Give Me Your Heart

Sparing a look down at his watch, Gerard let out a small sigh, his blue eyes drifting towards the door of the small café he sat in. it had been out of the blue, after 6 weeks, the last thing that he had been expecting was a message from his ex-girlfriend, but when Riley’s name had appeared on the screen of his phone, he had known that he couldn’t avoid it, even if the idea of spending time around his ex-girlfriend made him a little uncomfortable, he knew that Riley wouldn’t have gotten in contact with him unless it was something important.

Sparing the door another gander, he quietly shook his head before he pulled the mug of coffee he’d been nursing to his lips, sipping at it as the door was pushed open, allowing Riley to step inside, a sight which made him swallow a little. She looked good, Gerard had always found Riley attractive, but after 6 weeks of not seeing her, it made her look even better, something which merely unsettled him a little further.

He was under no illusions, after the mutual decision that they had taken to end their relationship, he was almost certain that Riley didn’t want to reconcile, but still he was a little nervous about being around her. His feelings towards her were still a little complicated and he had been hoping that their breakup would be a definitive end to their relationship.

“Riley” Gerard noted as he pushed himself to his feet “Hola” he added, offering her a small smile.

Riley, who’d moved to pad towards the counter, quirked a feeble smile. “Gerard, hola” she squeaked.

“I have a table” Gerard noted “Do you want a drink?” he added, showing her towards the table he’d been sat at.

“Tea” Riley noted “With…”

“A splash of milk and 2 sugars” Gerard finished for her “It’s not been that long, Riley” he added, offering her a grin.

Riley offered him a slightly nervous look before she padded towards the table, taking the seat opposite where Gerard had been sat.

Gerard collected her drink before he followed after her, settling the cup down ahead of her before he retook his seat. “I have to admit, I was surprised to get your text” he noted.

“I should have called” Riley quipped “A text, it seems so…”

“Riley” Gerard interrupted “You didn’t ask me to coffee just so that you could babble about nothing, so why don’t we just get to the point?” he noted gently. He could see that she was nervous, the way her hands fidgeted with the napkin she held confided it, and he knew that he needed to keep her on topic. Riley had a habit of babbling when she was nervous and he knew, if he didn’t attempt to keep her on topic, they’d be there a lot longer than the short meeting he had envisaged when he had received her text.

Riley shifted a little in her seat before she nodded, moving to pull something out of her bag. “I need you to promise me that you can be calm, Gerard” she noted.

Gerard tilted his head. “Riley, what is going on?” he posed.

Riley took a small breath before she placed the piece of white card onto the table, sliding it over to him.

“Riley?” Gerard pressed.

“Just…look at it” Riley spluttered out.

Gerard’s frown deepened a little before he took the piece of card into his hand, flipping it open to reveal the black and white picture which sat inside. “Riley” he breathed softly.

“I’m pregnant” Riley babbled out.

Gerard, who was staring intently at the scan photo he held, blinked a few times before he lifted his head, his eyes meeting Riley’s which stared at him nervously. “You’re sure?” he posed.

“I am” Riley confirmed “I saw my doctor a couple of days ago and he referred me to a midwife who did the first scan this morning, that’s why I was a little late. She was a talkative woman” she babbled.

Gerard nodded his head slowly, his attention drifting back to the picture he held in his hand.

“I am not going to make you do anything” Riley noted “I don’t expect you to do anything and I don’t want you to feel as though you have to, but I thought you ought to know. I’m almost 7 weeks now” she explained gently, her hands fiddling nervously ahead of her. She had given it a lot of thought, after the visit to her doctor which had confirmed her pregnancy, she had barely been able to think about anything else, but she wanted Gerard to know that she didn’t want him to be pressured.

“How long’ve you known?” Gerard mumbled.

“A couple of days” Riley noted gently “I had an inkling for a little while, but I only took the test a few days ago. You and Cassidy are the only ones who know anything” she insisted.

Gerard stared at the picture in his hand, his expression unreadable.

“I should go” Riley babbled out softly “I should leave you to get your head around it” she added as she quietly pushed herself to her feet, wrapping her jacket around her shoulders.

“Riley…”

“Take a few days” Riley interrupted gently “Get your head around the idea and then we can talk about it again, OK?” she posed.

Gerard looked up at her, wanting to refute the idea, but he stopped himself, knowing that she had a point. It was a big deal, the news that she was pregnant was massive, and he did need a little time to get his head around it. He needed time to wrap his head around the notion that his ex-girlfriend was carrying their baby. “I’ll call you, Riley” he noted with a small nod.

Riley offered him a slightly nervous look before she quirked a small smile. “I’d like that, Gerard” she quipped “I’ll see you soon” she added as she turned to walk away.

Gerard, however, was quicker and pushed himself to his feet, allowing him to pull Riley into a soft hug that she was more than happy to return for a moment she wiggled free, mumbling a soft goodbye before she departed the café.

Gerard watched after her for a second before he moved to sit down once more, pushing a hand through his hair nervously. He had thought that it was over, when he and Riley had made the decision to end their relationship, he had assumed that it would be the end of it, but with the news that she was pregnant ringing in his ears, he knew that it wasn’t going to be as simple as he hoped it would be.