9:14

I was sitting outside again; Evelyn had gone to bed early, exhausted from the excitement. I'd checked my phone after pie, he hadn't even opened my text. Something must've come up.

But in all honesty, knowing that something probably came up didn't make a difference with the nerves I was feeling.

Did he lose interest now that we're not together? Did he mull this whole relationship over and find things that just won't work? Did he realize how much of a frikkin' weirdo I am? Will he even want to come pick me up Sunday? Am I gonna get ghosted? Will I have to beg Sally to leave her shift early and pick me up?

Those thoughts, and others like them, drifted through my head as I tried to focus on scrolling through mind-numbing social media.

9:26

My phone vibrates and I jump. Not even glancing at the contact name, I press answer.

"Hello?"

"Sammy? Is that you?"

I sighed, holding a palm against my beating chest.

"Yeah, it's me. What's up Andrei?"

He sighed, too. His sounded long and tired, and my eyebrows furrowed a bit after hearing it through the phone.

"It's been a long day."

I perked up.

"Really? What happened?"

He sighed again, and I could just picture him rubbing the bridge of his nose and scrunching his eyebrows together in exasperation.

"Mikhail and the others threw a surprise Thanksgiving party. He said it was to 'learn how to human,' but it was a disaster."

I relaxed against the back of the bench, wrapping my free arm around a propped knee, comforted by the warm, Russian lilt of his accent.

"How was it a disaster? I'm sure it wasn't that bad."

"It was!"

And he proceeded to tell me how absolutely horrible Russian selkies are at celebrating last-minute Thanksgiving.

I laughed, I cried, it moved me Bob. (A/N: Veggie Tales reference, anybody?)

I learned, though, that vodka should not be imbibed while trying to prep a turkey. A great photo opportunity, but a horrible decision.

During a lull in the story, I checked my phone for the time.

10:35

"Hey, isn't it past midnight there?"

"Mm-hmm." He even sounded tired.

"What are you still doing up?! Go to bed!"

"But I wanted to talk to you." He whined. I could practically see the pout on his face. I couldn't help the smile that stretched over my face.

"I'll talk to you tomorrow, ok? I'm not going Black Friday shopping, so I'll be free all day."

"Okaaaaay." His voice was slurring a bit now.

"Call me when you get up, ok? But sleep in. We're in different timezones, so take all the time you need."

"Okay, Sammy, I'll call you in the morninggg--" He broke off into a yawn.

"Good night, Andrei." I called.

"Good night, Sammy. I miss you." He trailed off, and I could hear some light breathing through the phone. My heart clenched; this guy had been up since seven, and had had to stay up till eleven for even the slightest chance to talk to me. He'd stayed on the phone with me for just over an hour, exhausted as he was. This kid was too good to be true.

I hung up the phone, not wanting to waste either of our batteries, and went to bed pretty darn happy.

Friday morning I didn't hear anything from Andrei, hopefully he took my advice and slept in. Tracie and Sarah, archenemies though they may be, teamed up to go Black Friday shopping. They begged me to go with, but seeing as I'd only brought a duffle bag, I couldn't take anything back with me. Around ten, we started playing from my parents' extensive board game collection.

The uncles and aunts took over the table for a round of spoons, while the cousins used the living room for a violent round of the ultimate version.

Around eleven, James came over again, and Mom and Molly broke out the leftovers. Everybody crowded around, trying to get ahold of some of the fast disappearing mashed potatoes.

When I was halfway through my plate, I felt my hoodie pocket vibrate. Pulling it out, I almost dropped it smack down on the table when I saw Andrei's face popping up asking to video call.

How the hell did he figure out how to do that?!

I set my fork down and dashed upstairs to Evelyn's room, where I rifled through my duffle for a pair of headphones.

"Sam? You alright?" I heard Sarah call up the stairs as I plugged them into the headphone jack.

"Yeah, I'm good! Just grabbing my headphones!" Is all I could reply before I accepted the call.

Andrei's face furrowed in concentration broke into a sunny smile, when the call came through.

"Sam! I learned how to video call!"

"Yeah, you did," I chuckled nervously, "I wasn't expecting that at all!"

"I'm still with the clan. Sonya taught me how."

"Well tell Sonya thank you for me, it's nice to see your face, not just hear you over the phone."

I facepalmed inwardly. Was that too desperate of me?

His smile widened, if that was even possible,

"Yes, I think so too!"

Just then, Evelyn's door I'd left ajar opened, and I saw Sarah pop her head in.

"Sam, you good?"

I'm on a call, I mouthed to her, silently.

"Oh!" She almost yelled, then dropped to a whisper, "Oh, sorry. Who is it?"

I blinked. Looked to the left, then quickly back at her.

Andrei? I mouthed to her again.

"Sam, who are you talking to?" Andrei asked, his head tilted to the side slightly as Sarah broke into a piercing squeal.

"Just my cousin, Sarah."

His eyes glittered as he perked up.

"I want to say hello!"

I looked back up at Sarah, who was still standing in the door.

"He wants to say hi--" I wasn't even able to finish because she was already poking her face into the screen.

"Hello, cousin Sarah, I'm Andrei." He said, very politely.

"Hi! Love the accent, where're you from?" She prodded.

"Sarah! That's rude!" I protested, but Andrei just laughed.

"My family is from Russia. We came to America when I was a child."

She nodded in response, then asked,

"How long have you been going out with Sam?"

His eyes scrunched up as he counted backwards.

"Almost two months now?"

"How'd you two meet?"

"At the--"

"At the--"

We interrupted each other, and I gestured to let him go first. He grinned at me, and I could feel Sarah quiver with excitement.

"We met at the diner where Sammy works sometimes."

"That's so CUUUUTE! Who said I like you first?"

"OH-kay, THAT'S enough." I got up and started to push Sarah out with one hand, "Time for you to go back downstairs." Finally succeeding in pushing her out, I shut the door. Leaning against it, I heaved a sigh and heard Andrei chuckle before I heard Sarah yell to the general population of the household,

"SAM'S DATING A SUPER HOT RUSSIAN!"

Screaming ensued and I closed my eyes while pinching the bridge of my nose between my index finger and thumb.

"What happened?" Andrei asked, still chuckling a bit.

"She literally just screamed about you to everybody. I'm gonna have to go take you down there to meet them." I paused and opened my eyes to glance at him, "Are you cool with that?"

He beamed at me,

"Always, Sammy. I'd love to meet your family."

I breathe out quickly, then agree,

"Alright, but don't say I didn't warn you, they're a little overbearing when relationships are concerned."

Andrei laughed,

"I'll be alright, Sammy. I'm safe behind a phone, here."

The cad then winked at me.

I mumbled something along the lines of, "damn," "smug," and, "jerk."

He just laughed.

I entered the living room, where I noticed Sarah was ranting about the guy she'd met basically five seconds ago.

"--and he calls her Sammy! OH my gosh, he's so CUTE!"

Tracie was the first to notice me emerging from the stairwell and almost ran over to me.

"Sam! Lemme see 'im!" I pulled my headphones out of the jack and held the phone out so he could see her.

"Here's my cousin, Tracie."

"Hello! I'm Andrei."

"Nice to meet you, Andrei. This is my brother, Andy," She pulled Andy, who was peeking over her shoulder, next to her.

He raised his hand to wave Andrei an awkward hello. I couldn't see what he did in response, but judging by Sarah holding her palms against hers cheeks and squealing about smile lines, he'd given them one of his killer grins.

Rita and Christie, and even Auntie Hannah popped up behind Tracie and Andy's shoulders to take a look, too. Their side eyes to each other, then to look at me with waggling eyebrows set me to blushing.

I also passed the phone around with my other aunts and uncles and my dad. Andrei's first greeting with him was very respectful and very short.

All Dad had to say about him, once I'd passed the phone on to Uncle Walter was,

"Seems like a nice boy."

Having seen everyone in the living room, I took the phone back and ambled back to the dining room, a trail of excited whispers following.

Grandpa was sitting at the end of the table, close to the doorway, so I decided to get the introduction over with.

"Grandpa? It's Andrei on the phone. Wanna say hi?"

He nodded, mouth full of food, and swallowed.

"Sure, hand it over."

I did as he asked, then leaned over his shoulder as he propped my phone against the butter dish.

"Andrei, this is my Grandpa Joe, the one whose house I'm living in."

"Ah, Grandpa Joe! Your house is amazing!" Andrei gushed, "it has a great view from the ocean!"

"You mean of the ocean, didn't you Andrei?" I raised my eyebrows at him, and he chuckled, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yes, of the ocean, of course."

Grandpa gave me a funny look out of the corner of his eye, but he stayed focused on Andrei's picture.

"So you're from Russia, son?"

"Yes, I am."

"Know any good cuss words?"

"Grandpa!"

Andrei threw his head back and roared with laughter. I pinched the bridge of my nose and shook my head. I swear, I was going to get a hypertension headache from these people or something.

"Only the best."

"Andrei!"

I took the phone back from a chuckling Grandpa, as well as the butter dish, and propped Andrei in front of my place at the table, my food still there.

Or, at least, most of it was.

"HEY! WHO TOOK A BITE OUT OF MY ROLL!"

Molly, sitting across from me next to a sniggering James, raised her hand with a plump, smug grin on her face.

"Guilty as charged," she tried to say, but it came out more like, "filty aff farged."

I warped my face into a look of absolute revulsion, but she just shrugged.

Shaking my head in disgust, I pick up the phone and flip the camera around to show my elder sister.

"And here's the culprit, my older sister Molly."

She held her hands in front of her face.

"Stop I'm not camera ready!" Again, muffled by my poor, innocent bread roll.

Andrei laughed,

"Hello, Molly!"

"And that's her partner-in-crime, James. They're getting married in March."

"Hello, James, congratulations!" He called to the dark-haired man now laughing at my sister trying to hide under the tablecloth as she finished chewing an absurd amount of bread.

"Nice to meet you, Andrei."

I flipped the camera back to me and rested it against the butter dish.

As I started to dig in again, I asked,

"Have you eaten yet?"

"Yes, I ate before I called."

"We're having leftovers today. Were you guys able to save any or did you have to throw it all away?"

He shuddered.

"I chose not to try any leftovers. I have no idea what happened to that turkey after I left."

I snickered,

"I wouldn't either-- hey thanks, Evelyn!"

Evelyn had set her roll on my plate, possibly as consolation for losing a good three quarters of it to a thieving elder sister.

"Here, Andrei, meet Evelyn."

I turned the camera just a bit so that Evelyn stuck her head into the camera from her spot next to me at the table.

"I'm Evelyn, I'm eight!"

"Hello, Evelyn, I'm Andrei. I'm--" He paused to count on his fingers, "twenty five."

She giggled.

"You had to count your age?"

"When you get as old as I am, you'll forget, too," he winked.

She giggled again.

"If he's old, I'm a fossil." Grandpa complained from his spot at the end of the table.

Evelyn burst into a fit of rambunctious giggles, which prompted Mom to come over and rescue the tablecloth.

"Sam, move the phone so I can see the boy, too."

"'Kay." I shifted the camera away from my face to catch hers as she helped Evie clean up her mess.

"This is my Mom, Helen."

"Hello, Helen, I'm Andrei." He waved.

"It's fine to just call me mother-in-law--"

"Mom!" Mom just laughed, and I wrapped my arms around my head while setting my head down on the table. Hard.

"Okay, mother-in-law. Sammy you ok?"

A snort from Molly's direction and I rolled my eyes from within the circle of my arms.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Don't worry 'bout me."

Just dying from embarrassment over here.

"So how do you like Maine?" She asked, multi-tasking by looking at the phone screen and helping Evelyn wipe up her mess.

"It's perfect for me and my cl-- family. We spend a lot of time out in the water, so Crawley is perfect with the open docks and beaches."

Mom hummed her agreement, and finished helping Evelyn clean up.

"It was nice to meet you, Andrei. I'd love to stick around and chat, but I've got dishes to wash and kitchens to clean. I'll talk to you later, probably."

"Alright, goodbye, mother-in-law."

Mom chuckled and dodged out of the camera to go start cleaning up.

"Sammy?"

I lifted my head from the table.

"Yeah?"

"What's a mother-in-law?"

A snort from Molly and a mad dash for the kitchen sink, as Molly spit out the rest of her Coke.

"It burns!" She cried, tears streaming down her face as James shook his head laughing at her, patting her back.

"Is Molly alright? I hear crying--"

"She's fine. Uh, don't worry about it, kay? I'll explain it to you later. Hold on, gimme a second. I've gotta clean up."

I decided that it was finally time for my family to stop embarrassing me. I scraped and put my dishes in the sink, then headed outside to the patio.

"Okay, we're good."

"Is your mother the person in charge at home?" He asked, head tilt goin' strong.

"Why d'ya say that?"

"Because she is 'in-law'. She is in rule of the house."

I pinched my nose between my forefinger and thumb.

"No, that's not quite it. I'm gonna have to look it up before I explain it in English. I'll talk to you about it tomorrow..."