Somewhere Only We Know

Stepping into the foyer of the hospital, Iker sighed gently, knowing that his wife would not appreciate the amount of press that had gathered outside of the doors. He knew she hadn’t meant to let it slip, Ariana had called as soon as she had slipped up to the nurse, but he knew that it made things harder for them. His parents had already called more than once and Iker doubted that it would be long before they visited, something he knew was bad for Ariana. His parents loved her, they thought she was the greatest thing to ever happen to their son, but he doubted his mother would be pleasant about the fact that she had been deprived of watching her oldest son marry. Iker was her baby and knowing that he was married and that she wasn’t there to see it was likely to upset Carmen.

Padding towards the reception desk, Iker rested his arms on it, waiting for someone to come over and talk to him. He wasn’t supposed to be there, Ariana had insisted that nothing change now that he was her husband, but he hadn’t been able to stop himself. He doubted the news of their wedding would be confined to the hospital for very long and didn’t want to leave Ariana to deal with the press presence that was sure to appear. He knew how she hated photographers and he didn’t want to leave her to deal with them alone.

“Can I help you?”

Iker jumped slightly at the sound of the receptionist’s voice and nodded. “I was looking for Dr Ariana Costa” Iker mused.

The receptionist flashed him a small smile. “You know you don’t have to call her that right?” he smiled.

Iker nodded. “I know” he replied “Do you know where I can find her?” he added. He didn’t want to make small talk, he didn’t want to discuss his wedding or his wife, he just wanted to find Ariana and take her home.

The receptionist typed something into his computer before he looked up at the keeper once more. “She’s due to clock out in a few minutes. She’s probably getting her stuff from her locker” he noted.

Iker nodded his head and moved to walk away.

“Congratulations Iker” the receptionist called “You married by far the hottest doctor here” he added.

Iker’s jaw tensed, but he didn’t turn around. He knew that if he did, he would end up hitting the receptionist and causing more of a scene.

~#~
Stuffing the last of her things into her bag, Ariana sighed, pleased that the day was over. It had been a long one, ever since slipping up to the nurse, she had been bombarded with congratulations from people she had never even spoken to before, and she was a little glad to be going home. She was sure that a night in with her husband was precisely what was needed to get her over the day she had had. Throwing her backpack onto her shoulder, she padded into the hall, only to pause as she spotted Iker resting against the wall on the other side of the hallway. “Iker” she breathed “What are you doing here? I thought we agreed that nothing changed?” she spluttered.

The keeper nodded. “We did agree that, but I knew that someone here would give our story over to the press and I wanted to be here to take you home. There’s already a few photographers outside the hospital here and I fear there will be some at home now” he explained as he stepped towards hers, his face soft. He could see that she was upset, her voice wavered a little when she did get upset, and Iker was sort of glad he had come to get her. He didn’t want her breaking down in front of the press. “Are you done with your shift now?” he posed as he gently brushed his hand over her cheek, causing her to look up at him.

Ariana nodded gently. “I am” she whispered.

Iker smiled and extended his hand to her. “Then let’s get you home. We can watch whatever you want and eat whatever you desire” he grinned softly.

Ariana nodded her head. “That sounds like a plan” she giggled shyly.

Iker nodded and took her hand in his, carefully leading her out of the hospital to where the photographers stood, their cameras flashing irritably as Iker led her to his car. Ariana clutched as his hand tightly and followed along. She was a little annoyed, they had agreed that nothing would change after their marriage, but she was mostly pleased that he had been there with her. She felt safe with him around.

~#~
“Ma, have you seen this?” Aaron smiled as he padded into his mother’s study, his tablet computer clutched in his hand. He was surprised, Ariana had never been the most spontaneous, but he was pleased. Iker was the best thing for Ariana and Aaron was pleased that she wasn’t letting him go. The pair of them deserved to be happy after all of the trouble that Lucia had endeavored to cause for them.

Isabella, who had been proof-reading, turned and smiled. “You mean the article that says I have a new son-in-law?” she teased. She wasn’t surprised, with the baby on the way, it had been no shock that Iker and Ariana had married so suddenly, but she was a little disappointed. She would have loved to have watched Ariana marry the man she loved.

“It’s weird” Aaron commented “I had always thought it would be Luci that would marry first, not Ari” he quipped.

Isabella smiled. “She got lucky” she smiled softly “She met the man of her dreams first time and after that, there was no doubting where this was going. She was always going to marry him” she smiled.

“Do you think he is right for her?” Aaron poked. He liked Iker, the keeper seemed to have a good heart and seemed to genuinely love Ariana, but he was curious about what his mother thought. Isabella had always been particularly protective of Ariana.

Isabella nodded. “Without a doubt. He’s the one Aaron” she smiled.

Aaron nodded his head. “Are we going to go over there?” he posed.

Isabella shook her head. “It will be crazy for them for a while. We will go in September like we arranged, but I will definitely call her. I want to hear all about the way she married him” she gushed.