‘Never Have I Ever’ Season 2: Should Devi Choose Paxton or Ben? (POLL)
Never Have I Ever returns for Season 2 on July 15, and fans can’t wait to see what crazy antics Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) and her pals will get into next. After the first season finale left her with two potential love interests, Devi has a decision to make.
There’s her crush Paxton (Darren Barnet), who began to develop feelings for her, giving Devi a shot at landing the boy of her dreams. But now that former nemesis Ben (Jaren Lewison) has become her friend (and new crush?), Devi will have to figure out which guy is the right one for her.
Should Devi choose to be with Ben or Paxton, or should she choose neither? Catch up on their stories so far and vote for what you want to see happen in Season 2 in the poll below!
The Case for Paxton
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Since the beginning of Season 1, Devi only had eyes for Paxton Hall-Yoshida, the hottest guy at Sherman Oaks High School. After all, seeing him was the reason her legs started working again after her father’s death. Going into her sophomore year, all Devi wants is to have a boyfriend. After taking therapist Dr. Ryan’s (Niecy Nash) advice to do something that will make her feel good, on a whim, she asks Paxton if he would want to have sex with her, to which he surprisingly agrees.
When Devi goes over to his house to do the deed, Paxton shuts that plan down after he sees Devi talking with his sister, Rebecca (Lily D. Moore). However, Devi is unable to tell the truth to her friends — that nothing happened. She instead goes along with the lie, stating that she and Paxton did have sex. Paxton later apologizes, saying he thinks they are better off as friends and that friendship continues as Paxton takes Devi to the hospital after her coyote attack. He also asks her to be in a group project with him, all while not knowing about Devi’s lie.
After the whole school hears the rumor that Devi and Paxton had sex, Paxton gets angry at her for the lie and gives her the cold shoulder. He doesn’t speak to her again until Ben’s birthday party when she falls into a swimming pool. Paxton helps Devi out by lending her dry clothes and driving her home, and the two end up sharing a kiss in the car.
Devi’s mother, Nalini (Poorna Jagannathan), freaks out when Paxton returns her party dress the next morning, insulting him in the process. As Ben and Devi kiss at the end of the season, Devi’s phone lights up with a voicemail from Paxton, who is at her house asking to hang out.
Why might Devi choose Paxton? Her longstanding feelings for him are finally being reciprocated, giving her a shot at the boy of her dreams. If the two make it clear to one another what they each are feeling, they could make a relationship work.
The Case for Ben
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Ben Gross and Devi have been rivals since the first grade as they compete for the top spot in their class. When Devi joins Paxton for a group project, Eleanor (Ramona Young) and Fabiola (Lee Rodriguez) are left to partner with Ben. While making fun of Devi, her friends defend her by telling Ben that Devi and Paxton had sex, which he doesn’t believe.
To get out of being grounded by her mom, Devi joins an overnight Model UN trip, going against her and Ben’s pact to split up extracurricular activities to stay out of each other’s way. But the two start to get along after pulling off a wine heist for the group at the hotel and they agree to form an alliance the next day.
After the school finds out about her lie, Devi blames Ben, not knowing it was Eleanor and Fabiola who told him. She decides to break their alliance, leaving Ben confused and hurt. At home, we discover that Ben is a rather lonely kid, as his parents are often away for work and his girlfriend only uses him to improve her image. A large pimple ends him in Nalini’s dermatologist office, at which he expresses his loneliness. She invites him over for family dinner and Ben apologizes to Devi for ruining things with Paxton, where she confesses it was a lie.
With his parents out of town for his 16th birthday, Ben decides to throw a party. While showing Devi around, Ben misreads a moment and attempts to kiss her — twice. Things are awkward between them until Devi asks to stay at his house after discovering her mom wants to move them to India. When asking if his father can help her get emancipated from her mother, Ben advises against it and goes to her friends for help. Fabiola and Eleanor convince Devi to go spread her father’s ashes with her family that evening, and Ben gets her there on time. Afterward, Devi sees that Ben waited in the car to make sure she was OK. They kiss just as Paxton calls Devi to hang out.
Why might Devi choose Ben? Who doesn’t love a good rivals-turned-friends-turned-lovers story? The two clearly care for each other, and if they put the past behind them, who knows what could happen.
The Case for Neither
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Being the strong-minded, feisty teen she is, Devi might be better without a boyfriend for the time being as she has bigger things to focus on. Despite making it on time to help spread her father’s ashes, her relationship with her mother remains strained — she did look into emancipating herself, after all. With a potential move to India and her future up in the air, perhaps Devi should spend Season 2 focusing on herself, her friends, and her family instead of diving into boy drama. The last thing she would want is to give her mother more reasons to move to India.
Never Have I Ever, Season 2 Premiere, Thursday, July 15, Netflix
