The sound of happy chatter floating up the stairs coaxed a soft groan out of the brunette who half buried her face in her pillows, the duvet pulled up to her ear. She slowly opened her eyes, blinking a few times before she could keep her eyes open for more than a second. She dug around under her pillow, pulling her phone out. Another groan escaped her as she squinted at the light of the screen. It was just after eleven thirty in the morning and it sounded like her parents had the TV on. Weighing up the fact that she had just slept for the better part of twelve hours, she dug herself out of bed, bribing herself with the promise of coffee and food, but only if she got out of bed.

Feet touching the carpet, she sighed, clenching her toes to appreciate the softness of the carpet. She eyed up the bag full of clothes she had brought home from her travels, then the numerous boxes that contained pretty much her life, and her expression changed from droopy eyed and tired, to one of dread.

"Ugh." Was all she could muster to sum up her feelings on having to unpack. Deciding to wallow in ignoring her obligations of moving to a new house, she just stood up and left the room to go downstairs for that promised coffee and food. She descended the stairs, not at her usual pace of practically running down them, but in a more relaxed manner.

As she reached the bottom, she could smell freshly made coffee, and just followed the smell to the kitchen, a tiny smile on her lips as she looked forward to the first cup of the day. But the enjoyment was short lived, as soon as she walked into the kitchen, she clocked on to a rather tall boy sitting in the kitchen, an energetic woman sitting next to him, and her own mother standing by the coffee pot, pulling out another mug from the cupboard.
"Morning sweetie!" Her mother chirped, going about putting sugar in the new cup. "This is Karla and Xav Benedict. Remember, I told you about them?" Her mother seemed completely oblivious to the embarrassment of her daughter, who was currently trying to resist turning bright red in front of their guests.
"H..hi." Was all she could muster, internally crying in embarrassment of being introduced to people in her pyjamas. The boy, who she guessed must have been Xav, smiled at her kindly, but there was the slightest hint of mischief in his smile, showing he appreciated the comical value of the moment. Karla, on the other hand, just seemed so pleased to meet a pyjama clad Danielle.
"You must be Danielle! I'm so glad to finally meet you; your parents have told us so much about you! I hope we didn't wake you?" Karla Benedict had finally realised that Danielle was standing in the doorway of the kitchen, in her pyjamas with hair escaping from the braid she had put it into the night before.
"Hey. Cute jammies" Xav said, still smiling at her with a mischievous glint in his eye. Danielle made a mental note to try and avoid him; there was no way in Hell he would let this introduction slide without bringing it up in future.
"Thanks. Mom told me about your family. Thanks for being there to help settle them in." Danielle said, taking a seat opposite Karla at the kitchen table.

Her parents had moved in a month ago, moving their lives to the other side of the world, and Danielle had decided that it was the perfect time to travel around Europe with her cousin to keep out from under her parents' feet, and get over the fact that she would now see less of her favourite cousin. She had only arrived back from her travels around Europe the day before, and had forced herself to stay up for a few hours until it was a decent time to go to bed, just to try get her body clock right for the new time zone she was to live in.

As if sensing her daughter's need for caffeine, and a mug to hide behind, Mrs Jeffries handed Danielle a cup of coffee, smiling at her lovingly.
"I also stocked up on croissants for you. The pictures you posted suggested you liked them for breakfast." Her mother said, moving over to the counter again, but she waited for her daughter's answer before doing anything. Danielle wanted to hide under the table in embarrassment: her mother had a tendency to fuss over her, but it only seemed to have gotten worse since they had been on different continents for a month.
"Uh, sure?" Danielle said, just hoping that going with the flow would soon let her mother stop fussing her. She took a sip of her coffee, just accepting that her chance of making a good impression with some of the Benedict family had long gone.
"So, Europe huh?" Xav piped up, looking at Danielle with interest. Karla perked up at the mention of Danielle's travels, her eyes sparkling.

"Oh yes, how did you find it?" Karla asked, reminding Danielle of an excited puppy.
"It was good. It would have been cool if I could have stayed longer in each place we went, but we only had a month and limited funds. But it was still amazing." Danielle smiled, remembering parts of the trip.
"I'm just happy that you came back." Her mother piped up, putting the croissant in front of Danielle, then gently tucking a stray piece of hair behind her daughter's ear. "And that you and Kerry had fun." She added quickly. Danielle smiled before taking the first bite of her croissant, stopping herself from making a comment about her mother's priorities.
"Oh yes! I forgot to mention; Xav has been kind enough to offer to help put up your silks in the patio. Would tomorrow work for you?" Mrs Jeffries said, sitting down at the table. Danielle quickly glanced at the boy in question, dreading to think what his impression of her was now. It must have been along the lines of 'can't even get dressed for company, never mind climb a ladder and use a drill'.

"Thanks. I appreciate that. Are my silks in my room, or…" Danielle trailed off, trying to imagine where her mother would have put them.
"They're in one of the boxes, sweetie." That single statement gave Danielle a firm idea of what to do that day: call her cousin to download the cringe fest of this morning, dig up her aerial silks, find the clothes she usually practiced in, and try come up with a plan to make a better impression of herself tomorrow. The to do list was intimidating enough for her to need another sip of coffee before she looked at it again…