Rules on Relationships

June arrived pretty fast, and Michael was ecstatic of turning 21, but was more overjoyed by the fact I was about to meet his Mother. The most important woman in his life, followed by his Sisters and then me, I think?
I've spoken to his Mother before, she called Michael while we were on a date and I told him that it was okay to talk to his Mother, but he managed to put her on speaker and dragged me into the conversation. And it's happened so many times too, and there were times when she just wanted to talk to me.
So we were sort of introduced, though that was different compared to meeting face to face.

I treated Michael to a romantic night with homemade meals in the apartment on his actual birthday that landed on Tuesday, then on Friday evening, he hosted a party at the bar with a handful of people invited, some I never met before, and we flew to Baltimore on Saturday morning, and it made me want to just jump out because I was scared.
I looked out the window of the cab as we were just a few minutes away from his Mother's home, and his excitement to see his Mother again didn't help with my panicky state. He wrapped his arm around me and leaned his head on my shoulder, and he looked out the window as he whispered, "Are you ready to meet my Mom?"
"Hon, I think you know how I feel..."
"Baby, you'll do fine!" He tried to reassure me as the cab stopped in front of a house, it was rather big and there were three women sitting around on the porch. He let go of me and leaned back, he reached into his wallet for the cash while muttering, "What is Hilary and Whitney doing here...?"
"You're Sisters are here too?" I stammered as he nodded and told me to get out of the car.

Oh My God. His Sisters were there too.

At the porch, Michael's Mother and Sisters greeted him with a hug, and then their judging eyes turned my way.
They eyed me up and down. I felt like they were probably inspecting me to see if there was anything wrong with me or if Michael forgot to mention anything to them that was visible on me. His Mother's lips curved and parted to a bright smile, her arms opened and she wandered to me. Her arms wrapped around me into a tight embrace, and I didn't know how to react, so I gave her a hug back before we parted and she grasped my hands and shook them.
"Nice to finally meet you, Roxanne, I've heard so many things about you! I'm Michael's Mom, Debbie," She introduced herself as she stepped back and gave her son a pat on the arm and added, "This girl is a keeper."
I could only smile and tried not to show how nervous I really was.
His Sisters both shook my hand, they introduced themselves and both said that they were there for a day just so they could meet me. His eldest Sister, Hilary, was there for the weekend while Whitney had already been there for two days and was headed home later that evening.
And of course, room arrangements were important. So his Mother placed me in Whitney's room while Michael was in his own room and Hilary in hers. I knew that she wouldn't want us to sleep beside each other during the night.
"If I had known, I should've just rented a hotel room," Michael complained as he placed my luggage on the side and sat on the edge of the bed, he let out a sigh and added, "But I guess I can handle two nights."
"Don't be such a baby, Phelps," I teased. He made his way to me, prepared to wrap his arms around me for a hug, but Whitney knocked on the door and stated, "Hope everything is okay and settled in here."
"Gee, Whit," Michael rolled his eyes as he tried to get rid of his Sister.
"I'll borrow your girl for a bit," Whitney smiled as she she decided to take me with her and out of the room, down the stairs and to the kitchen where the rest of the women were. I felt awkward, oh God, this felt like a first date again, but the women in the kitchen were important to Michael, so I had to be good.

Or at least get a good impression.

With a discrete smile on my lips and standing so straight and proper while the women rummaged around to help bake and cook for a meal. I was handed a whisk and asked to stir the batter for the muffins that they planned to make. I remained quiet and concentrated on mixing, but I overheard that their conversations were about what they wanted to do in the weekend and later turned to me with a bright smile.
It scared me.
"So dearie, what do you want to do this weekend? Anything you want to do in particular?" Debbie asked with a happy tone. I was caught off guard, and I couldn't even reply. My voice was clogged up in my throat as Whitney took the mixture from me and began to arrange it into the steel muffin tray. Hilary pulled me next to her with her hands on my shoulders, and she shook me a bit and complimented, "You know, MP told us a lot of things about you. Our baby Brother is so fond of you, and he's become quite a good man."
"Really? What d-did he say?" I stuttered.
"You brought the inner man out of him," Hilary added. "He was so red the last time I saw him. I think it was when he came here with Bob and I happened to be in town. Mom was asking questions about how you two were and he was happy to reply, so then I teased him about how much he liked you, and he was as red as a tomato."
I nipped my lower lip as Michael barged into the door. "Hey, you can't tell her what I said to you about her!" He argued as he walked over to his Mother and gave her a hug. "And I hope you guys are being nice," He added as Debbie handed him a blueberry muffin and replied, "Oh Michael, we like Roxanne."
Hilary let me go and asked me, "What do you study?"
"I am majoring in Literature, working towards a Journalism degree," I politely answered.
"Don't be so stiff, relax," Whitney advised. "What do you plan to do when you graduate?"
I took a silent deep breath and tried to listen to her advice. "Um, probably go to New York and work. Someday I want to travel, and yeah. I got a scholarship thanks to a publisher who took notice of me in High School."

I was in a room with the Phelps family, so I wanted to make sure I didn't say anything stupid. I even thought about it before I said anything since Michael spoke so fondly of his Family whenever the topic was brought up or something reminded him about them. I knew how much he loved them and how close they were, that even when they lived in different areas, they still managed to gather in the house they grew up in and continued on with where they left off.
I admired them for it.

He will always be his Mother's Baby. Especially since he's the youngest.

I admit, the first night was very awkward, and it didn't help when Michael kept suggesting topics that he knew would bring me out of my shy phase. Like when he suddenly thought that talking about sports and teasing me about how I didn't particular like to play, although when I did, I was really competitive.
I tried not to debate with him in front of his Mother and Sisters, and I'm sure he knew that because he continued to push my buttons, which eventually, had me revealing that I wasn't interested in sports at all, however, since I was so competitive, I turn into some kind of She-Hulk. It was embarrassing when I blurted out that I was unfit.
I thought they would think differently of me, but instead, Debbie commented that I had a figure that seemed like I exercised and played sports and encouraged me to just be myself, and she then told Michael to stop teasing me. She probably noticed, since he had his goofy smile plastered on and his eyes were just so devious. So mischievous.

The following day, Hilary took Michael to the Grocery Store to get some things and left me with Debbie.
Michael told me beforehand that his Mother would want to spend some alone time getting to know me, and what better way that to get rid of him and his Sister by telling them to run errands. I was at home with my boyfriend's Mother, and I was so nervous that even while washing dishes, I had to make sure that the marks would all disappear before I rinsed them. His Mother took note and sat me down on the porch with the nice view of her front lawn and the people walking by who waved to her with a hearty hello, and she even brought out juice and a few cookies in a tray as we sat side by side and in silence.
"I hope things weren't as awkward as how I felt," Debbie coolly commented. "I see how much Michael likes you, and I'm happy that he's found someone, but-"

But?

"-I just hope you two won't rush into things. I worry about him while he's away. I worry about all my children, and they're so far from me now, grown up. Whitney has a daughter now, and Hilary's having her own life, and now my baby Michael has grown up," She continued. It astounded me to notice that she had a Motherly glow to her as she spoke. She really loved her children. I saw that.
I leaned forward and placed my hand atop of hers and smiled when she looked my way. "I promise that I won't do anything to hurt your son," I reassured her. "And I know that you mean well, I can see that, and we're just taking things slow. I'm not rushing anything and I told Michael that."
Her expression brightened. "You're a good girl, Roxanne. Michael always talked highly of you." She tapped my hand before giving me a hug. I was caught off-guard that I couldn't even hug her back before she pulled away, but she still held onto both of my hands and stared so warmly into my eyes.
She made me miss my own Mom.
"I'm glad that Michael's chosen a sane girl this time," She joked with a chuckle. "He's only two girlfriends, and I didn't like either one of them. The first one was a bit too clingy, the second one seemed insane, but you, I approve of you," She openly stated. It made me ease down and felt loved when she said that. I never knew that being approved by my boyfriend's Mom made me feel so happy.
"Thank you," I shyly murmured. "I was really hoping you would approve of me. I really like your son," I added, and placed some emphasis in 'like' instead of using the four letter word. I wouldn't think his Mother would want me to confess my love for him to her.
"Like?" Debbie cocked her eyebrow. "I once overheard Michael say, I love you, on the phone," She revealed. "But I didn't say anything because I thought I misheard things. Did he really say that to you?"
"Um, yes..." My voice faded. I didn't want to lie to her, she was his Mother!
"And do you feel the same way?"
I licked my lips and wanted to look away, but her stare was dead on.
"It's okay." She patted my shoulder. "You can tell me."

Should I tell her?

"I do," I confidently replied. My heart was probably going to kill me soon from the speed it was going, and my head was all in a buzz that I wasn't sure what to think anymore. I thought I was a goner.
"That's good to hear," Debbie warmly accepted and leaned back on the chair, her hands placed calmly on her thighs as Michael and Hilary arrived just in time. She watched them unload all the bags and whispered to me, "I want the both of you to be happy and last as long as your love takes you, even if it's forever. Just take good care of my Michael when he's away from me."
I nodded. "I promise, Debbie, I'll make sure he's fit and healthy."
"I trust you, Roxanne."

Wow... She trusted me.
Debbie Phelps, Mother of my boyfriend of nearly ten months, trusted me.
That was one of the highest honors I ever received and felt in my whole life.

My next task was to make sure my Parents - especially my Dad - trusted Michael too.