✧ ˡᴼᵛᵉ ᴹᵉ ᵉⱽᵉⁿ ⁱᶠ ⁱᵀ'ˢ ᶠᵃᵏᴱ ✧

✧ take me seriously ✧ pt12

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AUTHOR'S NOTE: no specific or detailed food will be mentioned in this episode. Sorry!

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Elle's mother came to the door in a tight red dress that reached her knees. Her face lit up when she saw them. "Oh my gosh! How beautiful!" she exclaimed, embracing her daughter. She let them in and looked over Caiman. "You look so handsome, Caiman," She smiled, and Caiman smiled back.

"Mom, you know Caiman. He's uh-" Elle exchanged a glance with him. "-my boyfriend."

This got the attention of the next room. Then came a small ruckus, and an older girl in a floral dress, fitting like her mothers rushed over. "Wait, he's real?!" she gasped, taking Caiman by the shoulders. She looked into his eyes, then whispered, "Have you been brainwashed?"

Caiman chuckled, and Elle shoved her sister off of him. "Don't freak him out!"

Elle's mother clapped her hands excitedly, interrupting the two's squabble. "Well, please, come sit! We were just about to start," She led them into the dining room, where Elle's family was gathered. The people around the table included her uncle and her aunt, her brother, father, two cousins, and grandparents. Caiman gulped as he walked into the room.

"It's Caiman," Elle's brother observed. "Liza, you owe me five bucks," he grinned, turning to Elle's sister, who was settling in beside him. She rolled her eyes.

Elle tipped her head towards the two chairs in the middle, and Caiman pulled one out for her. She smiled and sat, and Caiman followed. Elle's mom was looking at them lovingly. "So, Caiman. After all these years, you finally asked Elle out, huh?" she queried. 

He laughed awkwardly. "Yeah,"

"About time," Elle joked. Her family chuckled.

"Isn't he kind of... scrawny?" her aunt mused, not laughing with the rest of them.

Caiman didn't have an answer for that, but Elle tensed, her defense rising. "He's got muscle under his skin, his shirt is just loose around the sleeves." she sneered. Her aunt glared at her, but dropped the subject. Elle turned away, satisfied. "Mom, this food looks delicious!"

Her mom grinned bashfully. "Dig in!"

They began passing around dishes, and her family started the interrogation. "How long have you two been together?" her mother asked.

Elle immediately answered. "About a month," she said casually, glancing to Caiman. He nodded.

"You know, I kind of always guessed you liked her," Elle's dad mentioned, gesturing his fork at Caiman. "I mean, you're over here all the time."

The two looked at each other in surprise, before Caiman cleared his throat. "How could I stay away?" He cringed at his own words. Elle hid a smile, eyes gleaming in amusement. He smiled back, crinkling his eyes just enough that she could tell he was being sarcastic.

"How sweet," Elle's cousin, Kaycey, purred. Caiman was pretty sure that she was the one Elle had said was bi, allegedly the only non-straight person in her family.

Elle's mom nodded. "I'm so excited to have you here, not as a friend, but as Elle's boyfriend,"

The words echoed in Caiman's brain, and his heart sank a bit. He glanced over to Elle, who was smiling, but he saw the distress in her eyes. She looked up at him and bit the inside of her cheek.