How It Should Be

Violet and Matthew had fallen asleep on the couches with all the food and garbage surrounding them. Matthew woke up first around nine and laughed, Violet opened an eye and found Matthew reaching for a bowl of gold fish smothered in pizza sauce.

"Did we ever make mac and cheese last night?" Violet asked sitting up and eying the mess she would not try to clean today.

"Um...yes! In the purple bowl!" Matt pointed. "But I want to eat that for breakfast."

"Okay, so I'll have the pizza." Violet and Matt sat in silence as they ate their first meal of the new year. "Do you think it's bad luck to be eating old food from last year on the first day of the new year?"

Matt looked up from his congealed macaroni and laughed. "If it is then we're going to have one hella-bad year because there is no way I'm letting these leftovers go to waist."

"Agreed." Midway through their meal there were a series of knocks at the door.

"Birds." Violet guessed. "If I answer the door Geno will make a scene about me being on my feet."

"I don't want to get up." Matthew gestured to the pile of plates and food surrounding him and Violet shrugged. The knocking began again. "He won't get that mad. Just go let them in."

"No. And he won't be mad at me he'll be mad at you and if Gronk and Sid are there they'll beat you up too." Violet said. Matt scoffed and pointed at the door. Instead of arguing, she turned halfway to face the door and shrieked. "COME IN!" The usual Penguins weren't there. In fact, the door opened to reveal Julie. Violet turned around and made a face at Matt who stared wide-eyed back at her briefly before standing up awkwardly.

"Hey..." He trailed off.

"Hey." Julie did a little wave. "Can we uh...go for a walk?" Matt made a strange face at Violet and nodded before following Julie out of the apartment. Violet sighed. Eating leftovers wasn't as much fun by yourself. She put down the last slice of pizza and began to clean up. She wondered what Julie could be saying to Matthew. To her understanding, when Matt told Julie that he didn't want to meet the family this soon she had told him he was stupid and that it wasn't like she was asking him to ask her father to date her and so on.

Matt walked back into the apartment sometime later with an unreadable look on his face, sans Julie.

"What'd you do?" Violet asked as she hobbled over toward him.

"Geno will kill me if he finds out you're walking." Matt evaded the question.

"The aircast is there so I can move around! Shit, it's like I'm a child or something. Tell me what happened!" Matt shook his head and pointed to the couch. Violet shook her head and refused.

"Look, I don't want a 200 pound hockey player to whale on me because his girlfriend refuses to park her ass on the couch! I won't talk until you do." Violet rolled her eyes and folded her arms, Matt copied her. "I'm being serious."

"Fine." But instead of the couch Violet chose to sit on the floor. Matt laughed as she made herself comfortable on the carpet and looked up at him. "Tell,"

"We've resolved our problems."

"Then why isn't she here?"

"Because she had to go food shopping."

"Then why aren't you with her?" Violet crinkled her nose at him and Matthew rolled his eyes.

"The only reason I go food shopping is because 1) if we didn't get the food we would die. And 2) I only go with you because then you buy food I won't eat. I don't need to put myself through it when it's not even food necessary for my survival."

Violet contemplated the logic there for a moment and nodded. She personally found food shopping liberating but whatever. She held her hands out for Matthew to pull her back up and just as he was Geno opened the front door.

"Why were you on the floor? What you doing up?" He walked over and scooped Violet up and threw her on the couch.

"I'm fine! I can walk!" Violet groaned and she struggled to stand back up but Evgeni kept pushing her back down on the couch.

"Stay!" He pointed at her like a dog and then patted her cheek. "Good girl."

"You're not Cesar Milan, I'd appreciate it if you'd stop treating me like a disgruntled puppy." Violet said flatly. Matthew laughed and sauntered into his bedroom. Geno sat down on the couch next to her and wrapped his arm around her.

"I'm not here with good news." Geno said quietly in Russian, turning to look at her. Violet closed her eyes and leaned her head back against the couch.

"Uh...do I even want to know?"

"We're going on that road trip...and then my parents are coming to stay with me from Russia for a month."

"A month?" Violet felt her jaw drop in shock. She turned to look at Geno who had a sheepish look on his face. "Am I ever going to get to see you?"

"Yes, of course, but I don't think we can do many over-nights at my place. And I'm not going to ask you to meet my parents, that's up to you, I know that it's only been three weeks and everything..." Geno trailed off, taking her hand and squeezing it.

"Well, I guess I'll have to meet them, otherwise I won't see you very often, will I?"

"Great! And don't worry, low stakes, I'll explain to them the relationship is still new...no pressure." Geno smiled tentatively at her and Violet felt her heart in her chest racing.

Why, all of a sudden, were parents such a big part in her life? Why were parents causing so many problems?

"Uh, yeah, great." Violet leaned in and kissed his cheek. Calm down, Violet thought to herself, it's not a big deal.

"Good. Now, I have practice." Geno gave her a real kiss and the two parted ways. As soon as Geno left the apartment Violet jumped up and hobbled into Matthew's bedroom.

"Why do parents exist?" Violet cried, letting herself plop onto Matt's bed.

"That has to be the stupidest question you have ever asked." Matt looked up from the work on his desk. "Seriously, Vi? So many ways I can answer that. What...Geno want you to meet his parents?"

"Well, not really, but yes! His parents are staying with him for a month and he knows because of the whole Julie fiasco with you that I think it's WAY too soon to be meeting them but it's like I have to, you know?"

"Well, it's not really a big deal if they're here for a month and they, in reality, live halfway around the world. This month would probably be the only time you see them for this whole year."

Violet and Matt exchange a look before Violet hurled herself on the bed.

"Fuck me!" She shouted exasperated. Matt turned back to the word on his desk.

"No thanks."