A/N:
Hi,
it was meant for Syd's birthday but I had delay, so it is only now. I hope you don't mind.
Love
June
"So this is where it's at." you stated looking around the quiet street of middle-class houses, squeezing your boyfriend's hand gently.
It was very quiet and peaceful now during the holidays, especially in the lecturer's district. The sun shone brightly as the sky was not covered by a single cloud, creating intense blue vaults above you. There was a sense of melancholy throughout the neighbourhood - the only sound was the quiet rustling of leaves on the bushes and trees growing in the backyards of the houses along Hills Road.
"Yes, it's here." admitted your boyfriend, smiling reassuringly. "Don't worry, (Y/N), she's bound to love you, after all, who wouldn't?" he asked rhetorically, but you still couldn't shake the foreboding feeling that plagued you.
It was on this August afternoon that you were finally to meet Syd's mother. Your boyfriend kept repeating that she was a really lovely and overly sweet woman, and of course you believed him, but still the fear that she wouldn't like you or accept your relationship with her son kept popping up in your mind. You really would have preferred this woman to be on your side, because you knew that Syd valued his mother very much and you would be sorry if he spoiled his relationship with her in any way because of you.
You took a deep breath. You were definitely more afraid of the reaction of your parents, who wanted someone more settled with a steady job for you, but it turned out that they both adored Syd. Your mother praised his personal culture and kindness, while your father thought he was a great future son-in-law after their passionate conversation about football and golf, which made you very curious as Syd had never played golf, but you decided not to mention it to him. You knew he made a very good impression and you wanted to make the same impression.
You knew that the key to the hearts of people like your parents or Syd's mother was courtesy, respect and a good first impression. So, despite Syd's momentary protests, you persuaded him to wear a plain white shirt instead of his favourite coloured shirt, and not to wear the pink glasses he hadn't parted with since he won them in a game at the fair you attended recently. You yourself, on the other hand, opted for a cream-coloured dress with delicate flowers in a simple cut so as not to look too extravagant. Your boyfriend told you that it really didn't matter that much, but you remained implacable. You'd already been thinking for days about what to do to look good, so you also baked the cookies you kept in the basket in your other hand.
"Do I look good?" you corrected hair band on your hair every now and then, and Syd sighed quietly.
"Honey, you look great. Don't worry, my mother will love you no matter what, I'm telling you, she'll still invite you over for tea like her own daughter sometimes, believe me." he assured you, and you raised the corners of your mouth still a little shyly.
"Then let's go." You started walking down the path towards the red-brick one-storey house, whose walls were covered in ivy.
Syd rang the bell, and a moment later you heard a woman's footsteps and muffled: "Coming!".
The door opened revealing to your eyes a rather short older woman with greyish, rather short hair, a slim face and eyes with a similar gleam to your boyfriend's, who smiled at the sight of you.
"Roger, how I haven't seen you for a long time." she stated, hugging her son, who had to lean in gently so that the woman could throw her arms around his neck. At first it struck you that she had called him Roger, because none of your friends or he himself had ever said that, but after a while you identified Syd and Roger as one and the same person.
"It's nice to see you too, Mum." he turned to her, disentangling himself from the tight embrace of the woman whose gaze fell on you.
"So you must be (Y/N)." she said measuring you with her eyes.
"Yes, that's me. Nice to meet you, Mrs Barrett." You nodded culturally and she smiled a little wider.
"Call me Winifred, sweetie." she stated, opening the door wider to let you in. "Syd has talked about you a lot. I couldn't wait to meet this gorgeous (Y/N) that my son likes so much." she recounted, and you glanced out of the corner of your eye at your boyfriend, who blushed softly.
"That's good to hear." you admitted as you and your boyfriend sat down on the plaid chairs on the terrace.
"Would you two like a cup of tea?" she asked. "Perhaps you'd like some biscuits?"
Then you remembered your own biscuits, which you had forgotten to give her out of stress.
"Tea would be perfect, wouldn't it love?" you asked Syd, and he agreed "Actually, I brought some biscuits for you." You handed her the basket and she accepted it from you with thanks and went to the kitchen to prepare the brew.
"Your mother is a really lovely woman." you whispered to Syd when she left, and he just giggled.
"I told you she'd love you." he stated with undisguised satisfaction, and you had to admit he was right.
"By the way did you really tell her about me?" you asked curiously, and he nodded with a gentle blush.
"Yes, I thought she'd be curious to know who my beloved girlfriend is." he stated, and this time it was your turn to blush at the thought that he had already taken your relationship so seriously because he had told his mother about you, something he certainly wouldn't have done with a casual fling.
Syd's mother brought you tea and some of yours and her cakes. She sat down in a similar chair to yours and smiled at you in a friendly way.
"So why don't you tell me how you two met?" she began the conversation and you nodded.
"Through a mutual friend." You said generally, knowing that she certainly knew Roger, who was the opposite of a model young boy, so you preferred not to mention him.
"(Y/N) caught my eye right away, so I guess it's no surprise that we started dating soon after." added Syd openly, causing a blush to appear on your face again.
"Syd said you work in a clothing boutique." continued the questioning woman.
"Yes, that's true, but it's only temporary because I'm studying fine arts. I'm very interested in art, I draw a lot, sometimes I paint too, but painting is more Syd's thing." you replied, and your conversation became more and more casual with each question, as you reassured yourself that the older woman obviously liked you a lot.
Among other things, she stated that your cakes were delicious and asked you for the recipe and gave you one herself for a tricolour cupcake.
Then you descended into the subject of your and Syd's childhood and youth, and his mother, to your boyfriend's embarrassment, brought in an album full of photos of him as a child. You looked at the album with laughter, and Syd and his mother told all sorts of funny stories from his childhood, and you shared your anecdotes.
Time was passing in very pleasant atmosphere, but in the evening, you had to go because you arrived by bus and the last bus to London was leaving in just 15 minutes. Syd's mother said you could stay the night, but you refused because you hadn't taken any clothes to change into. So she walked you to the bus stop and waited with you until your bus arrived. You said goodbye and got on the bus.
"How did you like it?" your boyfriend asked, although you knew he already knew the answer.
"It was wonderful, I really had a great time. Although I'm really exhausted." you stated, realising that your chatter had really worn you out.
"Get some sleep then, it's still an hour's drive to London. Have a good night's sleep, darling. I'll wake you up when we get there." He said in a whisper, giving you his arm to rest your head on. You fell fast asleep, letting yourself be lulled to sleep by the quiet, sweet words Syd was still whispering to you. It had been an exhausting day, but you could consider it a really nice one.