Every Moment ── TOM HOLLAND²

40. "adultish"

The future was a scary thing to think about for a 21 year old. You were expected to have your entire life figured out in just a few years, be in a serious committed relationship, start a family, and any other "adultish" thing you could think of. To 18 year old Luna, the thought of the future seemed terrifying. She was still young minded, unsure of what she wanted with her life, unhappy with the state of her relationship, and not ready to grow up.

18 year old Luna was filling out her college applications with her right hand, and scrolling through the endless list of college majors with her left hand. She had a migraine from listening to her girlfriend whine about the two being far apart, when in reality the farthest they could possibly be is in two different boroughs. That Luna Giraldo was not ready for the future.

21 year old Luna Giraldo was now lying on the carpet in her living room, watching a rerun of her tv show, with her puppy lying on her stomach. This Luna Giraldo was anything but terrified for the future. She was excited. She had a job she loved doing, her puppy was the only family she needed at that age, and she had a boyfriend who loved her more than she could ever love herself.

Her doorbell rang, making Rocket immediately leap off of her and rush towards the door. Lowering the volume of the tv show, she went over to the door, where Rocket was running in circles, his tail wagging wildly. She grinned at the puppy, picking him up before opening the door. Andres Giraldo smiled back at the girl, a bag in his right hand.

"You got a dog?" Was the first question he asked, his eyes immediately focused on the puppy wiggling in her arms, excited to greet a new person.

Luna stepped back, letting her dad into her apartment. "I did," She confirmed, shutting the door before putting Rocket down. Rocket was jumping on Andres as he pulled his daughter into a hug, the two both wearing matching smiles.

Luna was sure to inform Tom of her reconnection with her father while they were in London, earning her a celebratory kiss. Since he was only in New York for such a short time, Luna wasted no time calling her dad and making sure his schedule was clear so the two could meet. Andres was already filled with glee to be back in the girl's life, but meeting her boyfriend, that was a huge step forward. It was one thing to meet up once for dinner, but to introduce him to someone very important in her life, Andres had to stop himself from crying after the phone call.

"His name is Rocket." Rocket looked up when his name was spoken, immediately jumping on Luna's leg, signaling he wanted to be picked up. "I just got him two days ago actually, like five minutes after I got back." She led him to the living room, her eyes widening, forgetting she left the tv on. A very explicit scene was playing on the screen, and she quickly put Rocket down on the couch before rushing to switch the tv off.

She smiled sheepishly at Andres, who shook his head. "I kept up with your show," He mumbled, sitting himself on the couch beside Rocket. "Definitely not my favorite scene."

"Sorry," She blushed, flopping down onto the couch. "So how was your Christmas?" At first, Luna hated the thought of her father having another family besides her own. He left them, and instead of coming back, he stared a new family. But the more she thought about it, the less she hated it. He thought he was unwanted, so he found somebody who did want him. She couldn't blame him for that.

Andres smiled at the question, but before he could answer, the door began opening. Rocket immediately leaped off of the couch, running to the door. Luna bit the inside of her cheek, knowing this was the moment she'd been most afraid of. Introductions were always awkward, and once those were through with, everything would be fine. She heard Tom say, "Hey buddy," to Rocket, the soft tone of his voice making a ghost of a smile appear.

Tom stepped into the living room, immediately straightening up when he saw Andres sitting on the couch. He quickly looked to Luna, who shot up from the couch, shooting him a sheepish smile. "Dad," Andres stood up at this, "this is my boyfriend, Tom. Tom, this is my dad."

Tom stuck out his hand, "Nice to meet you, Mr.Giraldo."

Andres stared at the hand blankly for a second, and Luna could feel her stomach dropped. She thought he was excited to meet Tom. As every terrible outcome made its way into her mind, Andres smiled, opening his arms to Tom. "Please, call me Andres. No need for all the formalities when Luna's already told me plenty about you."

Luna's eyes widened as Andres and Tom hugged, and when Tom matched her wide-eyed expression, she smiled widely. She let out an involuntary squeal, making the two pull away to look at her. She blushed furiously, her finger immediately going to twist around the ring on her middle finger. "Sorry, I got excited," She admitted, and if her dad wasn't in the room, Tom would have made sure to inform her how cute he found her. "Okay, let's just eat. I made some amazing food." Tom cleared his throat. "Okay, we made some amazing food." He coughed. "Okay, Tom made some amazing food."