It had been quite a few weeks since Beverly had told Gordon that she loved him and Beverly had yet to tell her parents that she actually loved him. To them, she still acted obstinate and was very vocal about telling them that the marriage would never happen, but things were getting serious and Beverly couldn’t help but wonder if, someday in the not too distant future, Gordon would propose. The thought made Beverly’s stomach flutter, but she didn’t think that it was in bad way. She wasn’t ready for marriage yet, but it certainly wasn’t out of the question.
It hadn’t been that for Bev to keep the little secret from her parents because it had been a few weeks since she had seen Gordon in person because most of the time he was away at school. But that weekend, Gordon had a break. So, Beverly had planned to spend most of her weekend with him. However, she didn’t think that she could hide her love of Gordon from her parents any longer. So, the time had come when she was going to suck up her pride and tell her parents how she really felt about him. She was sure that they would gloat and brag, but Beverly didn’t care anymore. She didn’t love Gordon because of them. She loved him because he was a great guy and that was all.
Beverly sat her parents on the sofa, telling them that they needed to talk. Of course, her parents were a little fidgety, clearly in a hurry. Beverly’s mother kept glancing at the clock, not at all interested in whatever Beverly had to say.
“I don’t want you to get overly excited or start. I just need to get this off my chest without being interrupted. So, I know this may come as a surprise--”
Linda cut in, “Beverly, darling, just spit it out,” she said, tapping on her watch.
Beverly just rolled her eyes. “Like I said, I don’t want to be interrupted. I just want you to listen.”
Linda sighed, “Fine. Say what you want, but your father and I have places to be. So, hurry.”
Bev gave her mother a stern look and Linda clamped her lips shut, clearly holding back from saying a snide remark. “Well,” Beverly said with a shaky voice, “I just wanted to let you know a little something about my love life. I’ve been dating this guy.”
This time her father interrupted and Beverly groaned. “Beverly,” he said sternly, “You said that you’d give Gordon a chance. But then you go and get some other boy. You broke your deal. In this family there’s one thing we’re true to and that’s are word. We have a lot of flaws, but we always keep up our end of the deal.”
“Would you just listen. I did keep up my end of the deal--”
“But you didn’t try hard enough. You didn’t try at all, Beverly. Why must you be so stubborn?”
“Why can’t you listen,” Beverly said with understandable frustration. She rose her voice, hoping to speak over her parents’ voices. Maybe then they’d give her a chance to speak. “So, the thing is,” Beverly began and she saw her mother open her mouth, but Beverly glared and Linda’s mouth shut again. “I didn’t expect this to happen, but I think- no, I know- that I am in love with Gordon Reeve. We’ve been dating secretly for a while now and I’ve come to realize that he’s the perfect guy for me. He’s a little nerdy, but he’s kind and sweet and everything a girl could want in a guy. I love him and it has nothing to do with your meddling. I love Gordon for himself. I can’t promise that we’ll get married, but what we have is something special and I want to see where it goes,” Beverly rambled nervously.
After her long and winding monologue Beverly took a deep breath, waiting for her parents to start talking and Beverly was sure that her mother would immediately start making wedding plans and calling all her friends, but that was not the case. Her parents were silent.
“Now you have nothing to say,” Beverly muttered.
“Sweetheart,” Johnson began, voice softer than usual, “We’re thrilled for you. We’re just surprised. That’s all.”
“Aren’t you going to say, ‘I told you so?’” Beverly asked. She was surprised her mother wasn’t laughing tauntingly, bragging about mother knowing best.
“Beverly, we just want you to be happy. That’s all we’ve ever wanted. We don’t care about being right. We’re just glad that you’ve found yourself a wonderful guy,” said Linda Wells of all people. It was Beverly’s turn to be surprised. That was, perhaps, the most sentimental thing that Beverly’s mother had ever said to her and the scariest thing was that Linda Wells sounded genuine, a rare moment of candor.
“Yes,” Johnson agreed, “We’re so glad for you, Bev. And you let Gordon know that if he breaks your heart that I’ll break him.” Beverly’s father was a strong man; so, it wouldn’t shock her if he meant it. Though, Beverly was doubtful that Gordon would break her heart. She couldn’t imagine anything in their relationship ever going wrong. Her and Gordon were just a perfect fit for one another and that wasn’t going to change.
Beverly’s mother engulfed her in a hug and her father followed suit. In that moment, Beverly wondered if her parents weren’t so monstrous after all. Maybe they weren’t as vapid and as shallow as she thought. Maybe they were a little pushy and they tried to micromanage her life, but it was becoming clearer to Beverly that they did those things because that was the best way they knew to show their love. Beverly’s parents had never been very touchy feely and had always come off as stoic, but that didn’t mean they didn’t love her, she realized.
That night went better than Beverly ever could have imagined. It felt good to have the weight of her secret relationship off her chest, but it felt equally good to have her parents rallying at her side. Finally, Beverly could spend time with Gordon without feeling like she had to hold back and keep her love quiet. Beverly felt so free and so very in love. It would be months before Beverly would feel any comparable euphoria, but before she knew it, the night came when Beverly was filled with more bliss than she knew humans were capable of having.