Breakdown || Linkin Park

Chapter 11

Mike:

I was a bit nervous to meet Lin's fathers.

Alex and Chester said Matt was nice, but they weren't the type to date their little girl.

"You don't have to be nervous. They will love you." Lin said, squeezing my hand lightly.

"How can you be so sure?" I asked Ich her insecurely.

"Because I told them about you. Okay, I told them how great you were." She replied a bit embarrassed and with red cheeks.

I grinned at her and pressed a kiss on her cheek.

"Well, let's go!"

We got out and Lin grabbed her key from her pocket.

"Dad! Paps! I'm home again!" She shouted as soon as she had opened up. "And I brought someone!"

From somewhere came a man with reddish-brown hair and big green eyes.

"Oh! You must be Mike!" He said.

"Yeah. That's me." I replied nervously.

"I'm Roman Jensen. I'm Lin's second dad."

He held out his hand to me, which I accepted and shook it vigorously for a moment.

"You seem a little nervous, Mike." Roman said with his head tilted.

"So am I, sir." I cleared my throat.

He smiled at me warmly.

"You don't need that. Lin has told us a lot about you and so far we are very happy with you. You sound like a nice boy."

I turned a little red and looked down to Lin, who giggled only behind held out hand.

"Let's go to the kitchen. Matt's probably waiting for us for lunch." Roman chuckled.

"You'll stay for dinner, right?" He asked me.

"I.. uh.. sure?" It came back more like a question in answer.

Again he chuckled. "Alright."

"Matt, sweetheart. We have a guest for lunch." He said when he entered the kitchen first.

"Oh? Whom?" Asked a taller man with dark hair from whom I could only see the back.

"Mike. Lin finally wanted to introduce us personally."

The dark-haired man turned to us and smiled.

He had brown eyes and a full beard.

His arms were full of tattoos.

"So you are the boy who makes my little angel happy!" He said and immediately pulled me into an almost bone-breaking embrace.

"Paps." Lin said, noticing my situation.

"What? I'm just happy you're happy." He replied, but luckily let me go.

***

"I'd like you to meet someone." Lin said, taking me by my hand to her bedroom.

She led me to an illuminated terrarium.

"This is Russell. He's a bearded dragon."

Lin opened the terrarium and took him out.

She put him on my shoulder, smiling.

"He's really harmless."

I carefully stroked Russell over his head which is why he stretched towards my fingers and rubbed himself against them.