Bad Rep (Bad Rep, #1)(85)

“Lead the way,” I whispered, knowing I'd follow him anywhere.

Chapter Twenty-One



Today was the day.  The beginning of the dreaded Parents' Weekend.  The two days that invited misery and discomfort to every college student in existence.  Well, for those that wanted to hide their slacker debauchery from the rose colored glasses of their mom and dad.

My parents were driving up from South Carolina that morning.  They never missed an opportunity to come up to campus, do the dinky tour and remind me of how important it is to make good decisions.  They were probably about three hours into their five hour drive.  Giving me exactly two hours to clean through the apartment like a mad woman and prep myself for Dad's infamous interrogation.

“Woah, I've never seen this place so clean!” Riley gave a low whistle as she surveyed the spotless living room.  I had gone all out, even going so far as to Windex the sliding glass doors.  I had hidden my ash tray under an overturned flower pot.  My parents didn't know I smoked and I'd like to keep it that way.

“So I'm guessing your parents will be here soon.” Riley surmised, watching me fluff couch cushions for the millionth time.

“That would be an affirmative,” I mumbled, straightening the coffee table.

“Okay, Mays. You're channeling some serious OCD.  It's okay.  Your parents aren't near as hard core as you make them out to be.”  Riley loved my parents.  Probably because they loved her.  Her no nonsense, focused academic outlook as well as her stellar show of responsibility, had them eating out of her black nail polished hand.

“Of course you'd say that, Riley.  I think they wish we had somehow been switched at birth,” I said, wiping the coffee table with a dust rag.

Riley snickered.  “I seriously doubt that.  You need to stop taking things so seriously,” she suggested.  Easy for her to say.  She didn't have to live under the umbrella of parental disappointment on a daily basis.  Her parents doted on her.

“So, what do you have planned for the parentals?” she asked, flopping down on the couch.  I made a noise as she messed up the immaculately positioned pillows I had just straightened.  I sighed but chose not to say anything.

“Well, we're scheduled for the campus tour at 11:00.  Then I'm taking them out to lunch.  Figured we'd go to the Bakertown Deli.  Jordan is supposed to meet us there,” I added.  Riley's eyebrows rose so high they disappeared under her bangs.

“Dang, meeting the parents.  That's serious, Mays,” she said.  My gut twisted at the mention of it.  When I had brought up the fact that my parents would be coming up for the weekend, Jordan had immediately suggested that he join us for lunch.  I tried not to sound as freaked by the whole thing as I actually was.

Jordan and I hadn't been dating that long and I felt it was a little soon to do the whole introduce the boyfriend to your folks thing.  Plus I was dreading the reaction my conservative parents would have to my guy with his facial piercings and visible tattoo.  But I didn't want to hurt Jordan's feelings, so I had reluctantly agreed.

Jordan seemed strangely excited about it.  He had called late last night after his shift at Barton's to confirm the plans.  I wanted to tell him to forget about it, but it was obviously important to him.

“I guess,” I hedged. The truth was it gave me a bit of whiplash at how serious Jordan and I were.  We went from zero to joined at the hip in no time.  I loved being with him.  I loved how we could spend time together and it was so comfortable , as though we had always been together.

But...

“Stop stressing.  Your parents will like him.  You need to stop building things up unnecessarily in your head.  You'll end up in the loony bin at this rate,” Riley told me, giving me a sharp look.  Introducing Riley Walker, my good sense.

“You're right.  Turning off my overactive mind now.” I tapped my head and gave her a smile.  Riley snorted.  She watched me continue my one woman whirling dervish as I flitted around the apartment, making it as clean as humanly possible.

Finally it was time for me to get showered and dressed.  I chose a simple, knee length flowered skirt with a short sleeved pink shirt.  Virginia was enjoying unseasonably warm weather; fall hadn't begun to move in.  I loved it.  I hated when I had to start cramming my feet into closed toed shoes and cover my legs with pants and leggings.  I was a summer gal and I would live it up while I could.

I had just finished putting my hair back in a braid when the doorbell rang.  Riley answered it before I could and I listened to my mom and dad's voices drift back from the living room.  Riley must have said something amusing because I could hear my dad's rich laugh.

I walked down the hallway and saw my roommate and parents talking animatedly.  My parents may be older but they still looked great.  I got my long, dark hair from my mom.  She wore hers down and it curled around her shoulders.  Her face was only just starting to show signs of wrinkles, primarily around her eyes and her mouth.

My dad was a big dude.  He towered over my mom's 5 foot 3 frame.  He was clean shaven with a strong jaw and dark brown eyes.  His thick, black hair was peppered with white and his mouth was smiling.  I wasn't used to my dad looking happy.  He was serious guy.  Being a high school English teacher, his thought process often went right over my head.  He had always had high expectations for me and I knew I often fell short of them.