"Say stud, I forgot to ask. Why'd you bring your backpack?" asked Alex, while pulling his boyfriend closer in more than a friendly hug. "It's only a little after 8 now, and I know you don't have to be home till ten, so were you hoping to..." he let his voice trail off, as Alex began playfully nibbling at Nate's ear.
"As much as I enjoy those moments handsome," began Nate, using his new pet nickname for Alex, "we still have homework to finish. Remember?"
Alex's face briefly showed disappointment, which Nate quickly erased by kissing his beau. "Whatever lies in the future, that includes the two of us finishing school together. Think your folks can spare some space at the dining room table for a while?" he asked, while grabbing Alex's hand.
"Sure. Let's go show those Algebra problems who's boss!" exclaimed Alex, as he happily led the way to his house.
MEANWHILE...
As William and Martha Anderson cleaned up from dinner, their younger son Eric decided to take advantage of the time alone with them.
"Mom? Dad? Can we talk?" he asked.
"Sure son," replied his father, moving to sit back at the dining room table. "What's up?" he asked, as his mother sat next to William.
"Well... I've been giving a lot of thought to my future," began Eric.
"With Julie Stovall?" asked Martha.
"Yes. It's gotten to the point where I can't picture a moment without her," admitted Eric.
"That sounds very serious," acknowledged his father, while looking at his wife.
"It is," agreed Eric.
"What were you thinking?" asked Martha.
"Well..." began Eric. "I know that right now, we're both only 14 and just high school freshmen, but in the future, Julie and I will graduate high school, with honors," he quickly added, "then go on to college. I'm not sure whether we'd get married before or after we graduate that..."
"But Julie is the lady you do marry?" asked Martha.
"Yes. I honestly can't see myself with anyone else. Awake or asleep," replied Eric.
"What do you mean asleep?" asked his father, before Eric told his folks about his dreams of him and Julie, only leaving out the details of their more... private moments together.
"And Julie's told me she's been dreaming of me and us too," revealed Eric.
"You must have some really strong feelings towards each other," realized Martha. "Then again, I know how that feels," she added, reaching out to hold her husband's hand, while leaving out any comments concerning her relationship with Samantha and Frances Twist.
"You do realize that when the time comes, marriage is a pretty BIG step. How does she feel about that?" asked his father, as Martha stared at her son.
"We talked on the way home tonight. Julie loves me, and I her," confessed Eric. "Her father says that love at first sight is a scientific fact for were-mers, and that Julie felt it from the moment she first saw me, even though I was unaware of it at the time," added their son, remember the Sunday night dinner at the Stovalls house where her parents recounted the events of their courtship to his family. "Julie refers to us as her parents in reverse, and I have no evidence to dispute either claim. Especially considering my growing feelings towards her."
"I see..." began his mother, leaning a bit closer to where Eric was standing between her and William. "You haven't actually proposed yet. Have you?"
"Officially? No," admitted Eric. "But when I briefly brought up the possibility of that happening someday, Julie's reply was that her answer would be a strong and definitive yes."
"I see..." said his parents, almost in unison.
"For the first time that I can remember since... at least entering junior high, I'm happy," said Eric with joy. "Nobody's picking on me because I'm smart, short, different, or anything. Even without knowing exactly what will happen when, I feel more positive and confident about my future."
"Because of Julie?" asked William.
"She's a big part of it, yes. Julie's very special to me. I'm special to her and she makes me feel special too, but the Twists were also right. There is something special about Moon Lake," conceded Eric.
"On that we both agree," said his father, while looking at Martha.
"And we do want you to be happy. So if Julie's a part of that happiness, you have our blessing," added his mother. "But while listening to your heart is important, please don't rush into anything," said Martha, letting go of William to take her son's hand in hers. "As you said, you're both only 14 year old freshmen. Let things proceed at their natural pace, and enjoy whatever lies ahead."
"Julie basically said the same thing to me earlier," revealed Eric. "I guess great minds think alike, huh?"
"Ladies certainly do," said William, while smiling at his wife.
"There's a couple of other things we also need to discuss," added Eric.
"Oh?" said his parents, this time actually unison.
"First off, you do realize that to have any kind of a long term relationship with Julie, I'll have to become a were too someday. So when the time comes, I've decided to become a were-merman," announced Eric.
"If that's what you want honey," replied his mother, to which his father nodded in agreement.
Eric looked at her mother and said, "Odd. When I told Julie my decision, she actually started crying."
"You've always been a smart child Eric. You'll figure out why she did in time," replied his father. "But you do realize that becoming a were is a lifetime commitment with no other options, right? Whenever it happens, there's no going back to being a plain human being like you are now, or ever having the chance to change your mind and become a different kind of were."
"Yes, sir," replied Eric.
"And besides becoming a were, you also know that a long term relationship with Julie will also involve..." began his mother, but Martha suddenly found herself unable to finish the sentence.
Eric had a look of uncertainly on his face as he stared at his mother, and his father said, "What we're getting at son, is that at some point, the two of you will have to be even more... intimately closer with each other than simply talking, kissing, hugging, and holding hands."
"Oh. You mean sex," realized Eric, matter-of-factly. "When I told Julie I was going to talk to you tonight, she said to reassure you that she planned to stay on some kind of pill until after we were married. But is she all right, having to take this medication every day?"
His mother remembered that she still had to take her were birth control pill before going to bed, while wondering about how to explain it to Eric. "It's like a vitamin dear. Something your father and I will explain to you shortly," promised Martha, as she looked to William, who realized it was time to have THAT talk with his son. Was the basic discussion about the birds and the bees even applicable in Moon Lake?
"Okay," said Eric, with relief in his voice. "As long as she's all right." Then he thought about it for a moment, before adding, "There's something else. About the Town Halloween party next weekend..."
"Your costume is almost ready. A seafaring dark wool hat, dark coat with matching pants. You'll make a handsome young Jacques Cousteau to Julie's tropical mermaid," replied Martha. Pretty simple, really. One quick trip to the local thrift store added to some of Nate's hand-me-downs, and wash before wearing.
"Thank you for your help with the costume, but it isn't that..." began Eric trying to figure out how to explain his problem.
"Then what is it son?" asked his father.
"Well... it's just that... you see... I don't know how to dance," admitted Eric, as his face began to turn red with embarrassment.