Steps forward, not back

When the girls had finally caught up on the big things and the initial exitement had dialed down, they turned to Jason. His moment to participate had arrived. "So, tell us Jason. How is it to live with this stubborn creature over here? Does she give you a hard time?" "Yeah, I remember how aggressively she would squat away the handsy people in her life, men and women alike. I recall trying to give her a hug once. I was treated like I had some contagious disease. Can't imagine her changing 180 degrees the moment she met you, did she?" Jason was clearly not expecting these questions, but quickly adjusted his expression to one of amusement as he let out a small puff of air from his nostrils. "Yeah, we have had some battles, but we are progressing one step at a time. Her reactions have been reduced to a flinch instead of a rejection or escape attempt!"

Jenny had little to no secrets for her friends in the Netherlands. They went back so long, that they could read her like an open book. No use in trying to hide anything from them. So, she laughed along as Jason described their initial struggles as a couple with a joke like that. Kim was the first to respond "That is indeed quite an accomplishment! I applaud you for your efforts." The others were laughing too hard to be able to say anything.

"As for her stubborness, that side of her shows its horns every now and then, but appears to be in hibernation currently." "Ha ha ha, yeah I was quite something in the beginning, wasn't I? Well at least we have only taken steps forward, not back." Jason faked a shocked expression at these words "Was that even a possibilty from where we started?!" These words, combined with his expression, caused the remaining people at the table to laugh so hard they had to hold their stomachs. Little did he know that this stubborn side was about to be awakened once more and would create quite some trouble for him, so he should enjoy these peaceful moments while he could.

Jenny was happy to see Jason interacting with her friends like this, thinking the steps forward were not only taken by her, but also by Jason himself. He was usually quite cold towards other people. If he even bothered to respond, it was with an uncaring and stoic expression on his face. Telling people indirectly to keep their distance. She was a bit fearful that he wouldn't bother with her friends either, considering how little they had talked when the girls had visited them for her engagement party. The last impression he had left on them wasn't a very cheerful one either, usually reserving all his warm expressions for her, but it seemed he had taken her feelings into account here. With a gentle smile she looked at the man in front of her, which of course caught the attention of her friends. "Stop oogling your own man! Are you trying to make us feel even more single than we already are?!" Jenny chuckled and said "Well don't they always say that you should appreciate what you've got? I am simply showing my appreciation." Kelly pushed her arm in a playful manor at this silly come back.

After spending a nice long lunch with the girls, it was time to say goodbye. They needed to get back to the hotel and change for their next appointment of the day. Their evenings for the next couple of days were reserved for the different family members of Jenny that lived in the Netherlands. They had been invited by all of them, young and old. Jenny wanted to spend most of her time with her mom, brothers and close friends, but these family members couldn't be ignored either. They had all treated her like a sister or daughter, so she wanted to dedicate an afternoon and evening to each of them, so they could get to know Jason and catch up with her as well. Knowing her family all too well, they purposefully went with public transportation, because it would give them a perfect excuse to leave on time. If not for tricks like these, they would insist on them sleeping over or staying well into the night. These were efforts they didn't want her family to put in for just one night, but they didn't want to have to get to bed that late every night either, so this was an easy way that wouldn't offend anyone.

The plan for now was to arrive there around four and stay till ten or eleven at night, depending on what Jason could handle. She knew her family was quite intense and Jason usually didn't have too much patience for people. He had been handling himself really well these days, but she didn't want to tire him out. So she let him decide when enough was enough. On their train ride over they discussed the codes for things that could occur. Hopefully Jason's experience with dinner at Jenny's house, on the first day here, had prepared him well for the evenings to come. If not, they had agreed that if Jason placed his hand on his stomach, Jenny would help him out with declining any more food. If he said "This is really good." he needed help with the food that was already on his plate. If he wanted to leave, he would squeeze her knee. If somehow they weren't seated together, then he would send her a message, giving Jenny half an hour to end things. The reason they didn't want to use phone messages in the first place, was because they didn't want her family to get suspicious if they left shortly after Jenny received a message. Other than codes, Jason had her promise to stay next to him whenever possible to translate for him and help him out when he didn't know what to say. With all this to arm him, Jason let out a deep breath as they rang the doorbell to the first house.