little longer across the carpet. The legal pad on the coffee table had been pushed aside, its lines of plans and deadlines forgotten, at least for now.

Mia was nestled comfortably between Sarah and Marisol, her head on Marisol’s shoulder, legs stretched across Sarah’s lap. The intensity of their earlier strategy session had given way to a softer quiet. Not silence - but reflection. Thoughtful. Drowsy. Full of emotion.

But Marisol was clearly still thinking.

Mia could tell by the way her sister's fingertips tapped gently against her knee. The kind of rhythmic pause that only came when Marisol was holding back a thought too big to just drop.

Then she spoke.

“We’ve talked about your future,” she said softly. “But what about him?”

Mia blinked. “Bharath’s future?”

Sarah slowly looked up from where she was tracing absent circles along Mia’s calf. “Yeah,” she murmured. “We’ve never really talked about… what happens if he has to go back with you.”

Mia frowned. “Go back?”

“To India,” Marisol said. “I found out about him. The internet doesn’t really let people keep secrets anymore. His dad runs a company. Something serious. Big IT services or something. I’m not sure what that means. And Bharath’s the only son.”

“Oh…” Mia breathed.

Sarah nodded. “If that’s true, then it’s not just about graduating or getting a job. It’s legacy. Expectations. He might be obligated to take over.”

“But he never talks about it,” Mia said. “He lives like…”

“Like he’s broke,” Marisol finished, smirking.

Sarah chuckled. “Right? That tiny dorm room. Sharing snacks. That one hoodie he wears three days in a row.”

“He’s so frugal,” Mia added. “Even his damn shampoo’s off-brand.”

They all giggled - that soft, conspiratorial kind of laughter that only came when someone you loved turned out to be more than you'd ever guessed.

“Which makes it even more real,” Sarah said. “He’s not hiding wealth because he’s ashamed. He just… doesn’t use it.”

Mia’s heart fluttered. “God, that makes him even hotter.”

Marisol laughed. “Right?”

But the warmth of the moment was cut by the gravity that lingered underneath.

“What if he has to go?” Mia asked. “Like… really has to.”

“He wouldn’t leave us,” Sarah said without pause.

Mia looked at her. “You sound sure.”

Sarah met her eyes. “I am. He’s not capable of walking away from love. Not unless he thought it was better for us.”

Marisol exhaled slowly. “And that’s the problem.”

Mia sat up straighter. “What do you mean?”

Marisol pulled her knees to her chest, resting her chin on top. “He’d never abandon us. But he’d also never ask us to follow him. Not if it meant giving up our dreams. That’s not how he works.”

Sarah nodded solemnly. “He’d make the sacrifice. Silently. For our sake.”

Mia felt something cold curl at the edge of her chest. “So we’d have to stop him.”

“Exactly,” Marisol said. “We have to figure out what we are willing to do. If it ever comes to that.”

The question hovered.

It wasn’t just hypothetical anymore. Not in their hearts.

Sarah, calm and grounded, spoke first. “If he has to go back - tomorrow, a year from now, whenever - I’m going.”

“No hesitation?” Mia asked.

Sarah shook her head. “He’s my future. That’s it. The country doesn’t matter. The job doesn’t matter. I’ll find my place wherever he is.”

Mia turned to her sister.

Marisol looked… conflicted.

“I want to say I’d go,” she said. “And part of me knows I would. In fact I already said I would. But…”

Mia already knew. “Mami.”

Marisol nodded. “She’s barely coming to terms with the fact that I’m with Bharath. Throw in moving across the world for a man she still thinks is a passing phase…”

“She’d explode,” Mia said softly.

Sarah was quiet, her brow furrowed.

“But even beyond Mami,” Marisol said, “I’ve always thought I’d build something here. I don’t want to run away from that just because I’m in love. It has to be a real decision. Not a romantic escape.”

Mia chewed her bottom lip.

She was the youngest. The one who had just stepped into this family. The one still tethered to high school, to her mother, to her hometown.

She’d never considered leaving America, let alone planting a life across the ocean.

But Bharath…

He was home. He was hers.

“I don’t know what I’d do,” she admitted. “Not yet.”

“Then don’t decide now,” Sarah said gently.

“But think about it,” Marisol added. “Because one day… it might be a choice we all face.”

They were quiet again.

Not scared.

Not broken.

Just… realistic.

Mia leaned back into the couch, feeling her pulse slow.

She had a plan for college now.

A path.

But this was the first time she had thought beyond it. To what kind of life she wanted. What kind of woman she’d have to become - brave, bold, compassionate - to stand next to a man like Bharath and not feel like she was falling behind.

She looked at her sister and Sarah - so calm, so ready to fight for love and still protect their dreams.

That’s what I want to be, she thought.

Not just Bharath’s girl.

But a woman worthy of him.

And worthy of them.