Cast as of First Chapter- I am giving a vague description of characters as I want you to find out about each character's personality through out the story.

Jasmine Patel-A 21 year old, Indo-American whose parents are both wealthy doctors and currently attends UC Berkeley for a double major in Biomedical Sciences and Archaeology. She is referred as Jas by people. The picture is of Jasmine (real person: Deepika Padukone).

Tanya Patel- Jasmine's 26 year old sister who attended USC for Business and is Jasmine's best friend other than her close friends. Jasmine calls her Taan.

Akash Patel- Jasmine's 28 year old brother who attended Stanford for Management Science and Engineering and did his MBA at UC Berkeley. He now runs a multi-millionaire company that deals with many fields.

Jay Guillerni- Jasmine's 22 year old friend, whose parents are Indian and Italian. He is the boy part of the trio(Jas and her best friends from childhood). He also attends UC Berkeley along with Jas and Jen.

Jen Davis - Jasmine's 21 year old friend who completes the trio with Jas and Jay. Her parents are Indian and American and they are also Jasmine's parent's best friends. She attends UC Berkeley with Jas and Jay.

Jas's Parents will be referred to dad and mom by Jas and her siblings. They will be referred by their respective last names by others.

Jen's Parents and Jay's Parents will be addressed with their respective last names.

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I was sitting at a spot right near the Golden Gate Bridge away from all the tourists and couples. This was the same place where I made a major decision two years ago that completely changed my life. Looking back at that spot makes tears appear in my eyes and soon, they are rolling down my cheeks. I thought I was stronger than this and that I could move on but I am not able to. 

Suddenly my phone rings and I look at the caller ID to see Jen's name flashing. I better pick up the phone or she'll get pissed at me. I wipe my tears away and accept her call.

"JASMINE PATEL! Where the hell are you? I have been looking for you everywhere."

"Hi, Jen. I am just out alone trying to clear my mind."

"Have you been crying ? Why are you sniffling ? What is wrong Jas?"

"Nothing...I just thought about the past and you know what happened next..."

"Oh, Jas. Tell me where you are, I will come pick you up with Jay."

"No, I'll drive to Aroma Espresso Bar and you come with him there okay?"

"You got it, babe."

As I drove from the bridge to the cafe, I started reflecting on my past once again. If it wasn't for my family and friends, I would have never been able to recover from my past. I slowly succumbed to depression and let that choose my course. However, my loved ones never let go of me and they always kept an eye on me. With my life altering decision, they started being overprotective and never let me out of sight. I stopped communicating with everyone and the presence of people scared me. I was so fearful of people at that point, I almost became agoraphobic. It was a difficult time for my family and friends but they chose to nurture me back to life. Slowly they started letting me go out by myself and now I am in a more confident state. 

I finally reached my destination and parked my car. I walked into the cafe to see Jay and Jen sitting at a table looking very anxious. I walked over to them and sat down in between them. Jay immediately pulled me into a hug and smoothed my hair. 

"Jas, are you okay hun? We were so worried about you. Tell me what happened."

"Jay and Jen...I have been thinking and I know I was a terrible burden for quite awhile for all of you but now I think I can be self reliant. I know I am still afraid of social situations and meeting people but I think we need to change that.  Maybe I can start going to conferences, parties or join extra curricular activities again to destroy this fear."

"Hun, we are so proud of you. We will tell your family when we take you home for their opinion. This is a big step and we're glad you're willing to take the leap."

"Okay, can we order something, I'm starving!"

Jay and I rolled our eyes at Jen. She ate so much but she never gained a pound. She is so damn lucky compared to other. We all ordered vanilla lattes and some brownies to accompany it. We talked for quite awhile and I started feeling like my old self once again. It made me happy thinking that I could possibly return to what I previously was. We finally headed back to my home for some dinner and my friends told my parents about what I discussed. They were truly delighted with my progress and they said they do have something on their minds.

My mom said, "Look Jas, I think it will be perfect if you do a semester abroad for your archaeology course in India."

I looked at her like she was growing horns on her head but I realized that I needed to listen to her before judging.

"I know you think that this is way beyond what you are capable of but this will be the perfect opportunity for you to become completely independent. You will have our extended family there but you'll also be able to explore everything by yourself. You will make friends all by yourself and it will give you a chance to see our native land for the first time." 

My dad just nodded along and he added, "we won't force you into this but this will really change you."

"Okay Mom and Dad, I will definitely think about it for the next few days and than I will respond to your offer."

The rest of the dinner went by quietly and I kept thinking about what my parents said. My friends and I decided to watch a movie marathon up in my bedroom for the night. 

"What movie should we watch first?"

"Mean Girls!"

"Jas, what about you?"

I was zoning out because thinking about India made me anxious and nervous. 

"JAS!!!" 

"Huh? What did you say?"

"What are you so worried about hun?" 

"I am scared Jay... What if the trip turns out all wrong?"

"You will never know until you try, Jas. Maybe it will be perfect and will help you move on past the incidents in your past. Please give it thorough consideration." 

"Thanks. Jen, what do you think?"

"I think that you should go. Being in this environment will only hinder you from being able to fully move on and rebuild yourself. I think a new environment will make you independent and give you the courage that you desperately need. "

"Okay, thanks. I am going to sleep, my head hurts."

"Well then, Jay and I are going to head home okay? Give us a call tomorrow whenever you want to head to class together." 

"Thanks guys! " 

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If you liked this chapter, please like, comment and follow me for more updates. If you have any suggestions, please comment or message me. I will be happy to hear <3 Thank you lovelies! Again, this is my first attempt at a story so please be a little easy on me. I will include more pictures of the cast in following chapters.