Letters to Matt (15 page)

I nodded my head and rushed to the bathroom. I took a quick shower, thinking about what I would do with my hair. I decided I would just blow dry and straighten it. I stood wrapped in a towel in front of my closet. I had no idea what I was going to wear. What do you wear the first time you meet your boyfriend’s parents? I grabbed my cell phone and called Mandy.

She answered on the first couple of rings.

“Mandy, you have to help me! I’m going to Matt’s house for dinner tonight and I have no idea what I’m going to wear!”

I heard her laugh over the phone. “What’s wrong with what you wore to school today?”

I let out a sigh. “I can’t wear some normal t-shirt and jeans. This is important. Help me!”

“God, Jade, you act like they’re the king and queen of the land.”

“Please, Mandy, I really want them to like me.”

She laughed again. “Okay, okay. What about that green sweater you have? And then just some jeans.”

“That’ll work!” I told her, rifling through and finding the sweater. I put the phone on speaker and set it down while I went through my dresser for my undergarments.

“What are you doing with your hair?” she asked.

“I’m just going to straighten it.”

“Make-up?”

“I was just going to wear a little bit,” I answered.

“So, this is pretty huge,” she said as I pulled on my jeans.

“You’re telling me!” I answered. “I feel like my heart is going to beat out of my chest. I’m so nervous. What if they don’t like me? Actually, what if they hate me and make Matt break up with me?” I was in full panic mode suddenly.

“Breathe, Jaden,” Mandy instructed. “They’re going to love you.”

“But what if I accidentally say something wrong? Or trip over my own feet?”

She laughed again. “Stop freaking out. You already got through the hard part. Matt likes you. They’ll like you, too. You’re pretty awesome.”

I let out a breath. “I guess you’re right.”

Mandy stayed on the phone with me, chatting about school until it was time to blow dry my hair. Before hanging up, she reminded me again to just breathe and that his parents were going to love me. I was putting the final touches on my make-up when Mel popped her head in.

“You ready?” she asked.

“Yeah,” I said. I took one final look in the mirror, mostly satisfied. I glanced over at Mel. “Do I look okay?”

She scrutinized me for a moment. “Follow me to my room,” she instructed.

I did, and when we arrived, she told me to sit down at her vanity table. She started grabbing bobby pins and placing them in my hair until half of it was pulled back and my long strands of hair framed my face. She grabbed a pink lip gloss.

“Open your mouth.”

When I obliged, she started applying the lip gloss.

“Press your lips together.” While I did that, she grabbed a tissue and folded it in half before handing it to me. I placed it in between my lips and pressed them together like I had seen her do a hundred times. She made a humming sound as she studied her various body sprays and perfumes. She finally picked one and told me to stand up. “Wrists out.” She sprayed it on my right wrist before telling me to rub my wrists together. Then she sprayed the fruity smelling spray right in front of me. “Walk through it,” she said. After I took a step, she stood back and admired me. “Okay, perfect!”

I turned toward her full length mirror and smiled at my reflection. Her small changes had made a huge difference.

“Thank you so much,” I gushed.

“No biggie. Now, c’mon, we’re running behind.”

I ran back to my room to grab my cell phone and purse. My hands were suddenly shaking as a nervous feeling settled into the pit of my stomach. I knew I looked good, but I suddenly wondered if it was too much. I didn’t want Matt’s parents to think I was trying too hard. I let out a sigh. It was too late now; we had to get going. Mandy’s voice floated through my head, telling me to just breathe.

Mel and I tried to fill the ride with meaningless conversation. I think she could tell I was nervous and tried talking to keep me distracted. When we pulled up to the street, I got out my phone to double check the house number, even though I had memorized it. She pulled in front of a house and looked at me.

“You sure this is the one?”

I gave a nod. “Yup.” I sat there for a few seconds longer, not moving to unbuckle my seat belt.

“Well, are you going in, or are we gonna sit here in front of the house all night?”

“Oh,” I said. “Yeah, right.” I unbuckled my belt and opened the door.

“Don’t be nervous,” Melanie said. “They’re going to like you. Just don’t break anything expensive.”

I let out a snort. “Gee, that’s comforting. Thanks.”

She laughed. “And if you need anything, call Mom.”

“You’re batting a thousand tonight,” I said sarcastically.

“I do what I can,” she said with a smile. “But seriously, you’ll do fine. Now get out of my car.”

I grabbed my purse and climbed out of the car, shutting the door carefully behind me. I stared up at the house for a few more seconds before taking the first step across the yard. I suddenly wondered if I should have gone around and walked on the sidewalk. I convinced myself it was fine to be walking on the grass and made my way to the door. I rang the doorbell and waited. When Matt opened the door, I felt my nerves immediately calm down. As he smiled at me, I was vaguely aware of hearing Mel’s car pull away.

My own face split into a wide grin.

“Hey,” I said quietly, finding I had lost my voice.

“Hi,” Matt said. “You look amazing.”

My face warmed as I smiled at the compliment. Matt had never really seen me with make-up on. Most mornings I couldn’t find the energy to put forth the effort. And even the few times I had, I didn’t have Mel’s assistance. I had no doubts that this was the best Matt had ever seen me. And judging by the looks he was giving me, he approved. Matt stepped back and extended his arm, waving me inside. A sweet aroma immediately hit me and I felt my stomach rumble.

“Mmm, something smells amazing,” I commented.

“That would be me,” Matt replied with a cocky smile.

“Oh, yes, must be that new lasagna cologne.”

He laughed and wrapped his arms around my waist before pressing his lips to mine. I kissed him back with enthusiasm until I felt a tug on my pants. I opened my eyes and saw a toddler tugging on my pants. I pulled away from Matt with a smile.

“We have an audience.”

Matt looked at me, confused. Just then, the little girl let out a laugh. He smiled and glanced down at her. “I swear I can’t go anywhere without my sisters following me around like lost puppies. Mack would have been on my heels if Mom hadn’t wrangled her to finally wash her hands for dinner.”

He bent down to pick up his little sister. “This is Madison. Madison, this is Jaden.”

She laughed again and reached out for me. I held out my hands and Matt handed her over. Just then, we heard a shout from the kitchen.

“Is that Jaden?!” Matt yelled back that it was. “Well, quit hogging her in the doorway and bring her in here.”

Matt looked at me. “It’s not too late for us to make a run for it.”

I laughed and shook my head. I offered my free hand. “C’mon, let’s get this over with.”

He took my hand and we walked through the small hallway. We walked into a beautiful kitchen to see a pretty woman standing next to the chair of a pouting girl.

“No, I’m not hungry!” the little girl exclaimed, pushing a plate of food away from her.

“Fine, don’t eat,” Matt’s mom replied. “But don’t expect to have cookies later. And I made your favorite, peanut butter.”

“Those aren’t my favorite anymore!”

Matt’s mom just smiled and shook her head before looking up at us. “Don’t mind her, dear,” she said to me. “She’s just mad because I wouldn’t let her follow Matt to open the door. I see Miss Madison found you, though,” she said, tickling her youngest daughter’s foot. “I’m Connie,” she said, pulling me toward her in a hug. “Matt has told me so much about you. It’s so great to finally meet you.”

I had heard horror stories about moms hating their son’s girlfriends. Mel said that one of her exes’ Moms called her Melody and gave her dirty looks for the entire three months they had been dating. So I was caught off guard when Connie pulled me into a hug and genuinely seemed excited to have me over. I awkwardly hugged her back as I still had Madison perched on my hip.

She pulled away from me and smiled at me. “Matt told me lasagna was your favorite so that’s what I made. And I hope you like Caesar salad.”

“I do. And thank you. You didn’t have to make my favorite food.”

“Oh, nonsense,” she said with a wave of her hand. “It was no problem. Besides, you always hear horror stories of girls hating their boyfriend’s mothers. I want you to like me,” she insisted, giving me a warm smile. I grinned back. I did like her even though I’d just met her.

Just then, a man walked into the kitchen. I could tell with one glance that it was Matt’s dad. The resemblance between them was clear. They had the same eyes and their facial features were very similar. Matt’s hair color more closely resembled Connie’s, though. Matt’s father looked around the kitchen until his eyes fell on me. He smiled, and I decided I would probably like him as much as I already liked Connie.

“You must be Jaden,” he said. “Matt here hasn’t stopped talking about you since we moved. He came home gushing about some cute girl in his Spanish class the first day of school.”

Matt’s face warmed in a blush, and I smiled.

“Daad,” Matt grumbled.

“What?” Matt’s dad asked. “There’s no shame in telling a pretty girl you like her.” He turned back to me. “Anyway, I’m Doug. We’re so happy to invite you into our home.”

“Thank you,” I said. “I’m flattered you asked me over for dinner.”

“The pleasure is all ours,” he told me. He pressed his wife to his side and placed a soft kiss against her forehead. “It smells great in here, honey.”

Connie smiled proudly at her husband. “Thank you.”

Doug smiled at me. “You should come over more often. Connie never makes lasagna special for me, even though she knows how much I love it.”

Connie laughed. “Oh, yeah, we all know how neglected you are.” ” I glanced at Matt with an amused smile, and though he tried to fight it, he chuckled along with his dad. Connie walked away from her husband. “Well, it’s ready, so everyone sit down and eat. I’ll take her if you want me to.” She reached her hands out for Madison.

“Oh, of course,” I said, turning so that Connie would have better access to grab her daughter, who was laughing and reaching for her mom.

Connie set her down in a high chair while Matt grabbed my hand and led me to the table. Plates and silverware were already set out and there was a huge dish of lasagna and a bowl of Caesar salad in the middle of the table. Matt pulled out my chair for me, and I smiled back at him. He took his seat next to mine while Doug and Connie milled around the kitchen, getting the kids drinks and napkins for the table. I sat there with my hands in my lap. It was pretty clear that Connie and Doug were cool, but I was still nervous. It was easy to make a good impression when you’d barely said ten words.

Matt glanced over at me and smiled. “Don’t tell me you’re one of those girls that doesn’t eat in front of others?”

I looked at him, confused. “Huh?” I registered what he had said. “Oh, no. I was just waiting for your parents to sit down.”

“There’s no need to wait. You’re our guest. Help yourself.” He motioned to the food.

“Okay,” I said, scooping some lasagna and then Caesar salad onto my plate. Matt followed suit, and I took my first bite as Connie and Doug sat down. An explosion of flavor hit my tongue. Lasagna had always been my favorite food, but this was by far the best I had ever tasted. “Mmmm,” I hummed in appreciation. “This is so delicious!”

Connie smiled, proud of herself. “It’s my Grandma’s recipe. There’s a secret ingredient that I’m not allowed to share with anyone.”

“Well, whatever it is, it’s amazing.”

“Thank you.” She frowned slightly. “Matt, did you offer Jaden anything to drink?”

“Crap,” he said. “No.” He looked over at me. “Would you like something to drink? I think we have water, apple juice, or
Dr. Pepper
.”

“
Dr. Pepper
, please.”

“Okay, I’ll put it in a cup with some ice for you.”

I said my thank you as he stood from his spot. The conversation between all of us flowed casually after Matt sat back down with my drink. Connie and Doug asked how I liked school and about my hobbies and my family. They seemed genuinely interested in me. Mack, who had been pouting most of dinner, was in a better mood and decided to ask some questions of her own.

“Are you Matt’s girlfriend?” she asked.

I smiled and glanced at Matt before turning my attention to the little girl. “I am.”

“Do you like him?”

I nodded, feeling my grin grow. “I do.” Matt squeezed my thigh under the table and smiled at me.