The Best at It Quotes

“Being different is what makes us fun, remember?”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“Even when he's doing nothing, personality spills out of his every pore.”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“This is myself, and myself is a mess!" I hiss. I look around the room. Boys, boys, boys everywhere. Boys with perfect smiles. Boys with hair gelled up into flawless little spikes. Boys waving headshots in each other's faces.

None of them looks anywhere near as nervous as I feel.”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“I pick up my pencil.
Shoot. My hand is shaking.
How is it possible to still be this nervous? I've felt this way for over eight hours now.”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“I take a shower, and then I head downstairs. Mom, Dad, and Bhai are in the living room drinking tea and laughing. My stomach flips, and I'm tempted to just forget about the whole thing and go to bed. But somehow I summon up the courage to keep going.

"Hey, can I come in?" I hesitate in the entryway.

"Of course." Dad pats the sofa next to him. "What is it, Rahul?"

Somehow, this feels scarier than standing up to Brent on the football field.

I take a deep breath as I settle into the sofa between Mom and Dad. "I want to tell you something," I say.

"Okay," Mom says. "You can tell us anything."

Bhai nods at me, and his eyes are bright. Encouraging.

I nod back.

"What is it, Rahul?" Mom gently rubs my back.

Even though I want to keep my eyes fixed on my lap, I force myself to lift my head up. My eyes water, but the words come out of my mouth so simply.

"I think I'm gay," I say.

I look up at Mom, and I see her whole face soften. Like she's proud of me.

She leans in and hugs me. "Thank you for telling us, Rahul."

I hold her for a long time.”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“He starts towards the door and then hesitates. He turns back around. "Rahul. Whether you place first or fifth or thirty-fifth or two thousand and fifth..." He pauses, and he looks me right in the eye. "And no matter who you are. Your mom and I will always love you.”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“I'm going to have to dance with Jenny. Like, put my arms around her. What if I do it wrong? How am I even supposed to do it? If I do it wrong, will people think that I'm...?”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“Why does your face look like that?" she asks. "Is that a no?"

"No!" I whisper-shout.

"It is a no?" She looks like she might cry.

"No. No, it's not a no!"

"So, it's a-"

I jump back in. "It's not a yes either. I mean, yet. I mean..." Shoot, shoot, shoot. I scramble for what to say, "It's a... I mean... it's just that I have to ask my parents. That's all."

A smile forms along the edges of her lips. "So if they say yes, does that mean you'll go with me?"

"Yes."

And then her hand brushes against mine as she drags herself back to her seat. And I think I should feel excited.

So why do I feel scared?”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“I feel like I could do anything. The world is my oyster. If I ate oysters, which I don't. My family's vegetarian. But you know what I mean.”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It

“Do you like Justin?" Bhai finally asks.

I shrug. "He's nice to me." I keep watching the TV.

"Right, right. I guess I meant... Well, Rahul, do you... I meant, do you like..." Bhai's voice trails off, and something about the way he pauses makes my stomach queasy.”
― Maulik Pancholy, The Best at It