"Okay, mom, I'll meet you guys at the airport at nine. Yeah, you'll see a sign that says 'Richards'. See you at nine." I hang up the phone, glancing at the clock. It's eight-ten, so I take a fast shower, throw on jeans, a Juilliard sweatshirt, and walk out of my apartment eating a banana. It takes me twenty minutes to get to JFK, leaving me half an hour to grab some coffee for my parents from the nearest Starbucks there. I'm reading a newspaper, when I hear a footsteps. Quite a few, actually, causing me too look up. A plane must have landed. I check my watch. Eight-fifty three, meaning they're a few minutes ahead of time. I carry the coffee over to the luggage area, holding the sign. Within a few moments time, I see them. I set the coffee down and wave a bit. My mom sees me first, and gets really excited, carrying her bag over to where I'm standing. She kisses me on the cheek, saying,"Hey sweetie. Hold on, I'll get your dad." I smile, and watch her walk away. It'd been a while since I saw my parents. Sure, I sometimes Facetime them, but it's not the same. A tall, muscular girl in a Volcolm t-shirt comes over to set her backpack down. My sixteen year old sister, Kaylee, grunts, "Hey," giving me slap on the back. Yep. That's Kaylee. Still a tomboy. Once both of the parents are ready, I hand them their coffee, and we go back to the car. As we drive, I ask them where they'd like to go first. From the back, my sister says, "Statue of Liberty. Definitely." I chuckle at her excitement. "So, Kaylee, got a boyfriend yet?" She grins. "Yeah. It's this guy on the basketball team named Jake." Raising my eyebrows, I compliment her. "What about you?", Kaylee prods. Should I tell them? "Well, yes. Hey, maybe we can have dinner tomorrow night!" The parents, of course, are enthusiastic about meeting my guy, and after a day of sightseeing-we hit Liberty, Empire State, and Central Park-become anxious to meet him. "What's his name?", my mom repeats. "You'll find out soon." That night, as I snuggle into my couch, I think about how Josh'll react to meeting the parents. I'll tell him it's nothing big, I decide, falling into a deep, dreamless sleep.
