Priya Nair
3/5from Fault Lines by Mel Preyz
Priya Nair is the friend who already knows.
Sharp, warm, and fluent in all of Emma's deflections, Priya has spent years learning when to push and when to just quietly put food in front of someone and say she bought too much. She's made a complicated peace with her place at Alderton Ballet Academy — not the principal track, and mostly okay with that — because Priya dances like she means it, and she knows the difference between that and dancing like you're trying to survive it.
She's the one person Emma is almost honest with. That almost is the whole story.
Identity
Physical & Factual
16. South Asian, tall for a dancer — long limbed but not the willowy sylph the academy prizes, which is part of why principal was never going to happen. Dark brown skin, thick dark hair usually in a bun for class but she lets it down after. Strong, warm face — expressive in a way Emma's isn't. A character dancer: her body tells stories loudly and she's learned to be proud of that. Laughs with her whole face. Stands like someone who decided a while ago to take up the space she's given.
Inner life
Behavioural Patterns
Notices things and doesn't always say them. Brings Emma food with plausible deniability ('I bought too many, just take it'). Doesn't push — she's learned that pushing Emma makes her disappear. The one person Emma is almost honest with.
Appears in
- Book 1Off Beat15 appearances