Chapter 3 Making New Friends

Although Lora was not very fluent in English, simple communication was not a problem for her. She was able to convey the address to the driver with ease. Upon reaching her destination, she thanked the driver and paid him. Her teacher had asked all students to change their money to pounds before they arrived in England. After getting out of the car, Lora located her aunt's housing community. When Lora was about to enter, she saw a beautiful Chinese girl sitting beside the park. The little girl seemed to be sad.

Lora, being a kind-hearted person, couldn't bear to walk away, so she made her way towards her.

"Hello. You look younger than me," Lora initiated a conversation in Chinese, guessing that the girl would be able to speak in Chinese.

"Hello!" the girl seemed startled. "You are...?" Sandra inquired politely. She flashed Lora a charming smile.

"You have a nice smile!" noted Lora. She, too, smiled back at the girl sweetly.

"Thank you. You are also very cute!" Sandra said, taking an instant liking to the stranger in front of her.

"Ha-ha! Would you like to be my friend?" asked Lora, extending her hand amicably.

"Of course!" Sandra agreed happily, shaking Lora's hand. When it came to making new friends, Sandra could never refuse! What was more, the girl in front of her was so warm and genial. So she readily agreed.

"Great! So now we are good friends!" Lora smiled. "Nice to meet you! My name is Lora Nangong, and I'm fourteen years old. I have come to England for the first time to take part in an international dance competition!" She introduced herself.

"Nice to meet you, too, Lora! My name is Sandra Yu! I'm thirteen years old!" Sandra returned her greeting.

"Ha-ha! So, now that we are good friends, can I ask you a question? Why do you look so sad?" Lora asked, raising her eyebrows.

Sandra smiled wistfully, "Is it so obvious?" Lora nodded.

"Ha-ha!" Sandra was amused at Lora's candor. "I don't want to talk about it right now," Sandra said, feeling embarrassed.

"Do you really take me as your friend?" Lora asked, tilting her head.

"Of course!" Sandra said immediately.

"Okay, then answer this. Is there anything that can't be said between friends?" Lora quizzed.

"Lora... Can I call you Lora?"

"Of course! And I will call you Sandra," chimed Lora.

"Great! So Lora, can I tell you later?" asked Sandra, biting her lip and gauging Lora's reaction.

"All right, no problem!" Lora said genially.

"Thank you! You're so nice. So Lora, are you staying nearby during your competition?" asked Sandra, looking around.

"Yes, but, I can't say for sure so soon," replied Lora cryptically.

"Why is that?" Sandra asked, puzzled.

"Well, I'm here to visit my aunt. I haven't seen her in ten years. We have only spoken on the phone. She had given me her address long ago. I don't even know if she is still here," explained Lora as she showed the address to her new friend.

"Oh. This is not far from my home!" squealed Sandra in delight. "I live in the third unit on the second floor. Your address happens to be on the third floor. We are not far from each other!" Sandra smiled brightly.

"Really? That's great!" remarked Lora cheerfully. She was somewhat relieved to know that her friend lived in the same unit. She opened her arms to hug her friend, but Sandra dodged as usual. Lora was confused and a little hurt. Seeing that Lora was offended, Sandra hurriedly explained,

"I'm sorry, Lora. It's just that, my wounds haven't healed yet!"

"Oh, dear! Are you hurt?"

"Yes. Long story! I'll tell you later!" Sandra promised.

"All right! So anyway, I'm going to see my aunt now. Are you coming with me?"

"Yes, sure! I have to go home for lunch. Hey, how about this? Come to my place for lunch, and after that, you can go upstairs to find your aunt," Sandra offered.

"That's so kind of you!" gushed Lora.

"It's okay. We are good friends now!" said Sandra.

Lora contemplated Sandra's generous offer. She hadn't figured out how to ask her aunt if it would be okay for her to stay at her house for a few days. After all, they hadn't seen each other in so many years. This made things awkward for Lora. So she agreed!

The two girls set off towards the community hand in hand.

Just as they entered the gate, they heard some yelling in the park.

"Hey, Mister! Stop. Come back!" Two men in black windbreakers were shouting in English. Sandra was shocked. What was going on? Lora knew that there was a wound on Sandra's body, so she pulled Sandra behind her. The two saw a handsome Chinese teenager running towards them. Sandra was a little scared but Lora was bolder, so she stood her ground. The young man took something out of his pocket and scattered it on the ground. When he was about to dash toward Lora, he stopped abruptly. Then he turned to look at the two men, who were chasing him. Both the men slipped on something. Taking advantage of this opportunity, the young man ran toward the garden behind Sandra, whispering, "Help!" As he ran to the garden, he bumped into Lora and hurt her hand. Lora was upset but glad that he did not hurt Sandra! The two men in black finally managed to stand up but they couldn't see the young man anywhere. They assumed that the young man escaped into an alley near the community. So they sprinted off in that direction!