Somebody Like Me

“Are you sure that you don’t mind me heading out for a few hours?” Cassie posed as she moved to pull her dark hair up into a ponytail, her dark eyes peeking back towards Sergio who sat on the couch, quietly fussing over Noah who laid in his lap, his eyes blinking sleepily.

It had been a little while, after Cassie and Sergio had introduced Noah to his teammates, a few weeks had passed, and with Christmas approaching, Cassie had been invited to head out shopping for a few hours, something she was looking forwards to. It had been a while, since Noah had been born, she couldn’t quite remember the last time she had had a chance to spend some time with her friends, and she was looking forwards to it, even if she wasn’t quite used to the idea of leaving Noah, she was looking forwards to having a little time to herself.

Sergio, who’d been trying to encourage Noah to fall asleep, lifted his head slightly at the sound of her question before he shook it, offering her a small smile. “Why would I mind?” he asked “It’s been a while since you headed out with your friends and with Sara having arrived in town, it makes sense” he added, his fingers lightly smoothing out Noah’s hair. Noah shifted a little at the feel of his fingers, a small whimper failing out of his mouth, before he settled down more, quietly falling asleep.

Cassie nodded. “I know it does” she mused softly “But, if you wanted me to, I could take Noah with me. I’m sure Sara and Mia wouldn’t mind” she fussed softly.

Sergio quirked a small amused smile at the tone of her voice before he shook his head. “I think me and Noah will cope without you around for a couple of hours, Cass” he quipped “I mean, he is my son. I have taken care of him by myself before” he teased, gently moving to lay Noah down in his Moses basket.

Cassie rolled her eyes softly before she shook her head. “I know that” she mumbled softly “I was just offering” she added softly.

“I am sure that me and Noah will be fine, Cass” Sergio repeated as he pushed himself up to his feet, his arms gently moving to wrap around her waist “And besides, it is supposed to be a girls’ day, the first one you’ve had since Noah came along, and I want you to enjoy it, something you might not necessarily do if you’re stuck in mama mode. Take a few hours, Cass, enjoy yourself” he added, his fingers gently tucking a loose strand of dark hair behind her ear.

Cassie leant into his touch slightly before she nodded her head. “I should only be gone for a couple of hours” she mumbled softly “Sara and Mia want to do a little shopping and then grab some lunch, but I shouldn’t be gone for too long” she added softly.

“Take your time” Sergio encouraged softly before the sound of the doorbell filled the air, causing Cassie to spare him a soft look before she moved to collect her jacket, wrapping it around her shoulders.

Sergio admired the expression she wore before he took a pace towards her, pressing a soft kiss against her lips before he nudged her towards the hall, offering her another soft encouraging grin. “I’ll see you later, Cassie” he mused softly.

Cassie offered him another look before she nodded her head, flashing him a small smile before she ducked out of the room.

~#~
“So, Cassie, how long have you and Sergio been together now?”

Cassie, who was perusing the drinks menu, startled a little at the sound of Sara’s voice before she lifted her head, her green eyes settling on the woman who sat across from her, sipping on a glass of water. It had been a pleasant morning, Cassie, along with Mia and Sara, had spent a little time shopping before they’d found a restaurant to have lunch in, and Cassie had to admit that she had enjoyed herself, even if she was a little impatient to get back to Noah and Sergio, she had enjoyed spending time with her friends.

“It’s been a few months now” she replied softly “I mean, I was about 2 months pregnant with Noah when we got together properly and he’s nearly 3 months old, so it’s been about 10 months in total” she explained softly, a slight smile appearing at the corner of her mouth. It still felt a little odd, after the way that their relationship had started, the idea that they were approaching a year together felt a little strange to Cassie, but she had to admit that she was pleased with the way things had worked out, even if she and Sergio had hit a couple of bumps along the way. She liked how things were between the two of them.

Mia, who was sat beside Cassie, noticed the smile she wore before she gently nudged her ribs. “Look at that smile” she quipped teasingly “I remember when Theo used to make me smile like that. Someone’s still very much in the honeymoon phase” she added playfully.

Cassie’s cheeks warmed a little before she shook her head, her green eyes peeking down towards her feet.

“Have you seen them together?” Sara fussed softly “They’re adorable” she added gently.

The blush on Cassie’s cheeks darkened a little, something which made the two other women fuss slightly before she shook her head softly. “Things are good between us” she admitted softly, her fingers messing shyly with her napkin “I mean, I’ve had a few moments when I’ve been worried about us moving things forwards too quickly, but I like how things are between us. It’s not exactly what I was expecting them I told him that I was going to have Noah” she mused softly.

“It wasn’t?” Mia posed curiously.

“We were both just out of relationships” Cassie pointed out gently “And I was slightly worried that once I told him about Noah, we’d struggle to figure things out, but we didn’t. We got together pretty quickly after we found out that I was pregnant, and since then, it’s been pretty amazing” she fussed gently, her eyes not shifting away from her fingers which pulled shyly at the paper napkin.

Sara watched the movement of her fingers for a couple of seconds before she reached her hand out, gently placing it on top of Cassie’s. “You know, it might not be too long before Sergio’s asking you to marry him” she mused softly “I mean, from what Iker tells me, it’s something which has crossed his mind a little since Noah was born. Is it something which is on your radar?” she posed, her voice caught between soft and curious. She knew that it was soon, Sergio and Cassie hadn’t even been together for a year, but she was a little curious about how Cassie react to the idea of a proposal, even if she knew that Sergio didn’t have any concrete plans. She wanted to know if it was something that her friend saw with the defender.

Cassie blinked a couple of times, slightly surprised by the question, before she shrugged her shoulders softly. “It is still soon” she mused carefully “I mean, it’s not even been a year yet, but…but I think it is something I want, even if I do want to wait a while before I really think about it” she added, each word carefully thought out.

Sara mulled her words over for a couple of seconds before she quirked a small smile, offering Cassie’s hand a soft squeeze. She knew that it was a tentative answer, the look that had passed over Cassie’s face confided just how nervous she was at the prospect of taking another step forwards in her relationship with Sergio, but still Sara couldn’t help but smile at her words, more than happy that things between Cassie and Sergio were going well.