Rory was nervous. Well that was the understatement of the year. He wasn't sure he'd ever been so nervous in his entire life. And that includes the time he got up in front of the entire school to sing alone in the fourth grade. He's pacing in front of his laptop, waiting for the little gray icon next to his father's name to turn green. He checked his watch. It was already two minutes past seven. They were late.
"Rory, calm down," Sebastian piped up from Rory's bed. Rory's pacing was making him nervous, and Sebastian wasn't normally a nervous person. In fact, he couldn't even remember the last time he had been nervous. But he wanted Rory to calm down, because now he was getting the idea that Rory's parents were not going to be okay with him.
"I know. Sorry." Rory said, sitting down next to Sebastian. He didn't know why he was so worked up about all of this. His parents had been fine when he'd first told them about Sebastian. In their conversations since, they'd always made sure to ask how Sebastian was doing. But this was the first time Rory had ever introduced anyone to his parents that wasn't just a friend.
Rory looked at the screen as he heard the familiar tone that told him he was getting a call on Skype. Before he had moved to the US, he'd never really used Skype before. In fact, he had gotten it solely for the purpose of talking to his parents, and he'd made great use out of it. He and his parents did this at least every other night. They'd even met Brittany, although that was an entirely different story. Rory and Sebastian crossed the room, seating themselves in front of the screen, where they could both be seen. Rory took a deep breath and clicked the "accept" button.
He smiled immediately when his parent's faces popped up on his screen. It was nice to know that even though they were on the other side of the sea, he could still find a way to see them when he wanted to. It wasn't the same as sitting down to dinner with them, or having breakfast before school with them. Though the Pierces were just as cheerful as his parents were, so he was quite happy about that.
"Hi Mommy. Dad." Rory said with a little wave. He kind of wanted to kick himself because he'd learned rather quickly that Mommy was a rather childish term to call your mother here in America. He looked to Sebastian, kind of embarrassed.
"Hi Rory!" His mother said brightly, and now he couldn't be bothered to be embarrassed because seeing his mother made him happy.
"Hi kid." His dad said, smiling.
"Guys, this is Sebastian," Rory said, putting a hand on Sebastian's shoulder. Sebastian gave them a small wave, smiling.
"It's so nice to finally met you. We've heard so much about you," Rory's mother gushed, and Sebastian blushed, grinning sheepishly at Rory as Rory ducked his head at the comment. Rory's father nodded his head in agreement and his mother went on with, "You're every bit of attractive that Rory said you were."
"Mommy!" Rory cried, rubbing his hands over his face in embarrassment, and Sebastian laughed. Rory was utterly adorable like this.
"Thank you, Mrs. Flanagan," Sebastian responded, smiling brightly. That nervousness Rory's pacing had filled him with was gone now, and he was completely confident again. More himself. He'd had no reason to really worry after all. Of course, this conversation was probably going to determine how Rory's parents felt about Sebastian, but he was going to be as charming as ever and win them over.
"So we hear that you attend a different school from Rory." Rory's father stated, and Sebastian nodded. Rory just sat back, watching Sebastian converse with his parents. This was their conversation. This was their chance to get to know the boy he'd fallen for. He blushed a little as he thought it. It was still a new realization for him.
"Yeah. I go to this private school called Dalton Academy," Sebastian answered, leaning forward a bit. "Normally, I'm in uniform."
"Oh, really? We'd love to see that sometime," Mrs. Flanagan answered, and Sebastian nodded.
"We'll have to take pictures sometime, or something." Sebastian said to Rory, more for his parent's sake. They already had pictures of the two of them. Plenty, actually. Sebastian was kind of surprised that Rory hadn't already shown his parents. Perhaps he'd been waiting for this specific thing to happen.
"Oh, that would be so nice! I could make something up for you guys if I had pictures!" Mrs. Flanagan said excitedly. Rory shook his head, grinning, as he saw his father roll his eyes. Sebastian shot Rory a questioning look.
"My mom is into scrapbooking stuff," Rory explained and Sebastian's eyes widened for a moment as a small noise of understanding escaped his lips.
"Oh, Rory, dear, I should send some of the albums to you so Sebastian can see them!" Mrs. Flanagan said, smiling widely.
"Why can't you just show him on camera, honey?" Mr. Flanagan chimed in and Mrs. Flanagan's eyes widened considerably as she considered the suggestion. Rory bit back a groan as his mother quickly got up from her chair and left the room. Mr. Flanagan smirked at Rory and Rory stuck out his tongue.
"You get to see all of the ridiculous photographs, Sebastian." Mr. Flanagan grinned, teasing Rory. Sebastian just laughed, enjoying the moment. Rory's parents seemed wonderful, and Sebastian found himself wishing he had parents like Rory's.
"Can't wait," Sebastian said, rubbing his hands together as he leaned back in his seat.
"I didn't think this was going to turn into a 'let's embarrass Rory' video chat," Rory grumbled, looking at his father, who just laughed.
"Come on, son. Did you really expect anything less?" Mr. Flanagan chimed, and Sebastian nudged Rory's shoulder with his own, taking Rory's hand in his. Rory sighed and smiled at Sebastian, hoping this wasn't too embarrassing. He watched as his mother came back into the room and slid into the chair next to his father's. His father wrapped his arm around his mother, resting it on the back of her chair, and the simple act warmed Rory as he hoped he would have that some day. He looked sideways at Sebastian. Or maybe he already did.
"Alright, so we'll start with baby Rory," Mrs. Flanagan beamed, opening the album in her hand to show the first picture, a naked Rory all tangled up in his baby blanket as he chewed on the little stuffed teddy in his little hands. Rory flushed red as he realized that yes, this was going to be just as embarrassing as he'd known it would be.
"That is adorable," Sebastian said, squeezing Rory's hand. Mr. Flanagan just chuckled, watching his son's face redden even more. This video chat was well worth it. He couldn't wait until they actually met the couple in person. He looked sideways at his wife, wondering if she had told Rory they'd be coming for a visit soon. But then, Rory hadn't mentioned it at this point, and if he hadn't, then he probably didn't know.
"Now, this is my favorite." Mrs. Flanagan said as she flipped to show another photograph of Rory, again completely naked.
"He didn't like clothes as a kid. Neither of the boys did." Mr. Flanagan commented and Sebastian bit back a reply. Better if he didn't say that Rory still didn't like clothes. That's no way to win over the other boy's parents. Not to mention, that would probably piss off Rory as well. Rory squeezed Sebastian's hand, knowing exactly what was going through his mind.
"Clothes are evil," Rory laughed.
"We had to get him from school when he was five because once he got into the classroom, he thought it was okay to strip down to his knickers. He tried to take those off, too, but the teacher convinced him to keep those on."
Rory sank down in his chair, hiding his face as Sebastian burst into laughter. Mr. and Mrs. Flanagan were laughing, too as they tried to tell the story between fits of laughter. Rory just wanted to beat his head against the desk. Who's idea had this been again?
Sebastian was enjoying himself as he went through old pictures of Rory with Rory's parents. He wished that it could be in person, as he was sure it'd be even more fun. He was even taking a little amusement from how embarrassed Rory was getting. He could see that Rory's father was as well. He got the impression that Rory was a lot like his father, but probably a lot closer to his mom.
He had never introduced Rory to his own parents, though he probably could have at any time. Sebastian's parents were less likely to be enthusiastic over the whole thing, and it'd probably be something like a really quiet dinner. Nothing like this. Sebastian could picture Rory with his family, sitting around a small table, talking and laughing incessantly. He wished he had a family like that. A family that was close like Rory's.
He laced his fingers with Rory's. He didn't know if Rory was "the one". He didn't know what was going to happen after Rory went back home. He didn't know if Rory would move to America or if he would move to Ireland. He wasn't sure about anything, other than the fact that he wanted Rory to be "the one". He wanted them to move in together – wherever they might want to – and have careers and start a family. He wanted them to make their kids lunches every morning and sit down for a family meal every night. He wanted to do this fun thing where they embarrassed the hell out of their kids in front of their boyfriends and girlfriends like Rory's parents had done to Rory.
He wanted all of that with Rory.
"It was really nice meeting you, Sebastian. You're such a charming young man, and it's clear you make our little Rory very happy." Mrs. Flanagan said, looking at Sebastian. Sebastian glanced at the screen, beaming.
"You're a nice kid. Keep our boy out of trouble, son." Mr. Flanagan said, agreeing with his wife. He looked over at Rory and could see the relief flood the other boy's eyes as he practically heard the approval in his parents voices.
"Thank you, Mr. and Mrs. Flanagan. I had such a great time, and it was nice to finally get to meet the two of you as well," Sebastian said, not even needing to put forth his most charming smile. He hadn't had to work his way into their good graces. He had just been him and they had liked him.
"We'll talk to you tomorrow, Rory. And sweetie, make sure you get your homework done." Mrs. Flanagan said, and Rory rolled his eyes but said he would.
"Don't stay up too late, either. Don't want you sleeping in class." Mr. Flanagan said, and Rory nodded.
"Bye Mommy. Bye Dad." Rory said, smiling.
"Goodnight, Rory."
"Bye son."
And with that, Rory's parents were no longer on the screen, having ended the call. Sebastian looked at Rory, who was grinning as he rubbed the back of his neck. He was relieved that his parents had like Sebastian. Deep down, he had known that they would, but he had still worried over it.
"So what's your verdict?" Sebastian asked softly, caressing the back of Rory's hand with his thumb.
"They definitely like you." Rory beamed.
"I like them, too. They seem absolutely wonderful." Sebastian admitted. "I can't wait to meet them in person."
"Me neither. Oh, and don't freak out, but you're practically part of the family now." Rory told Sebastian, and he felt the warmth pool in his stomach as his cheeks heated. Rory probably had no idea what something like that meant to him, but he would see after he met Sebastian's own parents. Which he was going to have to do soon.
"I was wondering if you'd like to meet my parents. They're definitely not as cool as yours, but it only seemed fair, considering I've met yours."
"I'd love to." Rory grinned, leaning forward and kissing Sebastian's cheek. "You really think my parents are cool? They're kind of crazy. And embarrassing."
"But that's what makes them so much fun," Sebastian laughed. "I can't wait to do this whole video chat thing with them again. I'm sure your dad will find even more fun ways to embarrass you, and I'll have fun watching you get all embarrassed."
"Shut up." Rory laughed as Sebastian leaned in and gave him a soft kiss on the lips.