white boys (river phoenix)

43

Chapter Forty Three

    Just as in Romeo and Juliet, the lovey dovey part only lasted a while. Then came the homicides and the late messengers and the suicides and the shock and the despair. While this wasn't exactly what was happening in River and Robin, it was close enough. The 80s and the 1300s could only be so similar. Soon after their anniversary, River kept pecking Robin with those questions about meeting her family, although she'd disregarded his suggestions multiple times.

Put it this way- she couldn't understand why this was so important to him, and he couldn't understand why she didn't want him meeting her parents formally at all. River was an honest man, and, like Robin, not used to lying to his family. It was understood that River's family was open about most things, and of course River's family knew that Robin was his girlfriend, but River wasn't even sure if Robin's family even knew she had a boyfriend. It was eating at him, the idea that she was keeping some secret from him, that there was something more serious underlying the reason why she didn't want him meeting her family.

Robin had clarified, or tried to clarify, many times that she just wanted to wait a little while longer before diving into having River over for dinner with her parents. But as far as River was concerned, Robin didn't even want her parents knowing he existed. She never wanted him over when her parents were over, and was always being cautious about hanging out with him if she thought her parents were around. And although she always dodged answering whenever he asked if her parents knew they were dating, he figured they didn't know. All River wanted to understand was why Robin was so cautious about letting her parents know that they were together, but she wouldn't even answer that question.

River thought that the unwritten rules of their relationship were established by now: honesty being the best policy. But right now, it seemed like Robin was hiding something from him- being secretive. And it seemed that he was the only reason why she was being this way. First off, River didn't want to think that Robin was lying to her family just for the sake of staying together, because if they weren't free to be together, then the relationship wasn't as enjoyable as if they were. Second off, River didn't want to feel like he was being lied to, as he was always honest with Robin.

Even when he seemed to have coaxed it out of her, the most he would get from her was "my parents are strict about boys." Still, that didn't quite strike River as good enough- Robin found it unfair and controlling, and River found it dishonest. He knew there was something lying beneath the surface, something he was afraid of suspecting that Robin was hiding from him. He just wasn't sure what.

However, there was one good thing coming out of all the mess. Robin was sure to be seeing Ariella over Winter Break. Many phone calls had been exchanged between the two households and their tradition of spending Christmas time together would be continued. That was something Robin was glad for- something she didn't have to lie about for once. Despite the fact that River was upset at her, at least she had this one thing. School was going to be out this week and Robin needed the break.

"Hey," River greeted her that day at lunch, squeezing in next to her. She gave him a kiss on the cheek and he settled down. "So, what are your plans for Christmas break?"

"Well, Ariella and her family are coming, so that's going to be nice. And, I don't really have any other plans. But I don't suspect we'll be seeing a lot of each other, since, you know, I'll be with Ari and my family and all, like you will."

River nodded curtly. Really, it was taking everything in him not to be petty and bring up the fact that they could be spending time together if Robin weren't being so unnecessarily difficult and excluding. He was smart enough to know that that would cause unnecessary riff raff, so he decided not to.