The airport was filled with life that morning—announcements sounding overhead, rolling suitcases scratching against the floor, and the steady noise of people talking filling the air all around the airport.
Aurora stood with her family near the departure gates, her heart pounding with a mix of excitement and nerves. This would be her first time ever flying alone.
The Gold family had all come to see her off. Even her uncles—Marco, Luca, Enzo, Paolo, and Arturo—had gathered around. Uncle Luca had practically begged her to take the family’s private jet so he could accompany her, but Aurora had stood her ground.
“If I’m going to do this,” she had told him firmly, “I’ll do it right. A real student, a real exchange program. No bodyguards, no private planes.”
Of course, being a Gold, doing it
