The Announcement
Violet looked at the pictures in the hallway. In one particularly pretty frame was a couple on their wedding day. The groom was good looking in that undeniably nerdy way. The bride was beautiful in that drop-dead gorgeous kind of way.
"So," she thought to herself, "These are my future in-laws. Hmmm...They look normal enough. What was Wilbur talking about?" Nervously, she practiced her introduction, should Wilbur not be back in time to introduce her. "Hello Mr. and Mrs. Robinson...or should I call you Cornelius and Franny?" No, no, that wasn't right. She tried again. "So you're who Wilbur talks about all the time! I was beginning to think he was actually an orphan and just making you up!" Then she remembered that her future father-in-law had been in an orphanage for nearly thirteen years before becoming a Robinson. Oops. Maybe orphan jokes weren't a good idea. She was about to try a different approach when she heard footsteps approaching and turned around.
"Hey sweetheart," her fiancé said as he walked briskly to her and stood by her side. "I see you've met my parents." She laughed, exhaling at the same time, in relief.
"Sort of...I'm practicing. You scared me, by the way. I'm nervous."
"Don't be," he said, kissing her forehead. "They're going to love you. They can't believe a found a girl who's willing to put up with me. When they see I found an AMAZING girl who LOVES me...well, they'll be ecstatic, to say the least."
"Oh Wil—"
He interrupted.
"What? I feel it only fair to warn you about their enthusiasm!" She smiled.
"I hope that's the case."
"It will be." He gave her hand a little squeeze. "Trust me."
[Down the hall…]
"Franny?" Cornelius yelled.
"I'm in here!" a voice responded.
"Where's 'here'?" He hated it when she did this. "Honey, I can't follow your voice through this house."
"What? You haven't invented a tracker for your wife?" She walked out of the kitchen with her apron still on, her hair a little messed up in the front. "Did you need something?"
"Well, no...I just thought you should know that Wilbur's car is parked in the front."
"They're here already?" She whipped off the apron and started fixing her hair. "Lewis, get the door and just talk to them a bit while I freshen up...please."
"Just remember—Don't call me Lewis in front of them. His girlfriend may not understand your going back and forth between two names."
"Oh dear, I'm sure he's told her," she laughed. "They've been dating for a while, haven't they?"
"Yeah, that's true. At least a year I think. But just—"
"I know, I know. Now please go answer the door, they're probably already inside and waiting at the entryway."
"I'm going," Cornelius said. "Don't you take too long. You look beautiful. Improve any more and Violet might think you're Wilbur's sister."
Just as Franny had predicted, Wilbur and Violet were standing in the entryway. Cornelius heard them talking in hushed tones as he walked down the hall.
"But it hasn't been very long," He heard the young woman say.
"I know, but they'll understand. Relax, Vi."
"Didn't you say they dated for four years before getting married?"
Cornelius stopped. Married? He waited for a moment to gain his composure, then walked in calmly.
"So you're who Wilbur's been talking about all the time!" He said, shaking her hand. "Franny and I were beginning to think he'd been making you up, dating some imaginary girlfriend!"
Violet smiled. 'I might have been able to get away with that first introduction after all,' she thought, then responded, "I was beginning to think the same about you and Fr—your wife."
"You can call us by our first names, young lady," he said warmly. "Anyone who means so much to Wilbur is practically family." He gave a barely noticeable wink to his son. "Isn't that right?"
Wilbur gulped. How did his dad know? How much did he know? Was he okay with this? Apparently, he had been a little more apprehensive than he'd let on when talking to Violet (or when reassuring himself). He just nodded.
"Well, Franny was busy finishing up in the kitchen when you got here, but she'll be out shortly. In the meantime, make yourself at home," Cornelius pointed to the living room chairs and sat in the one kitty corner from the fireplace.
"Thank you," Violet said quietly, sitting in the loveseat with a very anxious looking Wilbur. "Wil told me you were nice, but I didn't expect to feel this welcome." She blushed at her own honesty. "I guess I should have known, after dating this guy though, huh?" She squeezed her fiance's hand and smiled sweetly at him. Cornelius smiled as well at this sincere sign of affection, and was just about to offer to get some beverages when Franny came into the room.
"Sorry I'm late," she said apologetically.
"Oh no, no...We're actually a little early," Violet said, getting up to greet who she knew would be her future mother-in-law. Instead of a handshake, Franny gave her a warm hug, then beckoned to Wilbur.
"Wilbur, get over here and give your mother a hug! I haven't seen you in four months!"
Wilbur walked over and obliged her, and she kissed him on the cheek. "Thank you," she said. "And I'm so glad you finally decided to let us meet this mystery girl." Her eyes were twinkling as she looked at her son. "We've heard so many good things about you," she said to Violet. "And you're even sweeter and more beautiful than he told us! And, like I said, he's told us a lot."
"Oh, don't believe all of it," Violet said, playfully hitting Wilbur on the arm. "He tends to exaggerate, and you're too kind, really."
"Don't be so modest," Franny said, "For once, he didn't exaggerate." She put her hand on Violet's shoulder. "Are you starving or would you like a tour first?"
"Well, if the food's ready, then I can wait on the tour," Violet said, looking back at Wilbur for agreement. "What about you? You said you were pretty hungry on the drive up."
"Yeah, yeah," Wilbur said. "Let's eat first."
Other than Wilbur's silence, the dinner conversation was quite pleasant. Wilbur had made his parents promise to send the hoards of relatives off on a cruise, so as not to overwhelm his girlfriend. Now, he had his parents, and only his parents, to inform. For the appetizer and the main course, he waited for the perfect time, but soon realized that time would never come. He simply had to come out and say it. Taking Violet's hand, he whispered, "This is it. You alright?" She nodded, smiling ear-to-ear.
"I have an announcement," said the young Robinson, clinking his spoon against the wine glass. His parents looked at each other. He continued. "As you know, Violet and I have been dating for a while now—"
"Seven months," she interjected.
Wilbur cleared his throat. "Yes, seven months…" His mother now looked a bit concerned. Wilbur had given them a different story over the phone. Now, in her gut, she knew what was about to happen, and she understood why he had stretched out the dating period in his version of the story.
"…and we're getting married!" Wilbur said the last part quickly and sat back down. He looked at his mother's shocked expression, as she turned to Cornelius, then looked back at her son and his now fiancé. She cleared her throat and lifted her glass,
"Well, that's great!" she said, smiling. "A toast to our son and our future daughter!"
Hugs ensued, and the usual "Congratulations" and "We knew the way he talked about you…" comments. The rest of the evening went off without a hitch, and everyone seemed to be in high spirits as the two left to go back to their university dorms. Shutting the door, Franny's expression immediately changed. She looked at her husband for some emotional response to what had just happened.
"Well?!" she put her hands on her hips.
"Well,' what?" he replied.
"Aren't you going to…I don't know…react to this? Our son, our only son, who has been known to have poor judgment in the past, who leaps before he thinks, who hasn't finished school, and who has only had ONE serious girlfriend for SEVEN months, is now marrying that girlfriend!" She stopped, a little out of breath. This sort of outburst wasn't like her. The last time Cornelius had seen her even close to being this upset had been when their son busted one time machine, caused the other to be stolen, and risked upsetting the future of their family by bringing him, twelve-year-old Cornelius (then called Lewis), to the present time.
"Cornelius…?" Franny was speaking softer now. "Don't you have anything to say about this?"
"She seems like a sweet, intelligent girl," he said calmly, and put his hands on her shoulders. "I'm sure everything will be fine."
Franny sighed, and leaned on his shoulder. "I hope so," she said. "For both their sakes."
