The next day, Sam found himself pacing back and forth in his room, phone in hand.
His parents' words from breakfast still echoed in his head.
"We should invite Mahiru over for dinner."
He sighed, staring at his phone screen.
Sam: Hey, you free this weekend?
A reply came almost instantly.
Mahiru: Why? You planning a date?
Sam smirked. She knew him too well.
Sam: Not exactly. My parents want to invite you for dinner.
There was a long pause.
Then—
Mahiru: ...Wait. Your parents?
Sam: Yeah. They wanna meet you properly.
Mahiru: Oh.
Sam frowned at the short response.
Sam: You okay with that?
A few seconds later, his phone started ringing. He picked up.
"...Are you serious?" Mahiru's voice came through, slightly panicked.
Sam chuckled. "Why wouldn't I be?"
"But—but dinner? With your family?"
Sam sat on his bed. "Yeah. I mean, it's not like they're strangers. You've met them before."
"Yeah, but that was just in passing! This is different!"
Sam raised an eyebrow. "You nervous?"
Mahiru groaned. "Of course I am! What if they don't like me?"
He laughed. "Mahiru, my mom already adores you. And Anna—well, she'll probably tease us to death, but she's fine too."
Mahiru sighed. "And your dad?"
Sam hesitated for a moment before shrugging. "He's not the overprotective scary type, if that's what you're thinking."
Mahiru still sounded unsure. "...What if I mess up?"
Sam smiled. "You won't. Just be yourself. They already know how much you mean to me, so they'll love you."
A long pause.
Then, softly—
"...Okay. I'll come."
Sam felt a weird warmth in his chest at that.
"Good," he said, grinning. "It's a date, then."
Mahiru groaned. "It's a family dinner, not a date!"
"Still counts," he teased.
"Ugh, you're impossible."
But he could hear the smile in her voice.
And that was enough.
----