When You Close Your Eyes

Wrinkling her nose a little, Isabelle peeked one of her blue eyes open, her ears doused by the soft beeping of her alarm clock which sat on the end table. It was early, a little earlier than she was used to getting up, but with Grace having insisted that they spend the day finalizing a few of her wedding plans, Isabelle knew that she wasn’t likely to get the opportunity to fall back to sleep, even if she was comfortable and warm beneath the duvet, she knew it was only a matter of time before Francesca appeared at the door, insisting that she got ready to leave.

Stretching an arm out from beneath the warm blanket, she quietly flicked the alarm clock off before she felt the arm of Lionel’s which rested around her waist shift a little, something which made her shake her head a little, a soft smile tugging at her features. It had been a few days, after their dinner date, things between her and Lionel had been as good as they had been in a long time, and Isabelle had to admit that she was relieved, even if she knew that they still had some talking ahead of them, she was glad that things between the two of them were settling down a little.

Shaking her head, she admired him for couple of seconds before she carefully shifted her hand, moving to pull his arm away from her.

Lionel, who was still sleeping happily, stirred a little at the feeling before he blinked his eyes open, a small frown playing at the corner of his mouth. “What time is it?” he mumbled, his voice heavy with sleep.

“It’s about ten to eight” Isabelle replied softly “And I need to get up, but you should go back to sleep. You’ve not got to be anywhere for a little while yet” she added, gently pushing some of his blondish hair off of his forehead.

Lionel frowned a little. “Why do you need to get up so soon?” he posed, sparing a small yawn into his hand “You’ve never been an early riser, Isa” he added, leaning into his pillow a little more.

Isabelle watched him for a couple of seconds before she shook her head, a small grin on her face. “I’m not” she agreed softly “But Grace has asked me to help out with a few of the last minute wedding plans and that means she wants me and my madre there for breakfast, meaning I have to leave early” she added gently.

Lionel mulled her words over for a couple of seconds before he nodded his head. “I’ll see you later?” he posed, sparing another soft yawn into his hand.

Isabelle nodded her head gently before she leant into him, stealing a soft kiss before she ducked back. “You will do” she confirmed softly “I love you” she added quietly, a soft blush playing on her cheeks.

Lionel allowed the words to hang around them for a couple of seconds before he quirked a soft smile. It wasn’t the first time, in the almost four years that they had been together, Isabelle had said the three words to him copious amounts of times, but still they made him smile, even if he had heard them before, he liked hearing her say it. “You love me?” he quipped impishly.

Isabelle, who’d moved to swing her feet out of the bed, rolled her eyes a little, something which made him chuckle softly before he took a hold of her hand, pulling her into another brief kiss. Isabelle smiled into the kiss for a couple of seconds before the sound of a knock at the door echoed, causing her to pull away from him softly. “That’s going to be my madre” she noted softly between light kisses.

“You should get moving then” Lionel countered, a teasing smile on his face.

Isabelle offered him another eye roll before she pushed herself away from him, moving to push herself up to her feet before she padded out of the room, greeting her mother who stood in the hall way.

Lionel watched after her for a couple of seconds before he carefully moved to rest his head against his pillow once more, a soft smile playing at the corner of his mouth.

He knew that things weren’t fixed completely, after the fights that they had had, it was going to take more than a few good days to convince him completely that things between them were going to be Ok, but he had to admit that he felt good about them, even if they did still have a tendency to lapse into awkward silences or to babble out words around one another, he had to admit he felt positive about their chances of making things work again.

~#~
Sparing a soft yawn into his hand, Lionel padded into the kitchen, his ears doused with the silence which filled the house. It had been quiet morning, with Isabelle and Francesca having left early, the house had been quieter and calmer than usual, and whilst Lionel enjoyed spending time with his girlfriend and her mother, he was a little grateful for a few minutes to himself, even if he did have to get to training, he was grateful for a quiet morning.

Pushing a hand back through his hair, he padded towards the fridge before he pulled out a carton of juice, moving to retrieve a glass from the side.

“Buenos dias, Lionel”

Lionel, who’d been pouring the juice into the glass, startled a little at the sound of Marco’s voice, causing him to spill the drink.

Marco, who was sat at the kitchen counter, chuckled a little before he shook his head. “I didn’t mean to startle you” he noted brightly.

Lionel shook his head. “It’s fine” he noted “I guess, with Isa and Francesca out, I forgot you’d be here” he added, moving to wipe up the small amount of liquid he had spilled.

Marco nodded. “I am only here briefly” he noted softly “I should be out of here your hair in a little while” he added.

“It’s no problem” Lionel countered, shaking his head a little “You should know by now that you, and your family, are more than welcome here” he added, sipping from his glass.

Marco offered him a brief smile before he shook his head. “I hope you don’t mind me saying me something” he noted softly, offering the younger man a soft look. He knew that it wasn’t his place, as long as Isabelle was happy, that was the only thing that matter, but still he wanted to offer the younger man a word of warning, even if he was remarkably fond of him, he wanted him to know that they would have a problem if Isabelle ended up hurt.

Lionel frowned a little, but shook his head, wordlessly encouraging the older man to speak.

“I know that things between you and Belle are not going well right now” Marco revealed softly “She confided in me the other day, and I just want to…I just want you to know that I don’t want to see my little girl hurt” he added, his tone kind, yet still fatherly and warning.

Lionel blinked a little, slightly surprised by the words, before he shook his head. “I have no intention of letting her get hurt, Marco” he noted softly “I’ll admit, we’ve had a few ups and downs lately, but I promise you, I am going to try as hard as I can to ensure that she doesn’t get hurt. I love your daughter, Marco, I love her so much that I was sort of planning to ask you if you had any objection to me proposing to her” he added, his dark eyes mirroring the older man’s.

Marco stared at him in surprise. “You want to propose to Isabelle?” he posed.

“Not right now” Lionel clarified softly “I know that we’ve still got a little work to do, but in the long run, yes, I would” he confirmed with a slight smile.

Marco offered him another look before he shook his head, a grin on his face. “I’ve been waiting for you to ask that, you know” he teased “And you’re right, about waiting, but when you think the time is right, I’d be more than happy for you to ask my daughter to marry you. I know that it is something she has wanted for a long time now” he added before he jutted a hand out ahead of himself.

Lionel glanced at the hand for a second before he quirked a small smile and moved to shake the older man’s hand, a little relieved by his words.