Hear Your Heart

“Happy birthday to you” Iker murmured gently as he moved to sit down on the edge of Olivia’s bed, a small smile fixed on his face. He knew that things weren’t perfect, on occasion, Olivia could still be a little shaky when it came to the relationship that they were in, but he was pleased that they had made it as far as they had. It had almost been 6 months since she had arrived back in his life and despite the spate of ups and downs that had plagued their reconciled relationship, Iker was still remarkably happy. He adored being with her, and with Thiago who seemed to grow more and more with every day, and he hoped they could keep it together. He’d learnt from the mistakes he had made and hoped that Olivia could see that he wasn’t the same man who had hurt her so badly before. “Happy birthday to you” he added, shifting Thiago who sat, half awake, in his arms “Happy birthday dear Oli, happy birthday to you” he sang softly before he placed his hand gently against her shoulder, shaking it softly.

Olivia snuffled a little in her sleep before she blinked her blue eyes open, a small smile appearing on her face at the sight of her two favourite men. “Iker, what are you doing here?” she mumbled, stretching her arms “You weren’t here when I fell asleep” she added.

“I know, I was still stuck in an airport, but thanks to this little beauty, I am here now” he noted, holding up the key that Olivia had given to him a few weeks previous. It had been a big step, when they had been friends, it had taken more than two years for her to trust him with a key to her apartment, and he couldn’t help but be a little flattered that she had trusted him so quickly. He knew it was just another step to getting back to where they had been before what had happened.

Olivia shook her head. “You could have just come over later, I wouldn’t have minded” she noted.

“I know that, but then you wouldn’t have been woken up by mine and Thiago’s wonderful rendition of ‘happy birthday’” he smiled.

“About that” Olivia quipped playfully.

Iker rolled his eyes. “You know I am a great singer” he mused “You’re just jealous because when you sing, it sounds like somebody dropped a spoon in a blender” he added, earning a light slap on the shoulder before Olivia moved to greet Thiago, pressing a kiss to the baby’s cheek. “On a more serious note, happy birthday mi amor” Iker murmured gently, leaning down to kiss her cheek.

Olivia smiled. “I missed waking up with you last year” she commented.

“I missed being with you last year” Iker replied earnestly “I spent most of the day cooped up at home” he added.

Olivia leant towards him and pressed a kiss to his cheek. “Well, let’s try and make this birthday a better one eh?” she posed gently.

Iker nodded. “I intend to, Oli” he mused softly “But first, we have a gift for you” he noted, smiling down at Thiago who clapped his little hands together, a sight that made the keeper chuckle as he leant down to collect something from the floor, handing the neatly wrapped parcel to his girlfriend. “Bear in mind, he’s eight months old when you look at it OK?” Iker mused.

Olivia spared him a little look before she pulled the paper off, revealing a frame which held a piece of paper that was splattered in multiple multi-colored hand prints. “Iker?” she posed.

“Most of them are Thiago” Iker noted “But some are mine. We got into the paints the other day” he quipped.

Olivia smiled. “You let him do this?” she posed, admiring the frame.

“I helped him to do it, which brings us to the second present” Iker mused, handing her a smaller wrapped parcel.

Olivia pulled the paper back and giggled, her blue eyes admiring the framed photograph that Iker had gotten for her. “It took almost two hours to get all of the paint off of him, but we got there” Iker grinned gently.

Olivia shook her head. “It’s adorable” she quipped “How did you get covered with so much paint?” she added, smiling up at him.

“Apparently, like his mama, he likes my hugs. After we’d done the picture, he kept holding up his little arms and I was no way prepared to leave him there, so I got covered in paint” he mused gently.

Olivia smiled and moved to kiss Thiago’s forehead before she pecked Iker’s lips. She doubted she had received a couple of better gifts.

~#~
“You made your carrot cake?” Olivia giggled, smiling at the plate of food which had been placed ahead of her. It had been a pleasant day, Olivia had spent a lot of it curled up on the couch with Iker and Thiago, and she couldn’t have come with a better way to spend the day. She felt a little spoiled and that was a feeling she knew was exclusive to her birthday.

“Yeah, I did” Iker mused “You always used to rave about it when I cooked it before” he added.

“It’s easily my favourite one of your specialties” Olivia mused, taking a bite.

Iker smiled. “I am just glad you’re having a good day” he mused “I worried I had gone a little overboard” he added.

“You always go overboard” Olivia quipped between mouthfuls of cake “It’s part of your charm” she added.

“I’m glad you think I am charming” Iker returned, sitting down beside her at the kitchen table “I love you, Oli” he added.

Olivia smiled. “I love you too” she replied.

Iker grinned at her response. No matter how many times she said it to him, he was pretty sure that his stomach would always do a little somersault. Smiling at her, he watched her for a couple of seconds before he sighed. He knew he couldn’t take things too quickly, Olivia was still a little unsure about them and he knew it, but just sitting with her made him want to blurt out all sorts of questions. He wondered if they would ever move back into together, if they would ever be engaged again, if they would ever have another baby, but he knew that he couldn’t ask her. Olivia, as strong as she liked to pretend she was, was still in a fragile place over them, even if it had been six months, and he couldn’t put a rush on her.

“Are you OK?” Olivia poked, nudging his ribs with a soft smile.

Iker nodded his head. “Of course I am. You’re here right?” he teased.

Olivia smiled and moved to press a kiss against his lips. “Right here” she grinned before she padded away to check on Thiago.

Iker watched her go and sighed, knowing that he needed to take his time.