The Only Exception

Pierre had never been to the United States. The concept of leaving his home in Saint-Cloud, Centre, France to live with an American family he'd never met for a year intimidated him. But his parents pretty much forced him to go. He was good at English, though he got a few phrases and American concepts mixed up and confused. Pierre was pretty charming, and could win pretty much anyone over.

But he had heard how some Americans stereotyped the French, so Pierre was nervous. He bit his lip as he looked around the airport for the Mizanin's, the family he'd be living with. He'd hope this year would go by smoothly.

Payne say next to Mike in the backseat of the car on the way to the airport. They were picking up some Frenchie that was going to be staying with them for the next year. And Payne hated Frechies. They smelled, they didn't talk to you unless you spoke french, they smoked, they hated Americans. They were just wrong all together.

So, Payne had grown up in a racist household for the first thirteen years of his life. He had been given up at birth and was adopted by the Wolf's. They were a German-American family. They had been in America since after WWII and had roots in Germany in the Nazis.

"I still don't see why I had to come," he mumbled looking out the window. His mother rolled er eyes.

"Payne, cut it out. He needs to meet us all at once. A foreign country can be a scary place," she said in her sweet voice. Now Payne rolled his eyes.

"Whatever," he said and the rest of the car ride was silent.

They arrived at the airport and piled out, walking in and looking for Pierre. When they spotted a young boy from a picture they had been sent, the two adults smiled, Mike looked passive and Payne scowled. He was tempted to stay in his spot when they walked toward him, but knew he would get in trouble, so he went.

"You must be Pierre. I'm Stacy and this is my husband Sam. This is Mike and this is Payne, " his mother said and motioned to them respectfully.

Pierre smiled politely at the family. He almost flinched when he saw the dirty look Payne was giving him. But he kept himself composed and tried to calm his nerves.

"It is a pleasure to meet you. And thank you for letting me stay in your home." He said, his English good though his accent thick in his voice. It was even thicker when he got nervous.

Stacy smiled sweetly at him. "It's our pleasure. We hope you enjoy your stay here," she said and looked at Sam. 'Help the boy with his luggage, Sam, and let's get this show on the road," she said bubbly.

Sam smiled at the young man and took some of his things. "it'll be nice to have some culture in out home," he told him, his voice gruff.

Mike just followed his mother out. Payne was already outside when the others got there. He just wanted to get home and talk to his boyfriend.

They all piled into the car, Sam and Stacy up front, Mike, Pierre and Payne in the back. The ride home was long and the air was partially tense due to Payne's annoyance.

Pierre looked down at his lap, occasionally glancing out the window. He definitely wasn't in France anymore. He sighed. He could already tell Payne didn't like him. A knife couldn't even cut the tension it was so thick. But he was partially glad he was leaving home. He boyfriend broke up with him when he heard Pierre was leaving. It tore him apart but he tried not to think about it. The Mizanin's were nice, so he'd hope the tension between him and Payne would go away eventually.

When they got back to the house, Payne was out of the car as soon as it stopped. He ignored his mother and brother who were calling after him to stop and wait. He slammed open the front door and stormed upstairs, slamming closed his bedroom door and laying on his bed.

The other three Mizanins sighed, knowing Payne usually had a good temper, but was just so stubborn. Stacy looked at Pierre. "I apologize for him. He hasn't always lived with us, so I don't know what's up with him, but he;s very stubborn. Please don't let his ways affect your stay here in America. We're not all rude like that," she said softly.

Pierre winced slightly as Payne stormed away. Yeah, he definitely didn't like Pierre. He looked at Stacy and smiled softly. "It is fine, don't worry. I do not think any of you are rude. Hopefully he'll warm up to me." He said, a nervous edge in his tone as he said the last sentence.

When they helped him with his bags to the guest room, he looked at his new American 'parents'. "Thank you again, for having me here."

Stacy smiled at him. "It's no problem, really. Dinner is in a half an hour, so get cleaned up," she smiled and all but glided away.

Mike chuckled and shook his head. "She's very... bubbly, as you can see. It can get annoying sometimes, but there could be worse. She can be strict, and has quite a temper which comes from her Irish roots. But over all, she's a great mom," he told Pierre with a smile.

Pierre nodded and smiled. "She seems very sweet. Reminds me of my mother in a way, which eases the nerves I suppose." He said softly. "And um... If I may ask, why does Payne seem like he does not like me?" He asked as he started to unpack.

"Payne... Grew up with a racist family. Mom and Dad don't know because they would disapprove and Payne would feel worse about than he does. So only he and I know. And his boyfriend," Mike responded, watching the you an unpack.

Pierre nodded. "Ah, well that is unfortunate. The French aren't what some people stereotype us to be." He sighed. "That was my biggest fear when coming to America. Discrimination." He said. "But it is good to know family has nothing against people being gay."

Mike shook his head. "No. I'm bi and Payne is gay, so they don't really care. A lot of people here don't mind it. Not to say there aren't jerks who think the world needs to be run their way, but still. Payne's actually with my best friend, Alex Riley. They're cute together, but when they fight, it's World War III," Mike chuckled.

Pierre chuckled slightly. "Ah, so Payne is ah... how you say... stubborn, no?" He replied as he put away his cloths. Some English words he had to think of, despite his fluency in the language. He'd hope he wouldn't make a fool of himself and mix up any phrases.

Mike chuckled. "Very much so. He usually has good control of his temper but sometimes he just loses it, so I'd try and be careful around him, at least until he warms up to you if he warms up to you," he told him.

Pierre winced slightly. "Well I hope he does. A year is a long time to be living with someone." He said nervously. He hoped he and Payne could get along for the next year.

Mike smiled. "Don't worry about it. You two will most likely barely see each other," Mike replied as his mother called them for dinner. "Time for dinner. Let's go," he said and walked to the dining room where Payne was already sitting in a wife beater and basketball shorts, his muscles and hairless limbs exposed.

Pierre followed Mike tot he dining room, the only seat available was the one next to Payne. Pierre couldn't help but admire Payne's muscled body. He quickly cleared his mind and sat down in the chair, his back straight. He'd always been taught perfect posture and manners around people he didn't know.

Payne scowled when Pierre sat next to him, but said nothing. Everyone was at the table and the food was all set.

"Dig in," Stacy smiled and Payne took a piece of steak, a large spoonful of potatoes with gravy and a couple tablespoonfuls of corn. He already had a cup of Coke, so he began eating his food.

Pierre resisted the urge to gag at the food. American food. He was definitely not used to it. Plus he was a vegetarian. He was used to the French diet. Which had a LOT more smaller portions than this food. He took a small amount of potatoes with gravy and a bit of any other vegetables that were on the table, not knowing that the serving sizes in States were a lot... larger than in France.

Payne scowled even more when he saw how little Pierre was going to eat. Fucking anorexic, he thought.

Stacy frowned when she saw how little Pierre took and that he didn't take any steak. "Is there something wrong with the food?" she asked.

Pierre frowned. "Of course not. But I am a vegetarian." He said, looking down at the food, trying not to flinch away at the look Payne was giving him. "And this is the correct serving size, no?" He asked, wondering why they all took so much on their plates.

Payne rolled his eyes and continued to eat.

Stacy sighed in relief. "Oh. Well, you should have said something! I would have made you something else! And serving sizes here are quite a bit larger than in France. Just take what you please. These three eat about as much as an army," she laughed while the other three men rolled their eyes.

Pierre nodded. "Ah, I see. I apologize for not saying anything." He said before he began eating again. He was so not used to all this, and was already a little overwhelmed by everything.

Payne eyes Pierre, a scowl on his face, though he was a tad intrigued by the young man. The phone rang and he mentally swore, knowing that it was Alex, seeing as he hadn't called when he got home. "I got it," he said and got up, walking to the living room to answer the phone.

Pierre looked down at his lap as Payne yet again, gave him another dirty look. He seriously didn't know what he had even done wrong, other than be... French. He sighed and resumed eating his small meal.