Reshma Wells: The Bold Best Friend in Audre & Bash Are Just Friends

Overview

Reshma Wells is the wealthy, charismatic best friend of Audre Mercy-Moore in Tia Williams’ Audre & Bash Are Just Friends. Adopted as a baby by the famous 1990s musical duo The Well Well Wells, Reshma grows up with material abundance but emotional neglect. Her parents are often on tour or recording, leaving Reshma to raise herself with hired caretakers. She copes by becoming a “chaos agent”—acting out to get attention, hiding her deep insecurity behind a bold exterior. Reshma creates the Experience Challenge list that pushes Audre out of her perfectionist shell, and her own arc involves falling unexpectedly for Clio, Bash Henry’s half-sister. Her journey mirrors the novel’s themes of identity, vulnerability, and the blurry line between friendship and romance.

For more on the novel’s broader story, see the main book page.

Plot Role and Motivations

Reshma functions as both catalyst and foil to Audre. She designs the Experience Challenge to force Audre to loosen her grip on control and live in the moment. This challenge becomes the central mechanism that brings Audre and Bash together. Reshma’s own motivations stem from a desperate need for love and recognition. She admits she feels like “a patchwork of a bunch of different shit that doesn’t match”—neither fully British, Indian, nor American. Her parents adopted her, she suspects, as a publicity boost when their careers faded. By acting out (breaking expensive studio equipment, pursuing forbidden relationships), Reshma ensures she remains visible, even if only as a problem.

Interpretation: Her flamboyant behavior is a mask for loneliness. She tells Clio that Gia Carangi’s biography resonates because Gia’s “desperation for love and attention, which no amount of glamour could satisfy” feels relatable. This explicit self-identification shows Reshma’s awareness of her own emotional hunger.

Character Arc: From Chaos to Vulnerability

Reshma’s arc unfolds in four stages:

1. The Party Host and Trouble-Maker (Chapters 1–3)
   She bursts into Audre’s therapy session at her own party, later invites Audre to an after-party. She is already in Argentina by Chapter 3, where she will soon be expelled for $21,000 in studio damages and a relationship with a twenty-year-old employee.

2. Sent Home, Meets Clio (Chapter 12)
   After her Argentinean trip ends, Reshma hides her return from Audre and goes on a solo picnic in Prospect Park. A territorial swan chases her—she trips and is rescued by Clio, a park volunteer. The meeting is electric; Reshma is immediately attracted. Clio is “so earthy-baddie cute” that Reshma feels “thunderstruck.”

3. The Mission Becomes Real (Chapters 16–19)
   Reshma learns that Clio is the girl she sees in a video with Bash, and she initially plots to lure Clio away from him to help Audre. But during their afternoons together at the swan pond and later at the William Vale Hotel rooftop bar, Reshma forgets her strategy. She “lost track of time” and “hadn’t felt this way before.” This marks the shift from manipulation to genuine emotion.

4. Fallout and Reckoning (Chapters 33, 36)
   When Clio discovers Reshma’s original plan, she feels used and storms off. Reshma’s confession—“I was trying to help my best friend … but none of it matters, because I fell for you”—shows her vulnerability but comes too late. In Chapter 36, a humbled Reshma approaches Audre painting in Prospect Park, attempting to mend their friendship. The story leaves her growth ongoing.

Key Relationships

Audre Mercy-Moore

Reshma and Audre share a bond that strains under pressure. In Chapter 16, Reshma offers to break up Bash and Clio for Audre, but Audre feels insulted by the implication that she can’t manage her own love life. The fight highlights Reshma’s flawed but well-meaning protectiveness. By Chapter 36, Reshma seeks reconciliation when she finds Audre painting, trying to reconnect after their estrangement.

Clio

Clio represents the first person Reshma truly “gets lost in.” Unlike previous flings (like Kiki in Argentina), Clio inspires her to slow down and listen. Their time feeding swans and sharing intimate conversations reveals Reshma’s softer side. But the deception—Reshma’s original goal to distract Clio from Bash—poisons the trust, and Clio leaves her. The relationship teaches Reshma that real connection cannot be manipulated.

The Well Well Wells (Parents)

Reshma’s parents are physically and emotionally absent. She observes that “the only time her parents noticed her” was when she was in trouble. They follow the “white celebs adopting kids of color” model, she suspects, and lost interest once she aged out of being a cute red-carpet accessory. This neglect drives her need for attention.

Bash Henry (Indirectly)

Reshma never interacts directly with Bash; he is the obstacle in her plan to be with Clio. Learning that Clio’s boyfriend matches Bash’s description confirms her suspicion. In a way, Bash is the unwitting catalyst for Reshma and Clio’s meeting, since Clio’s dissatisfaction with him makes her open to Reshma’s attention.

Major Decisions and Consequences

Themes and Symbolism

Reshma’s story connects to multiple themes in the novel:

• Perfectionism and Pressure: Where Audre struggles with academic perfection, Reshma rebels against the pressure to be the perfect adopted celebrity child. She embraces chaos as an antidote.
• Identity and Reinvention: Reshma describes herself as a patchwork of cultures and feels like “a centaur”—half human, half horse. Her journey is about finding an authentic self rather than performing for her parents.
• Generational Trauma and Family Secrets: Her adoption and her parents’ emotional distance echo the family secrets that haunt Audre’s family. Reshma’s loneliness stems from being treated as a prop rather than a daughter.
• Friendship vs. Romance: Her loyalty to Audre conflicts with her attraction to Clio. She tries to serve both, but the boundary blurs.
• Healing and Vulnerability: By allowing herself to be vulnerable with Clio—speaking Hindi, admitting her fears—Reshma starts to heal. The swan rescue symbolizes her being saved (literally and emotionally) from a destructive path.

Frequently Asked Questions About Reshma Wells

1. Why was Reshma sent home from Argentina?
Her parents cut her trip short after she caused $21,000 in damages to a recording studio and pursued a relationship with Kiki Silva, a twenty-year-old employee. They blamed Reshma (correctly, she admits) and put her on a plane back to Brooklyn.

2. What is the Experience Challenge?
Reshma invents a list of silly, daring activities for Audre to complete—such as buying a dildo at Target—to help her let go of perfectionism and “live.” The challenge becomes the framework for Audre’s time with Bash.

3. How does Reshma meet Clio?
While on a solo picnic in Prospect Park, Reshma is chased by an aggressive swan named Darlene. Clio, a Prospect Park Alliance teen volunteer, rescues her by calming the swan. Reshma is instantly smitten.

4. Why does Reshma initially try to get close to Clio?
After learning that Clio is the girlfriend of Bash (whom Audre likes), Reshma decides to “lure Clio away” to make things easier for Audre. She admits it was a calculated mission, but her feelings become genuine.

5. Does Reshma end up with Clio?
No. In Chapter 33, Clio discovers Reshma’s original intentions and leaves her, hurt. The novel ends before a reconciliation; Reshma is left to reflect on her mistakes. However, the open ending suggests potential for growth.

For a deeper look at how the story resolves, check the ending explained. For more discussion, see the questions and answers page.