“Our flight is on December the 26th!”

My dad must of said that at least one hundred times. But now it was December the 27th, in the early morning, our plane softly on florida grounds.
Right away the exited, but normal, chatter plane in the plane started , kids trying to get up, adults trying to organize their stuff, families waking up their kids, sleepy voices of people who just woke up

I knew there were allot of exited people in that plane, but I was pretty sure no one was more exited then me. It was not my first time in the US, or in Florida, but I missed my house and my lilac room, which I already considered home. But it had been a year since I last saw Bruna and Diego, my parents friends, or their kids Nicole, the oldest was bout to turn six, Benjamin, the middle kid and only boy, was about to turn four, and Natalie, or nana, how we call her, the youngest was about to turn three. I was so exited to see them again!

So as soon as the pilot welcomed us to Tampa I got up to get my green backpack and a place in line for my family.
Diego was coming to pick us up at the airport, I was exited to see him and to go home — to take a shower —i felt gross after twenty six hour in airports and airplanes. But I knew I wasn’t going to take a shower so soon I had people to see and people to meet. So many Brazilians had moved to my neighbourhood since the last time I was there, there were so many people from NYC!

Those were my thoughts as we drove home after we got our luggage and Diego found us. It was my fourth time in Florida, so I already kinda knew the place...so I stared at the window for a long time then I looked around there car there were many kids shoes Nana’s plastic Minnie red shoes, Benji’s boots and Nicole’s baby pink sweatshirt. The car’s smell was a mist of little bites and chips. Oh! How much I missed that smell, and the feeling of wonder it gave me.

As we got home, to my neighbourhood, I saw Christmas lights in the tree in front of mu house and Diego’s. There was also a car I didn’t recognise, Diego parked the car
on his driveway, I noticed the driveway had colourful and messy chalk drawings all over it.
I was looking around the neighbourhood, they had built so many houses in the last four months, I was so surprised! The houses we so many different colours yellow, brown, white, and a log of different combinations.

A girl and her dad were walking our way, my dad was looking at them, so I assumed they knew each other. I tried to recognise them, but I did not know them, at least not in person. I soon figured out who they were. It was Aldo, my dad’s friend and his daughter Emilly she was my age and as tall as me, but when I saw her I doubted that...she looked a lot older then me. Aldo was bald, like my dad, he was also kinda tall. I alway liked him, since the first time we met he was very nice to me.

I was really shy about meeting Emilly. And I didn’t expect to meet her so soon. She lived in coral springs, but was moving to Tampa in January/February. Then I saw something, a blond shiny hair hiding behind the cars. Didn’t even think much. “Cocole!” I hugged her “i missed you so so so much” the poor girl was trying to get out of my hug to hug my sister.

I let her go and went straight to the open door, inside was Bruna, her her was yellow blond...Nana was crying on the sofa, Benji was playing on his tablet, and as soon as I came in he hugged me...he was twice the size that he was last time a saw him, he was so big, and he looked older. Inside there were somo other know faces, Bruna’s parents, Gottardo and Roseli, I also saw someone who I didn’t know but she looked extremely familiar, so I knew she was Denise, Diego’s mom.

But there were also a lot of unknown faces. There was a girl, Bela, I really thought she was a teenager, but then she introduced me to her husband Gui, She also told me she was 22 her hair was blond and she looked pretty tall, Bela wore ripped black jeans, and had boots on. Her voice seemed so calm and sweet, but I later noticed that was just part of who she was
Then there was Nana, who didn’t stop crying in the first ten minutes I was there. Her honey hair was shiny in the hot LED lights in the kitchen.
I had never seen their new house, it looked so good!their diner table was long and brown, the had beautiful black chairs, the sink was white with light brown dots here and there.
My parents came in the house with a loud chatter noise following them, they talked about the trip, and how bad the airplane was, and how hard it was for them to say goodbye to all the people in Brazil, but everyone in that room knew that feeling, all of them had gone trough it.
But all I could hear was Nana, who was now silently crying, with her head in the sofa, and her shiny thin hair in the pillows.
“Nana, are you ok?” I got closer to her as she looked at me, “Do you remember me?” I was very curious to know that...
“I know who you are Ju!” She was mad I asked, like I thought she was a baby who didn’t remember anything.
“Why are you crying,” I sat next to her. “Why don’t we go upstairs to play,”
She got up right away, like she was crying just so that I can ask her that, she grabbed my hand and took me upstairs.

The living room was very simple, it had a big sofa and nothing else, it was pretty empty, but the room was huge and full of toys on the carpet.
“Wait a second Ju, Im going to get something in my room,” she ran with her little chubby legs as fast as she could.

I looked around in the living room, Rafa was there with Benji and Nicole. Emilly was laying down on the black sofa watching YouTube. I acted like I dint notice she was there. I didn’t want to look desperate to talk to her, and I really wanted to give Nana some attention.

Nana came. Back with an Elsa doll in her hand. The little doll had makeup all over her face, she wore a beautiful baby blue dress. Nana made me sit down and get a bunch of other dolls that were in a plastic box next to the wall. We played with the dolls for a while. Then she decided she wanted me to spin her around, So I hugged her and spined her, she yelled really loud, I was surprised how such a tiny human could make such a loud noise, Even though it was a happy yell. Emilly turned around d and got up. I decided to talk to her and I kinda played dumb. I knew a lot about her, my dad told me a lot about her but I decided to ask even though I knew the answers.

“Hi, I’m Julya!” I was nervous but I didn’t let her notice that, “Whats your name?” I was not very goo9d at making friends.
“I’m Emilly!” She got up “Nana let’s do cool hairstyle soon this doll!” She got close to Nana and brought the dolls doll’s hair closer to Nana.

“I like to play with Nana! She’s just so cute!” I didn’t know what else to say.
From that moment we talked for the rest of the day about clothes, phones, and then she asked me if I liked makeup.
“I don’t really, I just use it on special occasions.” When I said that her mom called us downstairs
“give them the Christmas presents bought for them” she was all exited about it
“i know you said you didn’t like it, so you don’t have to use it if you don’t want to “ she gave me a package carefully packed with golden dots all over it
When I opened it, it was makeup I had never wanted to be invisible in my life like I wanted in that moment.
“oh, its ok, i’ll use it in special occasions! That you so much for thinking about me.” I gave her the most awkward hug ever.

We went back upstairs and continued talking, we talked so much and for so long that Nana ended up falling asleep.
And that was the beginning of my life I a new city, in a new state of a new country.