It wasn't a big house, it was very quaint, actually.
However, it seemed Mrs. Shepard was an avid collector of porcelain figures. It looked like there were thousands of small toddlers dressed as lambs and dogs with big eyes covering every inch of the house.
"Now, shoo you two! The three of us will call you down once we've finished our tea," Mrs. Shepherd exclaimed, and began setting up.
"Shall we?" Andrew asked, arm extended towards the stairs.
"Aha, sure..."
Again, carefully putting one foot in front of the other, I followed him up the stairs and down the hallway to the second door on the left.
"My room's not much, but I live with it," he said, opening the door.
He was right, it was pretty small, but actually kinda cool. He had a desk with a computer and papers sprawled all over it, posters of movies like Pulp Fiction, Kill Bill, etc., and a collection of trophies on a top shelf.
He sped to his desk and gathered all his papers together.
"Sorry, I forgot about the mess I had in here," he chuckled.
His papers looked like sketches, but I really couldn't point them out.
"You like to draw?" I asked.
He turned and smiled bashfully, "Yea, but I'm not that good at-"
I took a page from the pile in his arms and took a look.
It was an action scene of some sort, probably with original characters of his. A tank was driving towards a hoard of little dudes, a samurai leading them.
"Heh. How creative!" I complimented.
"I-It's not great or anything," he looked down. "I do it when I'm bored you know?"
He looks even cuter when he's embarrassed.
I took a heavy sigh and sat on his bed, still staring at him.
He was so cute, cuter than any guy I've seen, and I've meet quite a few.
"Aurelia?"
His voice startled me.
"Hm?" I asked, shaking my head after spacing out. "Sorry, I was just...thinking."
"Don't worry about it. I was just asking you how it's like to live in the States." He stated.
"The States...oh. Yea, heh. Well, it's actually not that different from here. Or at least from my point of view. I'm only 14, you know? I've still got plenty of things to see," I droned on.
"How so?"
I cleared my throat, surprised and a bit flustered by his persistence.
"Um, well, school's the same over there, so are like, um..." I panicked for a second, not knowing what to say. "Grocery stores?"
"Grocery stores?" He asked, wide eyed.
"I've never would have guessed you had grocery stores in America."
I furrowed my brows.
"I really appreciate sarcasm, one of the key things I hope to find when meeting someone," I acted annoyed.
"Well, sorry, Princess. This is what you ended up with," he teased.
Princess. Oh man!
I began stuttering like the idiot I am.
"I-I um..."
"Lia!"
It was Grandma.
Saved by her once again!, I thought.
"I better go..." I started, and began heading out the door.
He smirked cheekily and took a sigh.
"When will I see you again, Princess?" He asked in a semi-mocking tone.
"Keep on wishing, Andrew."
I left him in his room and skipped down the stairs. I could feel the goofiest smile forming on my face.
"Again, I'm terribly sorry we have to go again, Angela, but I have to show Lia the rest of the house. I have to be a good host to my granddaughter!" Grandma pointed out to the Shepards, grabbing me by the shoulder and backing out the door.
"Alright then Martha, I'm glad you came by, and hopefully we'll get to see you both soon, right Aurelia?" Mrs. Shepard asked.
"Um-" Grandma interrupted me. "Yes, yes! I'm sorry again, but let's go! It's going to get dark!"
"Bye!" Andrew stepped down from the stairs and stood near his mother, smiling.
Grandma slammed the door, making each porcelain figure rattle on the shelves on which they stood, some of them close to falling off.
"C'mon, Aurelia," Grandma said, leading us off the porch.
Then she stopped, suddenly, as I she just remembered something.
A devilish smile formed on her lips.
"How do you like Andrew?" She asked, curiosity clearly in her voice.
"Oh, just look at the time! It's gonna get dark!" I shouted,dodging the question before she could get anything out of me, and sped walked to the house as fast as I could.
