Stars Collide

Chapter 1

"Mom," I begged her to reconsider. "Please."

Dad laughed and gave me a hug. "Leah, we're at the airport and we've already checked in your bags. You have to go to at least get them back." I sighed and rolled my eyes as Mom joined him.

"Flight 868 to Luxembourg Findel is now open for prioity boarding. If you are in first or business class, you are welcome to board now."

Dad gave me a nudge. "Go on now, Leah." I gritted my teeth and grabbed my backpack before going up to the counter and giving the lady my boarding pass. With a final hug and a kiss, my parents were gone.

"Here you go," the lady said, giving it back to me with a smile. "Enjoy your flight."

I nodded politely and made my way to the plane. This was it. I was on my own. I was on my way to Europe to make a name for myself instead of mooching off my parents'. Not that I ever did.

When I got to my section of the plane, I fastened my seat belt to keep myself from bolting and looked around. Everyone looked older and much more intimidating. They all looked like they had a purpose, and they knew what it was. Me, I didn't even know what I was going to have for breakfast the next morning.

A few minutes later, a scared looking girl looked up at the overhead compartment at my seat before seating herself next to me. She looked to be about my age. "Hi," I said to her.

She looked around for a moment, as if she was wondering who I was talking to. Then she pointed at herself. "Me?" I noticed her slight accent. I nodded. "Hello," she said. "My name is Chiara. I am from Luxembourg."

"Really?" I said. "I'm going there to go to school right now."

"Oh, really?" she asked. "Which school?"

"Uh, it's called the American Schools of Luxembourg."

Chiara stiffened before recovering quickly. "Really?" she asked. "I am going there as well. My mother wants me to learn more English. That is why she is sending me there. That is why she sent me here to stay with my aunt for some days."

I raised my eyebrows. "But you have really good English."

Chiara shook her head. "Mum believes that I will have to perfect English in order to be successful. She doesn't want me to end up like her. She doesn't know English or Luxembourgish, only French. She moved from France when she married my father. My father and I have to go to the market with her to translate. We speak only French at home. That is why my English is... sloppy."

"I think your English is really good," I assured her. "And look on the bright side. Now we both know someone else from our new school. We won't be complete loners."

Chiara smiled, and I noticed she had perfect teeth. I ran my tongue consciously over my crooked bottom teeth. "Yeah," she said. "I have seen the American Schools since I was a baby. I live very close to there. I have never gone to school there."

The flight attendant suddenly spoke, making Chiara jump. I was expecting it- I'd been going on flights since I was legally old enough to. "Please fasten your seat belts for take-off," she finished.

I looked over at Chiara, who looked very nervous. "Don't worry," I told her. "It's not that bad."

She flashed me a grateful smile before gripping her armrest. I shrugged and let her. When our plane was in the air, I turned to her but she was already passed out.

I had been told b my parents on numerous occasions that when I was a baby, the only song that would calm me down was I Dreamed A Dream from Les Miserables. It had always calmed me down. I pulled out my iPod and plugged in.

Before I knew it, I was passed out too. What woke me up was the flight attendant's voice. "Please fasten your seat belts and get ready for landing."

I yawned and stretched my legs before looking over at Chiara. She was reading a book, like she'd been up for ages. The cover read Treize Raisons, which with the help of my school's French class, I roughly translated to "thirteen reasons". She had pulled on glasses sometime during the flight and had them on.

I looked over at her and she smiled back at me. "We are landing," she whispered. "Does that feel... weird?"

I shook my head. "It's all fine." I looked at my lap and found my fingers tapping out their own song on my thighs. Chiara followed my gaze.

"You look nervous. Don't worry. It is just like going to school in America. It is the same. You will be fine."

"I hope so," I said as my drumming got more... hard. Chiara now put her book down and looked like she was about to puke. I didn't know who looked worse.

Finally, our plane landed and I allowed myself to look outside. Chiara joined me and her face slowly returned to its natural complexion as she recognized her hometown. "What is your name?" she asked suddenly.

"L-Leah," I told her. "Wow, I guess I must've forgotten to tell you my name."

Chiara nodded subconsciously. "That is a pretty name."

I smiled at her. "Thanks. Your name is really pretty too."

"Thank you," she replied politely before getting up and joining the lines now forming in the aisles to get off the plane. I followed suit and we were soon off the plane. Mom and Dad had told me that someone would be waiting at the airport for me. They also said that I would finally be able to use some of my freshman year French.

After I was done picking up my bags, I looked around, looking for someone who looked like they were going to take me to school. I saw a sign that said "Léa Rénaldes" and took a wild guess. I'd lost Chiara some time ago when she found her parents. I walked towards the sign. "Leah?" the woman asked and I nodded. She stuck out her hand. "I'm Corrine Cohen, one of the teachers at the American Schools. I'm pretty sure your name isn't spelt this way but the man who talked on the phone with your parents insisted."

I couldn't bring myself to laugh. "Yeah, it's misspelled," I told her, giving her a smile.

"Well," she said. "I'm sorry you started off on the wrong foot, but welcome to Luxembourg."