Early

JOURNEY's POV; MONDAY, DECEMBER 20th

Journey finishes school for the week, feeling tired, but happy. She's been getting amazing grades and hopes her parents will appreciate it. She plans on setting up a Christmas Tree with Aaron later so they can put their presents under it. It'll probably be in Journey's dorm since she'll have guests. Her Mom and Dad are going to come today, so Journey has been making sure everything is set. She even got Ava to stay the holidays at her parents' house so her parents can sleep in Ava's bed. It's not that Journey's nervous, it's just that she doesn't want anything to go wrong. Tonight is also the night she introduces Aaron to them. And to her, that's big. She plans to eat dinner with everyone first, then introduce him. Her parents are mostly goofballs, so hopefully, they won't go all crazy on her.

Her dorm is now completely drowned in Christmas things, but she was able to make it look huge at the same time. The dorm was already giant, but now it took a step further. She sits on her bed and sighs. 'It took about an hour to decorate, which means Aaron will come any minute now.' Aaron arrives, with a huge tree box in his hand. "Hey princess. Ya ready?" "Kind of... I'm just worried about you seeing my parents." "I'm likeable, so it should be fine." Journey stands and gives him a slight nod. They start unwrapping the tree, then they stand it up. It's a good seven feet with her dorm being 10 feet. They straighten out the tree, and it's finally done. "We should probably decorate it. But, Journey, I have a little surprise." Aaron runs out, leaving Journey confused. He comes back a few minutes later, carrying a huge electronic fireplace, along with a little kit. "I got you a little fireplace." Aaron smiles cheekily. "Is this your Christmas present?" "Nope, that one is way better. I just thought that maybe since we don't have chimneys in our dorms, might as well have something." Journey hugs him, and they drill the fireplace under her TV. They both smile, then they continue with decorating the tree. It's around 5. They are eating marshmallows and procrastinating dinner when they hear a knock. Journey wasn't expecting anyone until 8, so she goes to open the door.

"Mom? Dad?" Journey's mother barges in, hugging her daughter. Her dad messily pats her head. "Hey, sweetie! We decided to come early. Help you with food and all that. Whose... that?" Journey's mother looks over at Aaron. He seems half nervous and half scared. "You must be a friend!! Hello, call me Mary. This is my husband, Dexter." "I'm Aaron?" They both enter, and Journey looks like she saw a ghost. "You guys haven't even started cooking? Dexter come help me!" Mary drags Dexter to the kitchen, and they start getting out ingredients. "Your parents seem fun. Why would you think they wouldn't accept me?" "Did you know that I had a sister? Exactly! She was kicked out at 14 around 5 years ago because she got a thug as a boyfriend!" "All we have to do is show your parents I'm a nice guy, and it'll be smooth sailing. Don't worry so much." Journey plops her head onto his chest, trying to calm herself down. "AARON WAS IT? GET IN HERE AND HELP ME COOK," Journey's mom shouts from the kitchen. The kitchen wasn't that far from the bedroom, so she sounded loud. Aaron gives Journey a little peck on her forehead, and Journey lays on her bed, eating marshmallows.

AARON's POV

Aaron heads to the kitchen. He's excited since he'll get to show them his amazing cooking skills. "So Aaron, my boy, you know how to cook?" Aaron nods shyly at Dexter's question. "Perfect! Come chop these onions, then put them in the pan." Aaron does as he says, and chops the onions. As he puts it in the pan, he thinks about Journey's parents. Mary looks so much like Journey, it's astonishing. Same brown hair and bangs, but Mary has green eyes. Journey's dad, Dexter, looks very fit like Journey and Mary, and the two of them share chocolate eyes. He has streaks of grey covering most of his curly black hair. They finish seasoning the food, and they call Journey to the table.

JOURNEY's POV

Everyone sits, and the table shows a cooked chicken on it. "Wow, guys! That looks delicious!" Journey looks in amazement. "Thank Aaron, he seasoned it. ALL OF IT!" Everyone erupts with laughter. They all dig in, trying the chicken and mashed potatoes. It all taste so good! Everyone is almost done, and Journey gets butterflies. "Mom? Dad?" "Yes honey?" Her mother answers cheerfully. "Aaron is my boyfriend. I really-" Journey was going to say love, but could that be possible? "I really like Aaron. We've been dating for some time, and I just want to be with him freely." Her parent smirk at each other. "Oh honey, we already knew! The way you guys looked at each other gave it away. Plus the matching rings," she laughs as Journey looks down at the rings blushing, "And yes, you have our blessing. He seems like an amazing young man." Aaron smirks at Journey, and she smiles appreciatively at him.

Aaron leaves to go to his dorm, and Mary and Dexter get ready for bed. As they take their shower, Journey lays on her bed. She felt a sense of relief that she had such a big burden off her chest. She thinks she loves him, and she could imagine having a future with him. She looks over at the TV in front of her, then looks down at the fireplace. Her heart warms remembering all the memories that he has given her. The mall trips, the accident, the time they spent just laughing, the skating, all of it raced in her head. She reminences on this, and falls asleep.