Suddenly, Aria's eyes fluttered open. She blinked, staring blankly out the wide window. The hum of chatter filled the hall — students laughing as they shared their designs, Farhan's group busy shaping clay into cups and bowls.
A light touch on her shoulder made her flinch. She turned quickly — and found Ashwin standing behind her.
His hand rested gently on her shoulder, the thin strap of his bracelet glinting under the light — a subtle mark of quiet strength, of someone who had faced his own battles. He leaned slightly forward, smiling softly.
"Hey," he said. "Are you okay?"
Aria froze for half a second, then smiled. It was perfect — heartbreakingly perfect. The kind of smile that could fool the whole world into believing she was fine.
Ashwin smiled back, completely unaware of the storm hiding behind that expression. Everyone else in the room thought she was just relaxed — maybe just enjoying her uncle's luxurious house.
"Come on," Ashwin said gently, stepping back. "We've got a lot of work to do."
He walked away, returning to his desk. Around her, two more designs had already been completed, the students proudly comparing their sketches.
Aria slowly turned toward the window again. Sunlight poured in, warm and blinding. She exhaled deeply — the air shaky in her chest. For a moment, she could almost see that little girl again, crying behind her eyes.
Then she looked down, gripped her pencil, and began to draw. Her hand trembled slightly, but she didn't stop. Each line steadied her breathing, each stroke hiding the cracks in her heart.
Whenever her thoughts threatened to drag her back into that nightmare, she took another deep breath — and kept going.
Without giving ear to the nightmares clawing their way back into her thoughts, Aria focused on her work. Her pencil danced rapidly across the paper, creating countless designs — mugs, tables, chairs, shelves — anything that came to her mind. It was like her imagination had burst open, spilling brilliance faster than anyone could keep up.
The others couldn't take their eyes off her. Every few minutes, a student would lean closer, watching how she drew with such speed and precision. Slowly, her energy became contagious — the rest of the drawing team began sketching with newfound excitement, feeding off her rhythm and ideas.
Ashwin and another boy exchanged a glance, both impressed and quietly amazed. Then, as Aria bent over her work, a faint click echoed through the room. Aria blinked and looked up — Ashwin was holding his phone, caught mid-motion.
He froze. "Uh…"
Aria didn't say a word. She just gave him one calm, sharp blink — a silent acknowledgment that she'd seen what he did. Then she turned back to her paper, her expression unreadable.
Ashwin scratched his neck awkwardly, forcing a small grin. Usually, Aria was the embodiment of manners and discipline — someone who never broke decorum. But today, something in her silence carried weight. It wasn't forgiveness, nor was it anger — just quiet, unsettling restraint.
The others noticed too. They exchanged glances, whispering, but no one dared to interrupt her. Even Ashwin's grin faded after a moment. He lowered his phone, secretly sending the picture to someone, a faint, almost sinister smile tugging at his lips before he went back to sketching.
By late afternoon, the room was filled with drawings — stunning, detailed plans that looked more like architectural blueprints than simple sketches. When Farhan came over and saw the stack of papers, his eyes widened.
"Excuse me," he said with a half-laugh. "I'm over here teaching them how to make mugs — and you've already designed cupboards and tables! I only know clay work. Who's going to build these?"
The room went silent. Everyone looked around, confused.
The drawing team shrugged. "We were just assigned to draw…"
Finally, all eyes turned to Aria — still quietly working, sketching new lines with absolute focus. Her mood seemed distant, unreadable, as though she were lost in another world.
No one dared to interrupt her. They all understood that something in her wasn't quite right today — and yet, somehow, they also trusted that by tomorrow, as always, Aria would find a way to make it all work.
It was almost evening — 5 p.m. now.
One girl stretched and said, "Guys, should we keep the rest for tomorrow and go now?"
The others nodded in agreement, their eyes naturally drifting toward Aria. Finally, Aria stopped, placed her pencil down, and added her last sketch to the bundle of papers their group had made.
"Yeah," she said with a small smile. "I didn't even notice the time passing while drawing."
Everyone looked relieved. They weren't used to seeing Aria so quiet and distant; it had unsettled them more than they wanted to admit. A few of them exchanged glances toward Ashwin — a silent signal that he should be the one to talk to her.
One by one, everyone left the room, chatting and laughing as they packed up. Aria began gathering her things too, while Ashwin lingered behind, cheeks slightly flushed and hands fidgeting.
Aria glanced at him. "What happened, Ashwin? Why are you so nervous?" she asked casually.
He scratched his head. "Are you okay, Aria? You were… kind of different these past few minutes."
Aria smiled softly. "Oh, I'm always like that sometimes," she said, brushing it off and starting to walk toward the door.
Ashwin sighed in relief. "Good! I was so worried about you. I thought you'd gone mad or something."
Aria paused and turned her head, giving him a playful but sharp look. "Oh, really? So that's why you decided to take a photo of me?"
Ashwin froze. "Uh—"
"Who did you send it to?" she asked, her tone light but piercing.
He didn't answer right away. Aria raised an eyebrow; she knew it wouldn't be Sona, mirzand, or anyone else from their school. She trusted him too much to think that.
Then Ashwin chuckled nervously and said, "You guessed it right. It's Zorvath "
The name hit Aria like a small shock. She had only guessed it casually — she hadn't actually expected him to say that. For a moment, anger flickered in her eyes, but she hid it behind a calm smile.
She stepped closer, reached up, and pinched his chubby cheeks gently — just enough to make it cute and a little painful. "Don't ever repeat that, okay?" she said, smiling.
Ashwin laughed sheepishly, rubbing his face. They both smiled, gathered their things, and walked out together, following their friends toward the exit.
Just as they were about to leave the building, a sharp sound echoed from behind them.