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Steven and Connie lay belly-down on his comforter, sounds of the R-rated Cudacane horror film blaring from the TV. They shared a bucket of popcorn between them as obviously fake blood spurted from the slightest injury.
Connie laughed. Steven looked ill.
“This is SO BAD!” she howled and hid her face as a flying barracuda landed on some powerlines, igniting a fire that engulfed the city streets. “HURRICANES DON’T REACH THAT FAR INLAND!”
“…How many more of these are there?” Steven bit his knuckle, looking sidelong at his friend as she rolled in tears.
“LIKE EIGHT!”
Steven groaned and pulled the edge of the blanket over his head. “I don’t think I can do this, Connie.”
“Awww, c’mon Steven,” she said and slung an arm over his back. She curled up close as he tried to retreat farther under his cover. “For me?”
“That’s not fair,” he grumbled. “If you cared about me, you wouldn’t put me through this torture.”
“But look at the romantic subplot!” she yelled and gestured at the TV. The grizzled protagonist was covered in gore, supporting the love interest as they sloppily made out on a pile of slain fish.
“…Ew.”
They looked at each other as they spoke in unison, then laughed.
The chime of Connie’s phone interrupted their giggle fits. She sighed and Steven rolled to the far edge of the bed to give her some space.
Connie took a practiced breath before she accepted the call. “Hi Mom!”
Steven tried not to eavesdrop, content to get up and stretch.
“Uh-huh… Yeah we’re doing great! You’re still out of town for the next couple days, right? Ok cool… Steven’s doing well. He’s actually right here.” She gave him a little wave. He waved back.
“Oh, a video call? Sure… is everything alright?”
Steven gestured to show that he’d be nearby and slipped down the stairs. Connie gave him a thumbs-up.
He flopped on the couch downstairs and scrolled aimlessly through his phone, catching snippets of the above conversation.
“Yeah… I mean, I’m not sure but I don’t want to push.”
He smiled at a video of a cat chasing a laser pointer.
“Is he in trouble?”
Steven perked up, debating whether to go get a soda or sit and listen.
“Uh… okay.” Steven heard rustling from upstairs. “Hey Steven? Can you come here?”
“Sure thing!” He bounced up the stairs, stomach turning. “What’s up?”
Connie stood near the top of the stairs, her phone propped on the windowsill. He could see both Maheswarans in the tiny screen.
The Maheswarans watched the smiling young man with the worn eyes peek through the entryway, shoulders hunched and hands in his pockets.
“Sit, sit,” Priyanka said.
He obliged, settling cross-legged in the spot their daughter had occupied earlier.
“Thank you, Connie,” she said, a gentle nudge for her daughter to leave. The two teenagers shared a nervous glance before Connie gave him a sad smile and took the first step down the stairs.
“O…kay. I’ll be outside, then. Call me when you’re done.”
They waited until they heard the gentle click of the outside door before they addressed the ashen-faced boy.
“Hello Steven,” Doug said. “How are you?”
“Uh… I’m fine. I’m not in trouble, am I?”
Doug laughed. “Not at all. We just wanted to see how you’re doing, right honey?”
“Of course. We haven’t had a chance to talk much. Connie’s told us of some of the impressive things you’ve been doing. Rather than play a long game of telephone, we figured we’d just talk to you ourselves.”
Doug smiled. Priyanka had a neutral, somewhat worried expression.
“Oh, okay. That’s nice… how are you guys doing? How’s your conference going?”
“It’s going fine,” Doug said. “But we’re not here to talk about us.”
“Look,” Priyanka dropped the pretense and leaned forward, hands steepled in front of her face. “Connie respects your privacy and won’t tell us your personal affairs, but we know you have a lot of stress in your life.”
“Uh…”
“We’re worried about you, Steven,” Doug said, adding some warmth to his wife’s statement.
Steven chuckled and leaned back, holding onto his shin with one hand and rubbing the back of his head with the other. He wouldn’t look at them. “Aww, no, I’m fine. C’mon, look at this face,” he said and smiled.
The Maheswarans remained unimpressed. They fixed him with a withering glare until he dropped the fake grin.
“I mean… I do have a lot going on.” He closed his eyes and sighed. “I’m sorry Dr. and Mr. Maheswaran. I don’t want to be rude but I… I don’t really want to talk about anything right now.”
“That is perfectly fine,” Priyanka said. “We just wanted to open the lines of communication, right Doug?”
“Absolutely.”
They sat in uncomfortable silence for a moment. Steven looked less guarded now, at least. They considered that a success.
At length Priyanka leaned forward again. “I also wanted to apologize. I’m sorry I judged you so harshly when we first met. That wasn’t fair to you or Connie.” She kept eye contact with Steven as she said that, speaking so sternly that he shrank back a bit.
“It-It’s ok. I understand. Connie’s great and you have every right to be protective.”
“I’m sorry too,” Doug said. “You’re a good man, Steven.”
He decided against saying that he couldn’t imagine anyone better for his daughter. Not his place to say that, yet.
Meanwhile, Steven was starting to tear up.
Doug listened to Priyanka’s nearly inaudible hum, the one that meant something had reached her well-hidden heart. He felt her leg gently rub against his, saw the slight smile playing at her lips, the affection for this young man in her eyes.
“And Steven?” Doug said and waited until he met his eyes. “However things turn out with Connie… you can always talk to us.”
“Either of us,” Priyanka added.
Steven stammered, fingers knotting in his hair. “I-I-I don’t know what you mean.”
“We don’t just care about you because Connie…” Doug paused, deciding on the right word, “cares about you. We care about you for your own sake.”
“And if you ever need anything at all, please do not hesitate to contact one or both of us.”
They kept quiet as Steven broke, smiling even while he cried. He hid his face in his hands and visibly tried to choke down his emotions. They let him, hoping he’d open up to them in his own time.
“I know we’re not the… warmest people, but we do not go back on our word.” Priyanka wished she could reach through the phone and give the boy a squeeze on the shoulder. Doug leaned against her and rubbed her arm, smiling.
Steven nodded. They could barely hear his hoarse whisper of thanks. Priyanka debated whether it was appropriate to tell him that they loved him. She decided against it, for now. Best not to overload the poor boy.
They gave him a moment, then chattered about work and school and other such things until Steven regained his composure. He dried off the last of his tears on his sleeve and smiled at them, looking less exhausted than when he had walked in. He even got Priyanka to laugh.
After some time, Steven glanced out the window. “Should I tell Connie she should come back inside?”
The parents nodded. Doug leaned back and stretched. “Of course. I think we said everything we needed to, right honey?”
“Mmm. We will not intrude on your quality time any longer. Remember what we said, Steven, and give Connie our love.”
He nodded. “I will. Thanks guys, really.”
“Anytime.”
“Goodbye, Steven, and good night.”