"Perfect. Now we're late and lost." She hisses through her teeth, squinting against the bright headlamps of the car in the on-coming lane and the glare of the snow whipping around them.

"If I were driving we wouldn't be lost..." Joe grumbles from the seat beside her. "It is my parent's house at all..."

"If you were driving we'd be in the ditch, and there's no way I'm going to get trapped in New Jersey on Thanksgiving---"

"Like Brooklyn is so much better," Joe snipes. "I told you to take the east exit---"

"AS we passed it. I need a little forewarning before I cross three lanes of traffic in the middle of a blizzard!"

"It's not a blizzard, it's just a little snow..."

She lets out an exasperated sigh, adjusting her grip on the steering wheel. "How's my casserole?"

"Still in one piece and burning a hole in my pants."

She nearly gives in to the temptation to tell him to stop being such a baby and suck it up, but it would only make the situation worse. It's not Joe's fault that she's on edge anyway--- well it is in a way, since he decided that it would be a good idea to introduce her to his parents on Thanksgiving, completely ignorant of how stressful that is. It took her two tries to get the green bean casserole right, she'd spilled cream of mushroom on her best "meet the parents" dress (the one that was just the right length, with just enough cleavage to say 'I'm not a prude' while still being decent), so she'd had to make do with the slacks and blouse she'd last worn to her sister's graduation...

Joe had told her over and over that his parents would love her, but how many guys said that and how many times was it actually true... This was a major test in their relationship, and she had to impress his mother, because otherwise she just might as well kiss their relationship goodbye--- and she'd gotten attached to Joe over the last year and a half... She was just starting to get him broken in.

She manages to eventually find her way to Joe's parents place, working her way backwards through the streets, some blind guesses, and listening to Joe's grumbled directions. Why she had agreed to come again? She could be at her parents' house enjoying turkey and the football game on TV wearing sweatpants and a tshirt----

"Smile, you look like you're going to an execution..." Joe whispers in her ear, before knocking on the door.

The door swings open and immediately Joe is pulled into the embrace of a short matronly sort of woman.

"You're finally here! Tell me you weren't driving Joe, you always get lost."

"Nah, Ma, Alex won't let me…"

"Smart girl, I like her already," His mother winked at her and she felt herself relaxing just a bit.

There's no awkward interrogation over the dinner table, for which Alex is incredibly grateful for, but she knows the games have only just begun. Joe said his parents were perfectly sweet and loved all his dates, but Alex had seen the grilling her mother had put her brothers' girlfriends through and knew that her mom could probably break the most hardened criminals with the menacing squint of her eyes. It was, perhaps, the way of all mothers.

Then Joe and his dad sneak off into the living room to watch the end of the game, leaving her and Joe's mother ("Call me Doris, Alexandra.") to do the dishes. Doris tells her to go in and enjoy the game, but Alex is pretty sure that's a trick, and insists on helping. She can tell by Doris' pleased grin that it's the right move.

She manages to dodge most of Doris' questions, keeping her answers neutral and very non-specific (especially when it comes to when they might have children). She's managed to keep her happy though, as Doris leads her upstairs to show her Joe's room, apparently kept in immaculate condition.

Sitting in the center of the bed is a ragged blue toy rabbit with lumpy stuffing and ears worn bare.

"That's Nick, Joe dragged him around everywhere when he was younger. He used to pretend he was his little brother --- we had Joe so late that it wasn't possible to give him a sibling. You shouldn't wait too long."

She smiles, nodding in agreement with Doris' words, even though she wasn't going to even think about kids before she was ready. She and Joe had plenty of time…

"Do you mind if I borrow this? There's this perfect place in our apartment---"