Guests begin to arrive.

Tension in the house rose every 30 minutes or so. Every time we looked at the clock and noticed 1:30 pm getting closer and closer, we’d all grow more and more nervous, but none more than Alice, Noelle and I. Mila’s parents already knew me well and supported our relationship fully, as did Sarah’s family. Grace’s parents weren’t coming and she preferred it that way. Noelle’s parents were always extremely busy, so while I had met them, we didn’t exactly know each other all that well. And then there were Alice’s parents, who didn’t have a problem with me in particular, but with the choices Alice was making, mainly prioritizing her relationship over her career. I thought Diana would be more anxious about the girls’ parents coming over and seeing her, an older woman, with us, but… her mood seemed to have improved in the last few minutes. I wondered if she and mom talked about something.

Anyway, this was my chance to try to do something about Noelle’s and Alice’s families. I hoped to bond a bit more with Noelle’s parents and try to convince Alice’s dad that we were doing well here, that this wasn’t a mistake.

…

Yeah, I wasn’t confident I could do that at all. I’ve gotten lucky so far. I’m not so vain as to believe I can win over anyone and change their opinions if I just try hard enough and turn on the charm. The… metaphorical charm, not the magical one. Important distinction there.

Mom and Diana set up the folding tables out in the backyard, next to the glass table we already had outside and joining them into a far longer one. Grace and Mila put matching tablecloths over them to make them look presentable while Sarah, Isabelle and I set the chairs around them.

“Woman, you are TENSE…” Isabelle told Alice, gently rubbing her back.

“Not gonna deny it,” Alice said with an exhausted chuckle. We hadn’t even started yet and she was already this stressed. “Well… No matter what happens, dad’s not dragging me away from here, so it’ll be fine.”

“It’s too late. You’re ours now,” Grace told her.

By 1:10 pm, our very first guests arrived. Mr. and Mrs Aliev with their youngest son, Andrei. I opened the gate for them and greeted Mila’s parents as they came out of the car.

“My God, the house is beautiful, Oliver,” Mrs. Aliev said.

“Congratulations,” Mr. Aliev told me with a pat on the shoulder. I’m sure he didn’t really mean to put much strength into it, but his hand was heavy regardless.

I smiled. “Thank you very much. It might be a little too much, though. More than we need, honestly.”

Mrs. Aliev chuckled. “Let’s see if you still think that when there are tiny people making a ruckus all around you.”

“My mom said the same thing…” I said with a wry smile.

“So… this is your house?” Andrei asked me, looking up at the house with his neck bent all the way back.

The boy was short, even for his age. A bit shorter than Robert, I think. Like with Mila, the mom’s genes were winning here, including the short, platinum blonde, nearly silver hair. By now he was 8 years old, and while we got along well enough, Andrei wasn’t exactly interested in me.

He didn’t really understand what it meant for me to be his sister’s boyfriend, and he also didn’t really care. To him, I was just another one of his sister’s friends like Grace and Sarah were, only I was a guy.

I squatted next to him to be at his level and nodded. “Yeah. What do you think?”

“It looks nice, but aren’t only grown ups supposed to have houses?” he asked back.

“What, do I not look like a grown up?” I asked with a small grin. Andrei shook his head and I laughed. “Fair enough. But yes, you’re mostly right. Houses are expensive and usually only grown-ups can afford them, but… I work for someone who paid me enough to buy it.”

“So… you’re rich, mister?” he asked again.

“Nope. Because I spent all the money on the house.”

“Ah.” That seemed to make sense to him, but he lost interest immediately after his curiosity was satisfied.

“Hey, Andrei, do you like animals?” I asked him.

“Like cats and dogs?” he asked. I nodded. “Yes, but dad won’t let us have pets.” Mr. Aliev grumbled softly.

“There’s one cat and three dogs in the house. If you’re kind to them, I’m sure they’ll let you pay with them.”

His greenish eyes lit up. He looked back at his mom, who smiled at him and extended her hand to him. “Let’s go!”

Andrei took his mom’s hand and the two went into the house.

“You’re good with kids,” Mr. Aliev told me.

I shook my head. “I try, but it’s hard.”

“Don’t take his disinterest personally. He’s in his own little world most of the time.”

“Don’t worry, I don’t. He’s a good kid.”

“How’s the barbeque going?” he asked me.

“I mostly have everything ready. I still need to trim the fat from the meat, though.”

“Do you know how to do it?”

“Um… not really,” I admitted with a small, sheepish smile.

“Come on. I’ll teach you if you let me help with the barbeque.”

“You’re offering your help twice? I’m supposed to be hosting for you today.”

“No offence, but I’d rather not let a complete amateur handle the grill without supervision.” Mr. Aliev smirked and patted me on the back.

We got into the house as well, just in time to witness an interesting scene.

“And what do you think you’re doing here, brat? In MY house?” Mila asked her little brother, standing tall in front of him and with her hands on her waist.

“It’s not YOUR house! It’s Oliver’s!” Andrei said with a big smirk. “And YOU invited me!”

Mila blinked, crossed her arms and tilted her head.“Oh, did I?”

“Yes!”

“Oh, right. I did.”

Mila smirked, picked up her brother and began to aggressively kiss the top of his head, all while the boy laughed and their parents looked on.

Like I said before, at least this was one family I didn’t need to worry about.

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