Give Me Your Heart

42: Look At Us Now

“Riley?”

Riley, who had her eyes shut, startled a little at the sound of Gerard’s voice. It had been a few minutes, after the words had fallen out of his mouth, Riley had fallen quiet, and it was a concern to the defender who worried that he had broached the subject too soon. He knew that it was a sore point, from the outset, Riley had been clear that she wanted them to take their time, and he worried that by bringing it up, he had caused an issue between them, something he hadn’t wanted to do. They had been good, for a while, things between them had been familiar and comfortable, and the last thing he wanted was for it to become tense, especially so soon after Alexander had arrived.

Sighing a little, he placed his hand against Riley’s shoulder and shook it gently, causing her to blink her eyes open “Riley, nena, say something” he mumbled gently.

“You really want to discuss this now?” Riley whispered “Gerard, it’s 4 in the morning” she protested, her blue eyes peeking up into his.

Gerard nodded. “I know” he murmured “But I just got thinking, Ry, and I think we should talk about it” he added gently.

Riley studied the soft expression on his face for a second before she shook her head, resting it back against her pillow. “What do you want me to say, Gerard?” she posed softly “I know we’ve got Alex now, but things between you and me, they’re still the same and I don’t know whether or not me staying here is the best idea right now” she noted, her tone deliberate and careful. She knew what he wanted, for a while, Gerard had been dropping hints that he wanted her to live with him on a more permanent basis, but still the idea unsettled Riley, something she doubted that she could just swallow.

Gerard shook his head a little before he turned onto his back, his eyes staring up at the ceiling. “This isn’t last time, Ry” he murmured.

“I know it’s not” Riley quipped, her voice soft.

“I just…I love having you here” Gerard noted gently “I love coming home to you and Alex and I don’t want to lose that, Riley. I want you two to be here” he insisted.

Riley shook her head. “We’ve only been together for 4 months, Gerard” she murmured gently.

Gerard nodded a little before he let out a small sigh, allowing a small silence to fall over them. He knew that she had a point, despite the fact that they had Alexander, they had only been back together for a matter of months, but still he wanted to take the step forwards, even if it was still soon, he didn’t see the need to wait around.

Riley watched him for a moment before she leant towards him, carefully tilting his head so that she could press a kiss against his lips. “We’re good, Gerard” she murmured as she pulled away from him “You and me, we’re so good right now, and I don’t want to run this risk of throwing this away again. I love you, Gerard, and I don’t want to mess this up again” she insisted gently.

“What makes you so sure that we will mess this up?” Gerard posed as he moved his hand, gently brushing the hair off of her face.

Riley shrugged. “It’s us” she noted “We ran into things last time and messed that up, and we’re only here right now because I fell pregnant. We had broken up before we found out about Alex” she pointed out gently. It wasn’t something that they dwelled on, with Alexander’s arrival to focus on, the way that their relationship had started had been pushed to the back of their minds, but it was a fact. Until she had discovered that she was expecting, there had seemingly been little chance of her and Gerard working things out.

Gerard nodded his head in agreement. “We had broken up” he confirmed gently “But we managed to fix it, Ry, and now look at us. We’re a little family now, me, you and Alex, and I don’t see the harm in taking something which we’re doing anyway and making it more of a permanent thing. This is the easiest thing, Ry” he insisted gently. He knew that she was hesitant, the look on her face confided it, but he wanted to offer her a little encouragement. He wanted her to see that it made sense.

Riley mulled his words over for a moment before she leant towards him, resting her forehead against his. “You’re sure about this?” she mumbled.

“I’m sure about us, Riley” Gerard confirmed softly “I’ve been sure about you and me for a while” he added gently, his hand brushing up and down her side.

“And you don’t think that this is moving too quickly?” Riley posed, peeking through her eyelashes at him.

“We’ve got a baby together, nena” he teased, pressing a kiss to the top of her head “As much as you might not want to admit it, we’re in a pretty serious relationship” he added, an impish smile on his face.

Riley quirked an eyebrow. “Serious?” she teased.

“Pretty serious” Gerard grinned “I kind of love you” he teased.

Riley’s cheeks warmed a little at the three words before she leant up, sneaking a gentle kiss. “I kind of love you too” she mused softly.

Gerard offered her a small smile before he turned onto his back, allowing Riley to cuddle into his side. “You really want us to stay?” Riley mumbled as she rested her head against his chest, breaking the comfortable silence that had settled around them.

“You know that I do” Gerard quipped, closing his eyes sleepily “I’d love nothing more” he added, yawning softly.

Riley mulled his response over for a moment before she pressed a kiss against his chest, something which caused him to quirk an eyebrow. “What was that for?” he mumbled.

Riley smiled. “I still want to take this steadily” she murmured “And I am still going to worry that we’re going to mess this up, but if you want us, I’d like to stay” she mused.

Gerard tilted his head. “You would?” he posed.

“I think so” Riley mused with a sleepy smile on her face.

Gerard watched her for a moment before he pulled her closer, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. He knew that it was still going to take a little work, Riley had a tendency to worry when she wanted to, but he was glad that she was staying, even if it would take a little adjustment.
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Thanks to FootieJo and Jayme112234 for the comments :)