Maitreyi Ramakrishnan looks regal in EW's Never Have I Ever digital cover shoot

Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) has a choice to make. When Never Have I Ever returns for its second season on Thursday, Devi will find herself smack in the middle of a love triangle. So, who will it be?: Hottie with a body Paxton Hall-Yoshida (Darren Barnet) or her intellectual equal Ben Gross (Jaren Lewison)? When the season begins, she decides to try juggling them both.

"Last season Devi definitely was your messy best friend," says Maitreyi Ramakrishnan. "This season, when she messes up, you can tell she actually understands that there are consequences to her actions. She's still messing up, but she's maturing and she does want to do the right thing and she doesn't want to hurt people."

Ramakrishnan landed the role of Devi while still in high school. Two weeks after she graduated, as she puts it, "I hopped on a plane to LAX with a dream and my cardigan."

"I love that she's a hothead but she's also a nerd," Ramakrishnan says of Devi. "But she's also not a shy nerd. She's very booksmart, but she's still got her confidence."

The show's impact isn't lost on Ramakrishnan, who receives direct messages from fans all around the world. "We helped so many people through quarantine by giving them a nice laugh," she says.

In many ways, Ramakrishnan says her life hasn't changed much since the show premiered. "I'm still at home, in the same room that I was in when I was 10 years old trying to be an animator. On the other side, there's this idea that people make, like, fan edits of me."

Read more from I Want My Teen TV, EW's summerlong celebration of teen shows past and present.