Exiting the arts building, Fenne's eyes took a sweep of the surrounding campus. Students walked in all directions as they piled out of their class and joined the thin crowd on the pathways.

Fenne looked over heads while on her toes, searching for the face that had said would be present after her class.

Her heart leapt once she spotted the beautiful grin and prominent dimple. She lowered from her toes and walked across the pathway. Dodging other students, Fenne made it the other side where Joost waited with his arms out wide.

With an uncontrollable smile, Fenne ran into his chest and squeezed his middle. Joost hugged her shoulders and cupped the back of her head with his palm. He kissed her hair and when she pulled her face from his jumper, Joost pecked her lips in an intimate greeting.

'How was class?' he asked without letting Fenne step out of his embrace. Their noses touched and Fenne peered through his hair to see his cresent eyes.

'Boring. I'm so close to finishing now that I barely listen anymore.'

They turned to head off-campus with Joost's arm snug around Fenne's shoulders. She linked her fingers with his that hung by her head. Joost was itching for a cigarette, but had to wait until they were outside of the university's area before he could smoke. In preparation, he rummaged around in his sweatpant pocket for his lighter and pack.

'When's your graduation?' he asked, slipping a cigarette from the pack and sticking it behind his ear.

'February next year.'

Joost hummed. As soon as they stepped into the streets of the city, he pulled the cigarette from his ear and put it between his lips. Fenne couldn't look away as he lit the end and did it all without pulling his arm from around her shoulders. Inhaling once, Joost took the stick between his two, slender fingers and moved it down by his side.

'Actually, I wanted to ask you something...' Fenne started, and he looked down at her while exhaling.

'Hm?'

She wrinkled her nose and reached up to wipe at its tip. Joost thought that he had exhaled in her direction and made sure to turn away the next time. But Fenne was used to the smell and took a moment to think over her words.

'I want you to come to the ceremony. I can buy up to four guest tickets,' she started.

'I'd love to come, baby,' Joost said, calling her the nickname in English. If Fenne wasn't so nervous, she would have cooed in adoration.

The first of many worries fell from the pile weighing on her shoulders. Fenne nodded in acknowledgement and took a deep breath.

It was a big moment, one that some relationships fell apart afterward. Every boyfriend feared it and Fenne hoped that Joost would be open-minded. There was nothing that told her that he wouldn't be, but the voice in her head that doubted every thought or action did its best to ruin her day.

'Hanna's going to come, since she's graduating in the next ceremony,' Fenne said, glancing down to the pavement before looking back to an inquistive Joost. 'And my parents...'

'Ah... I see.'

Fenne bit her lip at the change in the man's tone. He took an extra long drag and used his bent thumb to rub at his eyebrow. They stopped at some traffic lights while cars and bikes roared past.

Joost was silent and Fenne was on edge. She ducked out from underneath Joost's arm to look at him properly. She analysed his expression and noticed that his cigarette was nearing its end. The worry for his brewing reaction ruined her to the point of wanting to leap out into oncoming traffic.

'I-I thought that you could meet them beforehand. We could have dinner at their house, o-or I could cook at mine. I know its daunting, but I want you and them at my graduation,' she rushed over the humming car engines. 'They're nice, I swear!'

'I don't doubt it. It's about time I meet them, I guess.'

Fenne eyed Joost as they crossed the street. He sounded confident, but there was a hint of uncertainty in his voice. Once they made it to the path, Fenne waited for Joost to put out his cigarette against the side of a metal bin. He was yet to meet her eye and Fenne was desperate for some reassurance. She told herself that he was stalling, taking unnecesarily long to dampen the lit fuse. She shifted her weight from foot to foot and Joost couldn't turn around quick enough for her to be satisfied.

'I-I can bring Hanna, too! Maybe Apson could come?'

'You want Apson to meet your parents?' Joost looked at her with a raised brow and Fenne felt stupid.

'If it'll make you comfortable...'

Joost let out an 'aw' and made his way over to her. Taking her hands into his, Joost gazed down at Fenne with a look of appreciation. He saw how troubled Fenne was just from talking about her parents. He was touched to know that she would do anything to make the interaction as smooth as possible.

'Don't get so worked up about it. If you want, we'll go to their house for dinner, and I'll be as tame as I possibly can. What did you say they did for work, again?'

'Project managing...'

'Both of them?'

'Yeah...'

Joost gulped and Fenne cringed at seeing his face falter .There was no doubt that he was nervous. Meeting your girlfriend's parents was one thing, but when those parents were both project managers, that was another. Joost almost wished that they were teachers or farmers, that would make meeting them much easier. But he should have known that by dating Fenne Meer, an intelligent, polite and mature woman, that her parents would have successful, high-paying jobs.

'Have you told them about...' Joost trailed off and motioned between them with his hand.

'I said that I was seeing someone from highschool.'

'Okay, that's a good start!' he chirped and Fenne tried to nod along with his optimism. 'I can dress nice. I have some ties.'

'That'll work,' Fenne said and sighed loudly.

Her mind rushed with all the possibilities

Her parents could love Joost. His wide smile and ability to make anyone feel understood could woo them. Fenne's father could clap him on the shoulder and say he was happy that his daughter had found someone like him. Fenne's mother could send her a look across the table that said she liked the boy she had brought home.

Or, they could judge too quickly. They could see his tattooed fingers, or have somehow seen a video of him pulling his pants down at Lowlands festival. The dinner could be uncomfortable and Fenne would have to spend the night apologising to Joost for her parents' behaviour. And in February, her graduation ceremony would be tense.

All that should matter to her parents was that Fenne liked Joost. He was genuine and kind, why should any prejudice about his alternative lifestyle and music career overrule that? Fenne understood if her parents didn't agree with his chosen path, but it was her decision, afterall.

'I'm sorry to do this to you. They mean well, but they're a little uptight,' she said, defeated.

'Hey, don't be. We can't choose our family,' Joost kept his hands over Fenne's and mustered a lopsided smile. 'Mine are a whole different ballgame. They think I still listen to Coldplay.'

Fenne wanted to laugh but couldn't bring herself to do much more than a strained smile. A horrible ache spread through her chest, replacing the already tight feeling from before. Even though Joost seemed unfazed, Fenne's mind couldn't help but jump to the worst thought.

Joost hadn't mentioned his parents since they had been dating. She saw the photoframe on his bedside table, but that was the only evidence of his devastating childhood. He sometimes talked about moments from before he was twelve and they were always happy recollections.

When he was sick, his mother would leave an onion in his room to draw out the illness, only to find him eating it raw late at night.

His father would come to his football games on sundays and take him to McDonalds whether he won or not.

Whether Joost wanted to talk about what had happened, or if it was something that he never wanted to reveal, Fenne understood. She could never relate to his loss, but she could be there when he needed her to be. She just hoped that when Joost met her parents, that they wouldn't create a hole in his perspective of her. Fenne wanted him to see her as a support and not someone who was shut off from the possibility of a delicate and painful conversation.

'We'll sort it out after Pukkelpop. I'll iron a shirt,' Joost said, caressing Fenne's skin. His act did wonders at melting Fenne's troubles and she marvelled at his soft gaze.

'Okay, yeah. After Pukkelpop...'

---

Nathan was their Belgian tourguide. In his home country, the national organised the team's transport to the festival and made sure that Joost was prepared for his performance.

Just like Lowlands, Fenne brought her camera to film. Her footage on Joost's Instagram had gained a great deal of attention and she was ready to improve where needed. Pukkelpop's organisers had agreed to let her operate the point of view camera for Joost's benefit and for the big screens.

'We'll see you out there,' Apson fist-bumped Joost who was fiddling with his microphone. He and Hanna were going to watch the show from the ground. The barriers around the moshpit gave them the privledge to stand where the security lined the stage.

'Good luck, Fenney,' Hanna waved to her friend as she Apson headed off, and Fenne returned it happily.

'You're going to get hot in those,' Fenne noted in relation to Joost's sweatpants. The man was, once again, shirtless and full of Monster Energy.

'Then I'll take them off?'

He shrugged his shoulders and spoke as if it was obvious. Fenne supposed that in Joost's mind, it was the only logical resolution. She had gotten used to seeing his bare chest and stomach. But with summer coming to an end, and the harsh, Dutch winter on its way, Fenne was beginning to think he just liked walking around with nothing on.

She rolled her eyes and adjusted a setting on her camera. Nathan, Stuntje and Teun appeared and pulled Joost into the final rundown. It was just like Lowlands with Stuntje's proposed consesus to break a leg, and to give Belgium a good show.

'Ready?' a collective affirmative sounded and the team headed towards the stage.

With her camera rolling, Fenne filmed Joost's entrance. He ran out to the crowd singing and Fenne circled around Teun and his booth. A sea of hands and sweaty faces acted as the background and the music caused them to move at Joost's instruction.

Fenne watched through her lense and caught a glimpse of Hanna and Apson by the barricades. They danced closely with drinks in hand and Fenne zoomed in. She wanted to get some footage of the two for their personal benefit, thinking they would appreciate it. Apson's hand gripped Hanna's waist and before they kissed, Fenne turned the camera back to Joost.

After a stage-dive and a shameless appearance of his underwear, Joost finished with a deep bow. Fenne took a side profile shot as he turned to embrace Teun, who stepped out from behind the DJ booth. He did the same to Fenne and she paused her filming to throw her arms around his shoulders.

Squeezing her waist, Joost made sure to linger in the embrace. Nothing felt more right than ending the show with his girlfriend in his hold. His chin nestled onto her shoulder and when pulling away, Joost grinned with a flushed face and sparkling eyes. He couldn't get enough of the way Fenne looked on stage and he knew that she would have captured some brilliant clips.

With a final wave and stage-right exit, the set ended and Joost fist-bumped his team. He congratulated everyone as much as they congratulated him. Apson and Hanna arrived with glowing reviews and Fenne skipped through her footage to show them what she had captured.

'That's awesome, Fenne. Can you send me that when you're done?' Apson asked.

'Of course.'

Hanna wanted to rewatch the clip and Fenne rewinded it. As her friend watched over her shoulder with an adoring smile, Fenne caught Joost looking at her from beside Nathan. He was listing all the bars and clubs he wanted to take them to that night, but Joost was more interested in the way his girlfriend looked from afar.

They shared a smile, one that said more than they could ever speak.