Great. What was I supposed to say to that? Any other time, I’d introduce myself. But how did you introduce yourself to your girlfriend’s dad? I’d never done this before. Why? For this exact reason. It took too much thought.
I wished I were back downstairs, playing tennis-ball-catch with the net.
“That’s Brooks,” Reece said with his mouthful. He had a glint in his eye that spelled danger, and he was looking at Brielle. “Brooks just started at school today.”
“Oh, really?” Mr. Walters swung back to look at me. He was smiling. Right now, anyway.
“Yeah, and he’s dating Brielle.” Reece dropped it like a bomb, and his mouth worked back and forth against a grin.
Brielle paled.
I wasn’t sure what to do.
Run?
Mr. Walters was very silent. He stared at Reece, then shifted his attention to me, then onto Brielle. “Oh, really?”
Man, this guy didn’t show emotion at all. I couldn’t tell if Mr. Walters was upset, interested, or just bored.
“I mean, sort of!” Brielle stammered. “We—kinda—like—just started dating today.”
“That’s what your brother implied.” Mr. Walters looked to me. “So. Brooks.” He said the words like bullets from a gun. “We’ll need to chat.”
“Yessir.” I nodded. I mean, I couldn’t really do anything else, could I? But I hadn’t bargained for this when I’d told Brielle I’d give her a week. What had I been thinking?
“Daddy, I—” Brielle started.
Mr. Walters put up his hand. “We’ll chat too.” A smile, and then, “Don’t worry.” As though he needed to reassure his daughter that she’d have hisfullattention.
Brielle and I exchanged looks.
We were committed to this now. There was really no getting out of it.
“He plays baseball.” Reece offered it like a peace offering.
“Oh yeah?” Mr. Walters was hanging his jacket on a peg that jutted out from the wall. “What position?”
“Uh, catcher.”
“Catcher. Nice.”
“He’s a Brewers fan,” Brielle inserted.
Mr. Walters gave me a side eye. “That’s one good mark for you then, son.”
Son.
I really didn’t like it when dads called me “son.” It made me feel very, very young. Like I was about to be disciplined.
What was it Brielle’s Aunt Elle had said?
Look him in the eye.
Keep youranswers short.
Don’t lie.
There was something else, too, but I couldn’t remember. I struggled to find something to say, and then I managed the first thing that came to my mind.
