Give Me Your Heart

Shifting a little in her seat, Riley carefully readjusted Alexander in her arms slightly, her blue eyes peeking down towards the pitch which sat ahead of them. It was late, after a goalless first 90 minutes, the match had headed into extra time and Riley, who had been slightly uncomfortable for the duration of the match, was looking forwards to the end of it.

It had been tense, with Javier Mascherano having been sent off just before half time, Barcelona had had to do a lot more defending than they were used to, but still the score stood at 0-0, something which looked unlikely to change before the need for penalties arrived.

“Do you want me to take him for a little while?”

Riley, who’d watched Sevilla skew another shot wide, startled a little, her eyes peeking towards Montserrat who sat beside her, a small smile on her face. “Sorry?” she spluttered.

“Alex” the older woman mused, gesturing towards the infant who was sleepily rested in his mother’s arms “I could take him for a little while if you’d like” she offered.

“You wouldn’t mind?” Riley peeped, her eyes briefly flicking back towards the pitch.

“Not at all” Montserrat smiled softly “Besides, penalties are likely to be tenser and this is your first final no?” she posed.

Riley offered her a slightly shy smile before she nodded her head, carefully moving to place Alexander in his grandmother’s arms. “It is” she confirmed “And I was hoping for something a little more straightforward. This is a lot tenser than I thought it would be” she quipped, stretching out a little.

It wasn’t the first game she had been to, when she and Gerard had dated the first time, he had been insistent on her attending at least one, but the idea of it being a final made Riley feel a little tense, even if the team had already won the league, part of her wanted to see them succeed again.

Montserrat watched the brunette for a moment before she smiled, gently patting her shoulder. “He’ll just be glad that the two of you are here, Riley” she noted softly. She could see that Riley was nervous, from the second that she had sat down, she had been shifting in her seat and chewing on her lip, and Montserrat wanted to calm her down a little. Regardless of the result, Gerard was going to be pleased that she and Alexander had made the trip to Madrid and she didn’t want the brunette thinking anything else.

Riley, who’d been chewing on her lip, blushed a little, something which made the older woman smile gently. “Even if they lose?” she quipped, knowing what the older woman was getting at.

“Even if they lose” Montserrat smiled “He’ll pout for a while, but he’ll get over it. He’ll be glad you’re here, Riley, I know it” she insisted softly.

Riley offered her a slightly dubious look before the sound of the crowd around them grew, causing her to peek down towards the pitch, a smile appearing on her face. It had been coming, with Sevilla having had a man sent off just before the end of the 90 minutes, Barcelona had seemingly found their second wind, and it pleased Riley as she watched Jordi Alba speed away from the goal with a grin on his face. The last thing she had wanted was to go through the tension of penalties.

~#~
Chewing on her lip, Riley stared out across the pitch, her blue eyes watching as Gerard wandered around the pitch with Alexander in his arms. It had taken a little while, the game having gone into extra time, the trophy presentation hadn’t been until well after midnight, but Riley didn’t mind being up a little late, even if the idea of her bed did seem tempting, she was merely glad to have been around to see the team win another title.

“He looks a lot like him”

Riley, who’d been watching Gerard, startled a little, something which made Antonella giggle. “Sorry” she noted.

Riley shook her head. “It’s fine” she noted “I was kind of in my own little world” she added with a soft smile.

Antonella smiled. “I’d noticed” she teased “But I was merely saying that Alex, he looks a lot like his papa” she added, her eyes glancing towards the defender who was talking to Andres, Alexander rested happily in his arms.

Riley followed her stare and nodded. “He does” she confirmed “If anything, he’s growing to look more like him” she mused with a soft look on her face. It had always been obvious, from the moment he had arrived, Alexander had looked a lot like his father, but Riley didn’t mind it. If anything, she was glad that he took after Gerard.

Antonella smiled at the look on her friend’s face before she nudged her, a small laugh falling out of her mouth. “You’re so into him” she teased cheekily.

Riley rolled her eyes. “You’re just noticing?” she quipped, an amused grin on her face.

“No” Antonella quipped “But it is nice to see. It wasn’t too long ago that the two of you were skirting around one another awkwardly and now look at you. The two of you are doing so well, Ry, and I am happy for you” she insisted gently. It was a good thing, since Alexander had arrived, both Riley and Gerard looked more than happy, and Antonella was keen to see it stay that way. Whether they wanted to admit it or not, Riley and Gerard were good for one another and deserved to be happy together

Riley’s cheeks warmed a little, something which made Antonella shake her head before she spotted Gerard padding towards them, something she knew was her cue to leave. “I ought to go and find Leo” she quipped “But you and me, we should head out together soon. It’s been a while” she enthused.

“I’d love that” Riley grinned.

Antonella offered her a small smile before she stepped away, patting Gerard’s shoulder as she stepped past. “She’s all yours” she quipped.

Gerard offered her a small smile before he padded towards Riley, his spare arm wrapping around her waist. “Hola” he mumbled, pressing a kiss against her shoulder.

Riley smiled a little at the feeling of his kiss before she carefully turned around, peeking up at him softly. “Hola” she mimicked gently.

“You ready to get out of here?” he posed gently.

Riley tilted her head. “You want to get out of here?” she posed, a slightly amused smile on her face.

“We do have a flight to catch” Gerard quipped “And besides, Alex looks like he could use a nap, as does his mama” he mused, gently brushing the hair out of her eyes.

Riley smiled a little at the tender action before she moved to take his hand, offering it a small squeeze. It felt good, even despite the couple of small hiccups that they had had since Alexander had arrived, things between her and Gerard felt good, and it was a feeling she wanted to keep going for a while. She liked where they were and wanted to enjoy it whilst it lasted.