🌸🥀तेरी ख़ुशी में ही है मेरी ख़ुशी

तेरे बिना क्या वजूद मेरा

तुझसे जुड़ी है मेरी ज़िन्दगी

तुझसे है राहें मेरी🥀🌸

Happy reading ❤️‍🩹

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By the time they reached the school ground, Aria could feel her heartbeat echoing in her ears-not from the walk, but from the weight of unfamiliar eyes. She kept her gaze low, fingers nervously brushing against the strap of her bag.

"Bhai, main toh keh rahi hoon agar aaj iss Rohan ne kuch bakwaas ki na, toh main uska muh tod dungi," Avni muttered, making a face at the mention of his name.

(Bro, I'm telling you, if Rohan says any nonsense today, I'll break his face.)

Aria looked at them, confused.

Saavi chuckled. "Don't worry. Rohan is Akshat and Shivansh bhaiya's best friend. Toh hum bhi unhe bachpan se jaante hain. Aur Avni aur Rohan bhaiya ki bilkul bhi nahi banti. They're childhood enemies."

(So we also know him since childhood. And Avni and Rohan bhaiya don't get along at all.)

Aria gave a small, polite smile and nodded.

She glanced around the ground-buzzing with students. Some stood in circles, others lounged on benches or leaned under trees. A few played near the basketball court. It was loud, carefree, full of life. A stark contrast to the silence she carried inside.

Saavi and Avni led her to an empty spot under a large neem tree, where the shade cast dappled shadows on the ground.

"Sit, Aria. Yeh humara spot hai," Saavi grinned, settling down.

(Sit, Aria. This is our spot.)

Aria sat down slowly, still holding a slight distance between herself and the girls.

"Toh Aria, apne baare mein kuch batao humein," Avni said, turning to her.

(So Aria, tell us something about yourself.)

Both girls noticed it-that subtle distance Aria maintained. Small, but intentional.

Before she could answer, three boys walked over and joined them. Aria's eyes immediately landed on one of them-Akshat, the boy who had helped her earlier.

Akshat lightly smacked Avni's arm in a playful gesture and dropped down beside her. Another boy ruffled Saavi's hair and earned a slap on his own arm in return. The last boy sat down quietly, gaze thoughtful.

It looked so... easy. This comfort. This history. She didn't have that.

But then Saavi smiled at her again-and somehow, it grounded her.

"Aria, yeh hain humare group ke bakar log," Saavi grinned, using a teasing tone that made Aria blink in confusion.

(Aria, these are the chatterboxes of our group.)

The boys turned their attention to Aria. It was the first time anyone outside their close-knit circle had sat in that spot.

Avni rolled her eyes but couldn't hide the smile tugging at her lips. "She means yeh humare group ke boys hain. Yeh Shivansh bhaiya-Saavi ka bhai. Yeh Akshat bhai-mera bhai. Aur yeh... yeh Rohan hai. Iska introduction main nahi dungi," she added, narrowing her eyes.

(She means these are the boys in our group. This is Shivansh bhaiya-Saavi's brother. This is Akshat bhai-my brother. And this... this is Rohan. I won't introduce him.)

"And this is Aria," Saavi jumped in, beaming. "Hamari new friend. Aaj iska pehla din hai. Aur yeh humare saath baithi hai."

(Our new friend. Today's her first day. And she's sitting with us.)

Aria managed a soft nod, the corners of her lips barely lifting. But her heart caught on that one word.

Friend.

That word echoed strangely inside her-soft, unfamiliar. She hadn't been called that in years.

Akshat smiled at her. "Haan, I know her. Jab yeh washroom ja rahi thi tab mili thi. Tum dono ne class pass ke baare mein kyu nahi bataya?"

(Yeah, I know her. I met her when she was going to the washroom. Why didn't you two tell her about the class pass?)

"Ohhh shit-sorry Aria, hum bhool gaye the," Avni said quickly.

(Ohhh shit-sorry Aria, we forgot.)

Aria offered a small, understanding nod.

Shivansh gave her a quiet smile and an acknowledging nod-calm, unreadable. But there was something in the way he looked at her, like he was studying a puzzle he hadn't decided whether to solve or not.

Rohan, on the other hand, said nothing. He stared at her-curious, a little guarded, almost like he didn't trust what he saw.

---

All of them started eating their lunch.

"So Aria, pehle kaunse school mein thi?" Shivansh asked, his voice calm and polite.

(So Aria, which school were you in before?)

"Umm... I was homeschooled," Aria replied, eyes flicking down to her lap. "This is my first school."

Not a complete lie. But not the whole truth either.

Shivansh nodded in understanding, but her answer made Rohan narrow his eyes.

"Homeschooled? Why?" he asked bluntly, tone direct but not unkind.

Aria froze for a second. Her fingers curled slightly around her lunchbox. Her throat felt suddenly dry.

Shivansh noticed. Her hands had stilled.

"Saavi, main achaar lana bhool gaya... zara de na?" he said, casually steering the topic elsewhere.

(Saavi, I forgot to bring pickle... can you please pass me some?)

He and the other two boys were complete gentlemen-never the kind to make a girl uncomfortable.

Rohan raised an eyebrow but didn't push. Not now.

"Toh Aria, homeschooling kaisa hota hai?" Akshat asked, genuinely curious.

(So Aria, what's homeschooling like?)

"Umm... homeschooling toh ghar pe bhi hoti hai. Matlab wahan itne saare students nahi hote. Just the student and teacher. Online bhi hoti hai aur offline bhi." Aria explained.

(Umm... homeschooling happens at home. I mean there aren't many students there. Just the student and teacher. It happens both online and offline.)

Rohan leaned forward slightly, his voice casual but pointed. "So, you've never had school friends before?"

His words weren't meant to hurt. But they poked at something fragile.

Aria shook her head slowly. "No."

No explanation. No story. Just a quiet truth.

Silence fell briefly-the kind that wasn't loud, but heavy.

Avni narrowed her eyes at Rohan. "Tu na rehne de."

(You just leave it.)

Rohan raised his hands in defense. "I'm just asking. Not everyone randomly joins in on our lunch spot."

Saavi said, pulling the signature puppy-face that always melted Rohan. He'd known her since childhood-practically a sister.

"It's not your lunch spot, Rohan bhaiya."

(It's not your lunch spot, Rohan bhaiya.)

Rohan shrugged, but his eyes were still on Aria. Still assessing.

"Tum na zyada bakwaas mat karo. Use comfortable hone do," Avni snapped, irritation clear in her tone.

(You don't talk nonsense. Let her feel comfortable.)

Rohan held her glare but didn't reply. He wasn't trying to be rude-not really. But something about Aria didn't sit right with him. Not in a bad way. Just... unknown. And he didn't like unknowns.

Shivansh cleared his throat lightly, breaking the moment. "Waise bhi, sabke first days awkward hote hain. Let her breathe."

(Anyway, everyone's first days are awkward. Let her breathe.)

Saavi nodded in agreement. "Haan. And she's doing fine, okay?"

(Yeah. And she's doing fine, okay?)

Akshat and Shivansh chuckled at Saavi's always-side-with-my-friend attitude.

Just then, a gust of wind blew through the trees, rustling the leaves above. One fluttered down and landed in Aria's lap. She stared at it for a second, then gently tucked it into her lunchbox, like it belonged there.

Shivansh noticed.

So did Rohan.

But while Shivansh's gaze softened, Rohan's only grew more curious.

"You collect leaves?" Shivansh asked lightly, the question casual, but his tone curious.

Aria looked up, startled, then glanced at the leaf and gave a small nod. "Sometimes."

That was all. No explanation. Just... sometimes.

Saavi leaned over to peek. "Yeh toh cute hai!" she grinned. "Main toh sirf clothes collect karti hu.."

(That's so cute! I only collect clothes...)

Everyone chuckled. The moment lightened.

Rohan, meanwhile, tore open a packet of chips with more force than necessary. "So, what subjects do you like?" he asked again, tone still casual-but his eyes sharp.

"English," Aria replied quietly. "And... Political Science."

"Seriously?" Rohan scoffed. "Sounds heavy for someone who's never been in school."

"Rohan," Shivansh said sharply this time.

Even Akshat shot him a warning look.

Rohan raised his hands again. "Fine. I'll shut up."

Aria's lips pressed into a thin line. She wasn't angry-she was used to this. The judgment. The questions. The assumptions. But something inside her still stung.

Avni muttered under her breath, "Idiot."

To distract her, Akshat offered Aria a chocolate bar. Which she accepted with hesitation but muttered a thank you.

"Toh Aria tell us about yourself. Something. Anything." Akshat said with a comfortable smile.

(So Aria, tell us about yourself. Something. Anything.)

Saavi looked at him from her lashes which didn't go unnoticed by Avni. She spoke before Aria could answer.

"Bhai apki smile kitni pyari ha." Avni said to Akshat who gave her a confused look.

(Bro, your smile is so cute.)

Meanwhile Saavi choked on her paratha knowing what Avni means.

"Tu kyu buttering kar rhi ha. Tuna kuch kia? Fir se ladai ki? Test mei fail ho gai? Mummy papa se bachana ha?" Akshat asked her not understanding his sister's intentions.

(Why are you buttering me up? Did you do something? Fought again? Failed a test? Trying to save yourself from mom and dad?)

Avni just smirked at Saavi and shrugged.

Aria noticed everyone's behavior, tone, and everything else. She was sure these people are good. They weren't faking. She was safe.

But she also knew not everyone accepted her here... like Rohan.

She looked up at the sky.

Let this not be another beginning that ends in pieces.