All the planning that they had needed to do had been done and taken care of. Most of it had really been taken care of that same night after she had been on the phone with her mother. She and Tarin had figured out where they would order from for dinner, Tarin had offered to adjust his schedule so that he could get home earlier on Thursday night. Lee had told Tarin a bit about what had happened over the last decade, why these dinners did happen after how her parents had treated her. And, very importantly, that Kevin didn't know anything about all of that.

Most of what they hadn't been able to cover that night, such as deciding what food specifically would be ordered, had been sorted out the following day when Tarin had brought the menu home after work.

But that hadn't stopped Lee from worrying. And stressing. Tarin did a very good job distracting her and getting her to relax, but Tarin wasn't able to be around all the time.

What if her parents got there early? They had done that before. It always made Lee more stressed and more difficult for her to deal with them. What if, despite how her mother had been on the phone, they spent the whole time picking over the details of who she was, and who Tarin was, and….

Lee had thought she and Tarin had moved past dealing with that months earlier, but this was her parents.

Lee worried more as she moved around the apartment to see if there was anything else that needed to be cleaned. There wasn't; she'd already cleaned and organized and moved everything that needed to be done with all of her nervous energy the last few days. Even Kevin's room had been cleaned. She had also gotten ready well before her parents were supposed to have gotten there, wearing a black and white patterned dress, though she had gone to check her makeup and outfit multiple times since then.

But what if, now that Kevin's powers had emerged, they said or did something like they had with her? How she would deal with her parents wasn't a worry, she had many ideas of what she would do with them. But Lee was worried about how Kevin would take it, how it would hurt him.

Suddenly the front door opened and Lee turned to see Tarin walking in with the food. She'd been so stuck in her thoughts that Lee hadn't even felt him approaching the door or heard the key in the lock.

Following Tarin into the kitchen, Lee smiled. He'd even asked about keeping the food hot or reheating it. "Thank you, Tarin," she said.

Nobody had turned up early. That was a good thing, Tarin thought as he got the food settled on the counter and turned the oven on warm. And double checked that it was only on warm and not an actual temperature. ”They said none of the plastic stuff can go in the oven, so none of the bags or lids, but the food containers are all fine.”

Tarin had been so worried about the food and getting into the apartment without dropping anything that he hadn’t even seen Lee when he’d walked in and when he turned and saw her in the kitchen he just blinked a few times as he looked her over.

”Wow…” he said eloquently. ”You look amazing.” Lee pretty much always looked amazing, and Tarin probably would have never would have been able to pick his favorite look for her, but there was always something about seeing her in something new for special occasions.

She also looked nervous and stressed, just like she’d had every day when he had gotten home.

”One sec.” he said, taking a minute to get all the food in the oven to stay warm. If anything went wrong it would be his fault this way, but Tarin was sure he’d done everything right.

Closing the oven, Tarin moved over to where Lee was standing, ” How are you doing” he asked, reaching out for her hand, unsure how much or how little contact she’d want, ”Anything else that needs done before I go change?”

Tarin was moving around the kitchen as she stood out of his way. He had said, at least once a day since she had been on the phone with her mother, that he would do anything she asked him to so this whole thing was easier for her. And as she listened to Tarin, Lee decided that he could just go ahead and do this all by himself.

It was far too close to cooking for Lee to want to try and attempt that night with verbal directions passed through Tarin from the restaurant.

Then Tarin turned to actually, really look at her, and Lee smiled. Probably for the first time since he had left for work that morning. But then Tarin was turning and putting the food into the oven before finally making his way over.

How was she doing? Lee didn't think she actually had to say out loud how she was doing, Tarin could probably see it loud and clear. Was there anything else that needed done? Lee shook her head as she practically clutched at Tarin's hand. "I think I've got everything done," Lee told him. "I've been checking everything the last hour, and haven't found anything we've forgotten. The only thing left is setting the table and that can wait till they're here."

Lee pointed out that she thought she had everything sorted except for setting the table and Tarin nodded. ”Everything is perfect.” he said sincerely, exerting the slightest bit of pressure to pull Lee closer and lean down and kiss her softly. She’d clearly put a lot of effort into her makeup and he didn’t want to mess it up. ”You’ve thought of everything.”

Not that the apartment was ever really dirty or cluttered, but it was immaculate

Tarin didn’t want to leave, not with the way that Lee was clutching his hand, but he looked at the clock and winced a bit, ”I have to go change…” he said, glancing down at his t-shirt and jeans. In all honesty it wasn’t bad, but with Lee in that dress…Tarin stepped away and reluctantly made his way past Lee, holding onto her hand until the last minute. ”I’ll be quick..”

Tarin made his way back to his room, and the closer he got the more he let himself feel his own nerves about the whole situation. The fact that Lee was so worked up gave him something else to focus on, a way to mask what he was really feeling under the guise of helping her manage her own stress, but he was an absolute wreck. Work had been torture all day and Tarin had wished multiple times that he’d just canceled the whole day.

In his room, Tarin took a couple of deep breaths and rummaged through the closet to find his nicer jeans and a gray button up. Changing didn’t take much time at all and then he was heading out of his room and into the bathroom to make sure his hair wasn’t a mess. Deciding it was as good as it was going to get and wondering if maybe he should have gotten a haircut, Tarin took a deep breath, and made his way back out to the living room and Lee, just as a knock sounded at the door.

”Here we go.” Tarin said, not sure at all where to stand or what to do with himself except for the fact that Lee was going to have to open the door.

Tarin told her that everything was perfect as he pulled her a little closer for a kiss. Returning his kiss, Lee gave Tarin a slight smile. "Maybe not perfect, but I can't think of anything else that I could do," Lee said, partially agreeing with him.

Tarin needed to get changed. He did. They had talked about what he was going to wear for this dinner; what would be good, what would be too much, what could be considered too casual. And Tarin had told her he would wear one of his button ups with nice jeans. Just like he had to the bar, and for their first date.

That would be good. But the problem right that moment was that it meant he had to move away from her, let go of her hand. Lee didn't want that to happen. But he wasn't going to be able to hold her hand the entire night anyway.

"Ok," Lee said softly as Tarin's hand finally left hers as he made his way out of the kitchen to his room.

Glancing around the kitchen, Lee's eyes settled on the stove. Tarin said the restaurant told him the food could stay in there, on warm, to keep hot. So that meant the food could stay there, but did she need to stay in the kitchen to keep an eye on it?

No, Lee decided, though she was quite nervous about that decision as well. If she had needed to stay in the kitchen to keep an eye on the food in the oven, Tarin would have said that. That was not something he would just assume she knew.

Glancing at the stove a couple more times, Lee made her way out of the kitchen and into the living room. Looking around to see if there was anything else that needed done. There was nothing that she saw. She had already even pulled the dining table out from against the wall so all five of them could fit around it.

Feeling Tarin making his way back out, Lee turned to face him. Just as there was a knock at the door.

Instantly, Lee's heart was beating faster. "It's going to be fine," Lee murmured, more to herself than to Tarin as she moved forward.

The door really wasn't far enough away, Lee thought, because before she knew it she was standing in front of it. Taking a deep breath to try and relax, Lee unlocked and opened the door to see her parents.

"Hi mum, dad," Lee said as she stepped aside for them to make their way inside. Which they did, though Lee's mother stopped to give Lee a hug on the way, which Lee returned more than a little awkwardly.

"Mum, dad, this is Tarin," Lee introduced once they had made their way further into the apartment. "Tarin, these are my parents Mary and Dave Smith."

It really was going to be okay in the grand scheme of things, Tarin thought as Lee went to answer the door. Still, it pulled at something in Tarin’s chest to see how nervous Lee was as she went to open the door for her parents, it wasn’t supposed to be like that. Children, even adult children, were supposed to be excited to see their parents. It all went back to just how messed up it had to have to grow up as a mutant and how vital it was that things got better. Kevin wouldn’t ever feel like this, Tarin knew, and somehow that helped.

Lee was at the door now and Tarin took a nervous breath of his own before locking down all those anxious feelings, almost relieved to just not feel a whole lot of anything at the moment. Knowing that the only impression Lee’s parents really had of him was what Robert had told them had eaten at Tarin the last few days and he hoped that just maybe they’d listened to Lee instead and wouldn’t hate him on sight for things he couldn’t help.

The door opened and then everything was happening. In walked Lee’s parents and Tarin still hung back, a bit uncertain as Lee greeted them and got the door shut. Then introductions were happening and Tarin made his way forward and smiled, offering his hand first to Lee’s Father, and then her Mother to shake because he didn’t know what else to do.

”It’s nice to meet you Mr and Mrs Smith,” Tarin said, moving so he could gesture a bit into the apartment, ”Can I get either of you something to drink while you sit down?”

Was he being polite? Absolutely. Did he also kind of feel like he might throw up or pass out or something? Yup. Did any of it show? Hopefully not.

As soon as she had made the introductions, Tarin was stepping forward to shake her parents' hands. And calling them Mr and Mrs Smith. Well, no one would be able to claim that he hadn't been polite.

"Oh please, Tarin. It's Mary and Dave," Lee's mother said. "And no thank you. I'm good for now."

"A beer would be good," her father said, then turned to look at Lee. "As long as it's not one of those cheap American brands."

"Of course it's not," Lee answered. "Let's sit while Tarin grabs that."

Shooting Tarin a small smile, Lee turned to lead her parents into the living room. Not that they should have needed that, they had been to this apartment quite a few times over the previous 7 years.

"So how was your flight down?" Lee asked. That was a safe, easy question, right?

"That's Tarin?"

Lee took a deep breath, letting it out in a sigh. "Yes mum. That's Tarin. Like I told you-"

"So why does Robert not like him?" Lee's dad interrupted her. "He seems perfectly polite and decent."

Well. That had gone okay, right? They hadn’t instantly scowled or frowned or anything like that. Had it been dumb to call them Mr and Mrs though? He and Lee hadn’t talked about that and he’d just kind of done it and oh god…

Lee’s Mom didn’t want anything, but her Dad wanted a beer and Tarin said a silent thanks to whoever it was who looked out for idiots who had no idea how to act as an adult with their girlfriend’s parents. Into the kitchen Tarin went, pulling open the fridge and grabbing one beer. Was he supposed to get one too? Did Lee want one?

Shit.

Standing there and staring into the refrigerator for a moment, Tarin took a deep breath and grabbed a second bottle. Taking a second to remove the caps and peeking into the oven to make sure the food was fine (it was), Tarin made his way back into the living room just in time to hear Lee’s Dad ask Lee why Robert didn’t like Tarin.

”That’s a question for the ages…” he said, offering the first beer to Lee’s Dad, who took it, and holding the other one out to Lee, ”You want one? I can get another.” if she didn’t, he’d keep it. Win win.

Lee's parents' voices hadn't been lowered at all as they were asking about Tarin. Or about why Robert didn't like him. Not that it mattered, because it was no secret that Robert did not like Tarin. Plus Tarin was making his way into the living room right then.

And answering her father's question as he handed the man a bottle. Followed by asking if she wanted a beer.

Lee hadn't been planning to. In fact, what she was doing this entire evening had probably been the lowest priority when she had been worrying and planning. But seeing it offered, it looked good.

"Please," she replied as she reached out to take the bottle from Tarin with a smile. "Thanks."

Then Lee turned to look at her father. "And honestly, I think the reason is simply that they have the same name," Lee told her parents. "That and the fact that he doesn't seem to be able to adjust his thoughts or opinions when it comes to me and my life." Lee then took a long sip of her beer.

"Because they have the same name? Lots of people have the same name as other people," Lee's mother said.

"Exactly," Lee replied. "But he seems to think that because of that, that they are the same person though they are very clearly not."

Tarin handed over the beer, but stayed standing for a moment. It felt weird to run off into the kitchen again so soon after entering the living room.

Then Lee was at least attempting to explain why Robert didn’t like Tarin and Tarin couldn’t help but nod a little bit as Lee’s Mother pointed out that lots of people have the same name.

Tarin hadn’t expected that and as Lee responded, Tarin couldn’t help but smile at her as she established her very important point.

Some of Tarin’s nerves faded as it appeared they’d at least be starting from scratch as far as he was concerned.

A door opened somewhere else in the apartment and a few moments later Kevin emerged into the living room and spent a moment looking at everyone.

”Are they being weird about it?” Kevin asked Tarin in his usual blunt but somehow wildly astute way.

”They just got here Kev, so nope. No weird.”

Kevin nodded, ”Adults always act weird around you so I just figured..” he said with a shrug, then dropped down on the couch.

”Hi Grandma, hi Grandpa.” the teen added belatedly, ”When are we eating?”

Kevin was making his way out of his room without being called, Lee noticed as she felt him making his way to the living room.

And immediately asked if his grandparents were being 'weird' about Tarin. While he could have worded things better, Kevin did have a point. Just about every adult reacted in surprise that the Tarins from each side of the rift didn't look the same. And that they weren't the same person.

"We could probably eat any time," Lee replied, looking at Tarin questioningly. "But if we want to talk longer, it'll stay warm."

Lee's dad nodded, then turned to greet Kevin. "Hey there Kev. What do you mean by adults act weird?"

Thanks Kevin. Where was the impressively mature tact that the child had shown on the night he’d gotten back from Texas?

Lee’s Dad asked for clarification and Kevin thought for a moment and then shrugged, ”Everyone just gets weird when they find out he’s from the other side of the rift and has the same powers as my Dad.” he said.

”Then they get even weirder and are like ’Oh my gosh Kevin how do YOU feel about that? and it’s just really not a big deal.”

Tarin didn’t know whether to be grateful or mortified as Kevin continued to speak. Nothing Kevin was saying was wrong, but boy it sure seemed uncomfortable to just lay it all out like that.

”Yes…” Tarin said, looking back at Lee, ”The food will stay warm as long as we need the food to stay warm.”

Lee was about to try and explain what Kevin had meant by adults acting weird, but her son beat her to it. And explained, quite specifically, why people got 'weird' when they met Tarin.

Not only his words, but Kevin's entire tone expressed how he not only thought that 'it wasn't a big deal', but also how annoying he found the entire thing happening over and over. Especially the part where people would ask him about it.

Looking over at Tarin, she thought he was looking uncomfortable. Well, more uncomfortable than he already was feeling. It was probably a little more direct that Lee figured Tarin would have preferred the situation to have been explained, but Kevin had laid everything out clearly.

Tarin also confirmed that the food would stay warm for them no matter how long they spoke, and Lee nodded before turning back to her parents.

"Tarin isn't the first person Kevin's met from the other side of the rift when he also knew the person from this side," Lee explained. "They actually do look the same, but it is blatantly obvious pretty much the moment he starts talking that they are completely different people."

Lee explained that Tarin wasn’t the first person that Kevin had met from the other side of the rift and Tarin looked at her a bit quizzically. Had they talked about that before? Tarin didn’t know.

It was weird how some people from his side had looked identical to their counterparts on this side and how some were so different you’d have never been able to guess the connection.

Still. Kevin had made it clear that he did not find any of this to be a big deal and Tarin realized that he’d never really heard confirmation of that fact from Kevin…just from Lee relaying information. Sure, Tarin thought that he and Kevin got along just fine, but it was so hard to tell.

Tarin realized that the only person in the room who hadn’t had an opinion on this particular topic was him, and that was strange considering the entire conversation to this point was about him. It was exactly the kind of situation that Tarin usually tried to avoid like the plague, but here they were.

”It’s really not a big deal. It’s a weird situation and it’s bound to be weird sometimes. Kevin and Lee have handled all of that with remarkable grace.” he said, again feeling more than a little guilty that they had to deal with that at all.

”And I just try to clarify things where I can.”

"Yeah, well, since we're all on the same page now," Lee said, trying to direct the conversation away from this topic. Especially since somehow her parents didn't seem to have any confusion or issues with the situation. Though, Lee thought, that might have had something to do with the fact that they really hadn't known Kevin's father all that well, and also didn't know a whole lot about the rift.

"Hey Kev, have you told your grandparents about what's happened since you visited them?" Lee asked. Though she was nervous about how her parents would react and how they would treat him now that Kevin had his powers, she thought it was probably the best thing to just get everything right out in the open.

"Oh? Is it something that has a story to go with it?" Lee's mother asked, turning to look at Kevin.