The Number One Star in the Interstellar Era

Chapter 776: ’SHAMELESS’ LAUREN

LAUREN looked from Emmy to Gage. The easy way they accepted him, the simple welcome, caught him off guard. A wave of relief hit him first, strong enough that his throat felt tight. Then came a deep, warm feeling of gratitude. He hadn’t realized how much he had braced himself for their rejection. Their kindness felt like a gift he hadn’t expected to get.

He had thought they would interrogate him or show him why he was not a good match for their son. In fact, Lauren had been preparing himself to show them all his good qualities. He was even ready to put together an entire presentation with bullet points to prove he was worthy. But who would have thought he didn’t have to do any of that?

He quickly stood up and bowed to the two of them. "Thank you, Mother, Father. I promise I will treasure Reas. I won’t ever hurt him. He doesn’t even have to worry about money, because I have more than enough. I will give him all the support he needs. I will always be by his side and I won’t ever hold him back. And when the time is right, I will give you beautiful grandbabies!"

The smiles on both Gage and Emmy’s faces nearly faltered when they heard that. The second Lauren called them ’Mother’ and ’Father’, they both thought this guy might be a little shameless. Maybe even more so than the prince. At least Wulfric had never tried using those titles with them. They were so surprised by it that the rest of what Lauren said didn’t fully register. Until he mentioned grandbabies. By that point, the smiles had completely vanished from their faces, replaced by pure astonishment.

Was it already too late to take back what they had just said? Maybe they should have thought about it a little more before they welcomed him to the family.

Reas, on the other hand, laughed out loud. Really, how could Lauren be so adorable? He knew his boyfriend had a habit of saying the most outrageous things whenever his emotions ran high. Lauren was probably so happy right now that his thoughts just spilled out without a filter. Reas didn’t mind at all. It was one thing he really liked about the other.

He stood up and reached for Lauren’s hand. Lauren glanced at him, looking confused. Before the other could fully process how embarrassing his words had been, Reas turned to his parents, who both looked completely shocked.

"Mom, Dad, I’ll show Lauren my room."

Emmy tried to pull herself together, but her smile was still very awkward. "O-okay."

Reas pulled Lauren away from the table.

"Reas, we should help with the dishes," Lauren said, trying to pull his hand and stop Reas.

"It’s alright," Reas said, not slowing down. "I’m sure they wouldn’t mind."

Anthony, who had been quiet the whole time, watched the two of them leave the room. He said nothing, since he was in no position to interfere. But that didn’t mean he would do nothing.

He planned to run a full background check on the young man named Lauren Watts. He wasn’t doing it to dig up dirt. He just wanted to know if Lauren had done anything in his past that could hurt Reas, or if he came from a family that could cause problems later on. And if he found anything, he wouldn’t tell Reas directly. That would just make him look like the bad guy. Instead, he would talk to Lauren first and make sure the young man was the one to tell Reas everything himself.

Of course, it would be better if he found none of those things. He could see how much Reas cared for Lauren. Anthony wanted his grandsons to have a simple, happy romance. He didn’t want them to get hurt. This was a big part of why he was so against the prince being with Astrid. That uncontrollable man was nothing but trouble. At least this Lauren Watts, even if he was a bit odd, was still a much better choice by comparison.

Anthony stood up and gathered the dirty dishes. Since his daughter and son-in-law were both still too stunned to move, he figured he might as well clean up.

***

Lauren, who was still being pulled along by Reas up to the second floor, finally realized what he had just done back in the dining area. Thinking about all the things he had said, he wished once again that the floor would just open up and swallow him whole.

Just what was he thinking? Reas’s parents were being so nice, and he had to ruin it by being so weird. What if they thought he was a total oddball and already regretted saying they were okay with him and Reas being together? For the first time in a long while, he really wanted to slap his own mouth for being so careless.

"Don’t worry too much about it," Reas suddenly said, as if reading his mind. "My parents will get over your little slip-up. You can change their opinion of you while you’re staying here. Just keep being your normal, adorable self, and I have no doubt they’ll end up liking you."

That made Lauren pause, and he felt like a lightbulb had just switched on in his head. Reas was right. He could change their opinion of him. He didn’t want to sound arrogant, but he knew he could be quite charming and likable when he really tried. And he was absolutely willing to put in that effort.

Reas hid a smile when he saw the wheels turning in Lauren’s head. They finally reached the door to his room. He opened it and pulled Lauren inside.

Lauren looked around. The room was very minimalist, with a simple black and white color scheme. There was a neatly made bed, a plain desk, and a set of shelves with a few books and a virtual pod. It was... very much like Reas.

He was about to turn around when he felt a pair of powerful arms wrap around his waist from behind. Then, he heard Reas’ voice whisper in his ear, "So, about those grandbabies you promised... how about we make them now?"