Milkshake Hearts

Chapter 126: Dinner

"What's up, shay-shay?" Courtney asks, gently resting a hand on his shoulder and turning him to face her as he paces nervously between the fridge and dining table.

"Shay-shay?" he asks, screwing up his face, Courtney laughing in response.

"I dunno, trying to come up with more nicknames to call you. But I don't think I will try that one again," she shrugs, before her tone returns to concern, "but seriously, baby, what's up?"

"I dunno," Shayne mumbles, hands moving to wring together in front of himself for a moment as he glances down at the floor.

He falls into silence for ten seconds, but when Courtney's hand drifts down to hold his bicep and her thumb rubs gently across his skin below the end of his shirt sleeve, he kicks himself into gear, eyes shooting back up to meet hers.

"I've never had my parents over for dinner at a place I've lived at. I know it sounds dumb, I'm almost thirty, but it's just- yeah, they've been to my old apartment and our apartment and they've been here but they haven't been over for any kind of like... event, thing, where I cook and whatever. Ever since they moved to LA, when I catch up with them it's at their place or we go out somewhere. So I'm just..." he sighs, shaking his head at himself, "stupidly nervous, I guess."

"Aww, baby," she murmurs sympathetically, arms wrapping around his waist and pulling him into a soft hug. He lets his head fall to rest gently against her shoulder, arms wrapping around her, too, as she rubs gently against his back. "It's okay that you're nervous, but it's going to be fine, okay? Your parents are just coming to hang out with us, they'll be happy no matter what, mmkay?"

"I know, I'm just being dumb," Shayne mumbles against her shoulder, but she gently shakes her head.

"Not dumb. Just being your very caring self, as usual. And it's sweet," Courtney reminds him, shifting back so she can turn her head to press a kiss against his cheek, "but maybe go clean your face, this lipstick is not as transfer-free as it said it would be."

"That's from the set you got earlier in the week, right? The promo one?" Shayne asks, leaning back himself to glance at her lips and wipe at his cheek.

"Indeed," Courtney confirms, reaching up with her own hand to swipe against his cheek, "how the hell does it transfer to your cheek with one tiny kiss but it won't rub off at all? Ugh. Come on, just use one of my makeup remover wipes."

She tugs him upstairs, unsurprised when both Mocha and Nutmeg do their increasingly typical habit of immediately pouncing up the stairs after them.

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"Oh, your place looks so lovely now it's all set up!" Dianne enthuses, when Courtney answers the door and invites them inside. Dianne and Rob both give her a hug.

"It's definitely feeling like it's ours and we actually live here now, we're happy with how it's all going," Courtney nods as the three walk down the short hallway to the main open-plan area of the house. Rob and Dianne had been to their new place a few times around when they moved in, but they hadn't been over since, and it had been much more extensively decorated in that time – and, more recently, had cat things added.

"Hey Mum, Dad," Shayne greets them, both of his parents also pulling him into a hug when they step into the kitchen. He quickly turns after greeting them, eyes scanning the room for their two new fur-additions.

"Where're the cats at, Court?" he asks.

"Well, Nutmeg is being lazy and antisocial and decided to hide in the closet when he went upstairs," Courtney replies, shaking her head, having spied the slightly less energetic of the two feline siblings slipping in behind her shoes before she had come back downstairs from helping Shayne clean her lipstick off his face, "and Mocha is somewhere around-"