Waking up at four in the morning to get to a 7 o'clock was definitely not on my bucket list, but going to America was. It still hadn't sunk in that I would be spending my whole junior year abroad. I knew that I would end up having the experience of a lifetime, but I was also worried that moving to Alabama was going to be extremely hard. Of course, it would be much different than what I'm used to here in Albury, Australia.
Spending 19 hours in the plane also wasn't on my bucket list, but the plane never seemed to care about my wants and wishes and didn't go any faster. The flight was agonizing, but I knew it would be worth it. Nothing a Movie Marathon and a little sleep couldn't fix.
At 5 PM Alabama time, the plane touched to the ground, but my heart went soaring. I knew about the adventure that was lying ahead. I knew I would meet people that would change my life - but I was scared.
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As I stepped out of the plane, I rushed through the walkway, my excitement taking over. As soon as I got out of the terminal, my bag fell off my shoulder. A girl with brown, curly hair and a petite figure grabbed it for me. She looked around 16 and was holding a sign with the name "Livi Crammond." I smiled and grabbed the bag from her.
"Thanks. I think that would be me!" Her head jerked up with a huge smile on her face. She squealed and hugged me tight.
"I am so excited to meet you! I'm Emily, and you're going to be staying with me this year! We are going to have SO much fun." Her deep southern accent hung to each word that she said, making me smile because I have never heard an accent like that before in person. We walked towards the parking lot, chatting about the flight. Emily rummaged throughout her purse to find her keys with a big, diamond encrusted keyring. I couldn't help but laugh at her big, southern personality. She seemed very sweet. Let's just hope that the rest of the school was like that, or else I will be having a tough year.
Riding in Emily's Forest Green Jeep Wrangler, we pulled into her home. It was your typical southern mansion: white with pillars in front, two stories, and a wraparound porch. I could definitely live here. I grabbed two of my bags while Emily grabbed the other. She ran to open the side door and flew inside. I followed behind, lugging my bags with me.
"MOM! DAD! LEE! WE'RE HOME!" A beautiful, middle aged woman made her way around the corner with an apron tied around her waist. She hugged Emily, then moved onto me.
"Darling you are stunning! I am so excited to meet you! I'm Mrs. Jackson, but you can call me Rae. I look forward to spending the next year with you! Would you like a cookie dear? Freshly baked!" She held up a plate of cookies that smelled like heaven. I couldn't resist and took one off of the plate.
"It is so great to meet you too Mrs. - I mean Rae. I would love a cookie! Thank you so much." As I took a bite of the warm, chocolate chip cookie, a man - who I'm assuming is Mr. Jackson - came around the corner.
"Livi it is so great to meet you. I am looking forward to an exciting year together! I'm Mr. Jackson, as you can probably guess, but call me Robert. It is so great to meet you." He shook my hand and grabbed a cookie.
"Rae makes the best food. I swear, you'll be a good 20 pounds heavier by the time you leave." I smiled and shook my head, hoping that didn't happen.
"I sure hope not. This cookie is ace though!" I finished off the cookie and smiled at my new host family.
"Mom, where's Lee? I thought he said he was going to be home?" Emily exclaimed with an annoyed look.
"He's upstairs. Why don't you take Livi's stuff to your room and you can run into his room after. Come down for dinner in an hour though, I made fresh margarita pizza!" I grabbed my bags and Emily and I walked up the winding staircase to her room. After passing 3 doors, she swung the fourth one open, revealing two twin beds and a navy and pink room.
"My goodness! You have a gorgeous room. I love the color scheme." I set my bags down and turned to see a dresser next to my bed.
"Thank you! I just redid it this summer. That dresser is for you, but you don't have to unpack now. Let's go meet Lee and then I'll give you a tour of the house."
She spun on her heels and strutted to the room next door. She swung the door open without knocking to reveal a boy around the same age, listening to music on headphones and doing what seemed to be homework. Emily walked over to him and ripped the earphones out of his ears.
"LEE! It's time to meet Livi. She's the Australian Exchange Student staying with us for the next year." He looked up at me and his eyes grew. I grew self concious but smiled at him.
"Hi, I'm Livi. Nice to meet you." He jumped off his bed and walked over to me.
"It's a pleasure to meet you too. I'm Lee, Emily's twin brother." I found that so cool, I had never met a twin before.
"Alright Alright, I'm going to go give Livi a tour, but dinner will be ready in an hour, so be down." She walked out the door and turned to see if I was following. I gave a small wave to Lee as I walked out the door. I couldn't get over how attractive he was. I've never really had a boyfriend, and I've never been kissed. I wonder if that would happen while I was in America?
