I pulled into the driveway of Harry's parent's house and turned the ignition off.
"Harry... I-I-I'm nervous. What if they don't like me?" he lifted my chin up with his finger and looked into my hazel eyes.
"Brighton Alexandria Hesley, my parents will love you." I unbuckled my seatbelt, opened my door, and steppe out of my car. Harry came around my side and grabbed my hand. We walked to the front door together, I was shaking and I couldn't stop fiddling my fingers. Harry opened the front door and the smell of apples immediately filled the air.
"Mum, we're here," Harry called out to the empty room.
"Oh, Harry! I'm in here," a female voice called from around the corner. I tightened my grip on his hand and bit my lip. Harry looked over at me and gave me a wink. As we rounded the corner I spotted a petite woman with long brown hair standing over the stove.
"Mum, this is Brighton." the woman turned around and came over to us. She had brown eyes, fair skin, and was absolutely gorgeous.
"Brighton, it's so nice to meet you. I sure have heard a lot about you. You can call me Anne." she gave me a warm smile and shook my hand. I looked over at Harry and saw that he was blushing.
"It's wonderful to meet you, too."
"Oh, dear, let me call your sister down here. Your father couldn't make it, he had to take care of some things at the bungalow," she walked over to the stairs and called up to Gemma.
"Coming!"
"See, they love you," Harry whispered in my ear.
"I've only met your mum, so I can't be too sure just yet." I winked at him and kissed his cheek.
"Gemma, this is Brighton. Brighton, this is Gemma," Anne said.
"Hey," I said and smiled.
"Hello. Would you like to sit down on the sofa?" I nodded and she led me over to the sofa. I sat down on it and Harry joined me. "So, Brighton, did you get your name from the city or what?"
"Umm, yeah, actually, my mom was born in America and when my mom was like thirteen she heard of the city and decided she would name her daughter that. She then moved to London when she was twenty, met my dad, got married, got pregnant, moved to Holmes-Chapel and then had me." She nodded her head and picked up the magazine that was beside her. "Sorry, I just gave you my whole life story." I blushed and looked down, Harry squeezed my hand and nudged me. I looked up at him and he nodded towards Gemma.
"It's fine," she said as she got up and left. I gulped and excused myself to the bathroom.
"Of course, she didn't like me. She thinks I'm a freak. Oh God, I suck at this," I thought to myself. I grabbed a tissue and dabbed at the tears forming in my eyes. There was a knock on the door and pulled myself up off the floor.
I cracked open the door, "yeah?"
"May I come in?" Harry asked me. I stepped back and he shut the door behind him. "Look, Brighton, don't let Gemma bother you. She's just shy and she's protective over me." He put his hands on my shoulders to prevent me from slumping down onto the floor. "She'll warm up to you and before you know it you'll be shopping together. Don't let her get you down please, Brighton." he wrapped his arms around me and I nuzzled my face into his neck. He pulled away and placed a kiss on my lips, we kissed for a couple minutes and then I pulled away.
"I guess we should get out there," I muttered. Harry placed another kiss on my lips and opened the door for me.
"Dinner was so good! Thank you so much," I said as I have Anne a hug.
"Oh, you're welcome. Thank you for coming."
"Bye, Gemma. I'll see you later," I said as I walked out the door.
"Goodbye, mum. I'll see you tomorrow. Love you, sister."
I unlocked my car and got inside. I immediately turned on the heater.
"So, I think tonight was a success," Harry said once we were on the road back to my house.
"I agree. Aside from my little emotional breakdown, it was great!"
"Thank you for coming tonight. It really means a lot. And I'm sorry my stepdad wasn't there, you'll be able to meet him next week."
"Aw, Harry, of course! Thank you for inviting me." He grabbed my hand and kissed my long, slender fingers. I stopped at a light, leaned over, and kissed him. He placed his hand on my back and pulled me closer. We sat in the dark for a few minutes before a car honked at us, telling us that we could go. I released the brake and drive home.
