"Morning." Jack quietly murmurs as I walk down the stairs and into the kitchen.
He's there eating before me and without me, for once. I say good morning back, in the same tone he did to me. I make myself a bowl of cereal, sitting across from Jack, as usual.
"My parents are coming in from Omaha tonight, they want to have dinner here and they're staying for two days." Jack tells me.
"Okay." I mutter.
Does he want me to meet his parents? Will he tell them I'm his girlfriend? I overthink things too much. I push the though into the back of my mind, finishing my food before washing both of our dishes.
"Can you talk to me and not be monosyllabic? I want to know how you're feeling." Jack says.
Why does he want to know how I'm feeling when I'm anxiety is taking a sky rocket. I chew on my bottom lip as I think of something stupid to answer.
"Well, right now I'm anxious for tonight."
"I mean about us." He clarifies and I shrug.
Jack walks over to where I am, standing right in front of me. I look up at his big brown eyes and he has bags under his eyes. Why would he have them when he gets more rest than the average person? His eyes are a little red too, I notice.
"Why do you have bags under your eyes?" I bring my hand up to caress his face and he pushes it away.
"Why?" His eyebrows furrow.
"You never have them."
"I drank in the middle of the night, okay? I've had a long night."
"Because of me?" I murmur, a little disappointed at myself.
I can't look at him with innocence because I'm anything but innocent! He sighs, running his hand through his thick and overlong dark hair. He looks back down at me, due to our height difference, pursing his lips.
"I'm sorry." I apologize. "I know I'm a handful, but so are you." I inform him.
I wrap my arms around his torso, surprising him. Also, to my surprise, he hugs me around my shoulders, resting his head atop of mine. My cheek in pressed against his chest.
"I don't like fighting with you." He comments.
"I don't like fighting with you either."
"Your hair smells good." He sniffs my hair.
"You're such a dork." I smile.
"Your dork." He kisses the top of my head and at this exact moment, I feel like the weight has been lifted off of my shoulders.
*
Jack's parents are about to arrive at any minute and Jack informed me of their names. David and Katherine, but I'm gonna be sophisticated and call them by Mr. and Mrs. Gilinsky.
We stand outside, waiting for them as the über taxi pulls up, shining the bright headlights. It's dark and I can't really see their faces. They get their luggage from the trunk and it isn't much because they aren't staying for long.
"Jack!" Katherine engulfs him into a hug.
When they pull away, he speaks, "mom, dad, this is my girlfriend, Camila." He smiles down at me, like he's proud to say that.
His mom gives me a plastered fake smile and his dad gives me a genuine one. Jack looks so much like David, it's ridiculous.
"Nice to meet you." I smile at them.
Jack and I lead them both inside and they go upstairs for a moment to get settled in before dinner. I blow out a breath.
"I don't think your mom likes me." I say to Jack.
He looks at me like I've grown a thousand heads, "why would you think that?" He scolds me.
I shrug and we talk while we wait for David and Katherine to return from upstairs. I'm certain she doesn't like me. She hasn't even fully met me. Soon, they're with us and we're at the dining table.
I've already prepared our plates so I just have to bring it to them. Jack sits across from David and next to me and I sit across from Katherine. I shift in my seat as we start eating and the conversations kickoff.
"So, Camila, is it?" David asks me and I nod. "How long have you known Jack?"
"Three months or so." I reply.
Wow, it's already been that long?
"Is he treating you well?" David grins at me.
It seems to be that he's doing most of the talking and I just do the answering. The tension between me and Katherine is unbelievable. You can cut through it with a dull knife.
"I'm gonna go to the restroom." I whisper to Jack and he mouths an okay to me.
I get up from my seat and to the large bathroom. I don't even use the toilet, I just need to get out of that awkward position. I wash my hands under cold water and my skin is still burning with nervousness.
Why didn't Jack invite any of his other friends for dinner? You know, the ones who know his parents! I dry my hands off and fix myself up before exiting the bathroom. I'm still so nervous and I don't know why.
I walk out of the bathroom after washing my hands and return back to the dining area. I immediately stop in my tracks once I hear Katherine's words to Jack, obviously not visible to them. I stop breathing.
"You shouldn't date her, Jack. You could do so much better. I like Auburn so much more."
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