Exploiting Realities

CHAPTER TWENTY - UNEXPECTED GUEST

"He's fine," I lied, the truth being that I had been ignoring his text messages since our little encounter on Monday. Well, I hadn't been completely ignoring them. I'd been answering with one-word answers, which, coming from me, was pretty much ignoring them. I never used one-word answers.

We sat down at the dinner table where both of my parents and Justin were already sitting. My father was already burying Justin in questions.

"So where are you from?" he asked him.

"I'm actually from Alaska," Justin answered him. "I grew up in this little town called Skagway. It's super small. The entire town doesn't even have a population of 1,000 and there were only 4 people in my graduating class. I was valedictorian," he finished proudly.

My mom laughed. "Well, that's quite an accomplishment. Our Mia was valedictorian too, except that her graduating class was 250."

"Well that's far more impressive," Justin laughed. "Knocks me right out of the rankings."

"So how about your family?" my dad pestered. "Do you have any brothers? Sisters?"

"No sisters," he answered, "but I do have a little brother named Jordan."

"And how old is he?"

"He's thirteen."

"What does he want to do with his life? Doctor? Dentist?" my dad questioned.

"He has Down's Syndrome," Justin said shamelessly. "He doesn't really have anything set that he wants to be, but he really loves music. He's so bright," he said proudly.

"Oh," my dad said, his voice softer now. "So what are you going to college for?"

"I'm going for both Heath Sciences and Special Education. I want to teach kids like Jordan, since I really think that I understand what they need. I also want to research ways to help them."

My mom smiled compassionately. "Jordan's a lucky boy, to have a brother like you." she said. Justin smiled back.

"So your family's okay with you spending Thanksgiving away from home?" my dad asked, still relentless with his questions.

"Well, I see them all of the time. Skagway isn't too far from Juneau. I'll see them in a few weeks anyway."

My dad nodded. "Okay. And, if you don't mind me asking, what are your intentions with my daughter?"

"DAD!" Mia whisper-yelled at him, giving him a death glare.

"I intend to give her everything that she deserves, sir," Justin replied respectfully. "I intend to treat her like the princess that she is."

My dad smiled slightly. "Good answer," he said approvingly. "Now, if you could just fill out this application, we'll be in good shape." He took a folded up piece of paper out of his pocket and handed it to Justin.

Justin took it and unfolded it. "Application for Permission to Date my Daughter," he read. I couldn't contain my laughter as Mia buried her head in her arms, embarrassed. Justin read through the form. "Sir, I wasn't ever a boy scout," he said, looking up at my father.

Mia looked up and gave my father her what the hell?? face. "What even is that?" she said, grabbing the application from Justin. She began reading it aloud. "Name. Date of Birth. Social Security Number. Driver's License. Dad! What do you want to do? Steal his identity?"

"Keep reading," he instructed her.

"Boy Scout Rank," she continued. "IQ: must be higher than room temperature. GPA. Home Address. Number of years parents married. Do you own a van? Do you own a truck with oversized tires? Do you have an earring, nose ring, or belly button ring? In 50 words or less, what does DON'T TOUCH MY DAUGHTER mean to you? Dad! Come on! In 50 words or less, what does ABSTINENCE mean to you?"

I burst out laughing. "Okay," I said between laughs, "I've heard enough."

"It gets worse," Mia grumbled, still examining the application. "Please tell me this is some kind of joke, Dad."

My dad shrugged. "I'm thinking about giving one to Dillon, too."

"We've been dating for two years," I reminded him. "I think it's a little late for an application asking for permission."

"It's not too late until I say it's too late," he told me. "I want that on my desk tomorrow morning," he told Justin.

"Um, yes sir," Justin said hesitantly.

I guess you could say that my dad was a tad bit crazy. Overprotective might be the better word, actually, especially over Mia. I felt sorry for her, but I felt even worse for Justin.

"I'll clean up here," I told them. "Justin, you might want to get started. Looks like you've got a lot of work to do."

*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*

Okay, I thought that application was pretty funny. 

So what do you guys think of Justin? There's a picture of him to the right -->

Dedication goes to @flossybitch for that awesome cover!

Comment and vote!!

-V.E.