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Robert "Robbie" Scott's heart was racing when he looked at the clock that seemed to be running extremely fast that day. It was July 9 and in less than an hour he would meet up with his son, his mother ... and his girlfriend.
For the first time, Leah would be meeting Robbie's mother, Francine, and the thought of it made Robbie's stomach turn. He was just so excited! What if something went wrong? What if his mum didn't like Leah?
He knew it was completely nonsensical to worry so much about it. After all, he knew both people well enough.
He loved Leah. His son Chris loved Leah. My goodness – everyone loved Leah! So Francine would like her too.
And his mother was a well-liked person too. Nothing could go wrong.
Robbie wiped his face with one hand and groaned. None of this should really worry him so much.
How he wished at that moment that Hunter still lived with him. The wee dog had always had a calming effect on the Scotsman, but Howard Blaten, the dog's rightful owner, had taken the lad back into his care months ago. Robbie had saved the life of the poor man, who had been homeless the year before, after he had been seriously injured by a gang of youths on Halloween. Until Howard was better, Robbie had looked after Hunter and eventually he had helped the man get a job as a janitor at the company where he worked. He had also made sure that Howard got a small apartment and, in the end, they had become good friends.
Robbie was incredibly happy and pleased for the older man, but at the same time he also missed Hunter's presence. However, he didn't dare take responsibility for a dog belonging to him just yet. He worked far too much for that.
The hands on the clock were literally racing towards the agreed time and when the doorbell suddenly rang, Robbie flinched involuntarily.
Leah! Leah was there to pick him up as Robbie's car was currently in the garage for some necessary repairs. Chris had said that he would pick up his grandmother from the hotel and they would all meet outside the restaurant.
Robbie hurried quickly to the door and pulled it open. The sight of his girlfriend calmed him down a little. Even though Leah often made him feel flustered, her presence radiated calm and composure. It was probably due to her job as a nurse, where she also had to stay cool at all times.
"Hey, handsome," she greeted the Scotsman and pressed a kiss to his cheek.
"H-hey."
Leah smiled softly as she wiped a strand of hair from Robbie's face before taking a few steps back and spinning around once.
"Well, how do I look? Can I present myself to your mother like this?"
Robbie was at a loss for words for a moment when he saw how pretty his girlfriend looked. She was wearing a knee-length blue dress and a thin white cardigan.
"A-amazing as always. I'm sure my mother will love it," Robbie finally stammered out. He didn't know whether Leah had chosen the colors of the Scottish flag consciously or unconsciously, but he liked it very much.
"Well then ... Let's go!"
Robbie nodded and quickly pocketed his keys before pulling the door shut behind him and walking with Leah to her car.
He really hoped that everything would go well.
"Hey dad, hey Leah." There was a smile on Chris's lips as he greeted his father and his girlfriend and embraced the former.
"Hi."
Robbie remembered exactly how excited he had been before their first meeting. Although Chris had always made it clear that he wanted nothing more than for his father to finally find a girlfriend again, Robbie had still feared that his son might not like his chosen one. But of course Chris had liked Leah and he had taken her to his heart very quickly. And the feeling was mutual.
"Hi Chris. Wow! You're really well dressed," Leah playfully teased the young man, who had recently turned 18. "Guess someone's finally growing up."
Chris just laughed.
"Of course. Besides, I have to dress smartly when Grandma comes to visit. Otherwise she's bound to grumble."
"Oh, come on, Chris. Mum doesn't really grumble much," Robbie said quickly. He didn't want Leah to get the wrong impression of his mother straight away. The older Scotsman looked around searchingly. "Where is she anyway?"
Chris smiled gently.
"She wanted to pick something up. But she should be here any minute and – Ah, here she comes."
The three of them looked to their right and Robbie had to smile when he saw his mother come running. She was holding a small, bonnie bouquet of flowers in her hand. And it looked almost exactly like the bouquet Leah was holding.
The nurse also had to smile at the sight.
"Oh, I'm so sorry I'm late. The florist had forgotten all about me order," Francine explained, slightly out of breath.
"It's fine, a mhàthair, don't worry. Hello." Robbie pulled his mother into a hug before letting her go and then looking at Leah.
"Mum, this is my girlfriend Leah. Leah, this is my mother Francine," he introduced the two.
Leah held out her free hand and gave Robbie's mother a polite smile.
"Hello ma'am, it's a pleasure to meet you."
"Oh please, don't, dear. Just call me Francine. When someone says 'ma'am' to me, it always makes me feel so old," Francine replied, waving it off before grabbing Leah's hand and shaking it. Her counterpart chuckled softly.
"All right, Francine. I've brought you some flowers. And ... well ... I think you'll like them." Leah glanced meaningfully at the bouquet in her hand and then at the one in Francine's. The older lady laughed.
"Great minds think alike, eh?"
They quickly exchanged the bouquets and Robbie felt his pulse slow down a little. Everything was going very well so far.
"Thank you very much, Francine. They're really beautiful. I'd love to grow my own flowers, but unfortunately I don't have a garden."
"Oh dear, what a shame! Ye know, there are some lovely houseplants that I can recommend and –"
Before his mother could launch into a torrent of words, Robbie quickly cleared his throat.
"Um, maybe we should go inside. I'm sure our table is already waiting for us."
Francine looked at him in surprise and then smiled, nodding.
"Ye're probably right. And besides, I cannae let my poor lads starve, now can I?" she said with a wink and Leah laughed, while Robbie and Chris just sighed. Francine always had to exaggerate!
Robbie had chosen the restaurant where he had had his first date with Leah. It was a beautiful Chinese restaurant with good food and great interior decor.
The food was ordered quickly and after Leah and Francine had talked at length about houseplants, the older lady finally changed the subject. She grabbed Leah's hand across the table and squeezed it.
"Oh, it's so nice to finally meet ye in person, Leah. Robbie has already told me so much about ye."
"Oh really?" Leah glanced briefly at Robbie, who was sitting next to her. "I hope only good things?"
Francine nodded eagerly.
"But of course! He also told me about the first time ye two met at that bank robbery! How terrible that must have been! But ye just stood up to those evil bastards and helped a poor woman. That was so brave!"
For the first time, Robbie saw his girlfriend blush. A really unusual and at the same time very pretty sight.
"It's my duty to help people. And I'm certainly not going to be intimidated by guys like those gangsters were. And Robbie here was really brave. In the end, he was the one who saved us all." Leah gave Robbie a smile and a kiss on the cheek and he was the one blushing again, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.
"I just did what I could," he mumbled and Francine looked from Leah to him and back.
"Oh yes, I'm really proud of my son. Of both of my sons. Even if my Monty could call or write more often."
Leah nodded understandingly.
"Right, Robbie told me that his big brother works for Starfleet. So does my little brother."
They had talked a bit about their siblings on their first date, but after that the subject hadn't really come up again, as they both only had contact with their brothers from time to time.
"I know Monty's far away in space, but he could still send a message in between, couldn't he?"
Leah patted Francine's hand reassuringly.
"Take comfort, Francine. My parents hardly ever hear from Lenny either. But the ship he works on is really far away. The Enterprise is currently on a five-year-mission," she explained and Robbie blinked in surprise.
"Yer brother is serving aboard the Enterprise?" he asked and Leah looked at him.
"Um, yeah. Why?"
"Monty works on the Enterprise too! He's the chief engineer!" Francine said and Leah laughed out loud.
"What a small world it is, huh? My brother Leonard is the chief medical officer."
"Dr. Leonard McCoy is yer brother?" Chris stared wide-eyed at Leah. "The Dr. McCoy who invented a miracle cure that revived a person?"
Leah shrugged her shoulders.
"Yup, that's Lenny. Always the big miracle worker."
What an incredible coincidence! Robbie just couldn't believe it. How could it be that they had never talked about their siblings in more detail? That was just crazy!
"Well then ..." Francine raised her glass. "I say we raise a toast to the McCoy and Scott families, who have met more than once in this great universe."
The glasses clinked and everyone had a lovely lunch together. And when Leah and Francine left the restaurant with their arms hooked together, Robbie knew that the meeting had been a complete success. All his worries had been for nothing.
After all, everyone loved Leah!