In theory, this sounds like it should be a nice night out with the people who brought you into this world and it probably would be if your parents weren’t such self-absorbed assholes who treat you like the black sheep of the family.

The obvious way out of this situation would be to avoid the dinner altogether, but being that they’re the reason you’re not homeless living in the heart of New York, you have no choice but to show up or fall into crippling debt.

Instead of spending Valentine’s Day whining about not having a significant other while eating your weight in chocolate covered strawberries, you get a night where your egotistical parents and headass of an older brother hound you about your life while bragging about how perfect theirs are, making you want to gauge your eyes out with a butter knife.

You’re highly aware that tonight will be no different in comparison to the previous years, but you’ll be damned if you have to go through it alone this time.

This brought you to the person you know you can count on for absolutely anything.

Carefully digging through a potted plant that’s littered with thorns no matter how hard you try to avoid them, you only prick the back of your hand three times before finding the spare key that unlocks the front door to the Fields Residence.

“Well, if it isn’t my favorite intruder!” Mr. Fields greets you warmly from the kitchen, already making your day better. After tossing the key back in its place, you walk inside, removing your snow-covered boots and winter coat.

“Still haven’t thought of a less harmful place to store your spare, Danny?”

Formalities with Gerri’s parents were aggressively thrown out the window the very first night you met them. After meeting her over a year ago in your college’s music theory class, the two of you became close friends and the first thing you did during Thanksgiving break was meet her family.

Immediately, you loved their warm and welcoming energy seeing as it was something you weren’t used to with your own parents. The Fields family made it clear from the beginning of your friendship with their daughter that you were always welcome in their home.

This in turn made you feel more homesick for her home rather than yours whenever you were back at school.

“You never know with all the crazies out there, Y/n. I’m just surprised Gerri hasn’t given you your own key at this point.” The man teases, half-joking since you show up here so often, sometimes when Gerri isn’t even home.

“It would definitely help with the pain, no offense to Barry,” that’s what the cactus is named, “Though, the scars do make me look kinda badass, especially when I nick my knuckles.” You ponder, flexing your hand outwards to show Danny the healed up cuts and he puffs out his lip, nodding his head in agreement.

“Very badass.” The two of you laugh as he gives you a brief but tight side hug, “Gerri’s up in her room, by the way, kiddo.”

You thank him, casually thieving a chocolate covered strawberry on the counter and nearly inhaling it before also wishing him a quick Happy Valentine’s Day.

Trotting upstairs, you follow the sound of Gerri’s speakers loudly playing Love Story by Taylor Swift. Her door is already halfway open, but you slow to a stop before taking a peek around the corner.

With the music blasting at max volume, Gerri is unable to hear your footsteps creaking down the hallway, lost in her own world as she dances around her room and sings the lyrics at the top of her lungs.

You watch Gerri jump around, her wavy brown hair slowly falling out of her already loose lazy bun, dancing with such fluidity while holding a stuffed bear you won at Coney Island yet she insisted on keeping.

A smile can’t help but form on your face at the adorable sight and you’re too entertained by the show to announce your presence. Even when looking like a total doofus, you still thought of Gerri as the most beautiful being you’d ever set your eyes on.

That’s not something you could bring yourself to tell her out loud, though.

Before the bridge of the song, the brunette twirls and finally sets her eyes on you, but she doesn’t shy away from the fact that you caught her in a private moment.

That’s not your Gerri.

“I got tired of waiting,” she smiles mischievously, tosses the bear back on the bed, and beckons you over with her index finger, “wondering if you were ever coming around, my faith in you was fading, when I met you on the outskirts of town,” she continues to sing and move her shoulders to the beat of the song.

You shake your head amused, remaining in your spot against her door frame.

“I said, Romeo save me, I’ve been feeling so alone, I keep waiting for you but you never come.” Not taking no for an answer, Gerri skips forward until she’s pulling you into the room by your shoulders.

Now she’s singing in your face with enormous passion, shaking your body back and forth as she grows impatient with your silence, but it’s very difficult for you to sing through your smile.

“Is this in my head? I don’t know what to think,” As Gerri slides her hands up to the sides of your face to shake your brain around instead, you hold onto her wrists to keep her from giving you whiplash or accidentally bonking your heads together. “He knelt to the ground and pulled out a ring and said…”

Unable to deny her any longer, you finally give in, belting out the words while bobbing your head up and down. Gerri’s smile widens and she intertwines your fingers together as she pulls you closer to the middle of her room.

“I love you and that’s all I really know!”

Next thing you know, you’re getting yourself lost in Gerri’s world, too, shuffling your feet and spinning around like you’re the only two people to exist. The comfort of her carefree energy never fails to envelop you into a safe place that makes you feel more at home.

When the music ends, the two of you gracefully fall side-by-side into Gerri’s bed, both out of exhaustion from jumping so much and to slow the intense dizziness. One of her hands has yet to let go of yours, making your head spin even more.

“That was fun.” The brunette pants, letting out a breathless laugh as she looks over at your smiling face.

“Yeah, it was.”

When you return her gaze, you notice that her hair had fallen completely out of its bun, the brown strands beautifully lying around her head upon the mattress.

Every word known to man could never accurately describe her beauty and what it does to your heartstrings.

With her fingers still laced with yours, Gerri lifts it up to observe the damage you’ve taken today, “You prick yourself again?” She asks, softly grazing her thumb over the new marks on your skin.

You hum a yes, incapable of tearing your eyes away from the concern that shows on her face. The way she worries for you over some harmless scratches that were no bigger than the size of a tic-tac made the butterflies in your chest flutter.

“Sorry, we really need to get you your own key.”

Huffing out a laugh, you softly pull your hand away so you can sit up, “Your dad was telling me the same thing.”

Routinely, Gerri stands from her bed to grab the mini first aid kit from her dresser. When she returns, she sits in a criss-cross position, pulling out some mini alcohol wipes and band-aids from the plastic box. “I feel bad having to patch you up every time you come over.”

You turn your body so that you’re facing each other, “Well, first off you don’t have to patch me up. It’s a tiny scratch from a thorn, not a bite from a rabid subway rat,” you inform the girl, making her eyes roll slightly as you instinctively place your injured hand on her lap, patiently waiting for her to clean the fresh cuts, “Second, it isn’t that big a deal. I mean, if you guys placed your spare right next to a wasp nest instead, then we’d have some bigger problems.”

Gerri giggles softly, rubbing the alcohol pad on the open wounds and stinging them for just a moment before little band-aids are placed. When she finishes, Gerri carefully lifts your hand to her lips, placing three gentle kisses on the patched up skin.

Closing both of her hands around yours, she keeps it in her lap, leaning forward slightly as she smiles cheekily at you.

“There. All better?”

The playful yet gentle stare in those gorgeous green eyes makes your stomach turn in the most exciting way possible, but you push the feeling down as you always do. You chuckle, squeezing her hand as you look at her adoringly, “All better. Thank you, Dr. Fields.”

The softness in your voice makes Gerri’s eyes light up, making her subconsciously bite her lower lip. You watch the action with a racing heart, looking back up to find her pupils had dilated as her gaze flickers between your mouth and eyes.

Surely this is part of your imagination, right?

Before either of you could pluck up the nerve to lean in first, you’re both startled when a hamper full of clean clothes is thrown into the room. Breaking eye contact, you and Gerri see her little brother standing in the doorway.

“Were you two about to kiss right now? Because you jumped away from each other like you were about to kiss.” He wonders with an amused smile, narrowing his eyes between the two of you and making you both blush madly.

“Karl, get out! Now!” The brunette exclaims, dropping your hand to shove the boy out. He laughs loudly as Gerri shuts the door, leaning her back against it to ensure he doesn’t come in again.

She covers her face in embarrassment, unable to look you directly in the eye for the moment.

Quietly laughing to yourself, you let Gerri regain her composure and stand from the bed to empty out the hamper, helping sort out her clothes.

“Damn, Gerr. I didn’t think the idea of kissing me was that repulsive.”

“That’s not– I wasn’t–”

“Just jokes.” You look at her over your shoulder with an assuring smile.

Gerri lets her shoulders fall after exhaling out a relieved sigh.

Slowly, she makes her way back over to her phone, playing another song for the two of you to listen to before she begins picking at the clothes you had already folded and starts putting them away.

This routine became a regular thing after your first couple of visits to Gerri’s house. Once she was comfortable having you in her room so often, she started getting too lazy to put her laundry away and you did not want to be lying on a mountain of clothes that were scattered across her bed.

When this habit of you cleaning her own messes began, Gerri felt bad watching you do it alone, so she decided to lend a hand. To her pleasant surprise, it was actually really relaxing having you around to help. Plus, the chore would be done in half the amount of time compared to if she were to do it by herself.

“So, what are the rest of your Valentine’s Day plans?” You casually question, silently praying that her schedule is open.

“Probably just going to throw on some shitty romcoms and get sick from eating too many chocolate covered strawberries. Why?”

You swallow your nerves, reminding yourself that this is just you, a friend, asking for a favor from Gerri, another friend.

It doesn’t have to be a nerve-racking conversation, but you wonder why your palms are getting so sweaty and what it was that was making you hear the sound of your own heart pounding in through your ears.

“Don’t you have that family dinner for your parent’s anniversary tonight?” She asks, taking the handful of bundled socks you give her.

Oh good, she remembered. “I do. I’m not exactly looking forward to it though, because it’s the worst night of my year, surrounded by literally the worst people on this planet.”

Gerri is aware that you’re not very close with your family and that you don’t like to talk about them much, but you’ve never gone into detail as to why that was.

She noticed the way your entire mood deflated whenever she asked about them in the beginning of your friendship, how the mere thought of them brought up some uncomfortable feelings in you, so she quickly stopped asking.

“Why don’t you just tell them you can’t go?” If this night was so dreadful for you to go through, Gerri wondered what was stopping you from ditching the event completely.

You chirp up, playfully pretending to be shocked, “Oh, wow! You know, I’ve never thought to do that. That’s actually a really good idea, Gerr. Why hadn’t I-”

Gerri lightly smacks your bottom with a shirt she’s putting away, making you both laugh, “Okay! You don’t gotta be a smartass about it. Geez.”

“Trust me, if I could avoid tonight, I would. To my terrible misfortune, I can’t afford to pay my college and housing bills on my own yet, so my parents financially keep my head above water. Not without a price of their own, though. They’re not that generous.”

Gerri watches you carefully from the foot of her bed as you start getting lost in your own rambling, but you continue folding her clothes to distract yourself.

“The deal is that they keep me stable so long as I attend their stupid yearly dinner at their stupid favorite restaurant where I have to sit and listen to their stupid lecture about how unsuccessful I’m destined to be in life. Meanwhile, my dickhead of an older brother gets all the loving praise for being the most mediocre man in the world.”

You stop folding the clothes, pausing your ramble to take a deep breath in an attempt to relieve the stress that’s already brewing in your chest.

“You know, I can’t even remember one time in my life they were happy for me about anything. My valedictorian speech at my high school graduation? With such a small school it shouldn’t have been that hard to get in the first place. We also have a conference that weekend. My NYU acceptance letter? Well that’s useless since you’re wasting college on a silly music degree, Y/n. Why can’t you study business like your brother?”

It was unfair how poorly your own family thought of you, like you weren’t even a part of them, especially when you did nothing in the past to make them treat you this way.

“Literally everything I do is wrong in their eyes. It’s the fucking worst, but then again they’re the fucking worst so what else should I expect?”

You slump back down on the bed and massage your temples, attempting to erase the stress that’s already festering in your brain just thinking about going through tonight.

“I know I didn’t exactly paint the prettiest picture of them to you just now, but I really don’t want to sit through this hellish night alone again and I’d hate it a lot less if I had you there with me,” you tell Gerri, nervously fidgeting with your new band-aids, “It’s a lot to ask and I’m not expecting you to say yes, but I just… I need you there, Gerr.”

With your shaking leg, hand fidgets, and cheek biting, all of your anxious tics were on full display for Gerri to see and the dinner hadn’t even started yet. This night weighs you down so heavily that your friend would be a fool to let you carry it on your own.

Pulling you away from your fixed stare at the floor, Gerri places her soft hands upon your face and tilts your head until you look up at her calming gaze. You immediately loosen your jaw, fluttering your eyes shut when she runs her fingers through your hair, letting the rest of your muscles relax beneath her touch.

“Hey,” she calls to you gently and you open your eyes, leaning into her hands as she links them behind your neck, “I’ll be there.”

You smile up at her softly, pushing your body forward until you bury your head into Gerri’s stomach. She laughs, lightly scratching your scalp and tracing her fingers along the nape of your neck.

Everything is so easy with Gerri, you sometimes find it hard to believe that she’s real.

“Thank you.” You mumble into her shirt before looking back up to meet her eyes. “I can’t promise that it’s going to be the most fun time of your life, but-” The brunette squishes your face together to shut you up.

“Don’t worry about it, okay?”

You nod your head, slurring out an “okay” with your smushed face, making you and Gerri chuckle before she drops her arms back to her sides. You miss her touch instantly.

Standing up, you feel a lot lighter than you did before coming over. Gerri just knows how to make everything better and you’re already more at ease thinking about tonight knowing she’ll be by your side.

“I’m gonna go get ready right now and I’ll come pick you up at seven,” you say, opening her bedroom door and taking a backwards step across the threshold, “Just dress like you’re going to any regular formal event.”

“Well, now I’ve got a lot of clean options to choose from,” she gestures to her rack of clean clothes, “so I’ll see you at seven!”

“Cool,” you nod, feeling a small box of candy in your jacket pocket, “Oh! Almost forgot,” you toss her the heart-shaped candy that she happily catches, “I got those at the gas station for you.”

“How romantic,” Gerri smiles as she pulls one out, reading the little printed words aloud and she shows it to you, “Be Mine?”

Before you can wonder whether her tone in that question was serious or playful, she tosses the light pink sugar heart into the air and you easily catch it in your mouth. “Seven o’clock!” You remind her while making your way down the hall.

“Seven o’clock!” Gerri repeats back to you, now having the feeling that out of all the clothes hanging in her closet, she has absolutely nothing to wear.

- Seven O’Clock -

The clock barely changed and you’ve already checked your watch five times as you anxiously waited for Gerri to walk downstairs.

You couldn’t tell if the nerves were from the possibility of being late to the restaurant or the fact that you were taking Gerri out for dinner on Valentine’s Day—not that it was going to be a great one that you’d much rather take her on.

When it comes to the person you are or the people you surround yourself with, you don’t give a shit about what your parents think, but the last thing you want is for Gerri to see you differently and believe your future is becoming carbon copies of them.

“Sorry, sweetie,” Mrs. Fields—or Kate as she prefers—gives your shoulder a comforting squeeze as she notices how tense you are, “Gerri ran a quick errand after you left, so it took her a little while to start getting ready.”

“It’s no problem. The reservation isn’t for another hour anyways.” You say, nervously messing with a rose petal from the bouquet you brought. You didn’t really consider buying Gerri flowers until your drive back over here, thinking it’s the least you could do for her agreeing to endure this torturous night.

Gerri’s mom sits across from you at the dining room table, smirking as she observes the color of the flowers you choose to bring tonight, “Are these for Gerri?” Looking up from your fiddling, you nod your head, “You do know what yellow roses with red tips mean, right?”

No, you do not. You swallow dryly at this new information, “They have different meanings? I just thought they looked the coolest.”

The older woman laughs, only inflaming the intensity of your nerves, “I’m sure you’re fine, Y/n.”

“C’mon Kate, what do yellow roses with red tips mean?” You plead for an answer before panic begins to set in.

“Just friendship…” she shrugs, leaning back to take a sip of her wine, “amongst other things.”

Your eyes widen, making her laugh even more as you smile nervously, “What other things?”

“Honey, stop torturing the poor kid,” Mr. Fields gives you a supportive pat on the back, amused at your cluelessness and for a moment you’re content, “But seriously, you don’t know what the meaning behind these roses are?”

Burying your face deep into your hands, you groan helplessly at their teasing.

You’ve grown a little used to having Gerri’s parents mess with you about possibly crushing on their daughter, but you’d be lying if you said it doesn’t fluster you. Just when you think one of them is on your side, they team up against you in the end.

“What’s so funny down here?” Gerri’s voice fills the room, silencing her mom and dad’s laughter and drawing your attention to the kitchen’s entryway.

If your heart wasn’t racing already, now it’s only a couple of beats away from pounding out of your chest.

Dressed in a red quarter-sleeve dress with floral lace designs that leave just enough room for imagination, Gerri Fields made you forget how to breathe. The girl was already naturally beautiful, so it only made sense that she could transform herself into an even more attractive goddess.

You might just run late from staring at her in complete awe.

“Y/n/n, you okay?” She nervously grins, taking note of your flustered state.

“Uhh…” Clumsily standing from the chair that skids across the floor, you can’t bring yourself to take your eyes off her, “Yeah, I’m uh…” Danny picks up your bouquet of roses and pushes them into your chest. Without looking away, you hold onto them a little too tightly, “I’m good.”

Gerri giggles softly, walking forward until she’s standing in front of you, “Are these for me?”

With a small grin, you nod, now too mentally incapacitated to move your mouth to speak, especially when she bites her lip while smiling at you like that.

“They’re beautiful.” She says, purposely letting her touch linger on you as she takes the flowers from your hands.

“You’re beautiful.” Even you’re shocked by how naturally the words fell out of your mouth, possibly flustering you more than the blushing brunette in front of you.

She briefly hides her smile behind the bouquet before lowering them down so that she can lean forward to kiss you softly on the cheek. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.” You quietly say, nearly losing your voice towards the end of your sentence.

Caught in your own bubble that is Gerri, the two of you miss the knowing smiles her parents are sharing from behind you both.

Clearing your throat, you take a look at your watch and note that you still have plenty of time to make it to the restaurant. “Um, I have the car warming up in the driveway.”

Gerri’s eyes widened in realization, “Right! Sorry! Dad, could you…” she quickly hands him the roses and he moves to put them in a vase.

“Have fun, you two!” Kate yells from the kitchen as you and Gerri help put on each other’s coats by the front door.

You share a strained smile with the girl and snicker, both knowing tonight will most likely end in disaster. At least you’re not going through the fire alone this time and you wouldn’t want to have anyone else on your side.

During the 30 minute drive to the restaurant, you and Gerri sang along to every song that played on the Hits 1 radio, even the ones neither of you knew the lyrics to, and it set you at ease. Of course, Gerri’s presence alone brings you peace.

However, all of your anxiety came rushing back to the surface when you arrived at your destination.

You sat in front of the steering wheel silently for a solid five minutes, mentally preparing yourself for the amount of hell you’re going to be dragged through and how everything might go wrong. Before you can start biting at your fingernails, Gerri takes your hand and traps it between the both of hers.

“What’s going on in your head?” She asks, playing with the rings on your fingers.

“Just remembering that there’s a reason I don’t introduce anybody I care about to my family. They’re terrible people, Gerr,” leaning the side of your head against the seat, you look at the brunette, “I’ve learned how to put up with their bullshit, so I’m used to it by now, but if you’re having second thoughts about coming here with me then I—”

“Y/n.” Gerri halts your rambling, squeezing your hand between hers, “I’m here for you, okay? I don’t care how awful they are, I’m not going anywhere.”

You breathe out a large huff of air, leaning the back of your head into the headrest and closing your eyes, silently praying to any and every God that this won’t turn into the worst night of your life.

“Hey,” opening your eyes, you look back at Gerri, watching as she brings your hand to her lips and presses three soft kisses upon the skin, “All better?”

Three little big words nearly slip through your mouth, but you conceal them with a smile that nearly conveys the very message you’re keeping to yourself, “All better.”

With Gerri giving you the strength you need, you finally exit the car and her hand never leaves yours as you walk inside the restaurant.

When you give the hostess your last name, the two of you are immediately escorted to the same table your parents reserve every year. It’s a circular table that seats six in the back corner of the place, close enough to the restrooms and the A/C hits the area just right according to your mother.

God forbid anyone else takes this table and whoever does will have hell to pay. Five years ago, they made an unnecessary scene when another party was seated here and forced the manager to move them to another spot.

You still cringe at the memory to this day.

Arriving at the table, you see that your parents are already seated, but they're too distracted with their phones to realize that you’re there.

Realizing they’re not going to look up anytime soon no matter how close you get to them, you try to speak up, but your father beats you to the punch, “We’ll start with the bottle of white merlot.”

Goodness, at least this wasn’t the worst way the night could’ve started.

Gerri looks over at you and judging by the annoyance on your face, she comes to the conclusion that your dad doesn’t have a sense of humor and this isn’t him trying to be funny.

“Not the waiter, dad. It’s your child.”

His eyes never leave his phone, neither do your mothers. Instead, your dad sighs like he’d rather have the waiter here, “Hello, Y/n.”

It was pointless to go around to their seats and give them a hug like most loving children would. They weren’t exactly the physically affectionate type of parents—not with you anyways.

You shake your head before pulling out one of the empty chairs for Gerri, giving her a sorry smile as she sits down and you take the seat next to hers.

“You didn’t happen to catch your brother and his fiancee walking in, did you?” Your mother asks as you settle in.

“No, but there’s someone I want you guys to–”

“He said he’d be running late, dear.” Your father talks to your mom while scrolling through his phone.

“Guys, can you–” You try getting their attention, failing again.

“I told him traffic would be heavy right now. Hopefully they’re not too far out.” Your mom shakes her head, more concerned about your brother’s arrival rather than the stranger sitting at the table.

“Hello?” The music in this place isn’t blasting, so you know very well that they can hear you speaking.

“It looks like they’re fifteen minutes away on the tracking app.” Your dad shows her the map on his phone and she looks at it closely.

“Y/n talking here.”

“Oh yes, that’s not too far at all. They should get here right as the crabcakes are brought out. He likes them fresh.”

You clap your hands together loudly, finally capturing their attention, “Oh, good. Your ears are still working. Guys, this is my…” suddenly, you didn’t know how to introduce the girl next to you to them, your mind still calming down from them ignoring you seconds ago, “...Gerri. My-my friend Gerri.”

Blushing lightly at your first slip up, the brunette presses her lips together in a tight smile to the intimidating eyes that lock on her, “Happy anniversary, Mr. and Mrs. L/n. It’s really great to finally meet you both.”

They stare blankly at the girl in front of them without so much as a friendly smile back, then your mother looks at you, “You didn’t tell us you would be bringing a guest, Y/n.”

You clench your fist under the table, digging your fingernails into your palm to redirect the anger you’re beginning to feel, “I, uh I didn’t realize that I had to. No one usually sits in the extra chair and you guys always hound me about not bringing a friend, so…”

“I’m just saying it’s inconsiderate of you not to inform us beforehand that you were bringing someone with you. What if your brother also brought one of his friends with him?”

You shrug, “It’s almost like we’re in a restaurant that has extra chairs for that very unlikely instance.”

Your father points an accusatory finger at you and speaks in his authoritative voice, “Hey, don’t be rude to your mother, Y/n. She’s right, it was very thoughtless of you bringing this on us at the last minute.” He shakes his head at you in disappointment, returning to his cell phone.

You could go on about how rude they’re acting to Gerri after she kindly introduced herself to them, only to not even receive a simple ‘hello’ back. You would’ve taken a cold greeting in response rather than them ignoring her completely.

It was one thing for them to act like assholes to you, but when it came to the girl by your side, you were more than willing to call them out on their shit.

Before you can start a fight, Gerri keeps you from the screaming match by placing her hand over your tightened fist. Relaxing to her touch, she intertwines your fingers together and gently brushes her thumb across your skin.

“It’s okay.” She whispers with a soft smile, taking a deep breath that you instinctively mirror to relax. A small fragment of your stress fades for the moment and you give Gerri a grateful smile, reminding yourself that this dinner won’t last forever.

Your parents begin discussing work with each other, leaving you and Gerri completely out of the conversation, but you could care less.

You imagined the two of you sitting in the comfort of her bedroom, watching cheesy rom coms like Gerri had initially planned to do tonight.

Maybe you would find the moment to confess about the crush you’ve had on her since the day you met. You’d tell her how she’s the first person in your life who has ever felt like home.

You would say that you were in love, and in a perfect world, she would tell you that she feels the same.

You couldn’t say those three words out loud, not right now, so you secretly traced those letters on the palm of her hand instead.

Gerri’s lips twitch up into a faint grin when you initiate a few games of thumb war underneath the table, biting back laughter as you get a little more competitive each round. This is the first time you’re glad that your family is way too caught up in their own conversation to pay either of you any attention.

“The favorite has arrived!” Your older brother announces in a sing-song voice as he confidently saunters over to the table, his fiancée in tow a couple of feet behind him. Meanwhile, you and Gerri have broken out of your bubble.

The peace was nice while it lasted.

The bored expressions on your mom and dad’s faces change almost immediately, now beaming with happiness as their precious baby boy approaches. They stand up, engulfing their son with tight hugs and kisses on cheeks.

The stark difference as to how you were greeted shocks Gerri, but looking at your reaction or lack thereof, she can tell this was normal for you.

After your brother’s finished saying hello to your parents, he turns to you with a half-assed wave as he and his new wife take a seat, then his eyes land on Gerri.

“Who’s the new broad with you, Y/n? You had me convinced you didn’t have any friends.” He cackles idiotically.

How your brother has yet to get socked in the mouth for the things that come out of it is a mystery to you.

You wanted to confess your reasoning for never wanting to introduce your good hearted friends to your cold hearted family, but you save the argument.

“Yeah, good to see you too, Richard. This is Gerri.”

With a friendly smile, the brunette waves at him, “Hi, nice to meet you.”

He laughs like he’s just heard the funniest joke in the world, making Gerri shift in her seat uncomfortably, “Jerry? Like a guy? What, did your parents hope for a boy or were they on drugs?”

Oh. Fuck. No. You sit up a little straighter, slightly tightening your hold on Gerri’s hand, “It’s unisex, you ignorant piece of—”

“Y/n. Let’s not do this already.” Your mother quietly warns you from across the table, pinching the bridge of her nose.

“Do what? He’s being disrespectful to my friend.”

“It was a joke. No need to be so sensitive about it.” Richard rolls his eyes with a scoff, snickering arrogantly with the most idiotic grin.

“Oh, I must be the one losing my hearing at this table now because not a single person here thought that was funny.”

“Christ, Y/n, will you relax? I’ve been here for two seconds and you already have a stick up your ass for no damn reason,” he looks at Gerri, “You’re being paid to be here, aren’t you, sweetheart?”

You could tackle your brother where he sits. Your jaw clenches and you have to bite your tongue to keep you from flying out of your seat, “Talk to my friend like that again and I’ll put an actual stick up your ass, Dick.”

If there’s one thing that gets under your brother’s skin, it’s when you use his all-too-accurate nickname that he lives up to.

He scowls at you next, just as ready to jump you across this table.

“That is enough, Y/n!” Your dad silences you with his raised voice that means you’re already skating on paper thin ice, “We’re not putting up with this tonight, you hear me?”

Richard smirks in victory, knowing your parents will always take his side no matter how out of line he acts. With an annoyed huff, you lean back into your seat and refocus on Gerri’s hand that’s still holding yours.

You shouldn’t have brought her here and had you known your family would be this disgustingly rude to her, you wouldn’t have invited her in the first place. Gerri was too good of a person to have to sit through this.

“It’s Richard, right?” Gerri speaks up, earning your brother’s attention and he nods, “Well, Richard, the answer to your previous question is no, I’m not being paid to be here. Y/n talked about how important this night is to your family and because of how important they are to me, I came. I also don’t appreciate the inappropriate jokes you made to me like we’ve known each other for years even though we just met.”

“I assure you, he meant no ill intent with his comments towards you. That’s just how he is.” Your mother comes in for the rescue, making infinite excuses for the thirty year old man who has the brain of a psychotic, tantrum-throwing toddler.

“Seriously, mom? He’s a grown man. There’s no need to jump to his aid like he’s a kid who’s been pushed on the playground during recess.”

Richard rolls his eyes, “Jesus, why do you have to ruin the night for everyone? It’s mom and dad’s anniversary for Christ's sake.”

“You’re saying inappropriate things to my guest. If this were the other way around, all of you would be on my ass.”

“Yeah because every time you come out with us now, you act like a psychotic little brat. I honestly miss when you were quieter because your bullshit is fucking exhausting to put up with.”

You laugh heartily in disbelief, “Oh, you find me exhausting? Now that’s a great joke, Dick. Seriously.”

His face burns red and you can almost see smoke blowing out of his elephant ears, “Fucking Christ,” he groans, pausing for a beat as he debates on whether or not he should say more. With just enough wine in his system, he decides to say, “You know, this is exactly why I didn’t want you at our wedding.”

Your amused smile begins to fade and you give him an inquisitive look, “What the hell are you talking about?”

“Richie.” Your mother sighs as she pinches the bridge of her nose, but she doesn’t look guilty.

“What, you thought your invite got lost in the mail or something?” He teases with a sickening grin when he sees that he’s properly shut you up, “Thought it was just a simple mistake?”

“Rich.” Your father warns and that’s when you see the golden wedding band on Richard’s ring finger.

“Newsflash, you weren’t sent one in the first place and the way you’re acting tonight is a spectacular example as to why that was. I didn’t need you fucking things up on the happiest day of my life, so mom, dad and I came to an agreement. The wedding would be a close friends and family only event. We all think you’ve proven yourself to be neither of those things.”

You look to your parents, the smallest part of you hoping they’d come to your aid just for once in their goddamn lives. Instead, they remain silent in their seats, awkwardly sipping on their wine and avoid eye contact with you completely.

Fucking typical.

You could break down right at this table because of how terrible this night is going. Not that you expected anything less, but it was embarrassing to have this happening in front of the only person you care about in the room, witnessing you get tormented by the people who were supposed to love you unconditionally.

The sound of Gerri’s laughter catches you off guard and your attention turns to her.

“I’m sorry, are you people out of your mind? Do you-do any of you know anything about this person right here? Like, have you actually tried getting to know them?”

Your family is silent, some huffing out annoyed sighs, but you’re only staring at Gerri as she continues.

“Did you know they can finish a six page essay in one hour and end up getting an A? Or that they’re a master at balloon darts and can hit two at once? Or that they know every lyric to Taylor Swift’s entire discography? Or the fact they hate dancing but will do it anyway just to make you smile? Or that they will help you do just about any house chore out of the kindness of their heart without asking for anything in return?”

Your gaze softens as your heart fills with nothing but love for the woman sitting by your side. All you could look at was her and fall even deeper into all that she was–your parents and brother no longer taking an inch of space in your mind.

“Within the twenty-something years you had to really know your own child and sibling, I only needed one to see that they’re pretty fucking incredible and it absolutely blows my mind that such an amazing person can come from assholes like you.”

Eyes widening slightly at the sudden profanity, you look over at the mortified expressions on your family’s faces at Gerri’s closing statement. “How dare you speak to us that way, young lady.”

“No, how dare you for showing so much love and attention to Satan’s spawn while neglecting the literal best thing in your life.”

“I think it’s time for you to leave. Both of you.” Your father says sternly, looking around the establishment for a manager to wave over.

Gerri sighs in relief, pushing out her chair first and you slowly follow suit as she pulls you with her, “That we can agree on.”

Moving around the table, you don’t miss when Richard mutters, “Bitch.”

Knowing you’ve already caused a scene, you thought it wouldn’t hurt to spill his glass of red wine all over his white button up and khakis. “Dick.” You mutter back, not wasting another second being in their presence and quickly making your way out of the restaurant.

The drive back to Gerri’s house is radio silent, the two of you processing tonight’s catastrophe. When you pull up to the house, Gerri breathes heavily as you walk through the front door, the grip on your hand tighter than the one you had on hers.

While she was coming up with different ways to murder your family in her head, your mind was still reeling in the fact she had the courage to stick up for you in front of the people she just met and that you couldn’t love her more for it.

The brunette sighs in exhaustion, turning to face you when you find your way into her bedroom, her mind still running a million miles a minute from what just happened, “I’m sorry for flipping out in there, I just couldn’t fucking stand them talking to you like mmph–”

You abruptly cut Gerri’s sentence short, using your free hand to cup her face and press your lips against hers. She gasps in surprise, taking a few seconds to process the new sensation but then quickly matches the kiss before you can think about pulling away.

Her lips move against yours softly and sweetly as she feels her knees begin to weaken slightly, needing to slide her hands onto your shoulders to keep herself from falling.

Though you’re both completely lost in each other’s touch, Gerri suddenly recalls the situation you just walked out on and gasps, being the first to break the kiss.

“Oh my God, I totally fucked things up for you back there didn’t I?” She pants, her breath blowing across your face as hers remains close.

You could care less about the effects of tonight’s dinner from your parents. The one thing you knew for certain was you wanted to hold Gerri and not let her go, “I’ll figure it out.”

Your lips find Gerri’s again, feeling like it was exactly where you were supposed to be. The brunette sighs with contentment, her arms now wrapping around your neck to pull you closer as your hands slide down her waist.

“I really like you.” You say between kisses, making the girl laugh through her nose.

“I really like you, too.” She whispers.

Your big idiotic smiles makes it harder to keep kissing each other, but you do so anyways. With one last long lingering soft press against her lips, you slowly pull away, leaning back just enough to get a better look at the brunette’s face.

Her sea green eyes stare into yours longingly and you swear that looking into them feels like home. One that you’ve been searching for forever and one you’ve found that doesn’t need four walls and a roof, just those gorgeous orbs that make you feel the most peaceful you’ve ever felt.

“Y/n, I-”

“Gerr-”

You speak over each other, immediately laughing afterwards as your heads lean forward until they’re leaning together once more.

“You go first.” You offer.

“What if we both go?” Gerri suggests, brushing her nose against yours and making your head spin faster than it already was.

“What if we say two different things?”

She softly bites her lip, containing a small smile, “Call it a hunch.”

You chuckle, feeling your heart begin to beat harder and race faster at the thought of her thinking those same three words as you.

Leaning your head away, you meet her eyes and nod.

“Okay. On three.” You say, squeezing her waist in anticipation. “One.”

“Two.”

The both of you take a deep breath, “Three.”

“I love you.” You say in unison, making your breath hitch at the sound of her confession. For a moment you think you’re imagining things until Gerri smiles widely.

“God, I love you so much.” She repeats, pulling you forward by your shirt to bring your lips back to hers, kissing you slow and languidly.

Matching her tenderness, your hands slide around and up Gerri’s back, pressing her body impossibly closer to yours like she would fly away if you let her go.

She sighs against your mouth, guiding herself backwards until the backs of her knees meet the edge of the bed and she pulls you down on the mattress with her. One of your hands is quick to move onto the cushion to keep yourself from crushing the girl beneath you, but your lips never leave each other’s.

Beginning to lose oxygen, you reluctantly pull away but continue your trail of kisses over to her cheek, along her jawline, and down to her neck. Gerri’s eyes remain closed, fingers now tangling through your hair and your lips set her skin on fire.

She gasps softly when you find the spot that drives her crazy and she holds you there, craning her neck back to allow you more access and moaning as your tongue runs over her pulse point.

Before she can further lose herself in your touch and grow even more tempted to rip off your clothes in record time, something else pops into the brunette’s mind.

“Shit, I almost forgot!” She gasps, making you abruptly stop what you’re doing and pull away to look down at her with a worried expression.

“What? What is it?” You pant with a face of concern that makes Gerri smile adoringly.

“I got you something.” She says, pecking your lips once more before urgently pushing you to the side and making you roll over on your back.

Relieved that it wasn’t a serious matter, you chuckle as you watch her push off the bed and quickly grab a small box from the dresser.

You push yourself to sit up on the mattress when she takes a seat next to you, nervously biting her lip as she places the item in your hands.

“Little early for a proposal, isn’t it?” You tease, getting Gerri to nudge you slightly.

“Shut up and open it.” She wraps an arm around your back, tracing gentle patterns with her fingers while resting her chin on top of your shoulder and placing a kiss on your cheek.

You smile, excitedly examining the little cardboard box for a second before removing the cover and revealing a single golden key with a chain necklace and a small engraving of Gerri’s initials at the top. Recognizing each curve and edge of the metal, you immediately know what it’s meant to unlock.

“Now you’re able to come and go as you please, free of being pricked by digging through Barry to get the spare.” She tells you with a soft smile, taking the long chain out of the box and delicately placing it over your head until it rests on your neck.

Looking down at the gift, you take it between your fingers and graze your thumb along Gerri’s initials. A few tears build in your eyes, feeling more love from the beautiful soul next to you within a single night than you have for your entire life.

“You’ll always have a home here, Y/n.” She utters, one hand traveling up to scratch along the nape of your neck while she presses another kiss to the single tear falling down your cheek.

Chuckling softly, your head turns to look at the brunette with a loving stare that she returns. “Having you around alone, anywhere is home for me, Gerri.”