A Change Of Scenery

The Dinner

As Landon and I made our way to my house, I couldn't help but get butterflies.

We walked in together, and I made my way to the kitchen with him roaming behind.

I cleared my throat.

"So mom, this is Landon.
I went ahead and invited him over for dinner, so you could meet!"

He came right up to her, to shake her hand.
"Nice to meet you, ma'am." He smiled "is there anything I can help with?"

"Oh no thank you, Landon but thank you for the offer!"
"I like this one"
she whispers to me although I'm sure Landon could hear.

"You two can hang out until your father is home, and dinner is prepared!
I'll let you know when everything is done."

We began to walk toward the
stairs.

"Door remains open"
my mom said seriously.

"Of course"
I rolled my eyes and drug him upstairs before anything else could be said.

"Your mom is very kind," Landon noticed.

"She is, and I think she likes you. She's probably relieved."
I laughed.

"What do you mean?"
"Well let's just say when I was dating Chris, if you can even call it that, I was a totally different person.
Doing drugs, drinking often, and making the worst decisions.
She calls that the "Chris era" and she hated it."
I thought back to those days.

"It was bad, I didn't even want to be around myself.
So meeting you, probably makes her feel better."

"He sounds like a great guy" Landon said laughing but with a tint of envy in his eyes.

"Yeah, bad times. But oh well, do you want to play Rocket League or something?"

"You play games?" He asked with a grin.

The whole time we played I sat in his lap with his arms around me holding a controller.

I felt comfortable and safe.
Finally it was time for dinner. I was a bit nervous, but Landon seemed to have a way with people. He was always liked, and usually respectful.

We all talked and laughed. I did notice the falter in him when his family was asked about. It seemed he didn't know how to respond besides "oh I live with my Uncle, moved here not too long ago."

It seemed so rehearsed, and I wondered how many times he had said those same words.

As I walked him out I nudged him "Well, you were a big hit!
Even my dad seems to like you."

He smiled genuinely.
"I'm glad.
I like being here, around a real family.
Around you."

I flushed.
"Lan, you're really something"

Landon looked up wide-eyed "Hey!
I just discovered something.
Lin and Lan."

He lit up as he laughed about his epiphany.