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There was an annoying little beeping noise resonating throughout the dark room. (Name) groaned, rolling over in bed as if it would tune out the noise. However, as it didn't, (name) sat upright, sighing in annoyance. "Uhn, alright. Fine. I'm up." She reached for the culprit, unplugging her phone and deactivating the alarm she had set the night before. At the time, she was all for the alarm, but right now, she was silently hating her past self for setting the alarm at such an early hour. She sat, even if it was just for a moment, rubbing at her eyes and trying to get her bearings before sliding out of bed.

Getting up at four in the morning was the last thing she wanted to do, but with a plane to catch and things still needing to be done before she left, it was an obvious choice for the early start. Of course, if worse came to worse, she could always sleep on the plane. Slowly and with lacklustre movements, she made her way to her desk, assessing the outfit she had planned for today. Of course, she would need to shower and whatnot, but she felt the unconscious need to ensure the outfit she had picked wouldn't come across as wrong or uninviting to her hosts when she met them.

If she was honest, she didn't know much about her hosts. The organisation that had set up this student exchange program didn't give her or her parents many details, only letting them know that a student from the town she was headed to would be studying in her place for the semester. She wasn't sure if the family she was staying with were sending their child over or if it was a different family, but either way, it didn't matter to her. She was only going to study in Norrisville for her dad's sake.

(Name)'s dad had grown up in the town, only leaving when he entered his twenties. Soon after arriving here, in (country), he met (name)'s mother, and the rest was history. He had hoped that at least one of his children would study abroad in Norrisville, and as (name) was his favourite, she was clearly designated as the candidate long before she could object to it. At least on the bright side, the stories of the town's saviour, known as 'The Norrisville Ninja', had enthralled her imagination as a child. Now? Now she couldn't see any truth in it, her analytical mind debunking these stories as child's play. Besides, how would the world not have heard about it if there was a ninja?

Case and point, it wasn't real.

Shrugging that aside, (name) crept out of her room and headed for the bathroom. It was early, and she didn't want to wake her parents or siblings. (Name) wasn't the oldest, that's for sure. She had three older brothers, one younger brother, and two younger sisters. Whilst her family was undoubtedly larger, she had been lucky enough to have enough of an age gap between them all that her parents had never really struggled. Her eldest brother, Harris, was now twenty-nine, followed by Elias, twenty-five, and Corey, nineteen. Whilst Harris and Elias had already moved out of home, Corey still lived at home with (name) and their younger siblings.

As she entered the bathroom, she noticed the light in Corey's room. It was a Friday, after all, and he had to do a lot of makeup study for his university classes. Working full-time on top of going to school was a challenge Corey wasn't going to back out of, despite their parent's protests. She ignored the light and closed the bathroom door. (Name) undressed and turned on the shower, using it as an excuse to help wake her up whilst she scrubbed herself clean. It was a short shower, that's for sure. Despite the long flight ahead and knowing she was going somewhat against her will, (name) had to admit that travelling abroad and studying elsewhere was an exciting prospect. Soon, she was done in the shower. Thinking of what may occur whilst she was overseas had unintentionally made the time fly, and soon enough, (name) stood in front of the mirror, wrapped in a towel whilst she dried her hair.

It wasn't long until her (hair colour) locks were dry and tamed. With that out of the way, she made her way back into her bedroom to find her mother standing in the doorway, cooing to her for her to wake up. "Uh, mom, I'm right here." Startled, (name)'s mother jumped slightly, turning and acknowledging her eldest daughter and shaking her head. "Ah, the alarm." She mused before stepping aside to let her daughter through. "I'll be in the kitchen. I'm sure you want to have some coffee and breakfast before you go, hun." She flashed a small, sympathetic smile before turning and walking towards the kitchen, leaving (name) to enter her bedroom.

She shut her door and slung the towel over her desk chair before promptly pulling on her outfit. For someone so intellectual and 'nerdy', one would not assume that her taste was outside the cliché. She pulled on her undergarments, including a pair of fishnet stockings, before slipping into a bodysuit that left the shoulders exposed. Next came the baggy-looking pants she had cut holes into the knees for an 'aesthetic' look. It was apparent that (name) had tastes in grunge and gothic apparel, and with the finishing touches of a spiked choker, and heeled boots, the outfit was completed.

 A rampant knocking, followed by; "The car's all packed, and there's some breakfast on the table for you, hun

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A rampant knocking, followed by; "The car's all packed, and there's some breakfast on the table for you, hun." could be heard through (name)'s bedroom door. "You can open the door, dad." She responded, not looking away from what she was fiddling with on the desk, as her father gently opened the door and peered into his daughter's room. "Are you all ready?"

"Just about. Won't matter if we're a little late, though. My flight's not until five-thirty, and it's only four-forty." She shrugged off his concern, snapping shut a small box and stuffing it into her book bag. "Ah, well, it's still good practice to be early. Now hurry up and come eat with me." She stifled her laughter and turned to follow her father, slinging her bookbag, as mentioned earlier, over her shoulder. When the duo entered the kitchen, (name)'s mother kissed them both on the foreheads. "I'm heading back to bed. I'll send Corey out to say his farewell since he didn't get the chance to last night. Good luck with your flight, and we'll be sure to respond when you call us." And with that, her mother walked out of the kitchen, leaving the father and daughter alone to eat. It wasn't much, just oatmeal, toast, and a mug of coffee each.

By the time they had finished their meal, Corey had entered the kitchen, awkwardly rubbing the back of his neck. "So, uh, you're doing this, huh?" He asked, making eye contact with his little sister. She gave him a small smile and made her way over to him. "I am. But don't worry about me. Dad's 'ninja' will protect me." The two siblings shared a laugh, whilst her father gave a protesting "Hey!" as he put their dirty dishes in the sink. "I'll message you as soon as I get there, I promise." Corey tugged her into a hug, and she could hear the faint zipping of her bookbag. When the pair pulled apart, Corey gave her a slight grin. "I couldn't bear to let my baby sister leave without taking some entertainment." He winked and turned to leave. "Smell 'ya later!"

(Name) chuckled and shook her head. "Of course, our old Gameboys and pokemon games." Her father nudged her shoulder. "Let's head off before you miss this flight."

The car ride wasn't that long. The closest airport was only a twenty-minute drive from their home, and by the time they arrived and made their way into the airport, luggage in hand, the passengers of her flight were beginning to board the plane. She gave her father a quick kiss on the cheek, shouting a "Bye, dad!" as she quickly checked in before putting up the luggage and boarding the plane. The only things she kept were the bookbag and her mobile phone.

Once she was on the plane, she made her way over to her seat and ensured that her phone was in aeroplane mode, so she wouldn't have to worry about it when the plane took off. Out came her earbuds, and into her ears, they went. She was about to doze when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She opened her eyes and looked to her side to see a young gentleman before her. "Hey, sorry to disturb you, but I just wanted to move past you into my seat." She smiled, tucking her legs to allow him to squeeze past her and settle into his seat. "I'm Jordan, by the way."

"(Name), a pleasure to make your acquaintance." He gave an awkward chuckle. "Oh, ah, the pleasure's all mine. So, you're headed to Norrisville too, huh?" (Name) held her tongue, a worm of irritation making its way through her system. "Yes, I am. Now, if you'll excuse me, I'd like to sleep for the majority of these nineteen hours." And with that, (name) put her earbuds back into her ears and began to doze again.

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