Aahana Swrup
‘Everything Now,’ Netflix’s teen comedy-drama show created by Ripley Parker, charts a coming-of-age story about a girl with a severe eating disorder. 16-year-old Mia Polanco returns home from her months-long stay at a mental hospital, where she was in rehab for her anorexia. Upon her return, Mia expects to be faced with the challenge of reverting to her old self, only to find out that her friends, Becca, Cam, and Will, have moved on to a new chapter of their lives filled with alcohol, drugs, and messy relationships.
As a result, Mia comes up with a “Fuck-it Bucket” list of things she needs to do to make up for lost time and fit into the hormone-driven, wild world of teenagehood. During this time, Mia crosses paths with dreamy, cool girl Carli and instantly develops intense feelings for the girl. However, with the weight of her ongoing recovery on her shoulders and the plethora of problems that life brings, will Mia be able to find her dream romance with Carli? SPOILERS AHEAD!
The Course of Mia And Carli’s Relationship
Shortly after Mia’s discharge from the clinic, Mia decides to do her best to fit back in with her friend group. Consequently, on her first day back to sixth form, Mia scores a party invite from the most popular boy in school, Theo. At the party, Mia catches sight of Carli across the dance floor and becomes smitten by the carefree girl at first glance. Still, the night ends with drunken mistakes, and Mia never gets the chance to speak to Carli.
However, a few days later, after a disastrous attempt at dating Theo, Mia crosses paths with Carli again when she joins her friends for a karaoke night. As it would turn out, Carli is Will’s co-worker and moved to London from Manchester a few months ago. As such, Mia realizes that if she were to have a fresh start with anyone, it would be Carli, possibly the only one in school who doesn’t know Mia by her eating disorder diagnosis.
Thus starts Mia’s lovesickness, wherein she constantly thinks about the other girl and adjusts her schedule to ensure she can spend as much time with Carli as possible. Eventually, after Mia realizes Carli is in the drama club, she registers for it as well. Even though Mia is entirely out of her depth with Carli, she manages to get close to the other girl after following Will’s advice. Yet, the high crashes soon when Mia discovers that Carli has actually always known about her eating disorder.
With knowledge of the same, Mia finds it difficult not to be self-conscious around Carli. Worse yet, a string of bad decisions by Mia and her friend group leads to a solemn night where Mia witnesses Carli making out with Cam. Mia falls in bed with Alison, her former frenemy, the same night. Therefore, Mia and Carli’s potential connection fizzles out a little as both girls enter relationships with different people.
Although Mia continues to hold a candle for Carli, her relationship with Alison is easier than pining after something seemingly unattainable. The pair remain friends and occasionally have deep conversations, but their relationship remains unequivocally platonic until Mia’s 17th birthday party changes everything. While Mia is not a party girl by any means, she agrees to let her girlfriend, Alison, the most popular girl in school, throw her a party at a club.
As predicted, the party ends in flames, bringing a new reckoning for Mia and her friend group. After a minor argument with Alison, Mia ends up kissing Carli. The past year has already been turbulent for Cam and Mia’s friendship. As such, after Mia kisses Cam’s girlfriend, the fragile line of their friendship breaks.
The collapse of Mia’s friend group only adds to the growing pile of troubles in Mia’s life, and the girl eventually relapses. A week passes when Mia stops contacting her friends and starts lying about her eating habits again. Avoiding the strategies and the meal plans her doctor, Nell had come up with, Mia starts starving herself again. When her mother discovers the same and realizes her daughter has to return to the rehab clinic, Mia runs away from home for one last day of freedom.
Convincing Carli to ditch her work shift, Mia takes her out for a day of fun, where they try to cross off every item from Mia’s list. Yet, Carli catches on to Mia’s aversion to food and becomes suspicious of her almost desperate need to finish the bucket list. As such, Mia snaps at the girl. Recently, one of Mia’s friends from rehab, Jenna, died, sending Mia into a spiral. Mia believes that if Jenna, who she deemed stronger than herself, couldn’t survive her illness, neither could Mia.
Still, Mia has to live and wants one last day of freedom before she’s thrust back into a perpetual fight against her eating disorder, something she believes she will likely lose. Nonetheless, Carli helps her realize she can’t win if she keeps running away. As a result, with Carli’s help, Mia is able to seek help from Dr. Nell and continue her treatment.
In the end, Mia doesn’t return to the clinic but continues her outpatient recovery journey. Yet, when Mia returns to Carli to apologize and fix things, the other girl tells her they can’t be together. Carli deeply cares for Mia but realizes Mia sees her partly as a fantasy after she admits that Mia found a feeling louder than her illness for the first time after meeting Carli. Carli gave Mia a reason to get out of bed, and for the first time, Mia hoped for a brighter future.
However, given Mia’s inclination to obsession, her infatuation with Carli can become a manifestation of the same need to fixate. Consequently, a relationship with Carli can damage her recovery, as it has already done a few times. Furthermore, Carli has had her fair share of relationships where she tries to save people who simply don’t want her help. Her contentious relationship with her alcoholic mother landed her in London, to begin with, after she left her mother for her father.
Carli knows how dangerous and fragile relationships built on fantasies can be. Therefore, even though Mia wants to figure things out with Carli despite the complications, she realizes they can’t be in each other’s lives until they learn how to be more than just a fantasy or a fix for each other. Ultimately, Mia and Carli do not end up together.
Read More: Is Netflix’s Everything Now Based on a True Story?
