Sophia
I’m notsure who is more nervous, Adrian or me. I wasn’t lying when I said my parents hated Dawson. This whole meeting could go one of two ways… they love him and envelop him into our family. Or, they loathe him and want me to dump him as quickly as possible. The both of them are a lot more outspoken after the Dawson bullshit.
“Where do I turn?” Adrian looks in both directions at the stoplight before the street my parents live on. He’s trying to play it cool, but his thumbs haven’t stopped drumming the steering wheel since we left my place. The drive isn’t long, and I want to give him shit about driving less than the speed limit. It’s only fair since him and Jay did it to me earlier this week. I don’t want to add to his nerves so I won’t say anything.
“The next street on the left,” I point toward it. “You’ll go around a corner and the house is on the right.”
He nods, pressing the gas pedal as the light turns green. He’s going to have to speed up a bit because the lights in this area change fast. “Are you ready to head back to school?”
The question comes out of nowhere, and it takes a few moments for Jay to respond. “Yes, and no. I’m happy to be away from my helicopter parents for a while,” he glares at me as if this is my fault. Okay, maybe it is a little. If I would have gone to them when Dawson and I were first having problems, a lot of my problems could have been avoided. “I miss being home sometimes, though. Do you have any idea how much of a pain in the ass it is to lug laundry up and down flights of stairs?”
“Actually, yeah,” Adrian laughs. He pulls behind the long line of cars in front of the house. “The first apartment I had didn’t have a washer or dryer, and I was on the third floor. I’d have to go to the closest laundromat, and carrying my clothes up and down was ridiculous. It would have helped if I didn’t wait so long between trips.”
When Jay doesn't respond, Adrian shifts the car into park. A few moments pass and Jay opens the door. "Well, I'll see y’all in there."
Adrian places his hand on the key, but doesn't turn the car off. "Are you okay?" He’s being weird, and I don’t know what to make of it.
He shrugs, not meeting my face. "Kind of. Meeting parent hasn't exactly gone smoothly for me."
"What do you mean?" Once you get past his broody exterior, Adrian is an amazing guy. He’s kind, funny, and one hell of a kisser. Any parent would be happy to have him dating their daughter. I have no doubt mine will love him.
He removes his hands from the key and takes off his seatbelt. Slowly shifting his body until he's facing me, his gaze meets mine. "My last girlfriend, well fiancée, was mortified about how I chose to dress when I met her parents. It wasn’t anything horrible, but it wasn’t super dressy either." How did I not know he had a fiancée? It seems like that is something he would've told me whenever I told him about Dawson. Or, at least he should have. Now isn't the time to grill him about it though. "She was terrified how I would appear to her parents, and holy shit she was right to be. Her dad took one look at me and wrote me off as not good enough."
"Adrian," I place my hand over his in solidarity, wishing I could take all of his nerves and worry and throw them out the window. "I can guarantee you my parents aren't like that. I mean, look at me. Since I started working at Life in Ink, I've used my body as a canvas. If they were judgmental assholes, they would have disowned me a long time ago." Pulling his hand to my lips, I kiss his inked knuckles. "The only thing they care about is your character, how you treat me, and if you make me happy."
He leans over the center console, leans his forehead against mine, and places his free hand on my cheek. "Are you sure?"
"Absolutely. You have, in my opinion, checked off all three things. Believe me, they are happy you’ve been watching out for me. You have nothing to worry about." I tilt my head until my lips meet his. Parting his lips with my tongue I show him just how happy he makes me.
His fingers entwine in my hair and he grips it, bringing me as close to him as possible in our awkward position. This kiss could be a lasting seconds, minutes, or an eternity. All I know is I can feel him pouring all of himself into me. His fears, anxiety, and a promise to stand by my side. Our feelings are escalating at such a fast pace, but I relax into him knowing it goes both ways. He pulls back slowly, smoothing my hair down and whispers, "Thank you." He undoes my seatbelt and turns off his car. "I think I'm ready now."
Old country music blasts through the Bluetooth speakers Dad has set up around the yard. Adrian scrunches up his nose in disgust at the sound as we pass through the side gate into the backyard. "What's the matter?" I bump into him with my hip. "You don't like this kind of music?" It’s not my cup of tea, either. The difference is I’ve learned to tune it out since I grew up on it.
He lifts the hand not holding mine and rubs the back of his neck. "It's not exactly my first choice. But it looks like Jay doesn't care for it either." He points to my little brother, face stricken in horror. He keeps looking from his friends to our parents in disbelief. He deserves it after being a total buzzkill earlier by not driving my car. I get it, though, he’s going to be gone until Thanksgiving. He’s going to miss me. He better, anyway.
Mom and Dad have shit eating grins on their faces and are giggling like school kids. Leave it to them to mess with my brother on his last weekend home. “They are just screwing with him,” I whisper to Adrian. “They take every advantage possible to embarrass us.”
“Oh yeah,” he lifts an eyebrow. “Now I can’t wait to meet them.”
“Just know that whatever they tell you is an absolute lie.” My hand grips his, and I pull him toward my parents. There’s no better time like the present to get this meeting over with. He may be cussing me in his head right now, and that’s alright. Once we say hello to Mom and Dad, all the awkwardness will be over. He’ll be able to stop sweating it and we can have fun.
“Hi, honey,” Mom pulls me from Adrian and squishes me in a hug. “I’m so glad you made it.”
“Mom,” I pry myself from her death grip. “I was here a few hours ago helping you set up, stop acting like I’ve been tucked away on some deserted island. Adrian doesn’t need to see all the weirdness on the first night.”
“Excuse me for being happy to see you,” she harrumphs. Now that I’m free, she pulls Adrian into one of her tighter than necessary hugs. His arms are squished against his sides, and his shoulders are so tense they almost touch his ears. It’s pretty funny, but I’ll never let him see the smile playing at my lips. “You must be Adrian. It’s so nice to meet you. Sophia hasn’t stopped talking about you.”
“Mom.” My voice is shrill. No longer smiling, I bury my face in my hands. This is mortifying. Peeking between my fingers, I see Jay doing his best to hold in his laughter. Asshole. I guess he’s not worried about the least party-like music playing anymore. “Would you please stop embarrassing me?”
“Oh, sweetie,” she releases Adrian and snickers, “that’s my job as a parent. It’s written in the top spot in every parenting guide.”
“I’m Lisa, by the way.” She pats Adrian on the arm, and from his small step back, I can tell he’s trying to avoid another hug.
“Now that my mom has forced herself on you,” I flash a frown toward Mom. She isn’t phased in the least. Maybe it really is part of her job to embarrass the hell out of me. “This is my dad, Tom.”
“Nice to meet you, son.” Dad holds out his hand, and Adrian quickly offers his own. After two shakes, Adrian’s hand is back in mine. “Feel free to ignore my wife. She has a flare for the dramatic.”
“At least I still know how to have fun,” she mutters under her breath. At least I know where Jay gets his weird attitude from.