For the record, 

Chris is not, and has not been, coming out here to meet my family and ask my dad's permission for something. 

Chris is solely visiting me here because we miss each other. 

He comes for me, not for propriety in asking for my hand.

Which brings me to my next point, the next person who brings up marriage between the two of us will incur the full wrath of Mackenzie. Including Chris himself. Folks, I am not there. Nor will I be any time soon. And we've been dating for two and a half months. I'm sick of hearing about it. At first when people asked if he was the one I responded as politely and honestly as I could saying things like "I don't know but it's sure heading in a positive direction!" Then when people nudged toward it I got a little more defensive "Haha, nope, not getting engaged this summer." And now I just plain get pissed. Stop freaking talking about it. To be honest, at this point, nothing pushes me away from him, and other people, more than when it is brought up. He's so sweet about it, and I know he doesn't mean any harm, or to frustrate and overwhelm me, but that's all it does. He'll be all romantic and say something like "You're the most incredible girl I've ever met, I want to spend forever making you happy" and it pushes me over the edge.

That should not push me over the edge.

A simple statement like that should not send me into a fit of rage.
But it does. It's too soon to be talking like that! We've been dating two and a half months! I'm so young! We're both so immature! Alex randomly shows up in the back of my head still! We're so poor! I love the single life way too much to commit to something as enormous as that yet! He's ready for that next step and I am not!

A fact that makes me very sad. He's ready for that. I'm not there yet. If I don't get there soon then he's going to move onto someone who can reciprocate what he needs. It wouldn't be wise for him to wait on me. I'm not ready for marriage, he is, and I could lose him over that.
To clarify, I realize that we date people so we can eventually find the person we want to marry - we date to marry. I'm dating Chris fully aware of that. And fully trying to participate in the real meaning of dating.
*sigh*
We could definitely get married.
But not now. Not next month. Nor the month after that. And if people keep bugging me about it, maybe not ever.