"Meena when is that boyfriend of yours gonna show up?" Meena's grandfather called from the living room where he had previously been napping in his favorite armchair. Meena, who was in the kitchen making lunch with her mother, exchanged an exasperated look with her mother.

"He'll be here soon Grandpa!" she called back and then focused back on the vegetables that she was chopping for the potpie. But her grandfather wasn't quite done ranting and he called out from the living room once more.

"That boy is already late. He's not makin' a very good first impression!" her Grandpa yelled out and Meena had to take a deep breath to relax herself.

"Grandpa he's not supposed to be here for another half hour! And you've already met him before… multiple times." She called out and added the vegetables into a bowl with the other ones that she had chopped earlier. She wiped her hands off on a towel and walked into the room where her grandparents were sitting. Her grandmother was sitting on the couch, engrossed in her favorite soap opera while her grandfather was reading the newspaper in his armchair.

"Doesn't give the boy an excuse to be late. We did invite him over for dinner. Least he can do is be courteous." He grumbled and Meena sighed, looking at her grandfather sternly.

"Be nice to Johnny when he gets here Grandpa. He's really excited to come to dinner with us tonight." She scolded her grandfather but he just harrumphed and went back to reading his paper.

Meena rolled her eyes and headed back to the kitchen. She was halfway there when there was a knock at the front door. Her face immediately lit up with excitement and she hurried over to the front door. She opened it up to find Johnny standing there with a small bouquet of fresh-picked daisies.

"Wotcha love." He gave her his signature crooked smile and offered her the flowers. She accepted them with a grin and sniffed them happily.

"Aww Johnny you know I love daisies." She said softly and held the flowers close to her chest. Johnny shrugged and Meena stepped aside so he could enter the house. She shut the door behind him and when she turned around he was watching her with a soft smile on his face.

"Wh-what are you looking at?" She nervously looked down at her clothes to see if anything was out of place.

"I'm lookin' at ya. Ya look beautiful." He said softly, cupping her cheek in his hand.

"That's ridiculous. I'm covered in flour and veggies from being in the kitchen all day. I need a shower, a change of clothes, and-" she stopped when he put a finger to her lips and leaned in close, pecking her lips gently.

"Ya always look beautiful ter me." He whispered and leaned in for another kiss. Meena giggled and looked around to make sure her family wasn't watching before leaning in and returning his kiss.

"Meena! Who's at the door honey?" Her mom called out from the kitchen and Meena immediately pulled back from Johnny and led him to the kitchen where her mother was mashing potatoes in a large bowl.

"Look who showed up early." Meena said and gently pushed Johnny towards her mother. Leslie immediately enveloped him in a warm hug and Johnny eagerly hugged her back. She hummed as she squeezed him tight before releasing him and turning back to the potatoes.

"Well hello there stranger." Leslie teased Johnny who just chuckled and shrugged slightly, "I know that you're probably gonna try and steal my daughter away but we aren't even close to being ready so you'll have to wait." She winked at him and then went back to cooking, humming to herself. Meena rolled her eyes when he pouted dramatically and pushed him away towards the living room when he tried to get another kiss from her. He laughed playfully and backed out of the kitchen when she threatened him with a spoon.

"Good evening Mr. and Mrs. Jones." He said politely as he entered the living room and found Meena's grandparents sitting there. Meena's grandmother smiled up at him and gave him a little wave before focusing back on her soap opera. Meena's grandfather threw down his newspaper with a huff and pointed towards the couch where his wife was sitting.

"Sit down over there boy. I've got something to show you." Johnny looked over at the couch curiously but quickly sat down in the middle cushion next to Meena's grandmother. Meena's grandfather hefted himself up out of his armchair and walked over to the bookshelf. He retrieved a thick purple album and then hobbled over to the couch. He sat down next to Johnny and looked him up and down with a critical eye.

Johnny shrunk away uncomfortably and looked around desperately for an escape, but he was trapped. Meena was still busy in the kitchen with her mother and Meena's grandma was too absorbed in the TV to save him. He was at the mercy of Meena's grandfather, which was a very dangerous position to be in.

Meena's grandfather leaned in and Johnny tried desperately to back away but there was nowhere to run. He felt a bead of sweat roll down his face and he stared into the steely eyes of the old elephant who was glaring at him.

"My granddaughter…" he practically growled out and Johnny audibly gulped in fear, "Is an angel. She's perfect. Always has been, always will be."

Johnny nodded quickly, desperately hoping that this was the end of the scary interrogation, but he was not that lucky. Apparently despite his nodding, the scared look on his face meant that he disagreed because Mr. Jones's eyes narrowed and he frowned over at him.

"You don't agree with me boy?" he growled and Johnny frantically began shaking his head and trying to stutter out a reply.

"O-of course I agree w-wif ya sir. Sh-she's amazin'. Fantastic!" he got a little frantic when Mr. Jones's face remained unchanged throughout his explanation.

"Well I'm gonna prove it to ya boy!" He suddenly exclaimed and pulled the album out from under his arm, brandishing it as if it was a weapon. Johnny's fear turned to curiosity, as he looked down ad the album. On the cover, written in all capitals was Meena's name. He smiled when he saw that below the original label a child had obviously written Meena in marker.

Mr. Jones opened the album and the first page was a photo of a tiny baby elephant swaddled in a purple blanket being cradled against Leslie's chest. Johnny's heart immediately melted and he leaned in closer to see the picture better.

"She was beautiful from the moment she was born." Mr. Jones's voice was suddenly softer and he stroked the picture with one hand. He seemed to forget that he wasn't a big fan of Johnny as he turned the page to a picture of a young Meena clutching a teddy bear and sucking on her thumb.

Johnny held back the snicker that tried to break free from his lips as he waited for the story that was sure to accompany the photo.

"That was Patchy, Meena's favorite toy when she was a little kid. She never let him go." He chuckled to himself and looked over at Johnny who froze but relaxed when he saw that Mr. Jones was smiling instead of glaring.

"Every time we needed to wash him we would have to take him from her while she was sleeping and throw him in the washer. In order to do it before she woke up we had to get up at three in the morning and run a covert operation." He laughed and Johnny nervously joined in, "Usually we would get it back to her before she woke up but one morning she got up early and found him missing. She cried the entire time we 'looked' for him and when she saw him in the washer she sat next to it with her hand on the door and cried until the cycle was over." Johnny chuckled and felt a warm feeling in his chest as his heart swelled with happiness.

"That's adorable." He grinned down at the book and eagerly watched as Mr. Jones flipped the page again to reveal a pre-teen Meena standing next to a worn purple bike with a basket and bell. There was a brand new bow on it and she was wearing a handmade sash that read "Birthday Girl". She was grinning brightly, revealing a full mouth of braces and more freckles than she had now.

Johnny chuckled at how adorable she looked in that picture but before he could comment on how cute she looked Meena's voice rang out from behind them.

"What are you two looking at over here?" She asked and Johnny jumped slightly in surprise. Meena leaned over the back of the couch and looked down at the album. She gasped and her face immediately turned bright red in embarrassment.

"Grandpa! What are you doing?!" She groaned in embarrassment and tried to grab at the book but Mr. Jones pulled it away just in time.

"I'm showing this young man my precious angel. I haven't even pulled out the videos yet." he eagerly got up and went to rifle through their video collection. The mortified look on Meena's face only got worse at his words and she glanced back in forth between her grandfather and Johnny.

"How much did you see? Did you see the videos?!" she asked frantically, coming around the couch and grabbing at his shirt. Johnny chuckled and clasped her hands, rubbing them comfortingly.

"Daan't worry love. I ain't seen the videos… yet." Johnny teased her when she looked relieved for a second. She tried to glare at him but he just chuckled and kissed her cheek. "Ya were adorable when ya were lil', and na ya 're absolutely beautiful." He winked, making her blush darker than before.

"Johnny! Stop it." She protested half-heartedly and but didn't try to pull away when he wrapped an arm around her waist. Neither of them noticed her grandfather hobbling over to the TV to put in the tape he had clasped in his hands.

"Doesn't matter wot ya look loike Meena. You'll always be beautiful ter me." Meena turned bright red at his compliments but Johnny wouldn't let her look away from him. Knowing the she wasn't comfortable with kissing in front of her family; he kissed her cheek and pulled her into his embrace.

Suddenly the sound of the soap opera cut out and was replaced by toddler Meena holding her Grandpa's cane and singing loudly without a care. Johnny looked over at the sound of singing from the TV and gasped in excitement when he saw the video. She was singing Twinkle Twinkle Little Star like she was on Broadway instead of in a living room. Meena let out an embarrassed squeak and tried to lurch forward and get the tape out but Johnny held her back, his eyes glued to her performance on screen.

"What's going on in here?" Leslie asked when she walked in, wiping her hands on a kitchen towel.

"Mom! Stop Grandpa he's embarrassing me!" Meena called out to her mother desperately, struggling slightly against Johnny's hold. Leslie surveyed the situation for a second before breaking into a large grin and hurrying over to where her father was singing along to the video.

"What do you mean honey? I love this video!" With that she began singing along as well, swaying slightly to the music. Meena groaned and buried her head in Johnny's chest, trying to ignore the fact that her entire family was now singing along to a video of her singing when she was little.

Johnny chuckled when Meena's grandma got up and they all began dancing around as they sang. Of course, none of them knew how to dance which only made Johnny laugh harder.

"What are they doing now?" Meena asked, her voice muffled by his shirt. Johnny looked down and stroked her head comfortingly.

"Daan't look Meena. They're dancin'." He whispered in her ear she groaned loudly.

"Oh my god I hate my family." She whimpered and Johnny just laughed and kissed the top of her head.

"I love your family."