It was horribly shallow and selfish, but Justin's mood lifted as Padma approached him. Maybe it was the distraction of trying to talk to a pretty girl without tripping over his own words or maybe it was that a part of him felt at peace when Padma was near, even if another part of him seemed to lose it's ability to communicate using basic English. Whatever it was, the grin he greeted her with was genuine.
The hug was entirely too brief, but both arms moved around her in that instant and as she pulled back, he could still feel her scent and the way she'd felt in his arms. It took him a moment to remember how to properly speak, but when he found his voice, he returned her hello.
"I was hoping I'd bump into you here," he managed, not stumbling over his words for once, though a faint blush colored her own cheeks as he thought about how the pinkening in her face made her even more beautiful than usual.