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Description
               Annelise was staring at the bottom of the ledge of her headboard. "Annelise? Are you busy?" The orange walls screamed and the bright pink curtains sang as I came in through the doorframe.
               "No, no, come in Renata," she said, quickly sitting up on her bed. "What's up?"
               I shrugged. "Just looking for company, or a suggestion for fun things to do around here in Katy. It's my first day here and your mother suggested that we go out and do something."
               "Well," she said, thinking. "There's Katy Mills, that's the mall a few minutes from here... uh... I have my license, we can always drive into Houston for a change." She checked her leather timepiece. "You wanna go out for dinner?"
               "You don't eat as a family here?"
               "Naw. I mean, we usually try but my folks won't really care if we go out."
               "In my country, we always eat as a family. My mother would be especially angry," I laughed.
               Annelise shrugged. "I think everything's better when we don't eat as a family."
               I shifted in the doorway, because she never asked me to come in. "Well. If you ever come in the exchange to Italy you'd better be afraid of my mother," I said jokingly.
               The other girl let herself fall onto the bulging mattress. "Do you like it here?"
               "Your house is beautiful."
               "I meant America. Texas. Do you like it?"
               "It's a very beautiful and clean country, with a lot of very... proper people." In reality, I thought the country was rather somber and dull and Quixotic, but I'd been warned not to insult the Americans, for then I'd be "sued until the lawyers are finished scraping the flesh off your skeleton, Renata!"
               "You really think it's that great?"
               I sighed. "It's great for a visit. Very different from my country. But frankly, I would not like to live here."
               "You're lucky to be able to go back home."
               "What?"
               "I'm not from here. I used to live in Mexico."
               "Oh. I've never been to Mexico."
               "Well," Annelise said, angrily getting up from the bed, "Don't go. I missed it for a while but America's really a lot better. America's great and I'm glad to be out of that hellhole!" She stalked past me and stomped downstairs.
               I tiptoed into the bright room. The walls were papered with movie posters and Johnny Depp. I walked over to Annelise's bed and peered under the headboard ledge.
               There were two photos – printed on cheap computer paper – taped to the underside of the ledge.
               The first was of a dog. A caramel-furred creature with a delicate snout and huge, lined dark eyes and the floppiest, black-tipped ears. A mutt, no doubt, and a little note in the corner read – "Te la cuido, Anna, no te preocupes. TQM! <3". Spanish is similar to Italian. "I will watch her, Anne, don't worry."
               The second photo was that of a house, seemingly ripped from the Google maps satellite view. It had orange cement walls and blue lining around the two windows and the screened front door. A palm tree lounged in the small front yard abreast a perpetually unused driveway. The whole front of the house was surrounded by a black iron fence, and chicken wire had been installed. Perhaps to keep the dog in the yard.

Description
               Annelise was staring at the bottom of the ledge of her headboard. "Annelise? Are you busy?" The orange walls screamed and the bright pink curtains sang as I came in through the doorframe.
               "No, no, come in Renata," she said, quickly sitting up on her bed. "What's up?"
               I shrugged. "Just looking for company, or a suggestion for fun things to do around here in Katy. It's my first day here and your mother suggested that we go out and do something."
               "Well," she said, thinking. "There's Katy Mills, that's the mall a few minutes from here... uh... I have my license, we can always drive into Houston for a change." She checked her leather timepiece. "You wanna go out for dinner?"
               "You don't eat as a family here?"
               "Naw. I mean, we usually try but my folks won't really care if we go out."
               "In my country, we always eat as a family. My mother would be especially angry," I laughed.
               Annelise shrugged. "I think everything's better when we don't eat as a family."
               I shifted in the doorway, because she never asked me to come in. "Well. If you ever come in the exchange to Italy you'd better be afraid of my mother," I said jokingly.
               The other girl let herself fall onto the bulging mattress. "Do you like it here?"
               "Your house is beautiful."
               "I meant America. Texas. Do you like it?"
               "It's a very beautiful and clean country, with a lot of very... proper people." In reality, I thought the country was rather somber and dull and Quixotic, but I'd been warned not to insult the Americans, for then I'd be "sued until the lawyers are finished scraping the flesh off your skeleton, Renata!"
               "You really think it's that great?"
               I sighed. "It's great for a visit. Very different from my country. But frankly, I would not like to live here."
               "You're lucky to be able to go back home."
               "What?"
               "I'm not from here. I used to live in Mexico."
               "Oh. I've never been to Mexico."
               "Well," Annelise said, angrily getting up from the bed, "Don't go. I missed it for a while but America's really a lot better. America's great and I'm glad to be out of that hellhole!" She stalked past me and stomped downstairs.
               I tiptoed into the bright room. The walls were papered with movie posters and Johnny Depp. I walked over to Annelise's bed and peered under the headboard ledge.
               There were two photos – printed on cheap computer paper – taped to the underside of the ledge.
               The first was of a dog. A caramel-furred creature with a delicate snout and huge, lined dark eyes and the floppiest, black-tipped ears. A mutt, no doubt, and a little note in the corner read – "Te la cuido, Anna, no te preocupes. TQM! <3". Spanish is similar to Italian. "I will watch her, Anne, don't worry."
               The second photo was that of a house, seemingly ripped from the Google maps satellite view. It had orange cement walls and blue lining around the two windows and the screened front door. A palm tree lounged in the small front yard abreast a perpetually unused driveway. The whole front of the house was surrounded by a black iron fence, and chicken wire had been installed. Perhaps to keep the dog in the yard.