...

“Aw I can’t wait to see a few pictures of her!” Her mom exclaimed.

Auden was fairly quiet the rest of the way home her dad pointed out a few landmarks here and there of Charleston. She loved this town but she knew there was more to the world that she wants to see. She loves the beach, and that there are parts where it feels more populated but then parts where you are totally at peace with nature. They pulled into the driveway,

“Well this is it, it is probably much different than the elegant architecture in France but it’s our home,” her dad said as he put the car in park.

Through the front door window you could see Sadie with her face in the frame barking. She was anxious to greet them and meet the new arrival. Auden got out and went over to the door and unlocked it so they could start bringing bags in and Sadie could be let out.

“She barks a lot but I swear she is friendly,” Auni said as she watched her dog run up to Theo with her tail wagging.

“Auden, why don’t you show Theo the house and his room while we unload?” Her mom suggested or more like insisted.

Auden froze for a moment but took a deep breath. “Okay,” she said quietly as she looked at Theo for a moment.

“You can follow me, the house isn’t huge but it’s 2 stories and we have a basement,” she explained. They started with the living room off to the left. “This is the living room we have a lot of family movie and game nights here,” she said and then pointed to the dining room. “This is our dining room usually we try to have family dinners at least 3 times a week and at least once with my grandparents they live about 10 minutes from here,” she stated as they then walked into the kitchen. “You can help yourself to what you want,” she said a bit bluntly. Then she walked up the stairs and pointed to a few rooms. “The door to the right is my parents room, down the hall on the left is a bathroom, my room is the door next to it, the office is at the end and your room is over there,” she pointed to a door across from hers and then walked to it. When she opened the door the gray walls were pretty empty but it had a window that gave it some natural light. It had a queen sized bed up against the wall with a nightstand and a desk. “We kept it pretty empty it is usually our guest room but my mom said you can decorate how you want,” she explained to him. She paused for a moment… “We have to share a bathroom so rule is if the door is open it’s free to use. My mom can be strict sometimes but for the most part we can do what we want if we are responsible, or at least I can,” she said not meaning to come off as rude as that sounds but she doesn’t know him or what his interests are that well or his intentions… "We made a gift basket for you...it has some snacks and local items from here," she mentioned as a little wicker basket was sitting on the desk. She paused for a moment and then turned to go out the door as her parents were coming into the house.

...

It was surprisingly a long day and Auni was tired. It was a lot of new things for her. She got herself ready for bed and put her hair up in a messy bun. Luckily today was Saturday so they had one day to get to know him before school started. Auden was in her senior year and she took it pretty seriously. People knew her but she wouldn’t say she’s popular. She had some big aspirations as much as she would’ve loved to open her own bakery or art studio her parents wanted her to succeed and so as of now she is on track to be a lawyer and attend Law school. She knew she’d probably be the one to show Theo around the first couple times and so she was mentally preparing herself. As the sunlight shined through her curtain her eyes fluttered awake and Sadie picked her head and snuggled with her for a little bit. She started to smell bacon and that is what drew her to get up. She usually sleeps in whatever she can find and so she just had on some pajamas pants and a Pink Floyd t shirt. She woke up and went downstairs to feed Sadie as she glanced at Theo’s door still closed. Her dad was up making bacon and her mom was making Waffles. This is what Saturday mornings usually looked like for them. Auni jumped right in to start helping and setting the table. She wasn’t necessarily a morning person but she didn’t mind it. They weren’t quite sure how long Theo would be sleeping but they understood it was a long trip for him and they wanted him to be comfortable.

...

“Good morning Theo!” Her mom said with a soft smile. “I think breakfast is just about ready, we wanted to give you time to settle but Saturdays we usually all help out to make breakfast and we take requests. If you want to help next week you can either help Auni set the table or help get the sides and drinks ready,” she said as she was bringing a plate over to the table with waffles, bacon, and some bowls of fruit were set up. "We can go over household rules and expectations after breakfast but for the most part we are pretty understanding and the main things are to be responsible and respectful we really value honesty," her mom said and then shot Auni a glare and she knew exactly what it meant. Auni doesn't always mean to come off "bitchy" or rude but she takes awhile to warm up to people. She takes patience.

“So are there any foods you really liked back in France?” She asked trying to make conversation. “We have traveled a little bit but have never been to France,” she stated making some eye contact. She shot him a glance “help yourself,” she shrugged as she got her plate and grabbed one waffle and 2 pieces of bacon along with some pineapple and grapes.

“So Theo what are some of your favorite activities you did back home? Is there anything new you’d like to try while you are here?” Her dad had asked.

...

Auden was a bit surprised to hear his answers.

“Escargot is interesting I can’t say we’ve ever tried it,” her dad said

“Don’t be shy we are all decent cooks id love to try and make a dish you enjoyed or one native to France, I want to make you feel at home!” Her mom assured

Auden pondered on his answers she’s dated a lacrosse player and a football player, and a basketball player but never hockey. Some would argue they are the best but hockey isn’t very common in the south so she wouldn’t know. They both like art so that’s a start, and croissants are pretty delicious. She’s never done fencing that’s not common here at all and she does ride once a week and is trying to convince her parents to let her lease Rosie her favorite lesson horse at the barn.

“You seem to have a lot in common with Auden! She rides once a week and she loves art she paints a lot if she isn’t here she’s probably at the beach painting,” her mom explained.

“What do you want to go to college for?” Auni asked curiously.

“Auden is going to go to law school,” her dad mentioned and Auden looked down at her lap. After his statement a hint of sadness went into her eyes but then quickly disappeared.

...

Auden thought about eating snails and she would probably try it she did have a mature palette but the fact that it is snails might throw her off.

"We would love that!" her mom exclaimed.

"That's very interesting, Coastal Heights has a great art program I am a gym teacher at the middle school," her dad said with a smile.

"Mr. Lidal is amazing I learned a lot of technique from him, you should take some of his electives I am taking pottery this semester. I also have taken Oil Portraits, Acrylic Landscapes, and Realism art," Auni suggested.

"Has your schedule been finalized? Auni can show you around tomorrow, you guys can see if you have any classes together," her mom said.

Auden was finished with her plate and had put it in the dishwasher and then went over to her backpack and got her schedule out.

"You can look over my schedule, its pretty easy getting around,"

"I get up at 6:30am and leave the house by 7:15 some days its a bit later," Auni said.

"Now that everyone is done eating would now be a good time to go over some of our household rules and expectations?" her mom asked hesitantly.