Love of Autism Ch. 05

"Yes," Jackie nodded, "hence why I'm telling you now instead the day of."

"Well I do appreciate that, but can you not give me so much information at once?"

"Oh, right, sorry. I always forget that is still one big area where you and your dad differ in your autism."

Scott took a big, calming breath. "I forgive you, just remember give me a minute or so between new information. I can't always keep everything straight in my head when being bombarded with information."

"So, are you nervous?"

"About Katie having dinner with us?" Jackie nodded her head. "I'm only worried about what Sarah will say to try to get under her skin."

***************************************************

Scott waited patiently for Katie to arrive at his house, but all the waiting was making him more nervous. He sat on the couch in the family, trying to watch TV but couldn't focus on whatever was on. This was going to be the first time his parents chose to be around Katie. Hell, this was the first time they actually invited her to do anything with them and it was to eat dinner.

He had suggested to Katie that she should just come over right after school but she insisted on going home first, showering, and putting on something nice for dinner. That was something he never quite understood, the need to dress up for occasions that were not that special. Homecoming, weddings, and holidays events he understood the need to dress up and completely understood why. But for things like this, just having dinner with a friend's family, didn't make any sense to him for the need to dress up.

Minutes went on by and he just grew more nervous. His sister and parents knew that nothing they said or did would help calm him down so they left him alone to wait. Finally after the wait seemed to be a very long wait the doorbell rang and he got up from the couch and walked over to the front door. When he opened it he was floored. It was Katie standing there, but she looked...beautiful.

"Are you going to let me in or just stare at me?" Katie asked with a big smile, enjoying seeing Scott look at her the way he was.

Scott snapped out of it and stood aside. "Sorry, come in. Let me take your jacket."

"Thank you," Jackie said as she unzipped her jacket, slid it off herself and handed it to Scott. As he went to the closet to hang her jacket up, he caught a good luck of what she was wearing, tight jeans that seemed to fit her teenage legs perfectly, yet still showed off a little ass and a dark blue blouse that seemed to fit her perfectly.

Katie turned to see him still holding the jacket in one hand, hanger in the other and a look of almost disbelief on his face. "Is something wrong?"

"What?" Scott asked before collecting himself. "Oh, no. You just look...so beautiful."

Katie giggled at Scott. "You don't have to be so nervous."

"I'm not nervous," Scott said defensively. "You just...how am I supposed to say this?" he finished, looking up frustrated.

"Just be honest with me. That is all I want from you."

Scott hung up Katie's jacket, closed the closet door and looked her. "Honestly, right now, this is the most beautiful version of you I've seen."

Katie blushed beet red. "Thank you Scott."

"You're welcome." They just stood there for a few seconds in silence before Scott realized why she was at his house in the first place. "They're waiting for us in the kitchen. Mom wants to know what you want in and on your burger."

"In my burger?" Katie asked confused.

"Sorry, I mean like what seasonings you want."

"Oh, they don't have to go through that trouble for me."

Scott laughed. "Well we're all going through the trouble ourselves so might was well join in the fun." He grabbed Katie's hand and led her into the kitchen where his mom was cutting up an onion."

"Hi Katie," Jackie greeted, "I'm glad you were able to come and join us for dinner."

"Thank you Mrs. James for inviting me over."

"Please, call me Jackie. I feel old when people your age call me missus."

"OK. So Scott tells me you want to know what I want on my burger."

"Yes, we have a lot of seasonings you can mix in your burger meat and have onions, peppers, cheese, lettuce, and pickles you can put on it."

Katie turned and looked at Scott. "What are you doing for yours?"

"I think this time I will do oregano, basil, and paprika in the meat, sautéed onions, bacon, and pickles on top."

Katie wasn't sure if she heard Scott correctly at first. "I thought you were a picky eater."

Jackie couldn't help but laugh at what Jackie just said. "He used to be really bad but he's pushed himself to try new food once in a while. Mixing different seasonings though is easy for him because he's trying to find the boldest tasting combination he can."

This was all news to Katie, but having heard now what Scott wanted for his burger she decided to be a little adventurous herself. "Well then, I guess I'll have my burger seasoned with paprika and thyme with cheese, bacon, pickles, and I guess I'll try some sautéed onions."

"Do you want your onions shoestring or slivers?" Jackie asked.

"Slivers please," Katie answered.

"Good, that will make cutting this onion up easier. We only have American cheese. I hope that is OK."

Katie smiled. "American is actually my favorite."

Jackie turned and looked directly at Scott. "Make sure you remember that Scott. It is little things like that..."

"Mom," Scott interrupted, his eyes nearly coming out of their sockets.

"Don't 'mom' me," Jackie said pointing her knife at her son. "I'm giving you good relationship advice."

Katie could tell this was making Scott uncomfortable as they hadn't yet defined what their relationship was at that point. While she was in love with him and he liked her a lot, they hadn't decided if for the time being they were friends or boyfriend and girlfriend.

"Jackie, Scott and I are just friends right now. We're open to becoming more, but we're going to take this slow."

Jackie positioned the knife next to the onion, ready to cut into it. "That's good to know. I think taking it slow is good for both of you."

"Or they could just make it official already and become boyfriend and girlfriend," Sarah said walking into the kitchen. "Everyone knows that is how you two are going to end up."

Scott was ready to tell his sister to shut up, but Jackie didn't give him the chance to say anything. "Well it looks like someone has earned themselves dish duty tonight."

Sarah stopped in her tracks and gave an incredulous look to her mother. "What did I do?"

"You are being rude to your brother and our guest. Don't even start," Jackie said seeing Sarah's mouth open ready to respond. "If you want, I can give you all of Scott's chores for the weekend as well."

With that Sarah closed her mouth and didn't say another word until her mother asked what she wanted to do for her burger. A few minutes later Keith came home, kissed his wife and greeted Katie with a hug, something she wasn't expecting at all but graciously accepted.

Once the burger patties were made Keith took them outside and put them on the grill. While the burgers were being cooked, Jackie took Katie aside from Scott and Sarah and to tell her something while her husband grilled.

"I just want to tell you that I'm very impressed with the new person you have been this school year."

"Thank you," Katie said.

"I'm just curious though, what made you want to change?"

Katie smiled, knowing exactly when her perception of Scott changed. "It was after I was dropped off at home after Homecoming. I thought about how nice and sweet he was being to me, dancing with me, making faces trying to get me to laugh, and giving me the ride home. Instead of feeling like crap because I discovered my boyfriend cheated me, I want to sleep with a smile on my face because I had an amazing night with your son."

"Scott did all that?" Jackie asked astonished.

"Yeah, didn't you know?"

"All Sarah and I knew was what Scott told me, that they took you home with them in the limo."

"Well I don't think Sarah knows that Scott danced with me," Katie said with a somewhat guilty look on her face.

Jackie let a little laugh. "Yeah, probably best she doesn't know."

"For my sake or Scott's?"

"Both, but more for Scott. She already bugs him enough already as is. That would just fuel the flame even more."

"Well that is because he is the big brother, not big sister. That usually changes the dynamics a lot."

"That is true," Jackie said, smiling before getting a more serious look on her face. "Just don't hurt my son please. He's been through enough this year already and well...I don't think he could handle a betrayal by you."

"I would never do that to Scott. I love him too much."

Jackie's eyebrows shot up in surprise. "You love him?" Katie shrunk a little in her chair, but the smile on her face told Jackie everything she needed to know. "Love is a strong word."

"I know," Katie said with a slight laugh, "but honestly that is how I feel. He's an amazing guy and has treated me better than I deserve."

"I know you mean well but..."

"Jackie, I won't hurt him," Katie said cutting her off. "I know I'm young and everything, but actually being friends with Scott has been one of the best things for me. Last thing I would ever do is hurt your son. I'm more likely to hurt your daughter though."

"Well between us, she would probably deserve it," Jackie said with a laugh that Katie joined in on.

"So should we head back before every one wonders what we've been talking about?"

"Might be a good idea. Don't want to leave the man of your dreams alone for that long," Jackie joked.

The two of them got up and found Sarah and Scott sitting in the family room watching TV, getting along for the time being. A few minutes later Keith came in and told them the burgers would be done soon. Everyone got up and Jackie told Sarah to set the table. Sarah was ready to complain but knew she was already in trouble from earlier so she begrudgingly set the table.

As soon as everyone sat at the table, with Scott and Katie sitting next to each other, Keith came back in and sat the plate of burgers on the table. He pointed to where each person's burger was and where ones with extras were just in case someone wanted a second burger. Jackie had put some fries in an air fryer before Katie had arrived and she got them out at the same time Keith came in with the burgers.

Once everyone was given their burgers and topped with their chosen toppings, they all took a big bite. Katie's eyes nearly popped out of her head when the meat and toppings hit her tongue. Once she swallowed she couldn't help say something. "Oh my god. This is delicious."

"Well you chose the seasonings," Jackie pointed out after she also swallowed her bite.

"I know but still, I may have to come over for burger night more often."

"I would like that," Scott said with a smile. He was enjoying having Katie over for dinner and seeing her get along with his parents. She wasn't getting along so much with his sister, but he expected that.

Everyone continued to eat their burgers and fries and talked about each other's day between bites. Scott's parents seemed to really like Katie and accept her. As everyone finished their food, Scott asked if he and Katie could be excused. When Keith nodded yes, Scott put his hand in Katie's and guided her to the family room where he sat them down on the couch.

"Well looks like my parents have taking a liking to you."

"Your dad definitely has with that hug he gave me when he first got home. I was very surprised that he even gave me one."

"Dad has been ready for a long time for the drama between our two families to end."

"I kinda find that somewhat hard to believe. I mean...with everything my mom put him through..."

"Yeah," Scott agreed, "but he has never been one for revenge. He just wants to move on and I think us becoming friends has made him really happy."

"Your mom is really nice too."

"She is, but sometimes she can be a little overwhelming."

"I'd gladly take your mom over mine. She seems so...happy and wants others to be happy."

"She has always been that way. When mom and dad were dating there was a lot she had to learn about him and his autism and did a lot for him. They have gone out of their way for each other a lot."

"Seems like they've always been a strong couple."

Scott laughed for a second. "Well not when they first met."

"What happened on their first date?" Katie asked, interested in hearing this story.

"Their first date went well, BUT their first meeting was a completely different story." Scott proceeded to tell Katie everything he knew about his parents and when they first met and dated. He had to admit most the information didn't come from his parents, but from Liz and Steve's parents who saw everything unfold and gave unedited versions of what did happen. When he asked his parents about such events they also gave the shorter, less truthful version and he understood why once he heard the other versions. There were a lot of ups and downs that they went through and didn't want Scott to feel like dating would be so difficult for him when he decided to date.

Katie listened intently as Scott provided every detail of his parents encounter and subsequent dates afterwards. Once Scott had finished telling everything, she felt like she had a good grasp about the love Jackie and Keith had for each other.

"Wow," was all the Katie could say.

"Yeah," Scott agreed, "wasn't smooth sailing for them at the beginning, but they managed to get through it."

"Well at least if we come across any issues we could ask them for help."

"Yeah," Scott agreed again, "I guess we could. I'd rather not share too much with them though, especially my mom."

"Let me guess, she asks embarrassing questions that you'd rather not admit to for fear of being judged or acting like it is no big deal when it really is?"

"Yup," Scott said nodding his head.

"My mom is same way when I dated Jack. She would ask me things that I didn't want to tell her, but she just seemed to know."

"Like what?"

"Umm, well...can I tell you another time? It is not something I really want to talk about yet."

Scott then realized that he asked for some very personal information. "Oh, sorry, I didn't mean..."

"It's OK," Katie said trying to reassure Scott, "you didn't know exactly what type of stuff and I was pretty vague."

Silence came between them for several minutes, Scott feeling guilty about asking his question and Katie trying to figure out the best way to continue the night.

"So...what TV shows do you like to watch?" Scott asked, trying to break the silence.

"Honestly, most of the shows on now I don't like that much. I just watch older shows on Netflix."

"Like what?" Scott asked.

"Well I got into Gilmore Girls for a while and fell in love with that show along with Big Bang Theory."

"I think my mom used to watch Gilmore Girls and she also loved it."

"That's cool. So what shows do you like to watch?"

"Well if you didn't think I was a nerd already, I like watching sci-fi and anime mostly."

"Anime? Isn't that for kids?" Scott busted out in laughter as soon as Katie finished her question. "What's so funny?"

Scott put up a finger to let Katie know he needed a minute to stop himself laughing. It took him longer than he thought to stop laughing, but when he did he looked directly at Katie. "Most anime is certainly not for kids. If little kids watched some of the stuff I have, they would get nightmares."

"Nightmares?" Katie asked in disbelief.

"How are you with blood in your TV shows and movies?"

Katie recognized the challenge in Scott's question and wasn't going to back down. "There is no way any anime could be scary enough to give any kid nightmares."

"Oh really?"

"Yes, really!"

"So you won't mind watching the first episode of the series Attack on Titan?"

"Pull it up right now," Katie demanded.

Scott grabbed the remote from the armrest where he had left it before dinner, but turned back to look at Katie. "Last chance to back out. Once I start the first episode, you cannot turn away or ask me to stop the episode."

"Scott, pull up the damn show already."

Scott shook his head and pulled up the app on the TV with all the episodes of Attack on Titan on it. He went to the first season, selected the first episode, sat back and put his arm around Katie. She didn't expect Scott to do that but liked the feeling of his arm around her. It wasn't until when the Colossal Titan appeared and destroyed the gate of the wall that she started to realize she was wrong, that this show definitely wasn't meant for kids.

By the end of the episode tears were coming down her face. She wanted to turn away and not look, but she promised Scott she wouldn't look away and she didn't until the credits for the episode started rolling. She wiped her face of the tears and looked up at Scott only to find a couple tears coming down his face as well.

Scott looked down at her and smiled. "Not that easy to watch, was it?"

Katie shook her head, but didn't stop looking at the tears that were on Scott's cheeks. "It is...hard for you to watch?"

Scott nodded and then wiped the tears from his face. "Every time. This is the fourth time now I've watched that episode and it doesn't get any easier. If anything, it gets harder as I'm getting older."

"Why does it get harder?"

"Because the older I get the more I realize how much I would really miss my mom if she were not around." Katie couldn't help herself and gave Scott a like peck on the cheek. "What was that for?"

"It may not seem like a big deal to you, but for you to be open with me about how you would feel if you lost your mom...it says a lot about you in a very good way." Scott didn't know how to respond to that and was speechless for a minute with a look of confusion on his face. "One day you'll understand Scottie."

"Oh, so you're going to use Scottie on me like that are you?"

"Yes I am," Katie said giggling.

"Well maybe I need to make you watch the rest of the series with me."

A pained look came across Katie's face. "If that was the first episode, I don't think I could handle the rest of the series."

"The first episode is probably the most gruesome."

"Are there more episodes that made you cry?"

"Yes," Scott admitted, "but not like the first episode. When we get there you'll understand."

"You honestly think that will work on me Scottie?"

"What? Don't tell me after I told you this episode was hardest to get through you don't think you can handle the rest."

Katie didn't like the fact Scott had figured out how to push her buttons, but she was curious as to what made Scott cry further into the series that wasn't a sad moment. "Alright, but you have to keep your arm around me."

"Why? Like a little comfort for the scary scenes?" Scott teased.

"A little," Katie said with a smile as she turned her head to look at Scott, "but I like having your arm around me more." Scott gave her a squeeze with his arm and slid his hand into hers. Katie in turn gave his hand a squeeze.

They watched the next seven episodes of the series before Jackie came by and said it was late and Katie needed to go home.

"Well this is a good stopping point," Scott said.

"No, we can't stop here," Katie protested, "I want to know how Eren survived and how...he became a titan."

"Next time Katie. While your mom might not know when you get home, my mom does have to kinda set her foot down on this."

"But...this is just starting to get really good," Katie complained.

Scott let out a little laugh at Katie. "Don't worry. It will keep getting better. Come on, let me get your jacket and I will walk you out to your car."

As much as Katie didn't want to go, she knew it was better to listen to Jackie and keep proving that she wasn't going to cause any trouble. She was happy though that Scott was going to walk her to her car for a proper goodbye.