Slow Dancing in the Darkness

“Mama!” Noah’s voice was loud as his little feet slapped against the laminate floors, pulling him towards his mother. It’d been hours, since Noah had woken up, all he had wanted was to see his mother, and now that she was back, he was pleased. He missed her and as much as his grandfather tried, Luca was no replacement for his mother.

Gabriela, who had just pushed the door closed, smiled, crouching down to the little boy’s height. “Hola, Noah” she grinned “How are you, baby?” she pressed.

“I missed you, mama” Noah mumbled as he hugged her tightly “Why were you gone?” he posed.

“I was spending time with Leo” Gabriela murmured as she pushed her hand back through Noah’s dark curls “But I am back now, sweetheart. Where’s you abuelo?” she posed.

Noah pulled away from his mother and moved to reply, only to spot the red marks which were around her eyes. “Mama, are you crying?” he posed, his little head tilted.

Gabriela shook her head. “No, sweetie” she assured him softly “I was a little upset, but I am Ok now” she insisted.

“Are you sure?” Noah squeaked “Did Leo make you cry?” he added.

Gabriela shook her head. “Of course not, Noah. It was just something silly, but I promise, I’m fine. I need to speak to your abuelo for a moment, but why don’t you take Leo and find Amelia and then we can sit down and watch a film or something?” she suggested, her blue eyes glancing back over her shoulder at Lionel who nodded his head, sparing her a small smile before he moved to take Noah’s hand, leading him upstairs whilst Gabriela ducked into the living room.

“Princesa” Luca grinned as he spotted her “You’re back. I figured you and Leo would take more time together” he fussed.

“We wanted to get back” Gabriela noted gently “I heard Noah gave you trouble?” she posed.

“He’s not spent as much time with me as I would I have liked” Luca mused “It’s going to take him a little time to get used to me, but I am more than happy to wait. I want to be around for my grandchildren, Lala” he mused.

“I’m glad, papa” Gabriela replied.

Luca frowned, noticing the red marks around her eyes. “Lala?” he posed.

“Madre’s in town” Gabriela murmured.

Luca lifted his head, his expression tight.

“She…she showed up yesterday and insisted on trying to cause a scene. The commotion that Gerard and Jorge dealt with?” she posed.

Luca nodded. “I remember. Lala…”

“She wanted to say sorry” Gabriela muttered “She wanted to make amends, but I think you and I both know why she really came” she murmured.

“Lionel” Luca replied softly “Sweetheart” he added, offering his arms out for a hug.

Gabriela sniffed, accepting his hug. “She married that man, papa” she murmured “They have a son. She thought I would want to know” she mumbled, sniffling a little. She had tried to keep it in, Lionel didn’t need to be made to pick up the pieces again after the previous night, but with Luca, she couldn’t help it. She could still remember the way he had been after Maria had first left and it still broke her heart.

Luca squeezed her briefly before he pulled back, brushing the dark hair out of her eyes. “You don’t need to worry about her, Lala” he murmured softly.

“Papa…”

“I will not let her near you or your family, Lala” he assured her before he pulled her into another hug, his dark eyes peeking over her shoulder at Lionel who stood in the door way, a soft look on his face. Wordlessly, the older man beckoned the footballer towards him and carefully passed Gabriela over to him, something which made Lionel offer him a small smile.

“I’m going to leave you to it” Luca murmured.

“You don’t have to go” Gabriela noted, turning out of Lionel’s hug slightly.

“I’m leaving you in the best hands” Luca smiled “Leo, you’ll…”

“Always” the argentine interrupted.

Luca nodded. “I have no doubt about that now. I will call soon, I’d love to spend more time with Noah and Amelia” he noted.

“I’d love that, papa” Gabriela enthused.

Luca nodded his head, sparing the couple a kind smile before he stepped out of the room.

“Noah’s got a film for us to watch” Lionel noted, pressing a kiss to the top of Gabriela’s head “Why don’t you go and get Amelia from her room and I will set it up? We could use a movie day” he added, offering her an impish smile.

Gabriela wiped her eyes a little before she spared him a little smile. “Alright” she noted gently.

Lionel placed another kiss on her head before he allowed her to go. He knew that she was upset, seeing her mother had been quite the shock to her, but he wanted to keep things calm. He wanted to enjoy a little time with Gabriela and the children.

~#~
Stepping back into the living room, Gabriela placed the bowl of popcorn down onto the coffee table, snuggling into the spot that Lionel had ensured to leave between him and Noah, just for her. “What’ve you picked, Noah?” she posed, her blue eyes peeking down at the five-year-old.

“Shrek, mama” the little boy grinned.

Gabriela returned his smile before she looked down towards where Amelia sat in her rocker, her brown eyes blinking sleepily. “Is she Ok?” Gabriela posed as she cuddled into Lionel’s side, getting herself slightly more comfortable.

“Perfectly happy” Lionel replied “She’s had a feed, a change, and now she looks quite content” he mused, offering their daughter a small smile.

Gabriela nodded her head before she rested it on Lionel’s shoulder, allowing him to start up the film before he wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her against him. “You Ok?” he murmured.

Gabriela nodded. “I will be” she murmured “I mean, she can come back around, or Elliot could start acting up again, but as long as I get you…” she teased.

Lionel shook his head. “You’re cute” he muttered as he pressed a kiss to the top of her head.

Gabriela smiled and hugged him a little tighter, not missing just how at home she felt around him. It’d taken a long while, after Elliot, a large part of her doubted she would have found herself so settled in one place, but she knew a lot of it was down to the man whose coffee she’d ruined when she first arrived in Barcelona, the man who’d helped her time and time again. Kissing the side of his jaw, she rested her head against his shoulder and smiled, not wanting to be anywhere else but there.