Darling, Be Human

I finished zipping up the back of my dress and then smoothed it out before I took a step back, examining my reflection. I frowned softly, not exactly liking the hem, and then turned around, examining how the dress looked from behind.

“Addy baby,” Alex muttered softly from the other side of the dressing room curtain. “We have to get going in like, two minutes.”

“But, Alex,” I whined, “I can’t find anything that I like.”

Alex sighed quietly and then exchanged a few inaudible words with the young lady who had been helping me with the numerous dresses I had tried on. A few seconds later, the curtains ruffled slightly as Alex parted them just enough to allow himself passage into the small enclosure. Securing the curtains behind him, he turned around and examined me with his brown stare.

A smile pulled across his lips and then he reached over, taking my hands in his. “What’s wrong with this one?” He questioned. “You look hot, yet appropriate enough for a dinner date with the rents.”

“I don’t like the hem,” I mumbled.

My boyfriend’s eyes fell down to the section of the dress in question and then sighed quietly. “You look good,” he insisted. “Now give me the tag so they can ring it up.”

I frowned as I turned around, letting Alex remove the tag from the back of the dress. “My credit card is in my purse,” I told him.

He muttered a faint ‘okay’ as he exited the dressing room, and left me to readjust the dress once again. I fixed my boobs and then tilted my head to the side as I stared at myself in the mirror.

Alex and I have barely been town forty-five minutes and already we were rushing around, hurrying to get ready for the dinner his parents. When Alex informed me that dinner would be at a restaurant that actually had a dress code, I panicked. All my clothes were dirty, and even if they weren’t, I didn’t have anything in my suitcase that would qualify for the ‘dress code’.

Alex was quick to point out the fact that a small boutique was situated merely two blocks from the restaurant we would be attending. So here we were, cutting it rather close with t-minus two minutes before our dinner reservations.

I ran a hand through my hair, and then tousled it a bit, adding more volume to the slight curls I had put in it this morning. I felt my nerves slowly start to knit themselves into a tight ball as I looked at the girl in the reflection. I wasn’t sure what to expect of the dinner tonight. I wasn’t sure if Alex’s parents would accept a girl like me.

I slipped my feet into a pair of heels I had grabbed when I first entered the store and then quickly gathered my things before I hurried to the front. I reached Alex just as he finished signing a little slip of paper. The cashier handed him the receipt, as well as his credit card and a paper bag.

“Babe,” I frowned, “I told you my credit card was in my purse. You didn’t have to spend your money on me.”

Alex rolled his eyes again, much like he had in the dressing room, and then held the bag open for me. I looked inside and saw the empty shoe box already inside, and then sighed heavily before I shoved my belongings into the bag.

“We have about thirty seconds to get there.” He said, taking me by the hand, “let’s get going.”

The short drive to the restaurant was rather hectic, and as soon as Alex pulled into an available parking spot and killed the engine, he was tugging me out of the car.

“Are we really late?” I wondered aloud.

“Eh, I don’t know.” He muttered.

“I’m kinda having some trouble in these heels,” I admitted as we continued our way, “They’re a lot higher than I’m used to.”

“Oh, there they are,” Alex said, more to himself than me.

I looked up and spotted a friendly looking couple ahead of us. Either of them smiled as they caught sight of Alex, and his mom hurried forward to hug him. Alex released me as he hugged his mom back, and then moved on to hug his dad as well. After they finished saying their hello’s, Alex returned to my side. Placing a hand on the small of my back, he nudged me forward ever so slightly.

“Mom, dad, I’d like you to meet Adelyn.” He said.

Alex’s parents smiled warmly at me, and I reached over to shake their hands. “Alex has told me so much -”

My sentence ended in a small scream when I tried to take a step toward them, only to trip over my own feet. My arms flailed about and my elbow caught his mom in the ribs, earning a sharp gasp from her. Alex was quick to act, and he caught me around the waist before I ended up on the ground.

“Oh, I’m so sorry,” I gasped as Alex straightened me out. “I-I, it’s these heals, I’m not used to them, I …” I trailed off, not knowing what else to say.

I clung tightly to Alex’s hand, sheepish in the presence of his parents. His parents stared back at me, an unreadable look on either of their faces. His mom rubbed her ribs slightly, making me want to die right there on the spot, while his dad had a protective arm draped across her shoulders. We stood in silence for what seemed like an eternity before his dad finally let out an amused laugh.

“I’m sorry, sweetheart,” he laughed, his eyes on me, “but that was pretty funny.”

“I’m usually not that clumsy,” I blushed, “I’m so sorry.”

Slowly, a smile pulled across Alex’s mom’s lips. “It’s okay, Adelyn.” She said, holding her hand out to shake mine, “every girl falls in at least one pair of heals,” she grinned.

I could tell that I was still blushing as I shook her hand, and then her husband’s.

“Alex has told me so much about you two,” I said shyly as we made our way inside.

“He’s told us a lot about you as well,” his mom replied with a small wink. “To tell you the truth, we thought he’d have brought you home to meet us sooner.”

“Mom,” Alex sighed.

“What? You’ve talked about her nonstop for the past two years, Alex,” she pointed out, “you’ve been simply smitten by her ever since the two of you met.”

I glanced over at Alex as his dad exchanged a few words with the hostess and saw him blushing slightly. I reached over, nudging his side lightly with my elbow, catching his attention. His brown eyes regarded me in silence, though a shy smile tugged at the corners of his lips.

We were soon seated and Alex’s dad struck up a conversation as we examined the menus set before us. I felt myself starting to relax as the time progressed and within a few minutes it seemed as if I had known Alex’s parents for almost as long as I had known Alex.

Then, a familiar voice called our names and attention. Alex’s eyes widened as he watched our good friend make his way around the tables.

“Jack?” He asked slowly, “what are you doing here?”

Jack smirked softly as he reached the table. “I heard that you two were having dinner with the rents. I decided to tag along in case there was any damage control that needed to be done.”

“Jack, sweetheart,” Alex’s mom smiled.

“Hey Mrs. G.” Jack smiled back as he gave her a hug. “How’s it going, sir,” he added as he reached over and shook Mr. Gaskarth’s hand.

“It’s good to see you, Jack,” he replied, “have a seat.”

Luckily we were seated at a round table, so we were easily able to accommodate Jack as he took a seat between Alex’s mom and I. Jack gave Alex a little wink as the waiter brought him a menu, and then he turned his eyes to me.

“Addy, babe, you look stunning tonight,” he smiled.

“Thank you, Jack,” I replied, “you look pretty good too.” I added, complimenting his spiffy outfit.

Alex watched our friend with a raised eyebrow, unsure of what to make of his sudden appearance. He eventually decided that it was okay for Jack to join us and turned his attention to me instead. Underneath the table, he reached over and placed a hand on my knee, squeezing it tightly before sliding his hand up a little bit further.

“Hands where we can see them, Alex,” his mom commanded.

Alex blushed once more and then removed his hand from my thigh, placing it atop the table.

“Goodness.” His mom sighed, “Jack, is he always getting fresh with Addy on tour, too?”

“Well,” Jack said, “to be honest, before Alex grew a pair and asked Addy out, I was the one always trying to cop a feel on her. She always shot me down though, usually with either a slap across the face or a punch to the stomach.”

“Jack?!” I gasped, “you’re such a liar.”

He laughed quietly and then reached over, squeezing my hand quickly before he released it. “I’m just joking,” he admitted, “but, come on Mrs. G, you know how I am and you see how pretty Adelyn is. Of course I was attracted to her. Alex was always the one for her, though. And, even though it took him forever to admit it, she was always the one for him.”

I smiled softly at Jack’s words and couldn’t help but look over to Alex. As his eyes locked with mine, I was surprised by the intense passion burning within his stare. I’ve received this look from him many times before, but it’s usually when we’re lying together just after we’ve had a round of mind blowing sex, or when he stares at me in the morning, waiting anxiously for me to wake up. He’s never looked at me like this in public before. To be honest, I think he’s always been too scared to look at me like this in public.

Not knowing what else to do, I simply watched him with loving eyes. Alex smiled his cute, crooked smile before turning his attention to his dad, whom had asked him a question that I hadn’t quite caught.

I took a deep breath and let it out in a quiet sigh. I wish that we had more than just one week to spend together before we had to head back out on our separate ways once again.