Author's Note: Despite this story having been 'completed' for ages, I just realised that I missed a chapter, now called Chapter 4 and a Half. It doesn't affect the story in the long run but it does clarify a few things in relation to the following chapters.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: because I'm too lazy to think of a reason why Jared and Kim are not together I've decided to make it that they never got together in the first place. That is Jared did not imprint on Kim.

I sat down on the crisp, clean blankets of the freshly made bed and looked around the room. It was mostly bare although I'd been informed that I could hang as many photos as I wished, there was a desk opposite my bed and beside the door were built in wardrobes that took up the remaining space on the far wall. There was a single window over the desk that let in what little light was able to penetrate the cloud cover.

It was clear that Mrs Clearwater was a nurse by the way the bed was made. I had never been able to get hospital corners right on my bed, which was why I rarely made my bed properly. I would have to learn so as not to be rude and leave this room a mess.

There was a stack of papers and another of books on the desk, I guessed the papers were the assignments and homework that I had missed because school had already started and I had only just crossed the US border. I hopped up to check them out, figuring that if they were start of year stuff they should be fairly easy.

I was on exchange from Australia and I was late getting here because of my classes. It was early November so I hadn't missed too much, I hoped. Seeing as I'd finished high school I wasn't too concerned with my grades but I still wanted to keep them up, for prides sake if nothing else. Flicking through the Biology homework I found that it was all stuff that I had done in Australia and I smiled to myself with the hope that this year wouldn't be so bad. At least from an Academic stand point.

There was a knock at my door and I rushed to answer it, I had been brought up to be polite and I didn't want them thinking otherwise on my first night here. I pulled open the door to see Seth standing there.

"Mom wanted me to tell you that dinner was about to be served. She's made spaghetti." he smiled and it was infectious. I stepped out of the room and followed him down the short hall to the formal dining room.

Mr Clearwater was setting the table while the smell of pasta and spiced tomato wafted in from the kitchen. It smelt good; the scent was rich and piquant and made my mouth water. I smiled at Mr Clearwater as I stood awkwardly in the corner, unsure of how I could help.

"Take a seat, Sofia." he smiled as he set down the last of the cutlery, "Any seat."

"Are you sure? Can I help with something?" I asked. I didn't want to be rude but to be honest I just wanted to run away and hide in my room.

Did I mention that I have issues with 'self-esteem'? Actually, it's not an issue with self-esteem so much as a mental disorder. It's called Avoidant Personality Disorder and was pretty efficiently making my life hell. Avoidant Personality Disorder, or APD, is basically a technical way of saying that I am sickeningly shy and yet crave social interaction. Even standing in the Clearwater's dining room had me feeling like I was way in over my head. I was so afraid that I would say the wrong thing and they would think I was stupid.

"We have everything under control. Please, take a seat." Mr Clearwater smiled at me and gestured to the chair closest to me. I sat down with careful consideration, as if it was the trickiest thing I'd ever done.

Once I was seated I felt like I should be standing again, my stomach was churning uncomfortably as I considered getting back to my feet and being some form of help. Before I could actually decide on anything a plate was placed in front of me, piled with a serving of spaghetti and sauce. Leah dropped a plate of garlic bread in the middle of the table and from that action alone I got the feeling that she wasn't happy about something.

"Leah." Mr Clearwater growled under his breath while Mrs Clearwater turned to me.

"So, Sofia. Do you think you'll be up to starting school tomorrow? If you feel jet lagged then you can take a day to get your bearings straight." she smiled at me and I smiled meekly back.

"I should be fine. It'll probably help me get my bearings if I go, anyway."

"That's what I like to hear, someone getting on with things." Mrs Clearwater said with a sideway glance at her son, who was stuffing his face, rather comically, with spaghetti.

"Now, what's the go with your study? Your profile said that you've finished..." Mr Clearwater queried from the head of the table.

"Umm... I have finished my classes in Australia but I haven't done the exams yet. I had to do an exchange now or I wouldn't get another chance." I smiled at Mr Clearwater.

"So you're essentially getting a year of revision?" Seth mused, "I'm going to need that. Hey, mom, can I go on exchange to Australia?"

I smiled to myself as I twirled a mouthful of spaghetti onto my fork.

"Not unless you get your grades up, Mister." Mrs Clearwater said with a cheerful maternal voice.

"Oh, mom..! If you promise that I can go then I'll get the best grades I can." Seth pleaded.

"No. Grades first, then the promise." Mr Clearwater said with a stern tone. Seth grumbled something and dug into his spaghetti again.

"Do you have a boyfriend in Australia?" Leah asked and the knot in my stomach tightened.

I didn't like this question because, no matter how nice the person who asked was, I always felt like they wouldn't believe me if I said yes. See, not only was I mentally fucked up but I was overweight, severely so.

"No." I said simply.

"Good for you." Leah sighed as she stabbed at her plate, "Boyfriends only make things complicated anyway."

It was clear that she was or had gone through a messy breakup. A pretty teenage girl like Leah didn't hate dating unless there was a good reason. Mind you, I did think that the anger she displayed showed how little she knew of real world pains.

"Geez, Lee. Talk about keeping the mood light." Seth's voice dripped with sarcasm and although I kind of agreed with him I did think it was a little harsh.

"Seth..." Mrs Clearwater warned.

The conversation ground to a halt at this point and I racked my brain for something to say, "What do you do for work, Mr Clearwater?"

"Please, call me Harry. I'm a retired fisherman." Harry smiled at me.

"Yeah, he used to get paid to fish. Now he fishes for the sheer enjoyment of it." I could tell by his tone that Seth didn't find any enjoyment in fishing.

Harry ignored him, "Have you ever been fishing, Sofia?"

"Ah, once. I had a fish tank as I child and when my dad took me fishing the first time I freaked because all I could think about were my goldfish."

"Do you play any sports?" Mrs Clearwater asked.

This was another question that, despite Mrs Clearwater's friendly tone, made me think I was being subtly teased. Someone my size does not play sport; well, I'm sure there are some that do but I definitely don't. I always tell my friends 'I don't run for public transport' and if I won't run for public transport than why would I go running after a ball?

"No. I do like hiking though."

"Are you good with dogs?" Seth asked with a mouth full of pasta.

"No." Mrs Clearwater growled, "You will not pawn your dog walking duties off on Sofia."

"It's okay, Mrs Clearwater, I like dogs. I'd be happy to walk yours. What breed is it?" I smiled at Seth and he nodded his head.

"It's Sue, not Mrs Clearwater. And I don't know if that's the best idea. He's a big dog and he's not well trained." Mrs Clearwater threw an annoyed look at Seth.

"What? I tried. But he's as stubborn as a mule." Seth groaned as he used a piece of garlic bread to mop up the sauce left on his plate, "He's a German Shepherd."

"I'm stronger than I look and I'm used to big dogs." I smiled, "My dad used to breed English Mastiffs."

"See, she'll be fine. I'll introduce you to him once you've finished eating." Seth bubbled as he cleaned up the last of his sauce with yet another piece of garlic bread.

"He's generally an outside dog but," Seth checked over his shoulder to make sure no one could hear him, "when mom's out I usually let him inside. I may not have trained him but he's a good dog."

Seth flicked a light switch and I could see through the thin windows on the door that a light turned on outside. Almost instantaneously there was a loud bark and the sound of scurrying feet. As Seth opened the door a large head thrust inside as the excited Shepherd tried to push his way in.

"Not now, you stupid dog. Back up, back up." Seth heaved the dog back outside by the collar and I slipped outside after them, closing the door as I went so the dog couldn't get back in.

With the door closed the dog took a moment to assess the situation before jumping at me. Well, at me probably wasn't really the right grammar, he jumped on me. His decent sized paws – I couldn't call them big because I had been jumped on by Mastiffs – pressed against my chest as he tried to sniff my face. He barked at me as if saying hello before Seth pulled him back.

"King, no! Sorry about that." Seth puffed as he tried to hold the dog back.

"That's alright." I laughed as I sat down on the little porch and gestured for King to come to me.

He leapt towards me, sniffing and rubbing against me. I buried my hands in his short but thick coat, gripping the excess skin of his neck and 'roughing' him up a bit. He grumbled at me but when I stopped he licked at my arms. I liked big dogs because you could handle them with force, not in a mean way.

Seth sat down beside King and we talked about the friendly German Shepherd for a while, before moving onto other things. Like the dogs that I've had.

"It really annoys my dad because he is so used to giant breeds but his mother bought a Papillon. They're these little toy dogs with big ears and long fur. Really airy fairy sort of dog. Then my Nan found that she couldn't take care of the dog so it came to us. Well, to me. She weighs like three kilos, that'd be about six and a half pounds. But kudos to her because she has Duke, my dad's last Mastiff, wrapped around her little finger." I smiled at the thought of Gizmo the little Papillon controlling the massive Duke.

"How big is Duke?"

"Huge! He's about 80 kilograms. Some..." I quickly calculated it into pounds, "175 pounds."

"Shit, he weighs more than me." Seth gasped, "And I thought King was a big dog."