It was almost sunset. The sky glowed orange, and in a few more minutes everything would fade into darkness.
Aria hurried toward the location Danvy had sent her, searching for Sona. Danvy had said Sona spent most of her time here, and Aria vaguely remembered Sona mentioning something about a dance club.
Thinking about her, Aria walked forward—until she reached the spot.
It was under an old, abandoned bridge.
A group of young people were gathered there, trying out different dance moves. They were all dressed in street-style outfits, cheering loudly for a boy in the center who was showing off a new step.
The walls around them were painted in vibrant, unique graffiti. There were pictures of many people… and among them, Aria spotted Sona's picture too.
Beside it were signatures, colorful dots, and scribbles—overall, the place had its own charm.
But Aria didn't blend in at all.
She was dressed neatly, elegantly—so much that everyone turned to look at her the moment she stepped in.
A boy who seemed like the leader came out from the center of the crowd. He looked her up and down, curious.
Aria stood there nervously, her eyes scanning the place, searching for just one person.
The boy stepped forward and asked bluntly,
"Who are you? What do you want?"
Aria swallowed nervously.
"I'm Aria. I'm looking for one of my friends."
Before the boy could reply, a girl beside him scoffed,
"We're pretty sure none of your friends would be here. This is our area."
Aria shook her head firmly.
"No. I'm sure she's here."
Another boy leaned forward.
"What's your friend's name?"
"Sona," Aria said. "She has short hair… rainbow-colored ."
The moment she said the name, everything changed.
The boys' expressions shifted—
their mocking tone disappeared,
their disrespect vanished,
and suddenly they were staring at her with surprising admiration.
One boy, the same one who had spoken first, pointed at her uncertainly.
"Miss Aria…?" he asked, as if he couldn't believe it.
Aria blinked, confused, looking at his hand and then into his eyes.
"Yeah…?"
The boy spun around and shouted at the top of his voice,
"HEY! MISS ARIA IS HERE! CALL SONA—NOW!"
Aria stood there frozen, shocked.
The boy scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
The girl who had mocked Aria a minute ago suddenly hurried to her side.
"Come, come—come forward," she said quickly, guiding her inside.
"This is Sona's area."
The boy nodded, apologetic.
"I'm really sorry. We… we didn't know who you were."
Aria stared at them in confusion, not understanding any of this,
but she followed the girl anyway.
They led her through a narrow passage under the bridge—
past a blast tunnel where the music echoed,
past curious glances from dancers who whispered her name.
Finally, after weaving through the noise and shadows,
Aria reached a quieter corner.
There were cardboard boxes stacked neatly in rows, forming makeshift seats and small platforms.
And on top of one of them… she saw her.
Sona.
Her head was down.
Her shoulders stiff.
Her eyes—when she lifted them for a second—were swollen and red.
But the moment she noticed Aria,
she looked away sharply, refusing even a glance.
With the help of the young people around her,
Aria climbed up onto the boxes toward Sona.
Still, Sona didn't look at her.
Didn't speak.
Didn't acknowledge her presence at all.
Aria sat quietly on one of the cardboard stacks beside her,
a small distance away.
She inhaled deeply… preparing herself for what came next.
Here is a polished, emotional, natural rewrite of your scene while keeping every detail and feeling:
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"Sona…" Aria whispered.
The moment her voice reached her, Sona suddenly exploded.
She jumped up and started hitting Aria—not painfully, but with panicked, emotional little punches—while tears streamed down her face.
"WHY DID YOU COME?!" Sona cried.
"Why did you come now?! I'm not your friend, right? Go! Go! You're a fake friend!"
Aria tried to block her hands, half laughing because of how chaotic Sona was, half hurting because of her words.
Finally, Aria caught Sona's wrists and held both her hands firmly.
She leaned forward, looked straight into Sona's eyes, and said in one rushed breath:
"Sona, I'm really sorry—I didn't understand anything! The moment I came to KHSS, everyone treated me like I belonged there… even though I didn't understand anything at all. Now I'm acting childish because of a stupid bet with Zorvath, but honestly, I already forgot the bet. I'm only doing all this for you guys.
But the truth is… I hate it there. I hate that school. I want to transfer. I don't know what's happening around me.
I even dropped my fifteen-year-old dreams… I stayed in KHSS… I forgot about my crush of ten years… I—I—
Sona, I just hope you understand."
She finally inhaled, breathless.
Sona blinked.
Then blinked again.
"I didn't understand anything you just said," she admitted dramatically.
"But the first word—'sorry'—that's enough for me to forgive you."
Then she folded her arms.
"And if you buy me chocolate… and shawarma… and ice cream… then maybe I'll forgive you properly," she added with a pout.
Aria finally smiled—relief flooding her chest.
She had been terrified.
Terrified Sona wouldn't forgive her.
Terrified it would turn into a big scene.
Terrified their friendship would crack.
But now, looking at Sona's cheerful, dramatic, energetic face…
Aria couldn't stop herself.
She hugged her tightly.
Inside, she whispered to herself:
Yes… I did make a mistake.
And that's okay.
When she pulled away, she glanced down—and saw dozens of young dancers staring up at them curiously from below the cardboard stacks.
Seeing the question forming in Aria's eyes, Sona smirked and said,
"They're the pride of India. These dancers. They haven't performed on a single real stage yet… their team, their audience, their universe—
it's all just us and these cardboard boxes."
She gestured toward the young people below, who were still watching them eagerly.
Aria raised an eyebrow.
"So… you're the leader of these tiny-piny dancing kids?"
Sona lifted her chin proudly.
"Kinda like that."
Then she pointed at the crowd.
"They know you very well, by the way.
From my words.
From how I described you."
She paused, looking at Aria with a mischievous smile.
"I've seen everything from up here, you know. Your energy. Your nervousness."
She leaned closer and whispered,
"And I thoroughly, sickly enjoyed it."
Sona winked.
Aria blinked, confused.
"Hey, Sona… why do they look at me like I'm some celebrity?"
"Power of my words," Sona said proudly, flipping her hair.
With that, she climbed down the stacked cardboard boxes effortlessly.
Aria hesitated—just for a second—then followed her.
And even at the last step, she refused to take anyone's hand for support.
She stepped down like she had just climbed a mountain.
Proud.
Confident.
A little embarrassed, but pretending not to be.
When she reached the ground, the dancers gathered around, all eyes on Aria and Sona.
They waited—
excited, buzzing—
for Sona to introduce them to Aria.
The girl their leader always talked about.
The girl Sona described in her living, lively words—
her cheerfulness,
her energy,
her spark,
her charm.
And because Sona loved Aria so loudly,
they all loved Aria too.