Love Me Until My Heart Stops

48: Still A Problem For You

“Did I miss it?” Esmé squeaked as she padded into the canteen, her eyes glancing at the television screen which was affixed to the wall. It was the day of the Champions League quarter final draw and she knew that it was a big deal. Barcelona wanted to defend their title, they wanted to make it clear that they were the best side in Europe, and a good draw would have seen them take a step towards it. There were no bad teams left, the group stage and round of 16 had sorted out the top teams from the others, and she knew whoever they ended up with would provide a stern test.

“No” Gerard smiled as he kicked the chair beside him out “You’re cutting it fine, but they’ve not done it yet” he noted.

“I had to make sure you lot had a reservation for this weekend” Esmé replied, swiftly sitting down “I could have left you lot in the cold if you’d have preferred” she added, sticking her tongue out.

Gerard smiled and leant over, pressing a kiss to her lips which drew a drawn out ‘eww’ from the others who sat around them. “You have got to stop doing that” he muttered, offering a small glare towards Neymar and Luis Suarez who sat across from them “She’s my fiancée” he added.

“And?” Neymar teased.

Gerard rolled his eyes, something which made Esmé giggle. “You know, the more you pull that face, the more they do it” she teased, resting back in her chair so that her legs were across his lap “They only do it because you react” she added.

Gerard nodded his head. In truth, he didn’t mind the teasing, it was something he had gotten used to when he’d first started dating Esmé, but he knew it made Esmé laugh and that was something he adored. Offering her a small smile, he pushed the leg of her jeans up, revealing the Barcelona tattoo which was on her ankle, his finger tracing over it as he turned to look at the screen. “I’d like to avoid Real” he commented.

“You’d do well to avoid Bayern too” Esmé noted “You’d have to play them at some point, but semi-finalists sounds a lot better than quarter finalists” she noted.

“Winners sounds better than both” Gerard teased.

“Don’t get ahead of yourself” Esmé warned.

Gerard smiled and nodded his head, listening as the announcer explained the draw.

“Have you two thought about what will happen if we get Chelsea?” Neymar posed, leaning over a little. It was a topic which was avoided, the chance of Chelsea, or more specifically, Cesc, making their way to the Camp Nou, but the Brazilian couldn’t help but ask. He knew that it shouldn’t have been a big deal, from what he had seen of Esmé and Gerard, they were very much in love and should have had no issue with the midfielder, but he was curious. Cesc was a sore point, in particular for Gerard.

Esmé shifted. “It hadn’t really crossed my mind” she noted gently.

“It crossed mine” Gerard muttered, shaking his head gently.

Esmé sighed gently and turned her eyes back up to the screen, smiling a little as Real Madrid drew out Juventus. “You know that you can’t let it get to you” she noted, not looking at Gerard.

“I know that” he mused “But that doesn’t mean it won’t. I can be professional, you know that, but the idea of you being near him?” he added.

Esmé shook her head and took his hand, squeezing it lightly. “I won’t be there” she noted “I mean, I love watching you guys play, but if it gets to you that much, I won’t go” she explained, noting that Bayern Munich had drawn Manchester United.

“I can’t ask that” Gerard replied “You come to every home match” he added.

“If Cesc is a problem for you…”

“Which it is” Neymar contributed, pointing to the defender’s face as he opened his mouth to object.

Esmé smiled. “If Cesc is still a problem for you, then I will skip it. I have a TV and I can watch it there” she explained, watching as Barcelona’s crest appeared on the screen. Gerard watched the television for a moment too before he closed his eyes, his ears resonating with the word ‘Chelsea’.

Esmé squeezed his hand. “You know you can’t go the rest of your career without bumping into him, amor” she reasoned as she leant forwards slightly, pressing a kiss against his cheek “You just need to be professional” she mused.

“That’s easy to say” he replied gently, his eyes watching as Neymar and Luis stepped away, leaving the pair alone “But do you think he’s going to make it that easy on me?” he mumbled. He was getting ahead of himself, he knew it, but he couldn’t help but fret. If there was one person who knew how to get at him, it was Cesc and it was a concern to him. Certain things he could take in his stride, but one word about Esmé and he knew that he’d snap.

“He’s not a bad person, Gerard” Esmé reasoned.

Gerard snorted. “Do you not remember when he first found out about us?” he muttered.

“He was upset” Esmé noted “But it has been months” she added.

“Because that stopped him asking you to come to London in the first place” Gerard muttered, shaking his head “I appreciate that you’re trying to calm me down, querida, but you really do need to stop defending him” he added, offering her a look.

Esmé shook her head. “I am not defending him” she mused “I am just trying to make you see that it might not be the worst thing in the world” she explained.

Gerard rolled his eyes. “It might not be to you” he mumbled, gently ushering her legs out of his lap “But to me? The idea of being anywhere near him, the idea of you being anywhere near him, that’s not something I am just going to be OK with” he grumbled before he padded away, leaving Esmé sat behind. She knew that it bothered him, the idea of being near Cesc was going to bother him for a while, but she wanted him to calm down. Cesc wasn’t a bad person, even if he had hurt her, and Gerard needed to stop letting it get to him. It was what Cesc wanted, the defender unsettled and insecure, and Esmé wished she could get it through Gerard’s head that it didn’t matter. She had made her decision and there was very little that was going to change her mind.
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Thanks to Jayme112234 for the comment :)