“Your hands are shaking,” Clarke observes with a frown.
Lexa shoves them under the table. “I’m nervous.”
“You don’t need to be. My parents are going to love you,” Clarke assures her.
“Are they?”
“Of course. They know how I feel about you, Lexa. They know that you make me happy… That’s good enough for them.”
Words that she normally would have found comforting only make Lexa more anxious. The only other serious relationship she has ever been in was with Costia, and she hadn’t had any parents for her to meet.
Lexa has absolutely no experience with this, and it terrifies her.
Clarke can see that her girlfriend is nervous and sighs, taking one of her hands in her own.
“Babe,” she says. When Lexa doesn’t look at her or even acknowledge the fact that she is speaking to her, she sighs again. “Babe,” she says.
Lexa looks at her this time. “What?”
“It’s going to be okay,” she whispers.
The brunette just nods, however. She knows, rationally, that her anxiety is unnecessary.
Though she has yet to meet Jake Griffin, Clarke’s dad, in person, she has spoken to him over the phone multiple times. His voice is warm and comforting, and she is well aware of the fact that he likes her.
Abby Griffin, Clarke’s mother, has a much less warm and comforting voice, but Lexa likes her nevertheless. The older woman is kind despite her hard demeanor and has been nothing but nice to her in the few conversations they have shared.
Both of Clarke’s parents adore her and she knows it, but that doesn’t mean that she isn’t still nervous about it.
She worries that she’ll be much less charming and smart in person and embarrass herself in front of Clarke’s parents. In her mind it will probably be so bad that Clarke will no longer want anything to do with her and will dump her on the spot.
She sees Clarke smile and wave at her parents and she stiffens immediately, feeling like she may be sick.
Clarke and Lexa both get up from their chairs, to greet the two adults coming towards them, careful to stay out of the way of the many waiters and waitresses making their way around the restaurant.
“Hey, Mom. Hey, Dad,” Clarke says. She gives both of them quick embraces and then gestures towards the nervous looking brunette standing next to her.
“Mom, Dad, this is Lexa.”
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Mr. And Mrs. Griffin.”
“Please,” Abby says with an immediate shake of her head and a smile, “call us Jake and Abby.”
The moment Lexa nods and steps forward to shake Jake’s hand, the man grabs her and engulfs her in a hug. She’s hesitant at first, but relaxes into it after a moment. The warmth and safety she feels in the man’s arms makes her smile; growing up in the system, she had never much experienced ‘Dad Hugs’. Now she finally understands what she has been missing out on all of these years.
Abby hugs her next. She hadn’t expected it to be, but the hug from the older woman is every bit as warm and loving as Jake’s is.
Clarke smiles at the sight of her girlfriend and parents hugging for the first time, but she knows the moment has to end soon.
“We should sit,” she says.
Everyone seems to agree with that, so they all sit down at the table. Clarke and Lexa are sitting on one side: Clarke opposite her mother, Lexa opposite Jake.
Lexa’s hands shake a little again now that she has left the embrace of Clarke’s parents. She shoves them under the table, but Clarke notices and takes one of them in her own.
“How was the drive?” The blonde asks her mother, trying to take the attention off of Lexa for a moment.
“It was alright. Your father insisted on listening to 80’s music the entire way down… He almost didn’t make it out alive.”
Everyone laughs, Jake feigning offense.
“It’s only an hour drive,” Clarke says with a roll of her eyes. “And anyway, Dad has good taste in music.”
“Not today he didn’t.” Abby chuckles and then turns to Lexa. “I’ve heard a lot about you. All good things, I assure you. Clarke says that you’re a lawyer, is that correct?”
“Studying to become one,” Lexa replies with a nod of her head.
“I suppose you must be a good influence on Clarke then.”
“More like Clarke’s a bad influence on her,” Jake jokes.
“I think we balance each other out,” Lexa says with a soft laugh. “But Raven and Octavia are definitely bad influences.”
“Ah, how is Raven? I haven’t talked to her this week.” Abby looks at Clarke for her answer, as the two are best friends.
“Good. She’s been busy studying for that exam. I’ll remind her to call you later.”
“Of course.”
“So, Lexa,” Jake says with a smile, “what do you do for fun?”
“I like to read,” she answers.
“And she likes to watch squid documentaries,” Clarke says in a teasing tone.
“That too,” Lexa says, a blush rising to her cheeks as she playfully nudges Clarke.
“Squid?” Asks Abby. “Why squid?”
“I’ve always liked them,” she replies with a small shrug of her shoulders.
Before anyone can reply, the waitress arrives to take their order.
Everyone orders their food quickly and returns to the conversation.
Jake and Abby ask Lexa more questions about herself but eventually move on to other topics.
“Clarke, will you be able to make it to the reunion next month? You said you’d check. You know that you’re invited as well, Lexa.”
“Oh, yeah, Mom. We’re both coming… And O and Raven are tagging along too.”
Abby laughs. “Of course they are. I’m glad you too will be able to make it.”
“We wouldn’t miss it, Mrs. Griffin,” Lexa says. At Abby’s stare, she quickly realizes her mistake. “Abby,” she corrects.
“Better,” the older woman says with a laugh.
Their food arrives and everyone begins eating. The table falls silent, but it isn’t uncomfortable.
“I had a great time, Abby,” Lexa says with a smile, her arms quickly finding their way wrapped around her torso in a hug.
“I did too. It was lovely to meet you, Lexa,” Abby replies, squeezing the girl tight before letting go.
Lexa hugs Jake as soon as Clarke has pulled away, and Clarke hugs Abby.
When everyone has pulled apart and the two older adults are headed over to their car, Clarke turns to Lexa.
“I’m not going to say ‘I told you so’, but… I so did tell you so.” Clarke laughs.
“Shut up, Clarke,” Lexa replies, but she’s smiling.