Clear head, clear skies

"You're home!!" Mom chirped happily as she greeted us at the door. She pulled us both in for a hug and squeezed us tightly as she dragged us into the house. I laughed and Adrian slowly melted into the awkward, boney hug.

"About time boys. Danica don't suffocate them before we can even eat, love." Dad laughed from behind us. Mom let me go then and turned to her husband while still holding Adrian and glaring with her sharp brown eyes.

"Wait your turn Jameson, trying to make me hurry won't do you any favors. If I want to hold my boys I'm going to hold my babies as long as I please." she huffed, holding Adrian tighter and looking back to me to run her free hand through my hair and look over my head. "Caellum you sure you boys are taking care of yourselves? You look so tired." she prattled, then loosening her hold on Adrian to look him over. "Adrian honey you got so thin, I can send you boys home with some leftovers. I can't have you blowing away in the wind." she lovingly scolded, trying to fix his curly hair. I chuckled, watching Adrian put up with all the fussing. At first Adrian had been very cautious of my parents, waiting for the other shoe to drop. But eventually like everyone else my mother melted his heart and he let himself be fussed over by her. She's the only one who can get away with half of what she does without Adrian having an anxiety attack.

"I won't blow away, I'm not a kid anymore…" Adrian protested, moving her small hands from his hair only for her to put them right back until she was satisfied.

"It can still happen to adults if you get too thin, Adrian." Danica continued until her husband gently pried her away with a fond chuckle.

"Danica you're hovering again. Remember what your therapist said about hovering." Dad reminded her. She pouted but moved from Adrian to look me over once more as we all settled in the kitchen.

"So what did we want to eat?" mom asked, going to the fridge to see what she had to offer. "Or did you boys want to go out to eat?" she asked, poking her head out from the open fridge. Dad rolled his eyes and chuckled.

"Let's go out dear, get some fresh air. We can cook all you want when they come over for the holidays." he soothed, looking over at Adrian and I as he urged mom to sit down. She rolled her eyes in a huff in retaliation but took her seat in between her husband and Adrian.

"Very well then. Where did you boys want to go? I think the Old Town buffet is still open?" mom asked, looking between Adrian and I. Resting my head on the table I gave a shrug.

"Whatever works for you two works for me." I diffused easily, turning my head slowly towards Adrian. "Anything you want?" I asked. Adrian shrugged idly, looking down at the table. Mom didn't look very pleased with our answers but dad looked almost like he expected it.

"Sounds like the Old Town buffet is perfect then. A little bit of everything so everyone gets what they want right? You know Cal loves his seafood, Adrian likes his spicy food, I like their taco bar, and you love their wings and their dessert bar dear. Everyone wins." Dad easily persuaded, standing to grab mom's coat and draping it over her shoulders with a loving pat then grabbing his own coat. I chuckled as I watched the petulance leave my mother's round face and she easily finished putting on her coat and checking that we were ready. I motioned that I never took off my warm cardigan while Adrian shrugged his coat back on after having hung it on his chair when he sat. Mom stuck her tongue out at me but continued on her way out the door dad was holding open for her. I laughed as I followed her out the door, about to get in my van when mom decided that wasn't allowed, grabbing me by the neck of my wooly cardigan and steering me back around towards her little impala.

"Don't be silly. You boys are visiting us and we're all going to the same place so unless you plan on leaving immediately after dinner don't be stupid and waste your gas by taking your car just to follow us." She snipped, motioning for Adrian to follow as she continued leading me by the scruff to the car. I could just barely hear dad and Adrian laughing behind us but I didn't mind. Mom meant well, intense as she may be she did everything out of love when it came to her family. I did draw the line though when she started opening the car door for me. I gently removed her hand from the neck of my cardigan and turned to face her with a shake of my head.

"Thank you mom, but I can get in the car by myself like a big boy." I laughed, patting her hand and taking over, opening the door and settling myself in the back seat. Once mom had settled herself in the driver's seat, she reached back and pinched my knee hard.

"Wise ass, I'm your mother. If I want to pretend you're still the little boy who left his head on the swing in his excitement to get in the car so we could leave faster for Pappy's Play Place, then I will." she teased, waiting as my dad got settled in as he laughed. Adrian snickered along beside me and I pinched his arm in retaliation.

"Yeah yeah guys laugh it up. I still lose things less often than all of you." I taunted back, reclining in my seat and settling my head in my lap. Everyone chuckled, happy in the meaningless small talk and familial teasing. It felt good to see mom and dad again. It felt good seeing Adrian unwind again and be willing to see them. I hated it when he didn't want to see people, but I could understand it most days. What I usually couldn't understand is when he didn't want to see mom and dad. I get that feeling like the black sheep can be a thing in people's minds no matter how good your parents try to be, I get feeling like you're a burden to the parents who adopted you or even just feeling left out. But he always seemed so calm and relaxed when he came with me to see our parents, more like how he was when we were in school before all the toxic dating and refusing to see a therapist anymore. So it made no sense to me. But I shouldn't let what I don't understand ruin my day. Not when right now, even if just for the moment, Adrian was happy, calm, and joking with mom and dad.

"Alright boys, last stop, unless you feel like waiting in the car and not eating with us I'd get out of the car now." Dad chortled, unbuckling himself as mom finished parking the car near the restaurant. I snorted and unbuckled myself and got out with everyone else. I peeked into the driver's side window to make sure mom didn't forget the keys in the ignition again to which she caught me and jingled said keys in my face with a chipper and cocky grin on her face.

"Not today, smartass. I've gotten a lot better about not leaving my keys, thank you." she snarked, tucking her long black hair behind her ears before prancing into the restaurant. I couldn't help but laugh and follow behind her. Once we got our table and settled in, we then went to fill our plates. I was very excited when I saw they had my favorite nigiri sushi, there was eel and inari, and the classic spring rolls and California rolls. I eagerly snagged a few of each and dove into some haddock and grabbed some fried scallops before topping off with a bowl of wonton soup. Happy with my haul I went back to the table to find Adrian already there with a plate piled high with general Tso's, some jalapeno poppers, chow mein and a big slice of ham. I sat next to him and grabbed some chopsticks to dig in. When mom and dad came back they sat across from Adrian and I each with their own plates, dad having happily made several tacos and got some Mexican corn on the side while mom had gotten some wings, a taco, and a side of green beans.

"So how have you boys been? Anything fun going on?" dad asked, gathering up a taco to devour. I thought for a moment, finishing my bite of sushi.

"Not too much. Thinking of going back to college and trying something new." I replied with a small smile. Mom instantly looked elated and interested.

"Really? What for?" she asked, spearing some green beans as she waited eagerly for my reply.

"I'm not entirely sure yet. Maybe some teaching or culinary. I don't know, it's still just a thought." I supplied, looking back to my own food and taking a bite of the haddock. Mom nodded happily and looked over to Adrian.

"What about you honey? Anything exciting happen since we've seen you?" she prodded, looking hopeful. Adrian squirmed a moment before giving them an awkward smile.

"I um, I helped with the Hackett's Haunted Hayride this year with Cal and Topher. I built a mechanical prosthetic neck that could tilt to drop his head and scare the guests." Adrian quietly began, looking a bit more comfortable when mom and dad both looked excited to hear he was building again.

"That's wonderful Adrian! Oh you'll have to show us sometime! Oh, we just got a new employee at work too! Lovely little lady, but poor dear is a Harpy and can have such a hard time holding things, so maybe you could branch out and think of ways to help other Supernaturals do things a little easier?" Mom asked, making Adrian shrink back again but she seemed to catch on before he started getting too anxious and continued, "It's alright if not though, I'm sure fitting anything on her wings to help her grab would be difficult to say the least and she does get on fine by herself most days." Mom easily soothed, Adrian nodded, looking a bit more at ease as he picked at his chicken slowly. Across the table dad nodded, finishing his last taco.

"Any way you want to apply yourself I'm sure it will be great. You have such talent with things, and as long as you're happy we're happy." Dad praised easily, working on his Mexican corn now. Adrian nodded, twirling some chow mein on his fork and biting down. He smiled at them then, looking happier than I've seen in a while.

"I think I can try. And I got a job with the Nerd Brigade. It's mostly fixing people's technical problems but it's a start. So maybe I can try tinkering with things again soon." Adrian said, shocking even me. I knew about his job, but actually thinking of trying to tinker and build again was news to me. Damn good news, and shocking as hell. I beamed at him as mom and dad both excitedly praised him on his good work.

"Damn bro, look at you moving up and moving on. Let me know if you ever need help getting any parts." I grinned, patting him on the back. Adrian smiled at me and it was like he never had actually been anxious earlier. Dad ran a hand through his long beard with a grin.

"Likewise. Let me know if you need an old carpenter. I may be old but I still work just fine, these hands haven't failed me yet and I'd be more than happy to help you with your tinkering if I can." he assured Adrian, his old blue eyes full of genuine pride. Adrian looked a little choked up for a moment before nodding and smiling.

"I will dad." Adrian promised, dad nodded and smiled back, scooping the last of his corn onto his fork. Mom cooed and beamed at us all, and I was grateful everything was falling into place.

When we finally got home later that night, I headed right for the shower to really unwind and relax. Adrian headed into his room for the night after putting away the leftovers mom had conned us into taking with us. I swear she just likes using us to clean out her fridge so she can fill it again. When I started settling into bed I checked my phone to idly flit about social media and check my messages and my face split into a grin when I saw I had a message from Rusheen saying he was excited for our date the day after tomorrow. Had to admit, I was just as excited as I was nervous. I wasn't sure where to bring him for dinner, and I was nervous about making a fool of myself. Getting to know one another can be one of the fun things about dating but it's also a bit scary for me. Hoping once you learn everything that you're both still compatible with one another and dealing with any backlash if you aren't. I texted back that I was excited too and asked if he had any preferences on the type of food or what we wanted to do. He thankfully replied rather quickly and said he didn't mind and we could eat and do whatever which was both helpful and not so helpful. It gave me free reign but also no ideas to work with that I knew for a fact he would enjoy. Leaning back in bed and shifting my hold on my head I sighed, trying to think of what to do based on what I already knew. His long tail made dealing with crowds a pain, so the mall was a bad idea. American booze is on the strong side for him and I don't feel like getting drunk so bars, pubs, and clubs were not the greatest idea either. No feet so roller skating was out, and being part reptile meant ice skating was completely off the board. Maybe a movie? Or even just a nicer restaurant would work? Then it hit me. A more secluded spot, enjoying the fall season he's likely never seen before, and giving me a chance to work on my cooking all wrapped into one cheesy romantic date? A picnic. I could ask Topher's mom if I could use a little spot for a campfire picnic on their land since most wolf packs owned a fair few acres to let their wolves out every now and then. I've really only been out there once or twice during the summer for a stay-cation kind of camping trip with the Whorff's since they like to keep the area wooded and secluded to ensure any newcomers don't get overwhelmed or bombarded by anyone not in the pack. It was perfect so long as the pack didn't have any newcomers I hadn't heard of yet so I quickly checked the time and was very pleased it was only a little after nine so Sarah Whorff was likely still awake. I scanned through my contacts till I found her and hit the call button before I could talk myself out of it.

"I'd normally ask what my son had gotten into but considering he just came home from his study group so I'm guessing this is about something else?" Sarah answered, caller ID giving me away and she was right in that's what I usually ever need to call her about. I laughed at her bluntness.

"Yeah, Topher's not why I called. I was wondering if it would be okay for me to have a camping trip on your land the day after tomorrow? I don't think it's a full moon or anything but I haven't checked a lunar calendar in forever if I'm honest with you, and it would only be for a day. We wouldn't spend the night." I quickly rambled out. Sarah barked out a laugh of her own.

"You're lucky in that the full moon is next week, and we don't have any newbies who need the grounds. Rusheen mentioned you finally gave in to his irresistible Jamaican charm, but what in the hell do you have planned taking him out in the woods?" she asked incredulously through her laughter.

"I thought it would be a good way to let him experience fall and be romantic, and not worry about him getting stepped on." I bashfully relay, grateful I hadn't gone over to ask or she'd see me blush and I'd never hear the end of it.

"Not a bad idea then kid. Alright, I'll make sure it's clear for you but bring your own supplies on how you want to decorate and set up the day camp okay? Topher wouldn't be able to keep a secret like that to save his life and the twins would be giggling and ratting you out or up your ass in the middle of your date playing pranks. So if you don't want either to happen remember to try and be discreet." she teased and I could all but hear the sly wolfish grin on her face.

"I will be. Thank you so much for this!" I replied happily, almost dropping my head on the bed.

"No problem. Just make sure you show him a good time." Sarah relented. I let out a breathy sigh and hummed in agreement.

"Don't worry. It may not be on my shoulders but you know I have a good head on me. Everything will be perfect."