A joyous and merry holidays!
Please don't post if you aren't bookwormiam2010 or harakun.
Thank you! <3

Nick Sparling hesitated outside his friends apartment. Ok maybe friend was the wrong word here. He didn't make friends...he made acquaintances.It wasn't because he was rude or dislikable he just didn't have the social gene. Heck out fo all the people in his family he had to be the one missed out on that one vital gene. So that brought him back to here: his acquaintances door step. It was cold as all get out and yet he just couldn't bring himself to knock on the door. He didn't belong here! Yes he'd been invited but he hadn't given a yes or no answer he'd just brushed it off. What if he showed up and they weren't prepared? Oh man then he'd look stupid!

He shivered softly looking back towards the empty streets. Well it was too late to jump back into his cab and go home where he belonged. At home he wouldn't be expected to make conversation or meet anyone expectations. He'd just be there back against the wall paper like always. He let out a soft exasperated sound. Just once...just once would it hurt for him to do something out of his comfort zone? Uh yes it would but that was besides the point. He was here and he was stuck. For now. He shifted anxiously from foot to foot before he lifted a gloved to knock on the door in front of him.

As his soft hesitant knock bounced back at him he winced. Well there. He'd done it. He'd officially found himself something else to do for the holidays. He'd made a vague promise to his family that he'd come out of his shell more and this was his way of doing it. Sadly he didn't know if it would work or not.

[imgleft]http://i881.photobucket.com/albums/ac19/animegurl18_2009/Anime%20Pictures/Anime%20Guys/Adam-chan.png[/imgleft]Indeed, Josh and his family weren't ready at all for Nick's presence. They were well aware that Josh had invited his friend - well, everyone was Josh's friend - to their house and had even given their address but they didn't think Nick would go through with it. Josh hoped, though, and he was glad his hope had been answered the moment he'd heard the doorbell. The sight of Nick standing at his doorstep brought up a bright smile to his lips when he'd answered the door and he pulled the man up into a tight hug. "Glad you could come, Sparling," he said as he let him go and led him into the house.

"Were your parents okay with it? You staying over?" he asked as he checked outside for any more people or things Nick might've left outside. When he saw none, he shut the front door and ushered the other further into the warm house and into the living room where there sat two mugs of hot chocolate with marshmallows. He took one mug and was just about to give it to Nick when a little girl had latched onto his leg and whined. "Brother! That's mine!"

Blinking for a moment, he looked down and grinned at his pouting little sister. "Karen, this is my friend, Nick. Nick, Karen." Karen looked up at Sparling with her big brown eyes and she blushed shyly as she hid behind her brother's leg. He gave the mug to Nick and then picked up his own mug to hand it to his sister. "Here, you can have mine. Go help mama in the kitchen." When he saw her nod, he patted her lightly on the head and watched her leave.

"So... were your parents okay with you staying over for the holidays?" he asked again and moved his attention back at Nick, a smile still glued onto his lips. Unlike back when he was at school, he was clothed rather fully: a plain, dark blue sweater knitted by his mother, black tight pants and a pair of socks.

Nick let out a soft yelp as the door suddenly opened and he was pulled into a hug. He stiffened uncomfortably until the hug was over and even then he didn't relax once he was released. His brown eyes were wide in surprise as he struggled to think of something to say. Hugs? He barely knew the dude and yet he was being pulled into friendly embraces? He didn't even get those at home! So just how was he supposed to react to that?"Y-yea.." he stammered. That was it. That really was all he could come up with. He'd just gotten there and he wasn't sure whether he was glad he'd came or not. This wasn't home. It was no where near home.

He blinked slowly as he was brought out of his distracted thoughts and pulled into the warm house. He nodded softly before managing to speak up. "Yes. They were alright with it. If anything they were surprised to find out I had plans..." he admitted sheepishly. He shook his head softly as Josh was about to give him the steaming cup. He opened his mouth to politely decline but upon hearing the younger voice he quickly clamped his mouth shut and edged backwards. The last thing he wanted was another random touchy feely moment!

Nick smiled shyly as he looked down at the little girl. Well at least she hadn't pulled him into a hug but from the way she was looking at him..Had he done something wrong? He frowned softly before hastily placing the smile back on his face. [color=darkgreen]"Its nice to meet you Karen." he murmured politely as he fumbled the mug that Josh pushed into his hands before tightening his grip on it and watching Karen leave.

Shifting awkwardly Nick took a sip of the hot chocolate he'd been given only to grimace at the overly sweet taste. What could he say? He'd never had hot chocolate before and after this he'd never have it again.Trying to hide his obvious dislike of the warm beverage he took another sip and nodded mutely in response to the repeated question.

Josh sighed in relief and smiled brightly again. "That's good to hear then!" he exclaimed, obviously missing the fact that he might've made the hot chocolate a little too sweet again. He and his sister loved them sweet and their parents, who were the ever so loving pair, didn't mind if their children overdid what they did. The smell of food wafted from the kitchen and into the living room and he couldn't help but swallow tightly.

"By the way," he said as he seated himself on the single couch and motioned for Nick to sit on the three-seater couch, "I'll be buying my gifts tomorrow. You want to tag along?" Rubbing his hands on his pants, he then rested his elbows on his knees. "Every Christmas, we pick out a piece of paper from that box," he said and pointed to the said box at the center of the coffee table, "Whomever name we pick out, we give them a gift."

The male looked back at his friend as he leaned back in his seat and leaned onto the arm of the couch. "Your name was in it and I think there's one more left for you. My older brother's done his pick. He'll be stopping by on Christmas eve for the celebration and the exchange of gifts."

Nick looked at Josh somewhat doubtfully. He sounded like he meant it...but he couldn't really be thrilled to have him there for Christmas. Maybe he was just being nice.Yea! That had to be it!He bowed his head causing his medium brown shaggy locks to fall forward hiding his face as he stared into his mug. He'd given up on pretending to like it by just not drinking it. At least this way he didn't feel like his teeth were about to jump right out of his mouth."You're not serious."he said softly. It was a statement not a question. How could anyone be happy to hear that a stranger was going to be camping out in their house during the holiday?

Looking at the couch uncertainly Nick balked for a moment before setting himself on it and scooting himself as far away from Josh as he could without being rude. He really didn't want another weird touchy feely moment. He blinked in surprise at the invitation to tag along with Josh on his shooping trip. Gently Nick nodded. "Er, sure. That is if you don't mind me going with you. I mean really you could just say no and I'd be fine just staying here and keeping out of the way." he babbled nervously. He squirmed uncomfortably in his seat before he forced himself to sit still as Josh explained the way presents were given out around there. He nodded to show he understood."Ok..so whose name did you draw?"he asked with a soft lilt of his head as he made general conversation.

Well, Josh really was thrilled to have Nick with him. After all, the people he usually invited to stay over at his place were people he don't talk to often. At least now, he'd be talking and conversing a lot with Nick. He could just imagine the things they'd talk about in the evening or just when they were randomly doing stuffs together. "Huh?" he asked, blinking a bit at the other's statement. He didn't miss those words considering he had pretty much sharp hearing. If the other was at the kitchen and was mumbling something, he'd obviously not hear it. "What do you mean I'm not serious?" he asked with a frown and a little pout,

"I'm always serious!"

Josh hadn't realized the distance Nick put between himself and the other not until he'd looked at the couch. It surprised him and he raised his eyebrows a bit. "Of course not," he said as he got up to sit beside Nick and grin brightly at him, "Come on. I invited you over; you're my guest and pretty much part of this family for this season... and the next seasons." When he heard that question, though, his bright grin turned to a sly smile. "I'm not telling you," he said with a chuckle, "If I do that, my ma and Karen's going to kill me."

Josh took the box and smiled again at Nick. "Go ahead, pick the last paper up," he said, thoroughly unaware that it was his name in there, "Then tomorrow, we'll go Christmas shopping. Not that I really want to because it's crowded but what else can we do?" The male made a face as he said these last two statements of his.

Nick let out a soft chuckle as Josh proclaimed just how often he was serious. He shook his softly a faint smile remaining."Sorry, but you don't strike me as the serious type. You seem like someone who'd be happy to make others laugh and smile. Serious people..they don't know that. I should know that.."he said muttering the last bit under his breath. His whole family was serious. He was serious! Not as his serious as his parents but still. They didn't crack jokes or laugh or even smile unless they absolutely had to. Which was never!

Nick frowned softly as Josh slid closer. Automatically he scooted away until the armrest of the couch pressed into his side. Uh oh...now what was he going to do if Josh moved closer?"Sure you invited me but I bet you thought I'd just stay home. Right? You never expected me to show up on your door step." he argued before doing as Josh asked. He leaned forward setting the untouched drink on the table before he reached into the box and pulled out the scrap of paper with Josh's name on it. His eyes widened in surrpise before he quickly wiped the expression of his face. "Really? I can't see Karen as an ax murderer..but then again no one ever suspects the innocent looking people." he mused as he closed his hand around the paper.

He winced slightly as the realization that he'd have to shop rather than tag along dawned on him. Now he wouldn't be able to stay out o the crowds..if anything he'd be stuck smack dab in the middle of them! And just what the heck was he going to get for Josh? He knew nothing about him!He bit his lip softly before he pouted in what he hoped was a fashion similiar to Karen's. He had no idea if he looked cute or just plain idiotic...but hey if it got him out of trying to fight his way through the crowds he was ok with it!"Do we have to? Can't we just...avoid the crowds all together?"he asked allowing his lower lip to tremble softly. What. The.Heck?! Why was he pouting? Just what the heck..it had to be the hot chocolate! yea that was it! Maybe it was all that sugar that was making him act so sillily.

When Nick had started to say something about him and the serious type of people, he found himself frowning. "When did that kind of racism start?" he asked as he made a face, "And even though I do like making others laugh and smile, it doesn't mean I can't be serious too." The male leaned back onto the couch and ran his fingers through his hair. The smell of food was starting to get to him, he could feel his stomach already grumbling.

"That's correct but I hoped you would come," he turned to look at Nick when he'd said this and grinned, "And I'm hoping a lot more with you here now. We've never gotten a chance to talk much back at school so... I'll be sure to make it up while you're here." Josh saw those eyes of Nick's widen when he'd seen the paper and he found himself looking rather curious. He did try to peek but the other had already closed that hand of his around the paper.

Josh nodded at the questions and he grinned. "I suppose we could if we wake up early." He could see the other pouting and he chuckled as he moved closer to bring him in for another hug again. "We can avoid the crowds all together since the Christmas rush won't be starting until later in the evening." Patting the other's back, he turned to look at Karen who was trying to tug them apart and settled herself on Josh's lap. She wrapped her little arms around Josh's shoulders protectively and gave Nick a slight pout.

"Why's big brother hugging someone else?"

Josh kissed his little sister's cheek and smiled. "Because Nick's big brother's good friend," he replied as he pinched her cheeks lightly, "It'd be nice if big brother Nick and Karen could also get along, too." She looked shy again, embarrassed as she moved her gaze down and nodded a bit. "I'll try..."

Nick winced slightly hearing the slight outrage in Josh's voice."Well its not racism exactly..its personalityism." he pointed out a slight blush coloring his cheeks. Oops. Had he said something wrong? He hadn't meant to make Josh mad or anything but he'd just assumed-and that would be the problem. He'd assumed. He barely knew the guy and he'd just barreled on assuming he wasn't the serious type!He squirmed awkwalrdly in his seat before noticing the tantalizing scents wating towards them from the kitchen. Automatically his stomach let out a soft growl of longing.

Nick had just hesitantly allowed himself to start thinking about food when he heard the worst words imaginable. 'Get up early.' No. Never. He was not giving up his warm albeit strange bed just to get up at some god forsaken hour just so he could go off on some romp to try and find a present for a guy he didn't even know. Nope.He let out a soft 'eep' as he was pulled into another hug. What in the world?! What was it about him that seemed to demand hugs? He squirmed trying to get away from Josh. Maybe now would be a good time to mention the whole no touchy feely thing-

He practically jumped off the couch as he felt another set of hands on him.He stared down at Karen while trying to think of some explanation. But what could he say? He didn't have an answer to that question! he hadn't asked for those hugs. heck he'd be glad if they could be avoided all together. As a matter of fact....Nick stood up and moved to the other side of the room. there! Ha! Now he couldn't be randomly hugged! He was safe!!!But now he looked rude...oh well. he'd gladly take rude versus extremely awkward."Right.." he murmured in agreement. For real? Friends passed out hugs like that? Well there went any desire he had for friendship. How could anyone stand being hugged so much? And just how was he supposed to get along with her? He knew nothing about little kids..maybe if he just smiled and tried to be a little less weird she'd like him a little more? Or maybe not. If that pout said anything it said 'I don't like you!'. Well...the feeling was kind of mutual. Ok so he didn't not like the kid. But he certainly didn't like her either. He just...acknowledged her. yea that was it!"Um, I think now would be a good time for me to unpack.."

Well, everything was racism for him if one or the other is compared personality-wise, skin-wise or ethnicity-wise. At least, this was how simple-minded Josh was. He'd even missed the blush from the other when he'd looked off to his sister when she'd pulled at his hair and he reached up to take her little fingers and playfully berate her for doing that. It had hurt, after all.

"So," he started as he glanced over at Nick and raised his eyebrows a bit, "Will we be leaving early tomorrow to stay out of the crowd or... should we do it in the evening with the rest of the people?" He smiled, "We might be able to come home on time for dinner, too." Picking the little girl up from his lap, he put her down and kissed her on the forehead before he patted her back lightly to usher her out of the living room. That was when he heard Nick's suggestion about unpacking and realized, too, that the other had already left the couch and went off to the one corner. It only had him blinking.

"How'd you reach there?" he asked with a raised eyebrow and an amused smile. Motioning towards the stairs with his head, he smiled brightly again. "Anyway, you'll be rooming in with me. I don't mind sharing my bed but that'd be up to you." Josh waiting for the other before leading him up to his room. There were two other rooms; one was for his sister and the other for his parents. Another door was there and that was their bathroom. The bathroom he and his sister shared. His older brother has his own place and will be getting married in a month or two. They were still deciding on the date but were preparing for the venues and all.

"I've got this sofa bed if you don't want to sleep wtih me." The male made the sofa into the bed and put his hands on his hips. "The closet's there at the corner. I've made space for it for you." Sitting down on his bed, he put his hands on it and smiled again.

"What'd you mean by the way about your parents not expecting you to have any plans?"

Nick grimaced at the mention of waking up early again."That's depends..what's early for you? Anytime before 10 is too early for me." he admitted with a shy smile.Great now he sounded like a slacker. Which he wasn't. His grades in school showed that. He'd almost had a number of mini meltdowns over the fact that he had a high B instead of a solid A. He watchd Karen leave the room and just barely resisted the urge to cheerfully wave good bye to her retreating figure. But he restrained himself. He'd been raised with manners and he could use those manners. No he would use those manners. Even if it meant the kid would still hate him. But why? It wasn't like he'd done anything to her. Least not that he knew of anyway..

He visibly blanched upon hearing the rooming arangements. he had to share a room with Josh? Dang it! That meant that he could possibly be smothered by one of the million random hugs he was bound to receive!"No offense but I'd feel much more comfortable if I had my own bed or pallet to sleep in." he mumbled softly. He had no issues with sleeping on the floor. In this situation he'd feel safer in the floor. Provided he didn't get stepped on in the middle of the night that is. He couldn't wipe the look of obvious relief off his face as Josh pulled out the sofa bed. Yay! He wasn't going to have to share a bed with Josh! He was safe..well somewhat.

He smiled somewhat warmly at Josh as he set his suitcase on the couch bed and unzipped it before he started pulling his belongings out.At first it was just the bare necessities but once he got to bottom of the bag all that was left was a stack of books, a worn and faded sketchbook and some stray pens and pencils. For a while there a content quiet between them. Content because Nick finally felt he could relax. He wasn't trying to dodge suffocating hugs or making conversation. He was doing what he did best: being quiet. Not standing out. Sadly like most good things the peaceful quiet had to come to an end. he bowed his head down as he carried soem of his clothing over to the closet to hang up."Just that. I don't normally get invitations to go anywhere. I stay home a lot. So when I mentioned maybe having plans for the holiday I surprised them." he explained. He hadn't just surprised them he'd surprised himself. But wasn't that what the holidays were about? Surprising yourself and others?

"Ten's too late," was Josh's reply as he leaned back further to prop himself up on his elbows, "But if after lunch's fine with you... then, we'll leave after lunch. You won't like the crowd, though." He chuckled lightly and blinked at the other visibly blanching when he'd said something about rooming with him. "What's that face for?" he asked teasingly as he laughed again, "It's not like I'll jump you or anything, y'know. My parents hate the noise when we jump up here upstairs. The last time my sister and I did it... we were grounded."

Josh remembered having to play board games back then. When he'd heard the sound of a zipper coming off, he returned his attention back at Nick and shifted to sit up again. The male watched him unpack and whistled at the stack of books. "I know finals are coming up but what are those books for?" he asked as he made a face and pointed at them. Unlike Nick, he was an average passer. He passed all his subjects but he didn't get a top score or anything. If he probably showed more attention or gave his subjects a more serious note, then he'd probably be like Nick with the A's and the B's.

"Ohh... well. I'm glad!" was all he'd said about the other's last statements and grinned brightly, "I do hope you get a lot of memories from under this roof just as I had."

Nick couldn't help but let out a soft sigh of relief. He grinned softly as Josh told him the story about his sister. What ever worries he'd had about Josh jumping him were gone. Heck he wasn't even sure why he'd been that nervous...maybe it was just because it was the first time he'd been somewhere else for the holidays."Why would you jump around up here?" he asked curiously. Obviously he'd never played a board game in..well ever. He'd always been able to content himself by curling up with good book or drawing.

He chuckled seeing Josh's astonishment over all the books he intended to read. Smiling contentedly he spread them out over his bed so that the other could get a better look at the titles."These aren't for studying. These are for fun. I spend a lot of time reading. Most people find it dull but I love it..I take it you don't like reading?" he asked hesitantly. Was he boring him? He wasn't trying to but he seemed to have that affect on people...heck he was almost positive he'd bored his younger cousin to tears before.

Nick nodded in agreement before letting out a soft yawn. He blushed faintly and hastened to reply. The last thing he wanted was to offend his new friend. Wait-was that what Josh was? A friend? When he'd gotten here the other boy had been little more than an acquaintance and now he was a friend? Was it really that easy? Or was he just that eager to have someone he could safely call a friend?"Sorry about that. I wasn't trying to imply that m y stay was going to be boring or anything. I'm just kind of sleepy. So...anytime before ten tomorrow is good for you?" he asked pushing a few of his books aside so he could sit on his bed comfortably.

(Sorry for the long wait! I was distracted by school and other roleplays. Thank goodness I am out for Christmas Break now! ^^)

"Well," he started as he shrugged, "It's fun." He grinned and patted his bed. "That, and if you jump on this bed, you'll not want to stop." Of course, he wasn't exactly sure if that was Nick's thing but it was his and his sister's. When he'd heard Nick's reply, he'd thought he knew one other thing about him other than him being so seemingly dull or so the people at his school says.

"Hmm," he said thoughtfully as he leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees. His eyes had unconsciously moved along the titles and he smiled. "Not really, no," he replied after a few minutes of silence and shrugged again. "It's more fun to see people than to read and be in your own world. Though... it looks fun reading books to children. They're real cute when they react." Like his sister, that is. Hell, he wouldn't want to miss bedtime storytelling with her. She's just too cute when she falls asleep on him.

The yawn from Nick caught him by surprise and he smiled at his words. He waved his hand nonchalantly and got up to his feet. "Well, dinner's going to be ready in a bit," he said, "You better hop into the shower now or do that after eating." Nodding towards his guest's way, he picked up the books to put them aside so he could cross over the bed he'd laid out for the other and headed for his closet. He pulled out a towel and held it out to Nick. "Will you be taking one now or later?"

(Sorry for the lack of formatting. Feeling extremely lazy at the moment...)

Stifling another yawn Nick timidly reached out and grabbed the towel. "I think now would be a good idea. I've been up since...well I don't know when this morning and I feel like I'm about to crash. So if I wait until later then there's probably a good chance its not going to happen..." he babbled. Why on earth was he explaining all of that to Josh? He had no clue. ...OK he had a small clue. Josh was just being so forth coming with the conversation that Nick was feeling guilty for not supplying enough in return.

Blinking sleepily he lifted a hand to rub at his eyes before he grabbed some spare clothes and got off of his bed. Sluggishly he made his way towards the door suddenly realizing just how tired he was. He opened the door before stopping. "Uhm...where is the bathroom at?" he asked with a soft lilt of his head.

[[ It's okay! c: ]]

Josh blinked at that. "Well, whether you take a shower now or not really doesn't matter but it'd be good to wipe those sleepy eyes of yours once dinner's ready." He grinned, "Just make sure you don't fall asleep in the tub. Not that I'd mind scooping you out but, I don't want to have my sister see another naked man." The male stuck his tongue out playfully at Nick and waved a little before he'd stopped at the question. It had him chuckling lightly. Coming over to put his hand on Nick's back, he led him out of his bedroom and to the door beside his room.

"This is the bathroom," he said, "My sister's room on the other side of this bathroom. Don't bother locking the door. The lock's destroyed; unless, you want to lock yourself up in the bathroom."

Nick's cheeks flushed at the others advice. Ok! He was definitely not going to conk out in the tub! Nope! He'd go through heck and high water to make sure that didn't happen-wait. Had Josh just said he wouldn't mind seeing him naked. Well he hadn't exactly said that..but still! He'd implied it!Nick froze his eyes widening and his mouth dropping open in surprise. "You're gay!" he blurted before slapping a hand over his mouth. Had he really just said that? Josh had been kidding..hadn't? But what if he wasn't? And why had he just blurted it out like that! "I-i-i mean its fine if you are. I was just saying..I mean I wasn't saying anything.." he babbled nervously.

What had he done? He'd ruined his chances at having even one friend..and why was that? Because he'd just had to open his mouth..He'd allowed Josh to lead him in the general direction of the bathroom before he'd rudely blurted out what he thought the other sexuality was. He glanced nervously at the other before he quickly made his way to the bathroom. "Well I guess I'll see you at dinner.." he babbled before disapearing in the bathroom and shutting it tightly but leaving it unlocked.

Josh hadn't specifically said he wanted to see Nick naked. In fact, the words 'Not that I'd mind scooping you out' were too vague to have the other jump to that conclusion. Hell, when he'd blurted that out, Josh had only raised his eyebrows in surprise and then frowned. At the other's babbling, it was enough to make him snicker and stand in front of the door. "I'm more bisexual than gay, though," he said as he knocked a bit on the door. Sure, Nick was cute but he wasn't going to make a move on him. At least, he didn't think he should. Josh never makes the first move, after all.

"Try not to stay in there too long. We'll be waiting for you at the dinner table, Nick!" His sister had come up the stairs and latched onto his leg. She giggled when he'd scooped her up and held her in his arm. "Is the food ready?" he asked her. When she had nodded, he smiled and kissed her cheek before he'd went off downstairs to go to the dining table.

Nick blanched as Josh corrected him. 'Oh lovely...he's bi..not gay. I couldn't even get that right!' he thought groaning softly. Why hadn't he just kept his mouth shut? Any other time he wouldn't have a problem being quiet. But no he'd allowed himself to relax just a little bit around Josh and look what had happened! He groaned softly leaning back against the door. "Stupid..thats what I am. Who gives a crap if Imake good grades when I'm completely inept at being social?" he muttered to himself. He didn't say anything as Josh finally left. He allowed himself a few more minutes to mope before he stood up and went about getting ready for his shower.

As soon as the spray of warm water Nick began relaxing. Yes he'd screwqed up but it hadn't gone that badly. Josh hadn't been mad about it. If anything he'd taken it all in stride. He'd even seemed amused by it...That still didn't make it right though. He'd just have to watch what he said from now on. The last thing he wanted to do was offend Josh or his family. He let himself soak a little longer after washing up before he got out stiffling another yawn as he dried off and finally dressed.

After cleaning up after himself he hesitantly opened the door leaning out to see if Josh had been sent upstairs to check on him. When he didn't see the other boy he let out a soft sigh of relief before he quietly made his way downstairs to find the kitchen. When he saw Josh and the others he offered up a hesitant smile. "S-sorry if I k-kept you waiting.." he stammered out.

((bookworm, please remember that posting your character's picture in each of your posts is considered flobbing and is against the rules. You can post an image in your character's profile, but that's it. :yes: Just letting you know so you don't get into trouble in the future. I've removed the image flobs from all but your first post. :yes: Feel free to PM me if you have any questions.))

Josh was pretty open with his sexuality but he never did the hitting on someone even if he's interested in them. As for Nick, he only wanted to be good friends with him considering that he and the other were complete opposites. That, and they never got to talk back at school. Apparently, they had different circle of firends. "He's going to come down after a shower," he told his mother who was now setting up the table. He put his little sister down as she helped her. His father, on the other hand, was still heading home in about five minutes or ten. At least, that was the message he'd read from his mother's cellphone on the kitchen counter.

Just as he'd gotten himself to his seat did Nick decide to show up. Even his own father had followed suit after the boy. "Hey dad. This is Nick and come over here Nick." He grinned brightly as he patted the other seat beside him. His sister always did take the right of his own seat. The family was gathered around. One could clearly see where Josh had gotten his good looks. Thanks to it being hereditary, it was believed that he'd have no problem choosing a partner by the time he's in his thirties. Hell, his father who was already in his fifties still look awfully good-looking.

"Sit beside me." There were countless of food set down on the table and they all looked mouth-watering and delicious.

"Nick, was it? Come on and don't be shy. Eat to your heart's content. Feel at home."