By Chance

18 - Harry

You know how they say people in tense situations run around like chickens with their heads cut off? Yeah, well, that was me times 100. I constantly bustled from one end of the house to the other, straightening up every messy corner I could find, even ones that didn't need to be cleaned. 

I had it stuck in my mind that everything had to be perfect for when Genevieve came, even though I knew deep inside that she didn't care at all if the cobwebs on the highest corner of the vaulted ceiling were gone or if every single section of the house was lint-rolled to eliminate any signs of dog hair even though Tessa rarely shed. I knew that all she cared about was me and meeting my family, and just letting that thought cross my mind the one time caused me to drop the broom and vacuum that I was holding and go into my room, focusing on cleaning that up and not the rest of the house. Not that I thought she'd be coming in there often, she didn't strike me as that type of girl.

My mother had already offered to help me clean like five times when I had been running around the house with a crazed look in my eye, hands glued to my trusty Swiffer, so I decided to take her up on her proposal.

Torture. As the afternoon bled into night, my patience grew shorter and shorter due to the anxious arrival of my girlfriend. I was now three hours closer than I was before, but still, the level of my tolerance for my family members was getting low, and it was depleting significantly whenever Paddy entered the room.

Apparently, he thought telling jokes was an excellent way to cheer me up and fill the tension-induced silence, but he assumed wrong. With every joke he uttered, it took everything in me not to break him in two like a pencil. Despite my anxiousness, my family did their best to keep me tame, even though the only thing I wanted was peace and to be left alone. It was a sweet gesture nonetheless.

I decided to do the wise and mature thing and isolate myself from my family in my room not to create more strife than there already was. I calmed my shaking nerves by editing some pictures on my computer and listening to some soothing music, which always puts me in a serene mood.

I heard a knock on my door around 20 minutes later, and I had settled down enough to tell them to come in without sounding like a demon.

"Hey, I thought you might need this," Tom said thoughtfully, handing me a cup of decaffeinated, freshly brewed herbal tea. I didn't need more energy.

"Thanks, and it's more like I definitely needed it," I laughed, taking a sip and letting the soothing hot herbs do their work. He invited himself in, and after closing the door behind him, he sat on the edge of my bed. He patted my knee comfortingly, completing its desired effect.

"I'm barmy, mate," I told him honestly, setting aside my computer on the spot next to me.

"I know, and the family knows, don't worry," he said with a laugh. Somehow it didn't make me feel as better as he had hoped. "It's going to be fine. You know Genevieve doesn't care about that stuff. She just cares about you."

"I know, it's just hard getting myself to believe it. She's my first, Tom. I'm not like you and Sam, who have brought multiple girls home and came out winning with each one, only to end the relationship a few months later, no offense or anything. But this is the first girl I've ever brought home to meet my family or date! I wouldn't have asked her to come here so soon if I didn't think she may be the only one I ever bring home." I smiled to myself as I said this, pondering that she may be the one.

"No, no, I get it. Don't worry, and for your sake, I hope she is too mate," he told me sincerely, giving me one last pat on the knee before standing up. "Everything's going to be great."

He opened the door and stepped out, closing it behind him. I was alone with my thoughts again, but this time I didn't try to distract myself as I did before with the computer. I thought about all the possible outcomes, and even though many questionably bad ones crossed my mind, the majority ended up being good.

Even if the night didn't go as planned, I knew well that she cared about me as much as I cared about her, which told me that if anything went wrong tonight, she would still love me because I'd always love her right back.

No matter what.