When You Close Your Eyes

“Leo?”

Lionel, who’d been staring down at the front of Isabelle’s shirt, jumped at the sound of his name before he lifted his head, his dark eyes mirroring Isabelle’s blues which stared down at him, her expression soft and nervous. It had been a couple of minutes, after the word ‘pregnant’ had fallen out of her mouth, Lionel had merely taken to staring at her, trying to force some sort of word out of his mouth, but still nothing would come, even if he was trying, he simply couldn’t force a sound out of his mouth.

“Lionel, please” Isabelle murmured softly “I…I need you to say something, anything. I just need you to speak” she added, her tone soft, yet still slightly urgent.

Lionel blinked a little at the tone of her voice before took in a small breath, his stare dropping back to her stomach. “You…You’re serious?” he spluttered softly “You…you’re carrying our baby?” he added, his words hurried and spluttered.

Isabelle nodded. “I am” she confirmed softly “I mean, I’ve not had any sort of scan yet, but the doctor confirmed it this morning” she added gently.

Lionel nodded his head slowly, carefully mulling over her words, before he shook his head. “You’re pregnant” he mumbled softly “You’re going to have a baby, our baby” he repeated softly.

Isabelle watched him for a couple of seconds before she nodded her head. “I am” she repeated gently “And I know it is a surprise…”

“That’s an understatement” Lionel interrupted, a slight frown on his face.

Isabelle blinked a couple of times, slightly caught off guard by his interruption, before she let out a soft sigh. “I know” she agreed softly “But we do need to talk about this, Leo, we can’t just ignore it” she added. She knew that he was surprised, the expression that had formed on his face as soon as the word ‘pregnant’ had fallen out of her mouth confided it, but she knew that they had to talk, even if it was a surprise, she knew that they needed to have a conversation about what happened next.

Lionel allowed her words to hang around them for a couple of seconds before he shook his head, a soft sigh falling out of his mouth. “I don’t quite know what to say, Isa” he murmured softly “I mean, I know that this is something we both wanted in the future, but right now? Does it not seem a little too much right now?” he posed tentatively.

He didn’t want to upset her, he knew that the idea of pregnancy was one that they both wanted in the future, but the idea that she was pregnant worried him, even if they had been together for almost 4 years, a small part of him was worried how their relationship, which had only just been put back together, would cope with the addition of a baby.

Isabelle mulled his words over for a couple of seconds before she shook her head, her teeth gently nibbling on her lip. “It is a little sudden” she agreed softly “And I know that you wanted to take our time when it came to taking steps forwards in our relationship, but I know what I want. I am going to have a baby, Leo, we’re going to have a baby” she added, a soft smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

Lionel admired her smile for a brief moment before he sighed, carefully moving to push himself up to his feet, something which made Isabelle frown. “Leo?” she pressed, moving to step towards him before she settled her hand on his arm, turning him back to face her.

Lionel shifted a little at the feel of her hand before he turned slightly, his dark eyes mirroring her blues. “I…I think I need some time” he murmured gently.

Isabelle stilled at his words before she took a couple of steps back, her expression more than a little shocked.

“I know that you’re excited” Lionel noted gently “I can see it all over your face, Isa, but...I think I am going to need a little time to wrap my head around it. This is huge, Isa, and I want to take a little time to get used to the idea that, in a few months, you’re going to have a baby, our baby” he added, his voice shaking a little. He knew that she was excited, even despite the nervous expression she wore, he could see the spark in her eyes, but he couldn’t quite bring himself to share in the excitement, even if it was something he knew he wanted.

Isabelle was quiet for a moment, mulling over his words, before she shook her head. “You need time?” she posed.

“I do” Lionel confirmed softly “And I know that that isn’t what you want to hear…”

“You should take all the time you want to take” Isabelle interrupted softly.

Lionel tilted his head, something which made Isabelle shake hers. “I know that this is sudden, Leo” she noted softly “And I don’t blame you for wanting some time to get your head around it. I know I am still trying to” she added, a slight smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

Lionel offered her a soft look before he shook his head. “I am sorry, Isa” he mumbled.

Isabelle shook her head gently before she stepped towards him, pressing a soft kiss against his cheek. “I’ve got some vacation days saved up” she sniffled softly, stepping away from him slightly “I’m going to take them, head to Bilbao and spend a few days with my parents. You should take the time, think about what you want to do” she added, gently wiping away the couple of loose tears that had slipped out of her eyes.

Lionel nodded his head softly before he shifted his hand, gently brushing the tears off of her cheeks. Isabelle stilled a little at his touch before she leant into it, something which made Lionel smile a little before he leant down, pressing a soft kiss against the top of her head. “I love you, Isabelle” he mumbled softly.

Isabelle sniffed a little at his words before she carefully untangled herself from their embrace, offering him a tearful smile before she pushed herself up onto her toes, stealing a brief kiss. “I love you too” she mumbled gently before she pulled herself away from him, mumbling about packing a bag before she ducked out of the room.

Lionel watched after her for a couple of seconds before shook his head, squeezing his eyes shut. He knew that it wasn’t what she wanted to hear, the sad look on her face as well as her decision to head to stay with her parents made it more than clear, but he wanted to take a little time, even if Isabelle’s pregnancy was something he knew he wanted, he wanted the opportunity to wrap his head around it before they decided what to do next.