Somebody Like Me

Fifty Three: It’s Been A Good Year

Gently clipping the last piece of her dark hair into place, Cassie spared a soft glance towards the mirror which stood ahead of her, a small smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. it had been a little while, with Noah around, opportunities for Cassie and Sergio to head out together were few and far between, but with her father having opted to stay with them for a couple of days before he returned home, Cassie was keen to make the most of the opportunity, even if they were only heading to a new year’s eve party which was being hosted by Cristiano, she was looking forwards to a night out.

Straightening out the material of her dress, she spared her reflection another appreciative glance before the sound of a low whistle caught her ears, causing her to roll her eyes slightly before she lifted her head, offering a playful glare towards Sergio who’d moved to step into the room, a small smirk on his face. “I thought you were supposed to be downstairs with my papa” she quipped as she stepped past him, moving to collect her shoes which had been neatly left beside the wardrobe.

“I was” Sergio quipped, collecting his jacket which had been laid out on the bed “But Noah fell asleep quicker than I thought he would and so I thought I’d come and see how close you were to being ready to go. You look amazing, Cassie” he added, his smirk softening slightly into a soft smile. He knew that she was a little self-conscious, on more than one occasion, he had noticed her frowning a little at her reflection in the mirror, and he wanted her to know that he found her beautiful, even if she didn’t quite see it her herself. He wanted to leave her in no doubt that he found her stunning.

Cassie, who’d moved to slip her feet into her shoes, blushed softly at the compliment before she gently shook her head, focusing her attention on getting her shoes on. “Did you ask my papa if he was sure about watching Noah?” she mused softly “Because if he isn’t…”

“He’s looking forwards to it, Cass” Sergio interrupted softly “He says that he’s not seen enough of his favourite grandson since he came along and that he’s looking forwards to having him for the night. He also told me to tell you that you don’t need to worry and that you should instead focus on enjoying a night out with your amazing boyfriend” he added as he stepped towards her, his arms gently wrapping around her waist.

Cassie lifted an eyebrow. “He referred to you as my ‘amazing’ boyfriend?” she poked

“I might be paraphrasing” Sergio retorted with a small shrug “But you know that your papa loves me. How could he not?” he added, offering her a playful smirk.

Cassie admired the smirk on his face for a second before she playfully poked his cheek. “You’re lucky he does” she mused “It could have easily gone the other way when we told him about Noah” she added as she stepped away from him slightly, moving to collect her coat.

“It could have done” Sergio agreed as he took a couple of paces towards her, his hand gently taking a hold of hers as he pulled her back towards him “But it didn’t and I’m more than happy about that. I’ve got an adorable little boy and a beautiful girlfriend and I’m pretty thrilled with how things panned out for us” he added, pulling her into a soft hug.

Cassie smiled a little, enjoying the warmth of his hug for a couple of seconds, before she leant back, pressing a soft kiss against his cheek. “I’m happy with how things worked out too” she mumbled, gently brushing the slight hint of lipstick she had left off of his cheek.

Sergio smiled at the small amorous action before he gently reached up, capturing her hand in his before he pulled it against his lips, kissing the warm skin gently. “We should get moving” he mumbled softly.

“We should” Cassie agreed “I’ll just pop down and say goodnight to Noah and my papa and then we can go, Ok?” she posed gently before she pulled away from him, moving to duck out of the room.

Sergio watched after her for a couple of moment before he shook his head, a small grin pulling at the corner of his lips as he wordlessly fussed over how settled things were between him and Cassie. It had worried him, when Noah had been born, a small part of Sergio had been concerned that things between him and Cassie would stumble, but he was thrilled with the way things were. They were settled, happy, and Sergio was confident that it would remain that way for a while to come.

~#~
“You know, Cassie, you never did tell us how you two met” Emma fussed as she moved to hand drink over to Cassie, a warm smile playing on her lips as she moved to settle down beside a couple of the other women.

It had been a pleasant night, with Real Madrid due to play a match in a couple of days, the coaching staff had been quick to insist that any new year’s celebrations were to be small and subdued, but still Cassie had enjoyed herself, even if it was a little quieter than she was used to. She had enjoyed the opportunity to have a night out.

Cassie, who’d been briefly checking her phone for a message from her father, lifted her head a little at the sound of the other woman’s voice before she shrugged shoulders, a light smile appearing on her lips.

“There is not a lot to tell” she mused softly, her eyes briefly peeking up towards Emma before she flicked her attention back towards her phone, moving to slip it into her bag which sat at her side.

“There must be something” Emma countered gently “Everyone has a story of how they met” she added, her voice warm and encouraging. She knew that Cassie was still a little nervous around Sergio’s friends, one look at her face since she had arrived confided it, and Emma wanted to reassure her slightly, even if she knew that it would take a while for her to feel entirely comfortable, she wanted to make the effort to get to know the woman who looked as though she was around for the long haul.

Cassie, who’d been fiddling with the fastening on her bag, spared her another soft look before she gently shrugged. “I met Sergio for the first time a few years ago” she admitted gently “I was covering the national team when they were at the Euros in 2012 and Sara introduced me to Sergio for the first time, but as for how we ended up together, it’s not the most romantic story. I was in café, working on a piece for my editor, when someone bumped into the back of my chair, knocking my coffee out of my hands and over the hand written notes on which sat on my table. I was furious and I got up to tell the person that, but when I stood up, Sergio stepped in, apologizing for having knocked Marcelo into the back of my chair before he offered to buy me a new drink. Coffee led to dinner and dinner led to…one thing led to another and here we are” she added, a soft blush appearing on her cheeks which made the other women coo softly.

“Do you think I could get a few minutes alone with my girlfriend?”

Cassie, who’d been peeking down at her hand which fiddled shyly in her lap, jumped a little at the sound of Sergio’s voice before she shook her head, offering him a small smile as she pushed herself up to her feet, moving to take a hold of his hand before he led her across the room, ducking out into the garden.

Emma admitted the small interaction between the two of them before she shook her head. She doubted that Cassie was going anywhere any time soon.

~#~
“You realize that it is December, right?”

Sergio, who’d moved to pull the door closed behind him, quirked a small smile at Cassie’s joke before he turned to look at her, his dark eyes admiring her quietly. “I am aware of that” he quipped “But it is also 5 minutes to midnight and I thought we could see in the New Year together” he added as he shrugged out of his jacket, moving to wrap it around her shoulders.

Cassie briefly contemplated handing the jacket back to him, but opted against it, tugging it a little tighter around herself before she shook her head softly. “This year’s gone by pretty quickly” she mused, breaking the silence which had settled over the two of them.

“It has” Sergio agreed gently “But it’s been a pretty good one, hasn’t it?” he added, moving to settle down on a bench which sat a little away from them.

Cassie, who’d sat down beside him, quirked a small smile before she nodded softly, moving to cuddle into his side slightly. “It’s been a good one” she enthused softly “I mean, we had Noah after all” she added warmly.

“And you got me” Sergio contributed playfully.

Cassie rolled her eyes gently before she nodded her head. “I suppose that that is a positive” she played along.

Sergio scoffed playfully before he let out a soft laugh, something which made Cassie giggle quietly for a few seconds.

Sergio marveled at the soft sound of her laughter for a few seconds before he ducked his head, pressing a soft kiss against the top of hers. “This year’s been good for us, Cassie” he mumbled softly “But next year? It’s going to be great” he added as he gently kissed down her face, meeting her lips softly. Cassie smiled at the feeling of kiss before she nodded her head, hoping that he was right.
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Thanks to FootieJo for the comment :)