"You have one new message..."
"Only one?! Dork!" Gwen said aloud to herself when she got home. She listened to AJ's message and smiled. She had never been so happy before and she was falling in love with AJ. It was around Thanksgiving and he was coming to New York to see her. They were then going to drive up to Albany to meet her parents and sisters. She dialed AJ's number.
"Talk to me," AJ answered.
"Hey you," Gwen said. AJ smiled.
"Hey Baby," he greeted. They talked for a while and AJ gave her all his flight information for when he was flying in tomorrow.
"I'd suggest wearing a hat and sunglasses," AJ said.
"Okay, sounds good," she said, writing down his flight number. AJ had to go so they said their goodbyes and hung up.
~~~~
"327....327..." Gwen said, searching the screen at the airport. She found his flight and read "On time" and smiled. She walked to the gate and saw the plane land. She got butterflies in her stomach and could barely sit still. She stood up and walked to the gate where other people were waiting. Passengers started piling out of the plane and she searched for AJ. She heard someone shout her name.
"Gwen!" AJ called out. She turned and saw him and ran into his arms. He picked her up and she wrapped her legs around his waist. He kissed her and wrapped his arms around her. He put her down and kissed her again.
"I missed you so much," she said. He took her hand and entwined his fingers with hers.
"I know, me too. Now lets book it," he said, as they started dodging people to get to the luggage claim. He picked up his suitcase and they ran out to her car. Once they were outside, she hugged him again. They kissed and just stood in the parking lot in each others arms. He ran his fingers through her hair and smiled. She unlocked the car and they climbed in. She drove them to her apartment and they took the elevator to her room. Once they got in, AJ plopped his bags down.
"Rex!" he called out. The robotic puppy came running to AJ and AJ picked him up.
"Okay, so here is the agenda," Gwen said. "Tomorrow we drive up to Albany for Thanksgiving dinner with my family and tomorrow night we always decorate our Christmas tree. It's tradition," she said. AJ smiled. Since he only lived with his mom and his grandparents, he never had a big family. He was very excited.
"My parents can't wait to meet you and neither can my sisters. But I must warn you that Madaline and Olivia are both big fans," she said. He laughed.
"No prob," he said, taking Gwen into his arms and kissing her forehead.
~~~the next day~~~
AJ felt a soft kiss on his cheek. He stirred and saw Gwen sitting on the edge of his bed in her guestroom.
"Morning," she smiled. He smiled and pulled her down and kissed her.
"EWW!" she cried. "You have morning breath!!" she laughed. He playfully hit her with a pillow and got up to get ready. After he took a shower and got dressed, he met Gwen in the living room. She looked him over.
"Okay, good," she said, when she saw him wearing a turtle neck black sweater and designer jeans.
"What?" he asked.
"Well, my parent's aren't real cool with tattoos," she said. He smiled slyly.
"You rebel," he said. She smiled and put her hair up in a messy bun.
"They also aren't cool with my blue tips," she said. He laughed.
"Damn girl," he scolded playfully. She grabbed the keys.
"Okay, ready?!" she asked. She was very excited. She was always used to Ashleigh bringing home all the guys and being the oldest, Gwen hated never having a decent guy to bring home. This was her turn now. He looked surprised.
"Wait, you're gonna drive?" he asked. She laughed.
"Yeah, it is MY car and MY house we are going to," she smiled.
"But the MAN always drives!" he cried. She hit his arm.
"Ah cut the shit," she said, opening the door and he followed her out.
~~~~~
They got to Albany in one piece and they were now standing on the porch of a huge beautiful house.
"Damn..."AJ said, "This house is huge."
"It's not as big as it looks on the inside," Gwen said, honestly. She rang the doorbell and heard "THEY'RE HERE!!" and all the sudden the door flew open and a miniature Gwen stood there.
"GWENNIE!!" she cried, jumping into her sisters arms.
"Livvy!" she shouted back. She put her sister down and Olivia starred at AJ in awe. He laughed and bent down to her level.
"Hey cutie," he said. She stuck her hand out.
"Nice to meet you AJ," she said, which was very much rehearsed. He smiled and shook her hand.
"Excuse me for a moment," the little 10 year old ran into the other room and they could hear a faint "OH MY GOD!" and they both smiled. They were quickly greeted by everyone else. An older version of Gwen walked in with an apron on.
"Hi honey!" she called out. She hugged her mom.
"Mom, this is AJ," she introduced. AJ smiled.
"Hi Mrs. Matthews," he said.
"Oh! Call me Judi!" she said, giving him a hug. "We are so happy to have you joining us!" AJ smiled.
Next, 2 older girls walked in. One had dark chestnut brown hair and blue eyes and the other one looked just like Gwen.
"Gwen!" they both said. She hugged her sisters.
"AJ, this is Ashleigh," she said, pointing to the Gwen look-alike. "And this is Whittney," she said, pointing to the brunette. Ashleigh was 19 and Whittney was 16.
"Hey," he said, shaking their hands.
"Where is Maddy?" she asked, but was soon answered when she heard a shriek come from upstairs. "HE'S HERE!" they heard. Soon, a little red head appeared at the top of the steps. She had curly red hair and freckles. She flew down the stairs and right past Gwen who was standing with her arms open waiting for a hug from her littlest sister. Instead she stopped right at AJ.
"Hi! My name is Madaline Renee Matthews. I am 5 and 3 quarters and I love you!" she said, in one breath. AJ laughed and picked her up.
"Well, I'm Alexander James McLean. I am 22 and a half and I love you too!" he said, laughing. Gwen cleared her throat.
"Excuse me Maddy!" she said, with her hands on her hips. Maddy smiled sheeply.
"Hehe...hi Gwennie!!" she cried. A tall man with brown hair and glassed came in.
"Hey Pumpkin!" he said, hugging Gwen.
"Hey dad!" she hugged back. He took a good look at AJ. Mr. Matthews was always protective of his little girls.
"Hello, you must be AJ," he said, sticking out his hand. AJ put down Madaline and shook his hand.
"Yes sir," he said. AJ got a little nervous. He never had a dad and never knew how to act around them.
"Well, dinner is almost ready. Why don't you take him into the TV room," Mr. Matthews said. Gwen nodded and they walked into the huge TV room. AJ was overtaken by all the pictures in the room. Each girl had their own collage of various pictures. He walked right over to Gwen's and smiled. They had all her senior pictures up.
"You never showed me your senior pictures," he whispered to her. She smiled.
"My mom kept all of them," she said. He laughed.
"Olivia and Ashleigh look just like you," he said.
"I know, isn't it weird? Whitt looks just like dad and we dunno where Maddy came from," she said, joking about the little red head. He smiled and looked at her.
"Are you nervous?" she whispered.
"Nah," he smiled. He kissed her cheek and heard a sigh from behind them. They turned around to see Olivia and Madaline watching AJ. The girls saw they got caught and laughed and ran out of the room. Ashleigh and Whittney came in and the four of them sat on the two couches facing each other.
"So what's up guys?" Ashleigh asked.
"Not much. I've been busy with work and all," Gwen said. There was always a weirdness between her and Ashleigh. Even though they looked exactly alike, Ashleigh always had the boyfriends and all the friends. Gwen and Ash used to be really close but ever since she moved out when she was 18, Ashleigh and Whittney became best friends. So Gwen always felt like the odd person out.
"What's it like being famous?" Whittney asked. AJ smiled.
"It's really cool. You get to meet tons to celebrities and go around the world," AJ said. He often used that line in press conferences.
"Have you ever met Barenaked Ladies? I love them," Whittney said.
"Um..I met the lead singer at a party before but not the whole band," AJ answered.
"What about .."
"Okay guys, dinner is ready!" their mom interrupted. They all stood up and walked into the huge dinning room. Gwen's parents sat at the ends of the table while Gwen, AJ and Olivia sat on one side and Ashleigh, Whittney and Maddy on the other. Mr. Matthews said grace and they all sat down. Gwen's dad cut the turkey and served it around the table. Once everyone had their plates full, they dug in.
"This is fantastic," Gwen said, after swallowing a mouthful.
"Yes, I love home cooked meals," AJ said.
"So AJ," Mr. Matthews said between bites, "what do you do? Are you in college?"
"Dad!!" hissed Olivia and Maddy.
"Oh! Right, I forgot. You are in a singing group, right?" he asked. AJ nodded.
"Yes I am," he said.
"The Backroad Boys..?"
"BackSTREET, Dad," Whittney said.
"Yeah, that's what I meant. Tell me AJ, do you plan on going to college?" he asked. AJ grew a little nervous.
"Well, not really, sir. I love what I do and I know I'm going to perform my whole life," he answered. Gwen smiled at him. Mr. Matthews didn't look impressed.
"I see," he said, taking another bite. Gwen was getting mad. Why was her father acting like this? He loved all of Ashleigh's boyfriends and would even take her boyfriends out golfing.
"Where did you two meet?" Judi asked.
"In the diner I work at," Gwen said quickly. She gave AJ a 'look' and he knew that her parents wouldn't approve of her working in a bar.
"What are your parents doing for Thanksgiving today?" Judi asked AJ.
"Well, its only me and my mom and she is having dinner with my aunt and my grandparents in Florida," AJ answered. There was more chit-chatting and Gwen's dad pretty much ignored AJ. Gwen was furious at her father's rude behavior. After dinner, everyone helped clear the table and Gwen and AJ offered to do dishes.
"Nonsense," Judi said, "It's a holiday. No one should work on a holiday. We'll do them later," she said.
"Now it's time to decorate the Christmas tree!!" Olivia squealed with excitement. While everyone started getting out ornaments and untangling Christmas lights, Gwen pulled AJ into the living room.
"I am so sorry about that," she apologized.
"Ah, its okay," he said smiling. "He just wants what's best for you."
"Yeah but he is never this rude to all of Ashleigh's boyfriends. I don't know why he is acting like this," Gwen said. They walked back into the TV room and Mr. Matthews was finishing making sure the tree was straight. Everyone started digging around in the big boxes of Christmas decorations to decorate the tree. Whittney and Judi started wrapping Christmas lights around the tree while Ashleigh started hanging decorations. Gwen grabbed a box of decorations and grabbed AJ's hand. She pulled him up and they started decorating the tree. The family talked happily while AJ and Gwen talked between themselves.
"Ya know, with getting ready for Christmas, what are we going to do?" AJ asked her. She thought for a second. She hadn't even begun to think about Christmas.
"I don't know...do you have a break?" she asked.
"Yeah, we get 3 weeks off for Christmas and New Years," he said. He hopped Gwen would come to Florida with him. He was dying to show her his house and meet his mom. But he had a feeling she would want to stay in New York.
"Do you want me to come to Florida?" she asked. Mr. Matthews was over hearing his daughters conversation with her boyfriend and had to change the subject.
''So Gwen, when are you going to come up here for your Christmas break?" he asked, loudly.
"Um, actually dad, I think I'm going to go to Florida this year," she said. Everyone looked at her. "What?" she asked.
"Gwen, this will be the first Christmas without you here," Ashleigh said.
"I know, lets talk about this later," she said. She didn't want to start a huge family fight in front of AJ. They continued to decorate the tree and Gwen excused herself to get some coffee in the kitchen. She was getting out a coffee mug when her father walked in.
"Dad, what is going on?" she immediately asked.
"What are you talking about?" he asked.
"Don't play dumb. Why do you hate AJ?" she demanded.
"I don't hate him. He just doesn't seem like your type," he said.
"You don't know my type. Maybe if you ever paid attention to me instead of Ashleigh, you'd know my type," she said, harshly.
"What in the world are you talking about?!"
"Oh come on dad, its no lie you loved ALL of Ashleigh's boyfriends and loved having the popular daughter and the 'real winner'. Now when I bring home a guy I really like, he's not good enough. He is good enough for me dad," she said, almost screaming.
"You barely know him! He is a rock and roll star! He travels around the world. Do you know how many other girlfriends he might have?!" he shouted back. She couldn't believe what she was hearing.
"Yes I do know him and I know I am his only one. And if you actually gave a shit and got to know him, you'd know that too," she cried. Her father hated when she swore and she knew it.
"Gwendal Marie.." he started.
"Oh dad, cut it. I'm sick of it," she said, about to storm out of the kitchen.
"He probably has a tattoo!" her dad hissed under his breath.
"Yeah, 12!!" she said, leaving the kitchen. She walked back to the living room and saw AJ quickly put up an ornament. She walked up to him and tried to put on a fake smile.
"Can I talk to you for a second?" he asked. She nodded. They went upstairs and when they were alone, he stood and faced her.
"I heard everything. I went to get your mom some scissors and I heard you fighting. Gwen, I don't want to come in between you and your dad," he said.
"No, you're not," she promised. "It has always been like this and whoever I would have brought home, he'd hate."
"I want your dad to trust me," AJ said.
"I know, I do too. But he is stubborn and never will," she said. They stood in silence for a moment. "I'll come to Florida with you for Christmas," she said. He looked up.
"Really? Gwen.."
"No AJ. I'm coming. We never get to see each other and I want to spend Christmas with you and not them," she said sternly. AJ wrapped her into his arms. He was so happy he was going to spend Christmas with her.
They walked back downstairs and finished decorating the tree. Ashleigh and Maddy had made cookies so they ate them while decorating. Once the tree was fully decorated, AJ looked outside.
"Hey hun, it's snowing pretty bad out there," he said. Since he was from Florida, he wasn't good in driving in snow, and knowing Gwen, he knew she would be too tired to drive back.
"Uh-oh," Gwen said, noticing the problem.
"I don't want you guys driving out there. So you guys can stay here," Judi said. AJ looked at Gwen and she shrugged.
"Okay, we'll sleep in my old room," she said. She saw her dad turn red.
"Well, honey, I think you should offer your bed to AJ and you can sleep in one of the girls rooms," Judi said, trying to keep her husband from exploding.
"Mom, we are both adults. I think we can sleep in the same room," Gwen challenged. AJ looked at her and she sighed.
"I think it'd be nicer if AJ got his own room," Mr. Matthews said, butting in. AJ stood up.
"That's good. If not, I'll sleep on the couch," he offered, not wanting to get on Gwen's parents bad side. They all agreed AJ would take Gwen's room while Gwen shared someone else's room. Everyone went their own separate ways and left AJ and Gwen in the living room. They sat down on the couch and he put his arm around her.
"I'm sorry. This is why I moved out," she said. He kissed her forehead.
"No problem. But I wouldn't have minded having you to myself in your room," he whispered slyly. She hit his arm and snuggled in his sweater.
