After Fire - Dreamnotfound

.Prologue.

Soft Christian music danced through the sound waves of the car as they drove down the interstate. George knew all the words despite not understanding the meaning behind them. He hummed along, tapping the pads of his fingers against his luggage to the beat. His chestnut eyes glanced to the two adults in the front. The woman drove, singing along to the tunes from the radio. Her long, wavy, light brunette hair blew from the high air coming from the AC. Next to her was a tall man with light dirty blond hair. It appeared that he had driven straight from work to the airport to pick George up as he still wore a black suit with the red tie now undone.

"So, George," His host father said, glancing at him through the rearview mirror with bright green eyes. "Why'd you decide to come to America?"

George shrugged. It wasn't his first choice to be a Foreign Exchange Student. If anything, it was at the bottom of his non-existent list of ambitions. He didn't have to either. He only had one more year of college before he could go to university and live alone in a flat with his best friend as he had originally planned. And it was said friend's idea to apply for the program. Like the way he had phrased it: "Americans would die to have a British lad in their homes. To them, it's like bringing home some pretentious piece of artwork like those abstract squares!"

His host father laughed heartily. "A man of few words, huh?"

"I guess."

"You'll be okay, George," His host mother added. "Your new siblings will love you. They're around your age. fourteen and fifteen. Do you have any siblings at home?"

George shook his head before realizing both his new host parents had their eyes on the road. "No."

"Well, they can be a bit abrasive, but you'll grow to love them."

"I'm sure I will."

The view of the city soon passed like a blur through the window as they entered the residential area. Already, George could point out countless differences between his country and the new one he had landed himself in. The entire atmosphere was different even if he couldn't specifically point out how.

"Welcome to your new home, George," His host mother had said when they arrived to their destination.

Their house was among the many lining the outskirts of the big city. Driving through Orlando, George was relieved, finding that the city life wasn't for him and was far too overwhelming. Despite being a suburban home, it wasn't large. At least it wasn't what George was expecting. When he thought of suburban homes, he thought of huge mansion-like ones and astroturf that he was always told covered the states.

Trees lined the rather uniform street. All the houses appeared to be built with the same blueprint with little to no changes. The only way to tell them apart were by the nuances placed by the owners such as cars in the driveway or a flower pot by the front door. His host house had wind chimes that created melodies as a breeze blew by, emphasizing the whistle of the wind. Their garage, like the rest of the houses on the street, were one of three colors: a faded green, pink, or beige. This one was green; though, George would have preferred it to be pink or beige.

"We're so excited to have you!" His host mother continued as she fished her purse for her keys. "How are you feeling? Are you a little nervous? Excited?"

"A mix of both." The pit of George's stomach sank as he dragged his belongings across the driveway and to the door. When he signed up for the program, he failed to realize that he was to be with a whole family for an entire year. Not just parents, whom he always considered family enough, but siblings. Brothers and sisters. Though he was sure his new siblings would be as kind as his host parents had been so far, it still didn't stop the inevitable pull telling him it was best to fly back home to his insufferable parents and tolerate it for one more year.