Somewhere Only We Know

“I miss you” Iker mumbled as he looked at the screen of his laptop, a little frown playing at the corner of his mouth. It hadn’t been long, only a couple of days, but already he missed Ariana and Violeta. Without them around, he had been forced to spend a lot of time with Sergio and as much as he liked the other man, he was growing tiresome. There were only so many matches of FIFA he could play before he wanted to toss the controller at the screen. Ariana smiled. “It’s only been two days Iker, I am sure that you are just being dramatic” she mused with a small smile. She missed him, of course she did, but there was no sense on dwelling on it. He would be back soon enough and she didn’t want to make him feel bad. Spain had yet to play a match and she wanted him focused on winning, not on her and Violeta who were safely at home.

“I am not being dramatic” Iker pouted slightly “I miss you, and I cannot wait to see you again” he mumbled.

Ariana sighed. “Aren’t you enjoying the break? No dirty nappies or disturbed sleep” she suggested.

Iker merely huffed, something which made Ariana giggle slightly. “You’re such a drama queen” she giggled.

“And you’re remarkably more chipper than I thought you would be. How are you and Violeta doing?” he mused as he stretched his back a little. It was early, Iker hadn’t even gone down to breakfast yet, but he wanted to see his wife. Sleeping without her had been bad enough and he wanted nothing more than to see her face before he even contemplated doing anything else.

Ariana smiled. “We’re fine. We’ve got a busy day ahead of us” she mused.

“What are you doing?” Iker pressed, just contented by the sound of his wife’s voice.

“Do you really care?” Ariana teased

“Of course I do, what do you and Lettie have planned?” he pressed.

Ariana offered him a small smile. “We were going to go to the park to feed the ducks because she loves it so much and then we are going to have lunch with Pilar and Junior before I head to a doctor’s appointment” she mused.

“Doctor?” Iker spluttered “Why on earth do you need to see a doctor? Are you sick?” he fretted.

Ariana merely rolled her eyes. “Calm down Iker, it is just a checkup ahead of my maternity leave finishing. They want to check me over and ensure that I am fit for work” she explained with a little smile. She loved it, the way he fretted about her, and she hoped he would never stop. The day he stopped worrying would be the day that their marriage finished.

“You didn’t tell me about that before I left” he mumbled.

Ariana nodded. “Because I knew you would freak out and insist on staying. It is fine Iker, it’s only a checkup, I swear” she mused.

“And you think everything will be fine?” he pressed concernedly.

“Why wouldn’t it be?” Ariana quipped.

Iker sighed. “I just worry about you. You will text me later to say how it went?” he mused.

“Of course” Ariana mused “But now, I have to go and get Lettie ready for the day. I love you” she smiled.

“And I love you. Kiss Violeta for me” he mused before he hung up. He knew that it was stupid, he was a grown man and he should have been better able to cope without them than he was, but he missed them.

“Iker?” Sergio poked.

Iker hummed a little and looked up at the defender, offering him a small smile.

“Coach wants you down to eat something before we head out to training” the defender mused.

Iker nodded his head and spared another little look to the now blank screen of his laptop.

He couldn’t wait to be reunited with his wife.

~#~
“So, things are looking good Mrs Casillas” Dr Peralta mused as he peeked down at the chart on his desk. He was pleased, the checkup had been routine, and he was more than happy that he could pass on the all clear to the hospital who were all greatly looking forwards to Ariana’s return. Violeta’s early birth had caught them a little off guard and they had been left a little short staffed, something which made Ariana’s return timely.

“Everything is ok?” Ariana posed.

“It looks it, I will just wait for the results for your urine and blood tests, but I am sure that I will be able to give the good news to the hospital” he smiled as he shuffled his papers back into the folder.

“How long do you expect the tests will take?” Ariana mused. She was pleased, she couldn’t wait to get back to work, but she knew better than to get ahead of herself. Any slight irregularity in her test results would result in another few weeks off.

“They should be back right now” Dr Peralta smiled as he watched his receptionist pad into he room, a folder clasped in her hand.

Ariana nodded shyly and watched Dr Peralta take the folder, perusing its contents before he looked back up at her. “Mrs Casillas, when was your last period?” he posed.

Ariana stiffened. “Uh…I don’t remember. Why? Is there something wrong?” she posed as she leant forwards a little in her seat.

“There is nothing wrong” Dr Peralta mused “But our tests are showing that you are nearly six weeks pregnant” he added, a little smile pulling at the corner of his mouth.

Ariana swallowed. She hadn’t even entertained the notion that she could fall pregnant again, she and Iker had been careful, and she didn’t quite know what to feel. She wanted another baby, of course she did, but she wasn’t sure that she wanted it so soon after Violeta. The little girl was barely five months old and would be barely over a year when her little brother or sister was due.

“Mrs Casillas?” Dr Peralta mused.

Ariana blinked, but smiled a little, allowing the doctor to continue. “We’re going to refer you to a gynecologist at the hospital, but it is highly likely that you will only be allowed to work for a few months. Then you will need to take six months again after the baby is born” he explained with a little smile.

Ariana nodded and thanked him before she moved to her feet, stepping out of the office.

~#~
“That was clearly a foul” Sergio whined as he watched Iker score another goal on the screen. They had been at it for hours, the team had been left to their own devices following a rather intense training session, but Iker simply couldn’t focus on what was happening. He knew that it was only a checkup, Ariana had been clear enough with him about that, but he couldn’t help but worry. The idea of his wife being in a doctor’s office unsettled him slightly.

“Iker” Gerard Piqué mused, jolting the keeper from his thoughts, “Hombre, your phone is ringing” the Barcelona man added.

Iker blinked a little before he pulled the phone out of his pocket, a little smile pulling on his lips as he spotted Ariana’s name on the screen. “I will be right back” he mused as he padded out of the room, into the hall way.

Gerard watched after him. “When did he get so whipped?” he teased as he took the goalkeeper’s controller, sitting down beside Sergio who rolled his dark eyes. “You don’t know the half of it” he mumbled.

~#~
“Ari” Iker breathed as he rested his back against the wall “Is everything ok?” he added.

Ariana let out a little sigh, something which caused a lump to rise in Iker’s throat. “What did the doctor say Ariana” he mumbled “Is there something wrong?” he added, concern clear in his voice.

“That depends” Ariana murmured.

“On what?” Iker pressed.

“On how much you like waking up in the middle of the night” she replied.

Iker furrowed his brow. “What are you talking about?” he mused.

“I went to see my doctor Iker and he ran some tests. Those tests showed that I am about six weeks pregnant” she admitted.

Iker’s dark eyes widened. “Pregnant?” he spluttered.

Ariana breathed out a small ‘yes’.

“How? I…we…careful” he breathed.

“I know, but clearly we weren’t careful enough and now Lettie is going to have a little brother or sister to spend her time with” she mused.

“She’s only little” he squeaked, awe still clear in his voice.

“I know” Ariana mused “Iker, I am going to let you digest this for a little while. Call me back when you are ready to talk ok?” she added.

Iker hummed in agreement before he hung up the phone, his hand moving into his dark hair. He wanted another baby, of course he did, but it all seemed too quick. Violeta wasn’t even six months old and yet she was already about to be a big sister.

“Iker?”

Iker’s head lifted slightly at the sound of the familiar voice.

“Iker, are you ok?” Sara poked as she took a couple of paces towards him.

Iker looked at the reporter for a second before he shrugged. “I don’t know” he admitted gently.

Sara offered him a little smile. “Come on, we should get you some dinner and we can talk ok?” she posed.

Iker offered her a dubious look, but Sara waved it away. “Just talking Iker, I don’t want anything more and you look like you could use a confidant. Come on, I will buy you some dinner” she enthused as she laced her arm around his, pulling him towards the elevator. Iker sighed and followed along.

He could use someone to talk to.