Robert Irwin & I

Mental breakdown and a stroll by sunset

Rosa felt under pressure while they all three stared at her. What was she going to reply? That Rosa had used all her mother's money to travel to Australia because she was obsessed with their show - and especially Robert Irwin? Yeah no.

"Uhh," Rosa said. "I-I," She couldn't get the words out, and it suddenly all got too much, and Rosa burst down into tears. Everything; the goodbye to her family and friends, the long travel, how broke she had become - all came streaming down her cheeks in form of wet droplets. Robert, Bindi and Terri were all shocked by the sudden mental breakdown, and immediately came over to comfort her.

"It'll be alright, sweetheart," Bindi softly said, but that only made Rosa cry even harder. They were all so nice, and it was too much to handle for her. "Rosa, we would love to help you, but you'll have to tell us what's going on?" Terri said in a serious tone. Robert nodded in agreement.

Should Rosa tell them the truth or lie?

"I-I," she stumbled over the words. "My family abonded me back in Denmark, and I had no other choice than move to Australia. But now... I'm homeless and broke," Rosa lied, and began to cry again. Yeah it was a lie, but the part about living in Denmark and being broke was true though. Therefore, she hadn't completely ignored the truth, Rosa thought to herself...

"Oh sweetie, that's just awful," Terri gasped. Robert looked very sad as well, and Rosa blushed a bit.

"Mum, she can stay with us, can't she?" Robert begged, while looking at his mom. Terri sighed, obviously wanting to help Rosa, but not being sure how to - she didn't even properly know Rosa after all!

"Of course, you can stay for a while," she then replied. Rosa's mood immediately changed from self pity and agony to excitement. Robert seemed glad too. "Thank you so much, Terri! I promise you, I won't be a bother," Rosa said.

The rest of the day went by very quickly. Rosa would sleep in the guest room in their huge house right next to Robert's room. Bindi helped Rosa make her bed, and they seemed to hit it off right on the spot. They talked about school, the zoo, and boys. Bindi spoke lovingly about her boyfriend (update: now fiancé! update, update: now husband! update, update, update: now baby daddy!) Chandler, and Rosa acted like she didn't know, who he was. When Bindi asked if Rosa had an eye on someone, she blushed, and quickly shrugged her head. Bindi seemed to notice, Rosa wasn't being honest, but she didn't want to further intrude her privacy.

At this point, the sun was setting, and all the visitors at the zoo had left. Robert decided to take a last stroll around before going to bed, and he asked Rosa to join him. They walked around in comfortable silence - both preoccupied with their own thoughts. Rosa couldn't fathom how successful her first day in Australia had went. How unbelievable was it that she was staying at the Irwins' household!?

But she also felt a sting of sadness. The look on her mom's face when she had left, and the utter disappointment from her best friends and classmates, she all left behind, took a heavy toll on her heart.

But the faint sounds of birds singing, a parrot talking, and lions roaring all comforted her. She felt at home here, and maybe even more because Robert was standing beside her. He was currently saying good night to a king cobra inside its cage. "Goodnight you little cutie. Aren't you just a gorgeous girl?" he sweet talked to the snake behind the glass. Rosa had never been more jealous of a reptile before...

After 5 more minutes of endless good-night-flirting with snakes, they decided to go back to the house. "Thanks for... Thanks for coming here today," Robert broke the silence, scratching the back of his neck, a habit from being nervous. Rosa giggled. "Thank you for letting me stay with you. You're my life savior," she answered. They both blushed, and looked away.

That night, Rosa dreamt of Robert Irwin, tarantulas, the zoo, and saying goodbye to her mom. It had been the longest day of her life, which usually just consisted of eating snacks and watching "Crikey! It's The Irwins." But she wouldn't change the day for anything else.

Finally Rosa was happy. But she didn't know how long that would last.