Loser, Whatever!

I couldn’t sit still Friday during classes. Rick grinned whenever he looked at me and saw the anxiousness all over my face. At last, then last bell of the day sounded and we were free for two glorious weeks.

"I’ll just grab my stuff and I’ll meet you at your house." Rick kissed me on the cheek and disapparated to his room on campus. I sighed and apparated to my house.

I ran upstairs to my room and yanked the dreadful yellow robes off my body. I grabbed the dress I had unpacked several times, not sure I had picked the right one, and slipped it on. It was deep purple chiffon, went just past my knees and had elbow-length sleeves. It was plain, not much design, a few sparkles on the bodice but that was the extent. I slipped on a pair of black ballet flats and a simple silver chain around my neck. I picked my suitcase up and headed downstairs just as I heard a knocking on the front door.

"Hey Rick, just give me a minute." I said as I opened the door to reveal Rick. I continued to shuffle around the front hall, trying to find my coat, I just had it! I spotted it on the ancient coffee table in the front room and pulled it on.

"Why dressed so fancy?" He asked.

"I’m meeting your parents in a few minutes!" I said as he helped me into my coat.

"Well, yeah, but they’re just my parents." He commented.

"But I haven’t met them before!" I pointed okay. He threw his hand up, palms facing me in defeat.

"Alright! I’m just commenting." He replied.

"Why, what are you wearing?" I demanded as he took my suitcase and walked out the door and I followed, locking the door behind me.

"Just a dress shirt and dress pants." He answered, "I hope that’s not your best dress."

"It’s not don’t worry, I’ve got something else for Christmas." I assured him.

"Great, you ready?" He asked.

"Yeah, you?"

"Yep, grab my shoulder and I’ll guide you." He instructed me.

"You don’t have to hold my suitcase for me." I told him.

"That’s okay, I don’t mind." He replied. I grabbed his shoulder and we apparated.

The house was a beautiful white Victorian. It had turrets on both sides and the roof slanted straight up then flattened to make a disproportionate square. The yard was a glittering mass of white snow and I could see the twinkling lights from a Christmas tree in the large front window. From outside, it looked like the house had three stories, not including the basement, if there even was one.

"You ready?" Rick asked as he led me up the shoveled path to the front door.

"As I’ll ever be." I answered and linked my arm through his.

We reached the front door and he knocked. A middle-aged woman, wearing a long blue dress answered it, the dress was not nearly as fancy as the one I was wearing, she wasn’t skinny, but she wasn’t necessarily plump either. She wore no glasses, but there was a pair dangling in front of her dress from a golden chain. Her eyes matched Rick’s perfectly, so I assumed this was his mother.

"Richard! It’s so good to see you again!" She pulled her son into a tight embrace.

"I was here last weekend, Mum." He mumbled.

"And this must be Bridgette!" She let go of her son when she noticed me and pulled me into a hug. This was weird. I had never met this woman before and here she was, hugging me like I was her own daughter.

"It’s a pleasure to meet you." I said.

"Oh, we’ve heard so much about you! Please, come in, it’s freezing out here!" She let go of me and shuffled inside. I glanced at Rick before following Mrs Stewart inside, "Now, Richard knows where to hang the coats and I’ll get his father." She disappeared though a burnt orange hallway hung with paintings. I stared at the entrance hall that I was in now. It was a deep blue with white trim on the doorways leading to other rooms. There was a wide spiral staircase on the left side of the room leading to higher floors. It had a gleaming white carpet and elaborate golden railings. A chandelier hung from the ceiling, glittering with crystals as they caught the candlelight and threw rainbows all over the room. Rick took my coat and hung it in a closet right beside the front door. We heard two sets of footsteps and I composed myself to meet Rick’s father.

He looked slightly older than his wife and was balding a bit. There was a round bald patch at the center of his head and the rest was covered with half gray, half brown hair. He wore thick metal-rimmed glasses, a white dress shirt and gray dress pants. He looked a little more portly than his wife did. He stuck out his hand when he reached me, which I took and shook.

"It’s nice to finally meet the famous Bridgette. Richard never stops talking about you." Mr Steward smiled and winked. I exhaled in relief and hoped no one heard it.

"It’s nice to meet you too, Mr Stewart." I replied.

"Ah, ah, ah! There will be none of that! You’ll call us Helen and Joseph." Helen stopped me.

"Alright, I can do that." I felt my cheeks burn.

"If you’ll follow me upstairs, I’ll show you to your room." Helen said. I took my bag from the floor where Rick had deposited it and followed Helen up the spiral staircase.

"That’s a lovely dress, Bridgette." She commented.

"Thank you, Helen. Rick was worried I was overdressed." I answered once we were out of earshot. She laughed.

"Oh, you’re not overdressed in the least. It’ll be nice having some female presence around here." She stated.

"I’ve been looking forward to this all week." I said truthfully.

"That’s wonderful to hear, darling." She answered. We had reached the first landing, but she kept walking.

"I don’t want you on the same floor as Richard. You never know what that boy will try!" She said as if she were discussing the weather. What did that mean? Had he tried something like that in the past?

"Oh, okay." I mumbled.

"Oh, don’t worry! Nothing like that’s ever happened before. You’re the first girlfriend he’s brought home for Christmas and a mother can’t be too careful. Now that I’ve met you, and I can see what all the fuss Richard was making was about." She chuckled. I sighed quietly in relief.

"Here we are." She said as we reached the second landing and we exited the staircase. The hall was a purple that sort of matched my dress. There were paintings lining the walls with beautiful golden frames. There was no chandelier, but the lighting up here was still fancy. Helen led me to the second door on the right, "This is where you’ll be staying for the next two weeks, is it alright?"

The room was white with a large curved window overlooking the village. There was a silver chandelier in this room with dancing rainbows like the one downstairs. The bed was silver as well; with four posts and a cream colored canopy. There were roughly a million pillows covering the king-sized bed and a duvet that matched the canopy. There were beautiful portraits on all four walls and for some reason, silver sconces on either side of each picture. There was a white vanity with lights around the mirror and make-up on the table despite the fact that I didn’t feel like packing my make-up.

"It’s perfect!" I exclaimed and put my suitcase down next to the bed.

"I’m glad you like it! I’ll leave you here to freshen up before supper." She smiled and turned to walk back downstairs.

I unpacked my things into the dresser and closet provided, then I sat down at the vanity and applied as little make-up as possible. This wasn’t a problem, I never liked wearing make-up, but I assumed it was only polite to look my best when meeting my boyfriend’s parents.

At last, I was ready and headed downstairs to find the kitchen.