Charma took his hand as they walked up the path to a very normal-looking, albeit large, two-story house.“It’ll be fine, I swear.”
Darcy nodded.Sure, sure.The fact that he’d never met anyone’s family before meant he had no reference for this, and Charma had said ‘grilling’.So.He was… trepidatious.Who knew where he’d dug that word up from, but he thought it fit the bill pretty well.
They hadn’t even made it to the stairs to the veranda when the front door flew open and a petite woman with the same facial features and wild curls as Charma flew out.
“Charma!”She came right down and wrapped Charma in a hug.“I’ve missed you so much!”Then she let go and turned to Darcy.“And this must be your young man.”
“Mom, this is Darcy.Darcy, this is my Mom Belia.”
Darcy thrust out his hand, but it was knocked away.“I’m a hugger.”Then Darcy was wrapped in a firm hug.He panicked for a half a second, then hugged her back.He blinked back sudden unexpected tears; it had been a very long time since he’d had a hug like this.A true hug from a mom.
She stepped back and frowned at him.“Tears?”She looked at Charma.“Tears?Are you planning something bad?”
Darcy shook his head and opened his mouth, but he wasn’t sure how to explain.He wasn’t sure his voice wouldn’t crack and be all wavery if he did explain.He looked to Charma too.
“No, no.It’s nothing like that.Darcy hasn’t seen his parents in a very long time.”
“They’re dead?”She put a hand on his arm and looked like she was about to come in for another hug.
“More like I’m dead to them,” Darcy said quietly.“On account of being gay.”
She shook her head, and she did hug him again.“You can have as many hugs as you need, Darcy.And you can call me Mom.”
“Oh.”He wasn’t able to blink back the tears that came this time, and he hugged her back tightly, a little overwhelmed.
“All right, let’s go inside.We’re giving the neighbors a show, and I like to be wearing my good jewelry if I’m doing that.”She winked and linked her arms with each of them, walking them up the stairs and then into the house.
The place was warm and cozy, inviting, and the smells were amazing.There was definitely bacon and he was pretty sure someone had been baking, too.Bread and something sweet maybe.This was not at all what Darcy had been expecting.
“Come into the kitchen, sit and eat.”She got them both seated, set plates in front of them, and then began to fill them.There were scrambled eggs and bacon, beans and sausages.A biscuit was added to his plate and a glass of milk plopped down by it too.There were more biscuits in a basket on the table, another with muffins in it.“There’s more of everything so make sure to help yourself.”
“Thank you.”
He and Charma ate in silence for a bit—Charma hadn’t let them even have a piece of toast for breakfast because they were apparently expected to eat a very large breakfast at his mom’s.He could see that was true, and he was really glad he had an empty stomach on which to have this feast.
“This is so good,” Darcy said when he’d eaten about half his plate and most of his biscuit.He could eat those for days.
“I’m surprised no one else is here,” Charma noted as he buttered a muffin and took an enormous bite.
“Not because they didn’t want to be, I promise you that.I told them they had to stay away.As your mother, I get to meet your young man first.Everyone else can gawk when we go to the festival.”
“There’s going to be gawking?”Darcy asked.He wasn’t sure he wanted to be the center of attention like that.What if he did something stupid?Or less than graceful?When he was nervous, he lost some of his coordination so either of those were a definite possibility.
“Well, Charma’s never brought anyone home before.Plus, he left a while ago and he’s been missed.We’re better when we’re all together and most of our kids don’t go far from home.Charma always has walked to the beat of his own drummer, though.”
Charma rolled his eyes at Darcy, but Darcy was pretty sure it was exaggerated.So far, his mom seemed really, really nice.Darcy knew he didn’t have a great example to compare her to, and she had made Charma feel like he needed to leave, but still.
She put more bacon on Darcy’s plate, and another biscuit on Charma’s, and then sat with her own plate.“So, Darcy.”
Okay, here came the grilling he’d been warned about.
“I’ve heard the story of how you met from Charma.Now I want to hear how you tell it.”
“Oh, god!”Darcy laughed.“I rescued this cute little chameleon at the beach and carried him all the way home in my front pocket!Then I take him out and all of a sudden there’s a very naked guy in my living room.I didn’t know where to look!”
“But you were definitely looking,” Charma noted.
Darcy felt his cheeks heat.“Yeah, yeah.I did.I couldn’t help myself.”
