Mr. I Don't Smile

02. double standards

02. double standards

Ciera

"You're an exchange student?" I repeated.

"Yes, from France. Didn't your parents tell you?" Now I could clearly hear his accent over his shocked tone.

"I didn't know anything. Um, I'm sorry I tried to attack you."

"Americans," he mumbled. "It's fine. I didn't die. Your parents are outside right now with my sister. I came in first because they volunteered to bring my stuff in."

"Oh, I'm really sorry. Please don't tell them about this. Let's try to start over. I'm Ciera." I put my hand out for him to shake and he hesitantly took it.

Now that I was calm I could properly assess Theo. He had a tanned face and his eyes were a stunning blue. His black hair was shiny but didn't look to have any gel in it. He was wearing a gray hoodie and black sweatpants.

He had a small smile on his face as he said his next sentence. "Now it makes sense why you tried to attack me. You kind of look like a clown that belongs in a circus, chérie."

I crossed my arms, a little taken aback by his newfound confidence. "And why is that?" I asked defensively.

"Your outfit. All the paint reminds me of it. You're also really short, so you would be able to fit into one of the tiny clown cars. Maybe you should be an exchange student and study at one of their academies."

What the actual fu—

The door opened and I turned to see who would walk in next, not having time to analyze Theo's random burst of confidence and rude comments. It must have been the sister Theo was talking about. I didn't know how a girl as young as her could be that pretty, but she did. She had long orange-red hair that was pin-straight. She had her hair in a half up half down hairstyle and her eyes were brown, unlike her brother. She had a better style than me considering the outfit she was wearing. She looked like she had come straight out of a magazine.

"That's my sister, Rosalie," Theo murmured. "She doesn't speak English and doesn't want to study it either." Rosalie gave me a small wave and I returned the greeting.

Lastly, my parents walked inside hauling a few suitcases with them. "Mom, Dad," I said.

"Oh, hello Ciera. We see you've been acquainted with our guests."

"Yeah, it was nice to meet them but," my voice went down into a whisper as I walked over to them. "Why didn't you tell me we were hosting foreign exchange students? This affects me too."

"Not really. Theo and Rosalie, you two can start to unpack. Your bedrooms are the first two doors on the right and left." Theo translated what my mom said to Rosalie and the two picked up their belongings before going upstairs.

"So you're just going to bring people into our house and not tell me or Clara," I reiterated.

"This has nothing to do with you once again, Ciera. I don't know why you're so mad. We'll explain everything further when Clara comes home."

"Ugh," I groaned. My parents left to somewhere that I didn't care for and I took out my phone and immediately called Maddie. It sadly went to voicemail and I sighed. Maybe Casey would answer.

I hesitated to press his number—I didn't want it to go to voicemail again. And it didn't. Instead, the call didn't ring at all. Was his phone off? Did he block me or decline my number? I knew the questions I had sounded needy but Maddie and Casey were the only people I could confide in. And even then the things I told them only reached surface level.