We Could Be Something

Iker blinked a couple of times before he flicked his stare up, meeting Adriana’s eyes. “You’re having a baby?” he posed gently.

“In a few months, yes” Adriana confirmed softly “I’m almost 16 weeks now” she added, her eyes glancing down towards the small bump which was just about noticeable beneath her blouse.

Iker followed the line of her stare towards her stomach before he quirked a half-smile, noticing the slight bump which was visible beneath her shirt. “You have a bump” he mumbled “I should have noticed that you have a bump” he added, shaking his head a little.

Adriana shook her head. “It’s only small” she noted gently “And I like that it wasn’t the first thing you noticed about me. I’ve been feeling a little shy about it” she added, carefully brushing a hand over her stomach. It was only small, the bump she carried was barely noticeable unless you were looking for it, but she kind of liked the idea that it wasn’t the first thing that Iker had noticed about her, even if it had led them to a slightly awkward conversation, she liked that he hadn’t spied it straight away.

Iker shook his head. “You have no reason to feel shy, Addie” he murmured gently “You’re beautiful” he added, his cheeks flushing a little. He had noticed just how beautiful she was, from the second he had seen her, he had found her attractive, but still he felt awkward about admitting it, even if they were friends, the idea of admitting that he found her attractive unsettled him. She was still hurting, whenever the topic of her ex-boyfriend arose, her face confided that the breakup was still raw, and he didn’t want her thinking that he was trying to push her into something more than the friendship that they had forged.

Adriana tilted her head. “You think that?” she posed softly.

Iker nodded. “Of course I do” he noted as though it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Adriana’s cheeks flushed a little before she shook her head. “I am going to have a baby, Iker” she noted gently.

Iker, who’d moved to step back a little, nodded, trying to conjure up a response. It had caught him off guard, the news that she was pregnant, and he didn’t quite know what to say to her.

Adriana watched him move away from her before she shook her head. “I should have seen it coming” she mumbled softly “I am sorry that I dropped this on you, Iker” she added as she pushed herself to her feet, moving to pad out of the room.

“Addie” Iker called out.

“It’s fine” Adriana noted “I get it. You were looking for something simple and I am pretty far from that. It’s really OK” she added, her tone wavering slightly.

Iker noted the quiver in her voice before he took a step towards her, his hand gently resting on her arm. “Adriana, you’re not getting rid of me so easy” he murmured gently before he carefully turned her around, his thumb brushing away the couple of loose tears that had worked their way out of her eyes.

Adriana shook her head softly. “You don’t need this” she mumbled “You’re still trying to get settled here and you…”

“Addie” Iker interjected softly “I like spending time with you” he noted gently.

“Iker…”

“I’ve liked getting to know you” Iker interrupted “And I can’t see a reason why that has to stop now that I know about…you know” he added, his tone deliberately soft and reassuring.

Adriana offered him a soft look before she let out a small sigh. “I don’t want you to feel as though you have to stick around, Iker” she noted gently “You have absolutely no responsibility towards me or the baby and I don’t want you feeling as though you need to stay around just because I’m pregnant. I’ll be fine if you tell me that you don’t want to spend time together anymore” she insisted, wiping her eyes a little. She didn’t want to lose him, as silly as it was, she had grown kind of used to having him around, but she didn’t want him feeling obliged to spend time with her just because she was pregnant. She wanted to be sure that he wanted to be her friend, not that he felt as though he had to stick around.

Iker studied the slightly tearful expression on her face before he carefully lifted his hand, brushing his thumb beneath her eyes once more. “I have kind of grown used to spending time with you, Addie” he noted softly, a coy smile on his face.

“And it doesn’t bother you that, in a few months, I am going to have a baby?” Adriana posed.

“It was a bit of a surprise” Iker admitted gently, a small breathy laugh falling out of his mouth “But it is going to happen and I don’t see a reason why that ought to get in the way of you and I being friends. It’ll take a little getting used to, but if you’re still keen to be friends, then I’d love that, Adriana” he added, his hand moving to take hers and squeeze it gently.

Adriana glanced down at their hands for a second before she bit down on her lip. “I’d like that too” she admitted gently.

Iker quirked a bright smile before he carefully tucked some of her hair behind her ear. “Then I should probably check on dinner” he teased softly “I spent a lot of time coming up with something to cook tonight and I’d hate to see it go to waste. Do you still feel like staying?” he added as he stepped away from her, making his way back towards the stove.

Adriana watched before she shook her head, a small amused grin on her face. “If you’d not mind me staying” she quipped, the tone of her voice warm and teasing.

Iker smiled at the sound of it before he turned back towards the pot which sat on the stove top. He knew that it was going to take a little adapting, the idea that Adriana was only months away from becoming a mother had knocked him for six, but he was certain that he wanted to keep her around. He liked her, perhaps slightly more than he should have done, and he wanted to make the effort to keep something working between them, even if it was only to be a friendship.