Give Me Your Heart

Letting out a small groan, Gerard blinked his eyes open, frowning a little as the bright morning sunshine seeped into his eyes. It was late, with the curtains having already been opened, he could tell that Riley was likely to have been up for a while, and he was grateful that she had left him alone for a while. It had been a good night, after the team had won the game, the celebrations had been enjoyable, and even despite the slight pain in his head, Gerard had few regrets. He had enjoyed himself and was determined that they would get to do the same sort of thing following the cup final that they had left to play.

Stretching his legs out, he spared another groan before he carefully sat up, his eyes glancing towards the alarm clock which stood on the end table. Checking the time, he let out another small sound before he pushed himself to his feet, padding out of the bedroom down towards the kitchen where Riley sat, Alexander in her arms. “Buenos dias” he murmured softly.

Riley, who’d been cooing to the baby, startled a little at the sound of his voice before she turned, offering him a feeble smile. “You’re up earlier than I thought you’d be” she noted softly “We didn’t wake you, did we?” she added.

Gerard shook his head a little before he padded towards her, pressing a gentle kiss to the top of her head. “You didn’t” he confirmed softly “But you should have done, I could have taken care of Alex” he added, gently smoothing out the tufts of dark hair which stuck up on the little boy’s head.

Riley watched him for a moment before she shook her head softly. “I had it under control” she noted softly “And besides, he was up early and you didn’t get in til late. You deserved the chance to lay in” she babbled gently, her eyes trying to avoid his which looked down at her. She didn’t want to bring it up, chances were that Gerard didn’t even remember the comment that he had made about them getting married, but still she felt a little uncertain. It had been the first time that he had mentioned the idea of them getting married and, for a little while, it wasn’t something she was going to be able to swallow easily.

Gerard noted the uncertainty on her face but opted not to comment on it, instead moving to collect Alexander from her arms. “Do you have plans for today?” he quipped as he padded towards the chair which sat ahead of him.

Riley, who’d moved to fiddle with the hem of her shirt, shrugged. “I haven’t got anything specific in mind” she quipped “I was probably just going to take Alex out for a walk in a little while and spend a lazy day here. Did you want to do something?” she noted, her words a little rushed

Gerard quirked an eyebrow, slightly confused by the tone of her voice, before he shook his head. “A lazy day sounds pretty great” he enthused “I will go and get Alex dressed and then we can head out on that walk” he grinned before he pushed himself to his feet, padding out of the room.

Riley watched after him for a second before she let out a small sigh, resting her head back against the chair. She knew that it was inevitable, eventually, she and Gerard were going to have to discuss the next step for their relationship, but she had hoped to put it off for a while, even if she knew that Gerard was certain of them, she had hoped that she’d have a little more time to enjoy their relationship before the topic of their future arose again.

~#~
Settling Alexander down in his crib, Gerard spared a small sigh, his blue eyes watching as the little boy stirred softly. It had been a quiet morning, with Riley wanting a quiet day, the three of them had spent a lot of time just relaxing, but Gerard got the sense that he was missing something, even if Riley hadn’t said anything, he got the sense that there was something wrong. She had been quiet, since he had gotten out of bed that morning, Riley had barely said two words to him that weren’t rushed or babbled out, and it was starting to irk the defender who, until that morning, had assumed that things between the two of them.

Ensuring that Alexander was settled down for his nap, he moved to collect the monitor from the side before he padded back towards the living room, plopping down onto the couch beside Riley who was aimlessly flicking through the television channels.

“Did Alex go down OK?” Riley posed, not flicking her eyes away from the screen.

Gerard nodded his head gently. “He did” he confirmed quietly.

Riley nodded her head softly before she shifted a little in her seat, something which made Gerard roll his eyes. “Alright” he noted as he reached out for the remote, flicking the television off “Are you going to tell me what I did?” he pressed.

“Gerard…”

“Don’t say it’s nothing, Ry” Gerard interjected gently “You’ve been weird with me all day and I know there is something going on up here” he added, his finger lightly poking the side of her head.

Riley sighed a little before she shook her head. “It’s just me being me” she mumbled softly.

“I don’t buy it” Gerard refuted gently “Nena, there is something up with you and I want to know what it is. I thought we were done…”

“You said you wanted to get married” Riley spluttered, cutting him off.

Gerard blinked a couple of times before he tilted his head, a small frown pulling at the corner of his mouth. “I said that?” he posed gently.

Riley, who looked more than a little shy, nodded. “You were babbling last night and you just came out with it. You said that you wanted to marry me” she murmured gently, her hands tugging at her shirt gently.

Gerard was quiet for a moment before he shook his head, a small sigh falling out of his mouth. “Riley” he murmured, leaning towards her slightly.

Riley, who was sat at his side, flinched a little as his hand rested on her leg, something which made him shake his head. “Nena, I am not going to propose to you now” he noted softly.

Riley tilted her head, something which made Gerard squeeze her leg, a soft smile on his face. “I know you’re still settling into this, into us, and I am not going to put any more pressure on you right now. We’ve just had a baby together, we’re living together, and right now, that’s all I want. In the future, yeah, I would like to think about getting married, but it’s not something we need to do right now” he insisted softly. He knew that she was worried, for the majority of the morning, she had appeared nervous and unsure, and he wanted to offer her a little reassurance. They were good, they had been for a little while, and he was in no hurry to change the way things were.

Riley frowned. “You’re really OK with that?” she pressed.

“More than OK” Gerard confirmed, a warm smile on his face “Ry, we’re in a good place right now and I am in no hurry to ruin it. Would I like to think about getting married? Yes, I would, but I am not going to propose right now. We’ve been together for a matter of months and I think waiting would do us some good, especially after last time. We’re in no hurry, Ry, I promise” he insisted softly.

Riley offered him a slightly dubious look before she ducked her head, a small embarrassed smile on her face. “I should have just…”

“Talked to me?” Gerard quipped amusedly.

Riley nodded. “I am sorry” she murmured “I just…” Riley’s words fell away as Gerard leant into her, pressing a gentle kiss against her lips.

Smiling a little, he held her close for a moment before he ducked back, admiring her face for a moment. He knew that she was worried, for a little while, he was sure that she was going to be uncertain about them and the pace of their relationship, but he was certain that he was going to make it work. The last thing he wanted was for their relationship to fall apart for a second time.