I didn't know much about New York geography, but I figured if we kept heading west, we would eventually hit Central Park. And with Alex not saying much, there really wasn't anything else I could do.

I was right, and I led Alex into the park. I had no idea where to go, so I picked a random path until I found a bench in a fairly secluded area. I sat down and waited for Alex to be ready to talk.

It didn't take long. "I'm sorry," he finally said.

I sighed. "I mean, I suppose it did all escalate pretty quickly." I examined him quietly. "What happened, Alex?"

He just shook his head. "I thought I was going to be okay," he said. "But, I don't know, I guess not talking about it just made things worse. It felt like they were treating her like she never existed."
I nodded. "I didn't know you had tried to talk to your parents about this after you left the city," I said tentatively.

He nodded. "Yeah, I told you that I let my mom know where I was so they wouldn't worry?"

I nodded.

"Well, that wasn't the only time I called her. Or my dad. But apparently, I'm not worth the time."
There really was nothing to say to that. I pushed down the anger that flooded into me, knowing that it wasn't what Alex needed at the moment. But it infuriated me that they weren't there for their son when he needed them.

"Eventually I just stopped trying," Alex continued.

"You deserve better than that, Alex," I said quietly.

"Yeah, maybe." He sighed. "I guess I should have expected this, though. Why would they want to talk about her now when they didn't want to before?"

Once again, I had nothing I could say. I wasn't the person who could give him the answers he was looking for.

"But then what they said to you was completely uncalled for." Anger ran through the dejection that had previously dominated his voice.

"Hey, don't worry about me." The last thing I wanted was to be another source of stress for him. He looked like he was about to argue, so I talked over him. "Look, Alex, it wasn't nice, no. But they're also not the first people to be judgmental over my lack of a college degree. Believe me when I say, I don't care. People can think what they want, but I don't regret my decisions. If other people want to obsess over it, that's their problem."

We sat in silence for a moment. "And besides," I said, my tone softening, "you never judged me for it. And that's all that matters to me."

"Can I tell you something?" Alex asked me.

I nodded.

"I probably would have. Before, everything."

Another period of silence. It wasn't the easiest thing to digest. "So what changed?"

Alex gave a half smile. "I started this job," he said. "And it was a job that didn't require a degree. But after only a few days of working there, I realized that I enjoyed it way more than any work I had ever done that required college. And my boss, well, my boss was one of the most incredible people I've ever met. So when she told me she didn't finish college, well, it didn't matter. At all."

"Technically, I'm not your boss," I pointed out, ignoring the heat that ran to my face. "If I was," I gestured between the two of us, "this would not be cool."

"Let's be real, Ana, you're the boss," Alex said.

I laughed. "I'm glad you know that." But then I sobered, slightly. "Are you going to be okay, tonight?"

Alex nodded. "Yeah. No, really I will," he added when he saw my skepticism. "Honestly, these events are usually just so boring. And it'll be in some fancy building event room or something, not my parents' apartment. And that was the worst of today."

I sighed and leaned into him, feeling his arm going around my shoulders. "Do you think they'll be okay with tonight? After what just happened?"

"Oh, trust me, they'll pretend like nothing ever happened. It's like they have an emotional factory reset or something."

"Well," I said, "I know this wasn't exactly a great first meeting."

Alex snorted.

"But there was one thing I enjoyed."

"Please, tell me, because I can't think of a single thing."

I sat up, unwrapping his arm from my shoulder so I could look at him. "It was the first time you actually called me your girlfriend."

And just like I hoped, a smile grew on Alex's face. "Come here." He pulled me in to kiss me. "I kinda liked saying it."

"I kinda liked hearing it," I teased. I wrapped my arms around his neck. "And I kinda like having a boyfriend."

Alex pulled me toward him once again. "Do you want to see some of my favorite spots in the park?" he asked softly.

I grinned and hopped up, offering him my hand.