Impavid

The Pictures

     "Ready?" Chase grabbed my hand, glancing over at me.

     "Not at all," I admitted. 

     It had been way too long since I had formally met a boyfriend's parents. Even with Luke's mom, we rarely spoke. It was always just a friendly hello from across the street. This was the first time in years that I had experienced this sort of thing. It's rare that a mother instantly likes her son's new girlfriend, which only made me more nervous about this. I was worried she'd be able to tell I was in love with someone else, that I was having doubts about Chase. 

      "You'll be fine," Chase promised. 

       He pushed open the front door, kicking off his shoes. As the door closed, the sound of little feet pattering on the wood flooring surrounded us. I barely had a chance to look for where the sound was coming from when a little girl was flying toward Chase as he stood beside me. She couldn't have younger than 8. Without fail, he caught her as she flung herself against him. 

      "Mags," Chase looked over at me, "this is Carson."

     "Hi." Maggie smiled at me, slipping from his arms to flatten her bare feet on the ground once more.

      "Where's Mom?" 

     "She's at the store."

     "I told her I was coming around now. Are you home alone?" Chase rolled his eyes, a grunt escaping from his lips as Maggie nodded hesitantly. 

      I could tell from his face, though, that Chase was frustrated with his mom. I knew that he was probably worried that I felt like she wasn't treating this as a priority. I, on the other hand, personally felt more comfortable with the fact that I had a few minutes to take in my surroundings before meeting his mom. The way Chase had talked about his mom and little sister in the past had been endearing but also intimidating. It was clear that their relationships were stronger than average, which only put more pressure on me to be perfect for him.       

      I followed behind Chase as he carried our bags up the stairs into his room. As he dropped them near the door, I lingered behind. I rested against the door frame, taking in every detail of his room. The walls were painted a bright red. Like Luke's, Chase had trophies from various sports on a shelf above his desk. I wandered over to the windowsill, crouching down to examine the three picture frames propped up on it. The first was a picture of Chase and his parents a few months prior at his high school graduation. His goofy cap and gown were royal blue, which made his eyes stand out. I often forgot that Chase was a year older than me and would be staying at the university from his undergraduate degree when the summer was over. 

      The next picture was an old one, when his sister was first born. His older sister held her, bundled up in a light pink blanket, in what I assumed to be the hospital. Him and his brother stood behind her, laughing. Their attention, however, wasn't on either the camera or the baby. They were just smiling at each other, as if one had just made a bad joke or they were messing around. I could only imagine the way two pre-teen boys would behave stuck in a hospital room. 

       Chase glanced over at me just as I started to look at the third one, calling my name to steal my attention. It was too late, though. My eyes were focused on the picture, now. After a second, I felt his hand slip around my waist, and I turned slowly to face him.

      "Why didn't you tell me?" 

      "I told you not to fall in love with him." Chase only shrugged. 

      "Chase." I laughed, leaning up to kiss him. "You can tell me anything." 

     "I know." He shrugged. "It's just not something I tell a lot of people."

     "I get it," I bent over to examine the picture again, changing my focus to him, "You look good here." 

    "Yeah?" 

     "Oh yeah."  

     "How good?" Chase smirked. 

     "Really good. That bowtie makes you look..." I trailed off as I heard his sister's little voice calling his name from behind us just when I was leaning in to kiss him.  

     "Mags," Chase turned around quickly, "what's up?" 

     "Mom's home." 

     "Okay. We'll be down in a minute."

     "Okay." Maggie bounced out of the room. 

      Chase's attention turned back to me, a smirk tugging at his lips once more. He didn't wait for me to finish, though. He only leaned forward quickly, pressing his lips roughly against my own. He pulled back slowly, keeping his eyes on mine. I followed behind him back down the stairs, now noticing the family pictures lining the walls that I had somehow missed entirely. We rounded the corner to the kitchen, where I found myself face to face with his mother. I instinctually jumped, gasping.

      "I didn't mean to scare you." She smiled. 

      My heart was pounding, and I wasn't sure if it was the surprise of a face in yours or the fact that I was meeting my boyfriend's mom for the first time. It was honestly probably a combination of both at this point. 

      "Mom, this is Carson."

      "I've heard so much about you!" 

      His mom pulled me into a hug, which clearly made Chase uncomfortable. 

     "Mom," he groaned. 

     "Oh!" She jumped back. "I'm just a hugger, I'm sorry."

     "It's okay," I assured her. "Hugs are great."

      "You'll fit right in around here," she promised, moving to hug her son. 

       "Do you need help getting the bags out of the car?" Chase raised his eyebrows. 

       It was obvious to me that he wanted to talk to her alone, which only made me feel nervous. It didn't seem as though his mom was as good as picking up hints. He headed toward the door, flashing me a quick smile over his shoulder as he headed toward what I assumed to be the garage. 

      "So," Maggie climbed up into a stool beside me. "You like my brother."

     "I do."

     "He's a great guy."

      "I love that you two seem so close. He talks about you all the time," I told her, earning a big smile.

      "I'll have mom pull out the embarrassing pictures for you." 

      "Mags," Chase re-entered the kitchen, dropping a bag on the island in front of her. "I leave you two alone for two seconds and you're already planning on ways to embarrass me." 

      "We're girls. It's what we do," I teased. "Right, Maggie?"

      "Right." 

       She smiled over at me before looking back toward her brother with big eyes. It was so obvious that she looked up to him more than anyone else. That sort of relationship gave Chase major brownie points.