When You Close Your Eyes

53: We’ll Give It Everything

“Isa?”

Isabelle, who was sat quietly on the end of her bed, lifted her head a little at the sound of Lionel’s voice before she turned, looking up towards where he stood in the doorway. It had been a long day, with their families around, cooing over Isla, neither she nor Lionel had really had a second to relax, but she was glad for a couple of seconds, even if she knew it was only likely to be short-lived, she was merely grateful to have a couple of quiet minutes to herself.

“You’ll have to be quiet” she whispered softly “I’ve just settled Isla down and I don’t want to wake her. She was starting to get a little grumpy” she added, her blue eyes peeking gently towards the little girl who laid in her crib, her little feet kicking a little as she slept.

Lionel, who’d moved to step towards the crib, watched Isla for a couple of seconds before he shuffled towards the bed, carefully settling down beside Isabelle. “I just came up to check on you” he mumbled softly “You’ve been up here for a little while and I wanted to make sure that you’re Ok” he fussed shyly, his hand gently brushing against her side.

Isabelle startled a little, not quite expecting the hand against her side, before she shook her head, a soft smile on her lips. “I’m fine” she mumbled softly “It’s just been a long day and I figured I could take a few minutes to myself before I come back downstairs. Don’t get me wrong, I love our families, but it’s a bit much” she added, her fingers gently moving to knot with his as a soft yawn fell out of her mouth.

She knew that people were excited, from the moment that she had announced that she was pregnant, she knew that people had been itching to fuss over the new addition, but she felt a little overwhelmed, even if she knew that her family and Lionel’s meant well, she felt a little exhausted.

Lionel quirked a soft smile at the small yawn that had fallen out of her mouth before he ducked down, pressing a soft kiss against the side of her head. “You know” he mumbled softly “I’m sure that no one would mind if you curled up and took a nap for a while. It’s been a long couple of days for you” he added quietly, pressing another kiss against her temple.

Isabelle cuddled into his side slightly before she nodded her head. “I think I’d love that” she mused softly “Do you think that you could join me?” she added, peeking up at him softly.

“I’d love nothing more” Lionel replied softly “But our parents and Grace are still downstairs and I think one of us ought to be down there too. You should sleep” he added, tucking some of her blonde hair behind her ear.

“You’ve not got much sleep in the last couple of days either” Isabelle pointed out “And I am sure that our parents can cope without us for a little while. Stay?” she posed, offering him a soft look.

Lionel mulled her offer over for a couple of seconds before he nodded, something which made Isabelle smile a little before she leant up, pressing a soft kiss against his cheek before she shuffled towards the top of the bed, cuddling into her pillow. Lionel watched her briefly, a soft smile on his face, before he followed after her, his arm gently settling around her waist before he ducked down, gently pressing a soft kiss against her shoulder.

Isabelle smiled a little at the contact before she shifted her hand, offering his a small squeeze. She knew that things were going to take a while to settle down, with Isla having arrived, she knew that people were going to want to be around and fussing for a while yet, but she wanted to make the most of the time they had to themselves, even if it was something as simple as taking a nap together, she wanted to enjoy having him to herself for a little while.

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Shifting slightly, Lionel blinked his eyes open, his ears doused by the soft sound of Isla’s snuffles which emanated away from the crib which sat at the foot of the bed. Yawning a little, he carefully tossed onto his side before he sat up, his dark eyes peeking at the clock which stood on the night stand.

It had been a while, after he’d come up to check on Isabelle, a little over an hour and a half had passed, and whilst he felt slightly bad for ducking out on their parents, he was glad that he had opted to stay with Isabelle, even if he’d not meant to sleep for as long as he had, he felt a little more refreshed.

Stretching his arms slightly, he let another soft yawn fall out of his mouth before he carefully pushed himself up to his feet, moving to lift Isla into his arms. “What is the matter, princesa?” he mumbled quietly, his fingertips gently adjusting the sleepsuit she wore “You only ate a little while ago. Are you hungry again?” he posed, carefully moving to settle down at the foot of the bed.

Isla stirred a little, trying to get more comfortable, before she moved to snuggle against his chest, something which made him smile gently before he ducked down, pressing a kiss to the top of her head. “You were just missing someone being around, weren’t you?” he mused gently.

Isla let out another soft squeak before she closed her eyes, quietly falling asleep once more.

Lionel watched her sleep for a couple of seconds before he felt the bed shift, causing him to lift his head, peeking towards Isabelle who sat beside him, a sleepy smile on her face. “I thought you were still asleep” he mumbled quietly.

“I felt you get up” she mused softly “And I figured I should probably move too. Is she OK?” she posed, her blue eyes settled on Isla.

“I think she was just missing us” Lionel replied softly.

Isabelle nodded her head softly before she moved to rest it against his shoulder, something which made Lionel shake his head slightly before he leant towards her, pressing a kiss against her head. “Have I thanked you for her yet?” he posed quietly.

Isabelle, who was watching Isla sleep, quirked a small amused smile before she shook her head “You don’t have to say that” she mused softly “You’re as much responsible for her as I am” she added, her fingertips gently smoothing out the small wisps of coppery brown hair which sat on the infant’s head.

Lionel watched the soft movements of her fingers before he shook his head. “You know that I am going to try my hardest to make sure that things between you and me don’t change, don’t you?” he posed, his tone soft and shy. He didn’t want to cause a fight, for a while things between him and Isabelle had been more than good and the last thing he wanted to do was wreck it, but he wanted to reassure her, even if there wasn’t a need to say it, he wanted her to know that he had little intention of allowing things between the two of the falter now that Isla had arrived.

Isabelle, who’d been quietly trying to straighten out the few curls of hair on Isla’s head, allowed his words to hang around them for a couple of seconds before she shook her head, a soft sigh falling out of her mouth. “Leo…”

“I don’t want to fight about it” Lionel interrupted softly “But I know that you still worry, and I just want you to know that there is nowhere I would rather be right now than here, with you and Isla. It’s going to take some getting used to, Isla being around is going to take us some time to adapt to, but I just...I love you, Isa, and I want you to know that” he babbled, his cheeks tinting a soft shade of pink.

Isabelle was quiet, briefly mulling over his words, before she quirked a soft smile. “I love you too” she murmured softly “And whilst I worry, I have no doubt that we’re going to give this everything we have before we call it quits. We’ve been doing this a long time, and I’d like to keep it going for a lot longer yet” she added, offering him a warm impish smile.

Lionel marveled at the warm grin she wore for a couple of seconds before he leant into her, sneaking a couple of quick kisses, something which made Isabelle giggle a little before the sound of someone knocking at the door caught their ears, causing Lionel to duck back slightly. “We should probably get back downstairs” he mumbled softly.

Isabelle nodded her head gently before she pushed herself up to her feet, moving to collect Isla from his arms before she padded towards the door, greeting Celia who stood in the hall.

Lionel, who was sat at the foot of the bed, watched after her for a couple of seconds before he nodded his head, wordlessly promising that he would try his hardest to make sure that things worked out for them.
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Thanks to Jayme112234 and FootieJo for the comments :)