This outtake is dedicated to a lovely reviewer who goes by the name Kali Rose. I thank her for the idea :)
Summary: Erik and Nadir are invited to meet and eat dinner with Christine's family. This is what happens…
Welcome to the Family
"Nadir, honestly, why are we doing this?" Erik had been asking his friend the same sort of questions all day.
Nadir had been giving the same sort of answers all day. Replying calmly, he said, "Erik, we are having dinner with Christine and her family because she invited us. You told her we would come, remember?" He noticed the intended street name ahead, the street where Christine's house was located, and he put on his right turn signal.
Erik gritted his teeth. "Yes, I remember," he spat. "Do not talk to me as if I suffer from amnesia!"
That caused Nadir to suppress laughter.
"It is impossible to say 'no' to Christine," Erik mumbled. "Oh, how I wish I had…" He was dreading the coming meeting for two reasons. One, he hated eating in front of one person, much less a crowd of five. And two, he was not looking forward to the coming conversations he would be forced to take part in.
But, for Christine he would do anything. If 'anything' meant meeting and dining with her family, then so be it.
"Here we are," Nadir announced upon finding the correct street address.
They both noticed that the house was small and quaint. It was a one-story brick dwelling with many windows, and it was well lit and looked open and inviting. Erik noted that it suited Christine nicely. Actually, he found that looking at the house was calming him down, just as looking at Christine always calmed him down. Never would he openly admit to being nervous…but he was.
"Doesn't this look nice?" Nadir asked with a smile. He watched Erik shrugged indifferently. "Come now, old friend, everything will be fine. You must remember that you will not be alone with these people. Christine will be with you." I will be with you, too. He knew his being there would make no difference to Erik, though, so he refrained from reminding him.
"Yes, yes, I know," Erik said with a sigh.
They parked behind Christine's car in the driveway, got out, and walked to the front door. Nadir was carrying a nice plant to give to Christine's mother, which would serve as a gesture of thanks for being invited. When Nadir had explained to Erik what the plant was for, he had let out a short, sarcastic laugh and had insulted it. It was a typical reaction from someone such as Erik, so Nadir had overlooked it.
When they made it to the door, Erik reached out to knock on it, but Nadir shook his head at him and reached his own hand out to ring the doorbell. Erik only glared at him for interfering.
A moment passed before the door opened. Christine stood before them with a huge grin on her face.
Erik marveled at her appearance. She wore a tasteful blue sundress and sandals and had her hair pulled up in a clip with a few stray curls framing her face. "You look lovely," he murmured, almost forgetting their purpose for being there.
Christine blushed while smiling. "Thanks, but I'm just wearing what I wore to work. Nothing special." She watched as Erik's lips curled upward in a way that suggested he thought everything about her was 'special'. Then, she turned her attention to Nadir. "Hi Nadir." She looked at both of them. "Come on in. Dinner's almost ready. You can meet everybody while I finish up." She led them to the living room where Brian, Carrie, and Jeremy were seated. They stood when the three of them entered the room. "Erik, Nadir, this is Brian, my mom Carrie, and her husband Jeremy." She looked at her family. "This is Erik and Nadir."
"It's so good to meet you both," Carrie said, approaching them. Both Brian and Jeremy approached them, too. Hand shaking proceeded to take place.
Erik was feeling incredibly awkward and a bit claustrophobic by being in such close proximity to so many people. He couldn't recall the last time he'd been around five people at the same time. He noticed that Nadir was handling everything superbly, which made him a little jealous.
"It's nice to meet all of you," Nadir greeted, looking into the eyes of all three of them.
I must act normal, Erik suddenly thought. This will end up being a nightmare if I do not conform myself. Also, it will hurt Christine, and that is the absolute last thing I want. Be like 'Noah'! "Hello," he said a little too tensely next to all of the relaxed talking around him.
Christine looked from person to person satisfied. "Well, I'm going to finish dinner. You guys just make yourselves at home. You can get to know each other." She began to walk away. "I won't be long."
Erik was horrified as he watched his anchor for support leave the room. Now, he was left alone with these strangers…
"Come sit down. Would you like anything to drink?" Carried offered.
"No, no, that's quite alright," Nadir replied.
While feeling jealousy towards Nadir for his ability to be comfortable in such a situation, Erik merely shook his head.
They all sat down, Erik sitting in an arm chair and Nadir sitting on the couch next to Jeremy and Carrie. Brian was seated in a recliner. For a moment, a silence filled the room, but Nadir quickly ended it. "Oh, how forgetful of me. Carrie, this is for you. It is a gift of thanks for having us over," he explained while standing and giving the plant to her.
Carrie handled it carefully. "Thank you, Nadir. It's beautiful." She reached out to set it on the coffee table before taking her husband's hand.
"I understand you are newlyweds," Nadir said, striking up a conversation.
Jeremy nodded. "Yes, we've been married for about two months."
"Do you all live here?" Nadir asked in a polite way.
"Yes, Jeremy moved in after the honeymoon," Carrie replied while patting Jeremy's hand.
"I used to live in an apartment," Jeremy continued. "I've got to admit, living here is far better."
Everyone except for Erik laughed. He remained confused by what they found to be funny. Am I missing something? Being that he didn't get out much, he probably was missing something...
Surprisingly, it was Brian who spoke next, and his statement was directed towards Erik. "So, you and my sister have known each other for a while now."
Erik nodded skeptically, not knowing where the boy was going with this.
After a moment, Brian asked jokingly, "Aren't you sick of her yet?" He laughed.
"Brian!" Carrie exclaimed in a disapproving way, but she, Jeremy, and Nadir laughed.
I do not find that funny, Erik thought. He didn't say anything, although he wished to give this Brian a piece of his mind about his beloved Christine.
Brian knew from his many talks with Christine that Erik wasn't accustomed to lots of conversing. Oops, I should have known he wouldn't catch the joke.. "Only kidding," he reassured with a smile. From talking to Christine, he also knew not to bring up certain things, the mask and the fact that Erik was Noah Wellington being two of those things.
Erik sat thinking. Christine loves her brother very much. I should not act so hostile towards him. He was only joking, after all. Think like 'Noah', act like 'Noah'. "Yes, I know you were joking," he said, speaking more than one word for the first time. "You and your sister are very close." Brian nodded. "She thinks highly of you."
"Thanks," he said noticing how formal Erik was. It was a bit intimidating, but Brian didn't mention it.
"Christine tells me you like gardening," Carrie said, addressing Nadir. He smiled, which insinuated his reply. "I have gotten into it recently."
"Yes, your yard is manicured very tastefully," Nadir complimented.
Carrie's eyes brightened. "Thank you. From what Christine has told me, I take that as a high compliment."
Nadir chuckled and said, "She gives me too much praise."
Jeremy then asked Erik, "Christine tells me you like music?"
Erik could have laughed. I 'like' music? No, monsieur, I 'love' music. He had to admit that he was glad, though, that Christine hadn't emphasized how prominent music was in his life. Her telling Brian that he was Noah Wellington was enough. Erik didn't want her telling her mother or her stepfather, due to their past conflicts. Yes, Carrie's keeping her fiancé hidden from her children was in the past, but Erik still didn't like the fact that their mistakes had hurt Christine. Therefore, he didn't think they had the right to know of his other identity. The fact that Christine had confessed to telling her brother about Noah Wellington proved to Erik that he could trust her not to tell anyone else. "Yes, I am very fond of music." He chanced a glance at Brian to see his reaction, but his expression was unreadable. Good, he is aware that he must remain silent about it.
"Christine told us that you sing. I myself am a singer," Jeremy said, though in a humble manner. "I sing in the church choir and the community chorus."
"Singing is an enjoyable activity." Erik didn't really know what else to say to that.
They continued participating in small talk for a few more minutes before Christine reentered the room. "Ok, dinner's ready." Quite frankly, she was really proud of herself. Making an elaborate dinner for six people was something she'd never done before. She only hoped they would like it…
The six of them moved to the dining room and sat at the table, Jeremy and Brian sitting at the ends, Carrie sitting beside Jeremy, Nadir sitting beside Brian, and Christine and Erik sitting next to each other. The food was in elegant silver serving dishes arranged in the middle of the table.
"There's roast beef, potato casserole, green beans, salad, and bread, " Christine awkwardly announced. "Um, help yourselves."
Everybody prepared their plates, passing the silver dishes around the table and laughing and talking. Well, everybody except for Erik was laughing and talking. Erik was busy concentrating on getting small portions and wondering how he would be able to eat with this many people around. It was going to be awful and embarrassing, he knew.
Christine seemed to notice his inward dilemma, and she touched his arm. He looked into her green eyes, and she smiled at him reassuringly without speaking.
Erik returned her smile feeling the usual calmness she always brought about. He turned to his food and finally took a bite. It tasted wonderful, as he knew it would. His love was so talented.
The next few minutes were made up of people eating and complimenting Christine on how good it tasted.
"So that's what working in a restaurant does," Brian said with a grin. "It turns my sister into a chef." They all laughed, even Erik.
"I'm only a waitress, Brian. I'm not one of the cooks," Christine pointed out.
"Oh, that's right. You are only a waitress," he replied with a smirk.
Christine smirked, too. "And you are only annoying."
"So, Erik and Nadir," Jeremy began loudly, so as to block out the sibling rivalry. "What do you do for a living?"
Nadir looked at Erik for a second before turning to Jeremy and replying, "I publish music for a company."
The way the conversation was leaning was making Erik uncomfortable. He supposed he would respond as Nadir had, though- stating the truth but not elaborating. "I compose."
"Wow, you're both in the music business?" Carrie asked. "That's interesting." She laughed then. "Does Nadir publish any of your music?"
That made Erik's mouth become rather dry. He could only shake his head in the negative, trying to keep the lie going.
Christine spoke up. "Erik only composes for a hobby, Mom." She, too, had to be in on the lie.
Before Jeremy or Carrie could ask anymore questions relating to their jobs, Brian stepped in and began talking to Nadir. "Christine says we're alike in a few ways, Nadir."
Nadir was glad for the switch in topics. "Oh? And what might those be?"
Brian looked at Christine. "You're both good at giving advice," she said. "If it weren't for you two, things might be different right now."
Erik stopped eating and looked at her. "What might be different?" Everyone else seemed to know what she was talking about, but he was rather oblivious.
"Well.. us," she replied while blushing. "We might not be together right now if we hadn't talked to Brian and Nadir."
Thinking about it, Erik recalled telling Christine in the past about Nadir's mentoring ways. The man really had talked some sense into his head, and truth be told, he really was grateful. "Yes, perhaps you are right."
That was when Brian and Nadir began telling each other about all of the advice they had given Christine and Erik. The more they talked and shared their stories, the more they began picking on Christine and Erik.
And Christine and Erik didn't like it, to say the least.
"Christine actually wanted to meet Erik in a park alone at night. Can you believe that?" Brian was getting a kick out of being able to talk to someone about this and actually be understood.
"Really?" Nadir asked in shock. "Well, Erik wasn't even aware of his own feelings until I had to tell him."
"Now see here, Kahn," Erik belted, not being able to restrain himself. The whole table went quiet. He blinked at the sudden silence. Had he truly startled them? Well, the two of them had said enough, so perhaps a good scare was what they needed.
"Yeah, Brian," Christine said, agreeing with Erik. "The two of you can't just sit there and talk to each other like we're not even in the room. And even if we weren't in the room, Jeremy and Mom still are." What Christine didn't know was that Jeremy and Carrie had hardly paid attention to what Brian and Nadir said. They were too busy softly flirting with each other. "What you're saying is private," Christine continued, crossing her arms.
Erik couldn't have said it better himself, so he stayed silent.
Nadir became apologetic, although there was still a slight smile on his face. "I'm sorry, you two."
"But it's still funny, isn't it?" Brian asked grinning.
"No," Christine and Erik said together.
Everything went quiet again, so the group continued eating.
Eventually, Carrie brought up something she had been wanting to address. "Your relationship is still young. There's still so much you have yet to experience together."
Christine immediately blushed.
Carrie disregarded it and abruptly got to the point. "What are your plans for the future, Erik?" She didn't know Erik well at all, so she wanted to know his intentions concerning her daughter.
For once, Erik wasn't oblivious. He knew what Christine's mother was getting at. "Like all futures, my future is subject to change. However, I do see Christine in my future."
She liked his choice of words. "What I mean to say is, marriage is a very large commitment and the two of you have not been together for long. I can see that this is a serious relationship. Just take your time."
Christine was mortified that her mother would bring something as serious as marriage up at the dinner table in front of everyone.
Erik wasn't feeling that way, though. Marriage had been on his mind quite a lot, as of late. "Believe me when I say this," he began slowly. "I take the concept of marriage very seriously. I do not plan to propose until the time is just right. You are correct, Christine and I have a lot to experience before we can think about wed-lock."
Now Erik's talking about it, too? Christine thought in a state of disbelief.
Carrie could tell they were on the same page. "Good," she said simply.
The rest of the table seemed to be as shocked as Christine.
"Well, this was delicious," Erik announced cheerfully, which proved to be just as shocking as the previous topic of conversation.
"D-dessert," Christine remembered, still getting over her shock. She stood, said, "I'll be back," and headed towards the kitchen. They were having chocolate pie for dessert.
Everything was pretty quiet while they ate the final course of the meal. Maybe they were all still thinking about the marriage prospect, or perhaps they were just out of things to say. No one knew.
What was known was that Christine and Erik would feel much more comfortable if they were alone together, Carrie and Jeremy would feel like they could flirt more if it were just the two of them, and Brian and Nadir would very much like to spend some time talking more about Christine and Erik, but they couldn't while other people were around.
Thus, the joy of the get together was dying down. It had become old.
"This was an excellent meal, Christine," Nadir complimented. "You outdid yourself." They all seemed to agree and stood from the table.
Christine wouldn't let them clean up, claiming that Brian would help her later, much to his surprise.
Everyone could sense the coming departure, so Nadir spoke first. "It was nice meeting all of you. We thank you for your hospitality."
Erik nodded, not really knowing what to say or add.
"Thank you so much for coming," Carrie said.
They all walked to the foyer and said their goodbye's, but Erik wasn't ready to part with Christine just yet. The couple stepped outside onto the front porch while Nadir went to start the car.
Once they were as alone as they could be, Erik leaned down to kiss Christine. "The meal was wonderful, darling. As Nadir said, you outdid yourself."
Christine smiled. "I'm glad you liked it. What you think means more to me than anything else." While hugging him, she brought up what she was really curious about. "So, about what you and my mom were talking about at the table..."
"Yes?" he asked with a small smile wanting her to continue.
"Well, it seemed like you were telling her that we're going to get married someday." Just the word 'marriage' made her want to giggle.
"Christine, that is entirely up to you," Erik said seriously while holding her hands. "Yes, I want to marry you. The moment I realized that I love you, I knew that I wanted to be with you for the rest of my life."
"I want to be with you for the rest of my life, too," she whispered with a few tears in her eyes.
Erik chuckled and kissed her forehead. "As your mother said, though, there are many things we need to experience first."
Christine nodded in understanding.
"When the time is right, we will both know it." He watched her for a moment before frowning. "It seemed like our conversing about marriage really disrupted everything at the table."
Laughing, Christine hugged him and said, "Just the first of many interesting family gatherings."
Erik thought about it and smiled contently before wrapping his arms around the woman he loved.