She Hopes You're Trouble

Chapter 1

Abeline

School had never been a real challenge for Abeline. She found herself grasping things fairly easily for as long as she could remember. English came naturally, as well as math and just about every other school subject thrown her way. Once she heard about her schools foreign exchange program, she signed up right away. Her parents assured her that she would be a shoe-in with her grades.

They were right. Abeline had been invited to stay with a family in America. Michigan to be exact. Abeline's parents were thrilled to hear the news.

After a mere three weeks, the wait was over. Abeline had been packed and ready to go as soon as she heard she was accepted to go. Abeline's parents were just about as excited as she was. They knew their daughter would have the experience of a life time and they could not have been more proud of her.

•••

Once she made it to her new temporary home Abeline's new care givers, Roger and Tina, helped her unpack all her things. She was to be staying in the guest bedroom. It had a queen sized bed and a huge window that made the whole room shimmer with sunlight.

In the corner of the room there was a desk. It was painted white with a pale blue swivel chair beneath it to match the rest of the room. Atop it was a blue and green striped lamp. This would be a perfect place to write, Abeline thought.

One of her favourite pastimes was writing. She had a journal that she kept with her constantly. Within it's pages were stories, poems, lyrics, anything and everything that crossed Abeline's mind became immortalized in her journal. The spine was worn and the leather didn't feel quite the same as when she had first got it, but none of that mattered. It was her lifeline. No one had been a better friend to Abeline than her journal. It was always there to listen, and never judge. It had never left her side. She would take this journal to the grave.

After Abeline had put up some of her posters and nicknacks, and stored all her clothes in the closet, she started to feel at home. The atmosphere in America was different, refreshing; and Abeline was eating it up.

With only three days until school started, Roger and Tina took Abeline to her new school for the year to check it out. Abeline was enrolled in 11th grade at Riverdale High School. Their school colours were silver and purple, and their mascot was Bumble the sea urchin. Out on display at the front of the school was a large bronze statue of a sea urchin with a very unwelcoming scowl. Abeline would hate to get on his bad side.

Roger and Tina roamed the halls with Abeline and found her locker and classes. She was all too excited to start American high school. It was much bigger than her school back home. It had glass ceiling sections here and there to let in natural light, and each hall had purple stripes lining the walls. The silver and white tiled floor only seemed to make the already large school look even bigger.

Abeline's first class of the day was Pre-Calculus, which was conveniently close to her locker. Her next class of the day was U.S. History. Abeline couldn't wait to learn more about America. She was fascinated by their culture and ached to drink in more. Third period brought Abeline to Journalism. Photography and story telling had always captivated Abeline's thoughts, so what better way to expand on them than a J1 class ? English was fourth period on the daily schedule. Abeline was comfortable with her English speaking abilities but was a bit nervous at tackling the entire English language. After fourth period there was a 45 minute break for lunch. Students could leave the school grounds and get lunch, just like her school back at home. Once lunch was over Abeline had Earth Space fifth period. Followed by Psychology sixth period. This was going to be an interesting class for sure. Then to end the day, Abeline had Art. Seventh period was the class Abeline looked forward to most of all. She simply could not wait to start her new school.

•••

The days went by and Abeline became more and more aquatinted with her new family. She discovered that the Northems' once had a teenage daughter, Vicky. Unfortunately Vicky had been in a terrible car wreck seven years ago and died instantaneously. Every year after their daughters death, Mr. and Mrs. Northem offered their home to foreign exchange students. They said it made the home come to life again, and that Vicky would have enjoyed the company.

Mr. and Mrs. Northem have the sweet couple aura to them. Roger had slight crows eyes from smiling too much. His bright green eyes were a gorgeous contrast to his tanned skin. Dark hair with little grey hairs here and there sat atop his head, slightly swept to the left. Polos and khakis made up 85% of his wardrobe, but it suited him. His strong nose supported his thin wire glasses that made his eyes slightly bigger.

Tina was a nice compliment to Roger. Her supple little frame fit perfectly in Roger's lanky body. Her paprika coloured hair came just below her shoulders and had a natural wave to it. The top of her head came to the bottom of Roger's shoulder. Tina had pale blue eyes that reminded Abeline of ice, but they had a warm flame behind them. Abeline had yet to see Tina's face without a smile perched on it.

The atmosphere in the home was warm and welcoming. Every room smelled of vanilla and oatmeal. The house was always neat and tidy, but not to the point where you were nervous to touch anything. The main hall had family photos lining the walls. Vicky had fair skin like her mother, but hair like her father.

Abeline couldn't imagine how it felt having their whole world being ripped from their hands in an instant. Despite losing their daughter, Mrs. and Mr. Northem always seemed happy. They lived in the glass that was always half full. Tina would laugh at every one of Roger's jokes, even the bad ones. Dinner would be prepared by Tina and Roger would do the dishes afterwards. They were so in synch and immensely kind to Abeline. She promised herself to be the house guest the Northem's had ever had.