Give Me Your Heart

Sparing a look towards the bedroom door, Gerard let out a small sigh, trying to ignore the nervous sensation that twitched in his stomach. He had known that it was coming, even if he and Riley had agreed to take their time, it had been inevitable that they would be faced with her parents, but still the idea concerned him a little, even if Luis and Audrey had been cordial with him since the announcement of Riley’s pregnancy, he doubted that they would take the news of his reconciliation with their daughter well.

Shaking his head a little, he carefully pushed the door open before he padded inside, his blue eyes landing on Riley who sat up against the headboard, flicking through her phone. “Did you get rid of them?” she posed, not shifting her eyes away from the screen.

“Not exactly” Gerard returned, his tone slightly uncertain.

Riley frowned a little at the tone of his voice before she looked up at him, her head tilted. “Gerard?” she posed gently.

“Your parents are downstairs” Gerard noted gently “Apparently, you were due to head out to breakfast with them before you went baby shopping” he added as he stepped a little further into the room, sitting down beside her.

Riley blinked a couple of times before she shook her head, a small frustrated noise falling out of her mouth. “I forgot” she mumbled.

Gerard nodded his head. “I’d figured that” he noted gently “But they seem pretty adamant about wanting to see you so we should probably avoid keeping them waiting” he added as he leant over, carefully helping Riley to her feet. It wasn’t something he wanted to do, spending time with Riley’s parents had always been awkward and tense, but he knew that it couldn’t be avoided, not matter how much he wanted to, it was merely something he and Riley were going to have to deal with sooner or later.

Riley offered him a slightly dubious look before she padded towards the dresser, collecting her clothes. “You can go if you want to” she offered as she moved to pull on her shirt “I wouldn’t blame you” she added.

Gerard shook his head. “I’m going nowhere, Ry” he noted softly.

“They’re not going to be happy” Riley countered.

“They’ve never liked me, Riley” Gerard mused, a small smile playing on her face “I doubt they’re going to have changed their minds just because of bump” he added. He knew what he was walking into, despite how polite Audrey and Luis had been to him since Riley had informed them of her pregnancy, he knew that they still weren’t keen on him, and he was under no illusions about what they were going to say. He had little doubt that they would attempt to convince Riley that she was making a mistake.

Riley offered him a soft look before she padded towards him, gently wrapping her arms around his neck. “For what it is worth, I like you” she mused softly, a warm smile on her face.

Gerard laughed. “I’d like to hope so” he teased, ducking his head a little “If not, we’re both wasting our time” he added gently.

Riley offered him a gentle smile before she pushed herself up onto her toes, pressing a gentle kiss against his lips. “We should get down there” she noted gently, stealing a couple more kisses “I doubt they’re going to be too happy if we make them wait much longer” she added before she stepped away, making her way down the stairs.

Gerard watched after her for a second before he smiled to himself. He had little doubt that being with Riley was worth the trouble her parents were likely to cause them.

~#~
Offering the living room a slightly hesitant look, Riley took in a breath before she pushed it open, padding inside quietly. She knew that it wasn’t going to be pleasant, from the moment that she and Gerard had broken up, her parents had been determined to ensure that they stayed that way, and Riley doubted that they’d arrived to give their blessing.

“You finally decided to join us then, Riley?” Audrey quipped.

“Lo siento, but it’s early, mama” Riley countered softly “And it had slipped my mind that we were due to head out this morning. I wasn’t expecting you” she added as she moved to take a seat.

Audrey scoffed before shook her head. “What are you doing here, Riley?” she pressed, her eyes fixed on the brunette who shifted a little in her seat. She wasn’t surprised, from the moment that Riley had confirmed that she was expecting, it had almost been inevitable that she and Gerard would end up together, but still Audrey was irked. It had hurt Riley, the way things had ended the first time, and the last thing she wanted was to watch her get hurt all over again, especially with a baby on the way. She had hoped that her daughter would have a little more sense.

Riley, who was trying get comfortable in her seat, sighed a little. “Mama…”

“You got hurt” Luis interjected, his eyes glancing towards Gerard who’d moved to sit beside Riley “As much as you deny it, your last breakup hurt you, Riley, and you must see that that is only likely to happen all over again. You two, it doesn’t work” he insisted.

Riley shook her head. “That’s not your call, papa” she argued softly.

Luis scoffed. “You came crying to us when it ended, Riley” he countered “And then there is the fact that barely weeks after you two broke up, he was sleeping with someone else. How can you think he cares about you?” he noted.

“That’s not fair” Gerard interjected, his expression firm.

Luis shook his head. “It’s not true?” he posed.

Gerard shook his head, his expression sharp. “I did date another woman, but I made no secret of it, and that does not mean that I do not care about your daughter. We messed up, sir, both of us, but we want to try and put it right” he insisted firmly.

Luis rolled his eyes, something which made Riley shake her head. “Papa, this is going to happen” she insisted softly “Me and Gerard, we’ve talked and we want to give this another try, and that’s not for you, or madre, to decide. We’re adults and we want to see how this goes. Can’t you respect that?” she posed softly as she moved to take Gerard’s hand, squeezing it gently. She wasn’t surprised, from the second that Gerard had stepped into the room, her father’s expression had become firm, but she wanted him to know that she wasn’t going to change her mind. With or without his blessing, she wanted to be with Gerard and it was merely something he was going to have to get used to.

Luis eyed their hands for a second before he shook his head, pushing himself to his feet. “You’re really doing this?” he muttered.

Riley nodded. “I am” she confirmed with a small smile towards Gerard who smiled back at her.

Luis eyed the two of them for a moment before he turned his attention to his wife who shook her head. “We don’t want to watch you get hurt again, Riley” he noted “And with him, it’s almost inevitable. If this is what you want to do, fine, but when it goes wrong, don’t say we didn’t warn you” he added before he moved towards his wife, escorting her out of the room.

Riley after them for a moment, a lump forming in her throat before she felt Gerard’s hand against the base of her back, causing her to startle a little. “I’m sorry, Ry” the defender mumbled as he levered her into a hug.

Riley sniffed a little before she cuddled into him, resting her head on his shoulder. “It’s OK” she murmured softly “I think we both know that that was always going to happen” she added, sniffling a little.

Gerard listened to the tone of her voice before he squeezed her gently, wordlessly promising that she would never have to hear an ‘I told you so’ from her parents.