Chapter 159: Chapter 159 - Parents
It didn’t take long before the group finally stopped in front of Theo’s apartment door.
Theo let out a quiet breath before knocking twice.
A few seconds later—
Click!
The door swung open.
The moment his mother saw him standing there, her eyes widened instantly.
"Theo!"
Without hesitation, she immediately pulled him into a tight hug.
Meanwhile, his father quickly stepped over as well, relief flashing through his eyes.
’’It’s good to see you like this,’’ his mother muttered. ’’Do you have any idea how worried you made us?’’
She pulled back slightly, a flicker of anger flashing through her eyes.
’’Especially when you brought us here without as much as a warning!’’ she continued. ’’Do you know how confusing it is to find yourself in a random place with all kinds of officials surrounding you?’’
Theo scratched his cheek awkwardly.
’’Sorry.’’
Everyone fell silent for a moment.
Finally, his father just shook his head before sighing.
’’Don’t worry,’’ he started quietly. ’’You made the right decision since we would’ve only gotten in your way otherwise.’’
His mother nodded immediately.
"Still," she added while narrowing her eyes slightly, "at least tell us next time before teleporting us across half the country."
Theo fell silent for a moment.
Then he shook his head firmly.
’’No, no,’’ he responded, smiling slightly. ’’Don’t say things like that.’’
’’Let’s just hope there won’t be a next time where that’s necessary.’’
His father slowly nodded.
He patted Theo firmly on his back.
’’You’re completely right.’’
That’s when Theo’s mother suddenly peeked past him.
Her eyes immediately landed on the two girls standing nearby.
"Well now," she said, smiling. "Who might these lovely ladies be?"
Theo blinked once before quickly stepping aside.
"This is Lyra," he explained while gesturing toward her. "Owen’s girlfriend."
"Oho?" his mother said immediately. "That little brat got himself a girlfriend?"
Then her eyes widened slightly.
"Wait... I recognize you from the tournament!" she suddenly exclaimed. "Didn’t that brute beat you up there?"
Lyra scratched the back of her head awkwardly.
"Well... things happened," she admitted with an embarrassed smile. "And somehow we ended up together."
Theo’s mother nodded slowly with a knowing expression.
"Mhm, I see. Teenage hormones, huh."
Lyra’s face instantly turned red.
But before she could even respond, Theo’s mother had already looked past her again.
This time, her eyes locked directly onto Iris.
"And who might this beautiful young lady be?" she asked warmly.
Theo opened his mouth to answer.
But before he could say anything—
"I’m Iris Blackwood," Iris said calmly while holding out her hand politely.
Then a faint smile appeared on her face.
"Theo’s girlfriend."
For a moment, silence fell around the entrance.
Iris kept holding out her hand, her face slowly flushing red.
Theo’s mother blinked a few times.
Then her eyes slowly widened.
’’Oh?’’ she said, clearly surprised.
Beside her, Theo’s father suddenly coughed into his fist while trying to hide a smile.
Before anyone could say anything else, Theo’s mother burst out laughing.
Without hesitation, she grabbed Iris’s hands warmly.
"Oh my god, Theo actually managed to get himself a girlfriend?!" she exclaimed excitedly.
Theo pressed his lips together.
’Right,’ he thought. ’At this point, it would’ve been stranger if we didn’t acknowledge it.’
Still, hearing Iris say it out loud like that somehow made something warm stir inside his chest.
A faint smile appeared on his face as he thought about how shy she used to be.
’She really changed a lot...’ he thought quietly.
And for some reason, it just made him feel strangely proud of her.
Meanwhile, Theo’s mother looked absolutely delighted.
"Oh, you’re coming inside immediately," she declared while pulling Iris closer by the hands. "We have SO much to talk about."
Theo instantly snapped back to reality.
"Wait, wait, wait," he interrupted quickly. "We can’t do that right now, Mom."
She blinked and looked back toward him.
"These two still need to get signed up at the university," Theo explained. "And my instructor wants me in the training room in around thirty minutes."
For a brief moment, his mother’s excited expression froze.
Then she slowly cleared her throat and regained composure.
"...Right," she muttered reluctantly.
But then she immediately looked back toward Iris again.
"You’re bringing her back afterward," she stated firmly. "I still have a lot I want to talk about."
Iris’s embarrassment had finally begun fading slightly by now.
Still, a faint blush remained visible on her cheeks.
"I’d be glad to," she responded politely.
Theo’s mother immediately melted again.
"Oh, look at how well-mannered and cute you are," she said warmly. "Theo seriously got lucky."
"Mom..." Theo muttered helplessly.
"Alright, alright," she laughed. "Go already. And come back quickly!"
The three nodded before finally turning around again.
But just before Theo could fully walk away, his father suddenly stepped beside him.
Leaning down slightly, he quietly spoke near his ear.
"You did good," he said approvingly.
Theo blinked once.
Then his father held a warm smile on his face.
"With this, your mom can finally stop worrying so much.’’
A glimmer of realization flashed past Theo’s face.
’’Ah,’’ he said, his smile softening. ’’That’s good then.’’
His father nodded once before ruffling his hair.
’’Stay safe, bud.’’
For a moment, Theo remained silent.
Then he nodded with an even larger smile.
’’I will.’’
With that, the three stepped back outside after having handed their bags over.
The moment the apartment door closed behind them, both Lyra and Iris let out deep breaths almost at the same time.
’’That was a lot,’’ Iris mumbled quietly.
Theo scratched the back of his head awkwardly.
"Sorry," he muttered. "My mom gets like that sometimes."
"No, it’s fine," Iris said, smiling softly. "I loved her energy."
Lyra nodded enthusiastically beside them.
’’I never knew people could be like that,’’ she said. ’’Almost makes me wish for parents myself!’’
For a brief moment, silence fell again.
Then Lyra suddenly grinned deviously.
’’Still...’’ she started slowly. ’’To think you’d say something that bold.’’
Iris blinked once.
’’What?’’
Lyra’s grin widened immediately.
’’Calling yourself Theo’s girlfriend like that,’’ she teased. ’’I never expected that from you. Especially when your relationship wasn’t even fully set yet.’’
The moment those words entered Iris’s ears, her entire face instantly turned bright red again.
She quickly lowered her gaze toward the ground.
’’I-I just...’’ she stammered quietly. ’’It felt awkward not to say it...’’
Meanwhile, Theo looked away for a moment while scratching his cheek.
’They know I’m here... right?’
