The narrator and his fiancee are on their way to meet their "par ents" . They're not going to declare their desire for marriage, they're just going to check in on how things are going with the family. The narrator is worried that the family will think that he's not dressed up or that he doesn't have a gift for them. He's also worried that they'll think that the two of them are slovenly and that he is from a wealthy family. He asks if they know about the visit, and they say that they do. They apologize for intruding, but the narrator is so excited that he wants to shake his head and say hello to his fiancee.