Ethan stood with his hands shoved deep into the pockets of his worn-out jeans, shifting his weight from one foot to the other. The smell of coffee and fast food hung in the air at the small regional airport, where he and his parents were waiting near the baggage claim. His mom looked excited, chatting away with his dad about how nice it would be to host someone from England. His dad just nodded, arms crossed, but Ethan could tell he wasn’t thrilled either. Hosting a stranger for a whole month? On their farm? It wasn’t exactly something Ethan had signed up for.

“Isn’t this exciting?” his mom said, her voice bright as always. “You might make a friend for life!”

Ethan rolled his eyes and muttered, “Yeah, sure.” He loved his life on the farm—the wide-open fields, the quiet—but the thought of showing some city kid from across the ocean how things worked out here didn’t exactly sound like his idea of fun.

A group of students, all about his age, was gathered near the head of his high school, Mr. Tucker. The man stood in front of them, clipboard in hand, checking his list as he matched each English student with a local family. Some kids looked nervous, others excited, but to Ethan, they all looked like they didn’t belong. He sighed, watching them adjust their backpacks and fumble with their phones.

His mom nudged him. “Come on, Ethan. Try to be a little more enthusiastic. It’ll be a great experience, you’ll see.”

“Right,” Ethan muttered again, casting a glance at the students. One of them, a girl with long brown hair and a quiet, unsure smile, caught his eye. She stood a little apart from the rest, looking around the airport like she wasn’t quite sure what to do. Mr. Tucker called her name, and she stepped forward, glancing over at Ethan’s family.

“That’s her,” his mom whispered, smiling. “I think she’ll be staying with us.”

Ethan’s stomach did a weird flip. He wasn’t sure if it was nerves or annoyance.