‘Never Have I Ever’ Season 4 Episode 6 Recap: “Had My Dream Stolen”

Early decision day is upon the Sherman Oaks students in Never Have I Ever Season 4 Episode 6 (“…had my dream stolen”), and for those with their eyes set on Ivy Leagues, it’s a momentous occasion. Devi wakes up feeling anxious and Nalini does her best to temper her daughter’s expectations, which Devi doesn’t appreciate. When she gets deferred from her dream school Princeton later that day, Devi lashes out at her mom saying that she put bad vibes out into the universe. We’re not off to a great start. Devi has a one track mind and waves off the school counselor’s suggestion to make a list of safety schools, choosing instead to boost her resume by adding a sport. She’ll do anything to get a varsity letter, which is how she ends up as the boy’s swim team’s equipment manager. 

Things only get worse when Devi realizes that if Princeton didn’t choose her…they chose someone else at the school. Of course, it was Fabiola with the golden ticket, and she still hasn’t told her best friend that she even applied. And she never gets a chance to — Devi sees Fabiola at the early admits barbecue and her name alongside Princeton on the board, and is instantly furious.

It’s a conversation with Paxton — who hasn’t had much to do this season, despite dealing with a clear crisis about his future — that makes Devi realize she’s being too harsh and potentially throwing away a friendship over something selfish. After all, Paxton knows what it’s like to lose something he’s worked hard for; he calls back to season one when his hopes for a swim scholarship were dashed when he got in an accident at the hands of one Devi Vishwakumar. By episode’s end, the Devi, Eleanor, Fabiola trio is back on solid footing, but their time together is fleeting: Eleanor drops the bomb that she’ll be graduating in two days to get a jump start on her acting career. 

Things are also looking up for Devi and Ben. Ben’s relationship is doomed when he overhears Margot telling a gallery owner she’s trying to impress that she and Ben aren’t dating that seriously. After a real talk about their futures they break up, clearing the path for the former enemies to end up together.

On the home front, Kamala may be flying the coop. Devi’s cousin is offered a job opportunity by her mentor all the way in Baltimore, but she doesn’t even let the news sink in because she’s too busy spying on Len. She spots her grandma’s boyfriend at the same coffee shop she’s in, talking to the same Australian woman that she thought she hallucinated at the house a few episodes ago. This time she gets a good, sober look at her and overhears their conversation: an incriminating one about a beach house and a large sum of money. Oh, and he calls her baby. 

The writing seems to be on the wall as Kamala rushes home to tell her family, but Pati seems unconcerned about Len’s suspected cheating. She jokes that she keeps her man satisfied (get it Pati!) and that she’s casually extremely wealthy from being an early investor in Apple. That news doesn’t exactly calm Kamala’s fears but she’s interrupted by Len himself when he proposes to Pati. Wedding bells are in the air, and it’s exciting to see an Indian widow getting a chance at love again instead of resigning herself to a life of solitude and mourning, which traditional Indian culture often encourages. Unfortunately, our other widow Nalini doesn’t have her story with Andres move forward this week, but I still have hope that those two will get more screen time in episodes to come.

Radhika Menon (@menonrad) is a TV-obsessed writer based in Los Angeles. Her work has appeared on Vulture, Teen Vogue, Paste Magazine, and more. At any given moment, she can ruminate at length over Friday Night Lights, the University of Michigan, and the perfect slice of pizza. You may call her Rad.