At lunch, she walked briskly into the cafeteria and spotted Hiten sitting at their usual table, quietly eating. With a mischievous grin, she plopped down next to him and whispered loudly, “Hiten! Did you know there’s a pair dance competition in school?”

Hiten blinked, chewing slowly. “Uh… yeah? I think I saw the notice…”

“Well…” Aarya leaned closer, eyes sparkling, “I already registered!”

Hiten choked on his sandwich, coughing violently. “Wait… WHAT? Registered? With… a partner?!” He slammed his hand on the table, making his spoon jump. “And… you’re telling me this NOW?!”

Aarya giggled. “Yes! And… with you.”

Hiten froze mid-chew, eyes wide as saucers. He nearly fell off the chair. “Me? You picked… me?!” He flailed his arms, knocking over his glass of water. “I don’t even know how to dance! I barely walk without tripping over my own feet!”

Aarya laughed, leaning back, clearly enjoying his panic. “No worries. I’m here for you. Trust me!”

Hiten pressed his face into his hands, mumbling, “Trust you… trust me… oh no, oh no, oh no! Day after tomorrow… DAY AFTER TOMORROW?! We’re doomed!”

He suddenly jumped up, pacing around the cafeteria, pointing at her dramatically. “We need a strategy! We need a plan! Maps! Diagrams! Choreography charts! And… snacks. Definitely snacks. How will we survive without snacks during practice?!”

Aarya giggled again. “Relax! After school, meet me at my house. We’ll choreograph everything there.”

Hiten froze mid-panic, then slowly turned to her. “Meet… at your house? Alone? What if I accidentally perform a spin and break something? Or worse—trip and… die?”

She rolled her eyes, shaking her head. “Hiten, you’re overthinking again. Just… come.”

“Overthinking?!” he shouted, throwing his hands in the air, nearly knocking over a chair. “This is life-and-death stuff! Step wrong, fall flat, total humiliation! I’ll be the laughingstock of the school! My dignity… GONE!”

Aarya laughed so hard she almost spilled her juice. “You’ll survive. Just follow my lead!”

Hiten slumped back into his chair dramatically, sighing like a man who had just lost a war. “Fine… fine… but I’m making you a solemn promise: if I embarrass myself, you take full responsibility!”

On the way back from school, they discussed song options. Aarya hummed a few tunes, occasionally spinning around, while Hiten kept muttering about how he would need “a crash course in graceful human movement.”

Finally, they reached Hiten’s house. Aarya’s eyes widened slightly as she looked around—the living room would be their practice floor. “This is perfect,” she said.

Hiten spun around dramatically, holding his hands to his chest. “Perfect? PERFECT?! This is a stage of doom! What if the carpet catches my foot mid-spin? Or—”

“Stop panicking!” Aarya said, laughing. “We’ll figure it out.”

Hiten froze, then whispered to himself, “Okay… okay… maybe it won’t be that bad. But if I die, you’re cleaning up the mess.”

Aarya rolled her eyes and nudged him. “Now, pick a song!”

Hiten groaned theatrically. “Songs! Music! What if I have two left feet? What if the rhythm attacks me?!”

Aarya laughed, shaking her head. “You’ll be fine, trust me.”

Hiten blinked, then dramatically raised an imaginary sword. “I, Hiten, solemnly swear to survive this… dance apocalypse!”

And just like that, the quiet calm of Hiten’s house was filled with laughter, panic, and the first sparks of a shared adventure.

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