When You Close Your Eyes

Resting back into the chair he sat in, Lionel sipped on the glass of juice which sat in his hand, relishing the silence which filled the house. It was rare, with Isla around, the house always seemed to be full of noise and activity, and whilst Lionel enjoyed spending time with Isabelle and their daughter, he tended to enjoy the quiet moments too.

It had been a couple of weeks, after Isabelle had picked out a wedding dress, the two of them seemed to have been busier than ever, but with a day off ahead of him, Lionel intended to make the most of it, wanting to spend some time alone with Isabelle and Isla. It had been a little while, with him busy with Barcelona and Isabelle busy with wedding planning, it had been a little while since they’d spent the day together, and Lionel wanted to make the most of the opportunity, even if they did just stay home, he wanted to spend a little time with his two favourite girls.

Sipping on his drink, he allowed his dark eyes to wander around the room for a couple of seconds before the sound of footsteps reached his ears, causing him to look towards the doorway, watching as Isabelle stepped into the room, a sleepy Isla rested on her hip. “Buenos dias” he quipped.

Isabelle, who was still half asleep, jumped at the sound of his voice before she lifted her head, offering him a sleepy smile. “What are you doing up so soon?” she posed softly.

“I heard Isla stir a little while ago so I got up to check on her” he noted softly “Did she wake you?” he added as he pushed himself up, gently moving to smooth out the little girl’s dark hair. Isla, who was snoozing happily against her mother’s shoulder, let out a little sound at the feeling of his fingers, but didn’t wake up, something which made Lionel smile a little.

“She was starting to get a little fussy and so I figured I would come and get her some breakfast” Isabelle replied softly “But I was planning on heading back upstairs for a little while. You’ve not got training today, have you?” she posed, offering him a small curious look.

Lionel shook his head. “I haven’t” he confirmed softly.

“Then you should come back up with us” Isabelle replied softly “I mean, it’s been a little while since we just had a lazy day, and I think that that sounds like a pretty good idea” she added, offering him a small impish smile.

Lionel admired the soft grin she wore briefly before he nodded his head, something which cause Isabelle to lean towards him, collecting his hand before she led him out of the room. It had been a while, with the two of them being busy with one thing or another, they’d developed a habit of missing one another, and Isabelle wanted to make the most of Lionel’s day off, wanting to spend a little time with her husband and their little girl.

~#~
“So, how is wedding planning coming?”

Isabelle, who was happily babbling to Isla, jumped a little at the sound of Lionel’s voice before she lifted her head, offering him a small smile. It had been a quiet morning, with Lionel not having training, he and Isabelle had spent a lot of the morning settled in their bed, and Lionel had to admit that he had enjoyed it, even if they hadn’t been doing much. He had simply enjoyed spending a quiet morning with his little family.

“It’s coming” Isabelle quipped softly “I mean, we’ve got a lot of the big details sorted out, like a venue and invitations, but we’ve still got to iron a few things out like bridesmaids dresses and the catering. You sorted out your suit fitting, didn’t you?” she posed, peeking up at him.

Lionel, who was watching her and Isla, nodded his head. “I did” he confirmed softly “Sergio’s coming to Barcelona once the season is over with and I figured we could do it then” he added softly.

Isabelle nodded her head in agreement before she felt a small lump in her throat, something which caused her skin to pale a little as a small squeak fell out of her mouth. It wasn’t the first time, for a couple of days, she had felt slightly nauseous from time to time, but she had opted to ignore, sure that it would pass eventually.

Lionel, who’d moved to lift Isla into his lap, noted the small squeak before he lifted his head, his eyebrow lifted slightly. “Isabelle?” he posed softly “Mi amor, are you feeling alright?” he added, a small frown on his face.

Isabelle briefly contemplated telling him that she was fine, that there was nothing to worry about, before her stomach turned, something which caused her to push herself up to her feet before she sped into the bathroom.

Lionel blinked, slightly surprised by the sudden movement, before he carefully moved to settle Isla down beside her toys, affording him the opportunity to follow Isabelle into the bathroom. “Isa?” he posed, his eyes settling on her frame which was huddled over the toilet.

Isabelle, who was crouched over the toilet, startled a little at the sound of his voice before she shifted, moving to rest her back against the bath which stood behind her.

“Are you OK?” Lionel posed as he sat down beside her, gently tucking some of her blonde hair away from her face.

Isabelle offered him a soft look before she shrugged gently. “It’s not the first time I’ve felt nauseous” she noted “For the last couple of days, I’ve not felt right, but I figured it would pass, but I am starting to think maybe not” she added, her voice soft and shy as she looked up at him, her blue eyes searching his face.

Lionel mulled her words over for a couple of seconds before he caught on, his eyes widening a little. “You…You think that?” he babbled softly.

“I don’t know” Isabelle replied, shrugging a little “But the last time I felt like this I…I was pregnant with Lala” she added, her voice slightly nervous.

Lionel blinked a couple of times, caught off guard by her words, before he flicked his stare down towards her stomach, not quite sure of what to say.

Isabelle followed the line of his stare before she carefully shifted her hand, moving to take a hold of his. “I’ll have to go out and buy a test” she noted softly “I’ll go out now and collect one and we can do it when we get home, OK?” she posed, her hand gently squeezing his.

Lionel spared a soft look down towards their hands before he nodded his head. “OK” he noted softly.

Isabelle flashed him a small smile before she pushed herself up to her feet, pressing a brief kiss against the top of his head before she stepped out of the room.

Lionel watched after her for a couple of seconds before he shook his head, a soft sigh falling out of his mouth. It wasn’t something that they’d talked a lot about, after they’d agreed to wait a while, neither he nor Isabelle had brought up the topic of expanding their little family, and the idea that there was a possibility she was pregnant again had knocked him for six, even if it was something that he wanted, a small part of him was worried that it might be too much too soon for them.