Somebody Like Me

“Do you have time to grab dinner with us, Captain?”

Sergio, who’d just ducked back into the changing room, lifted his head at the sound of Marcelo’s voice before he quirked a small smile, offering him a small shake of his head. It had been a good match, after a couple of less than impressive performances, Madrid had been in need of a win, and Sergio was pleased that they had delivered, even if he was a little disappointed that they’d let in a couple of goals, he was simply glad that they’d gotten all three points. “I would do” he mused softly “But Noah’s got his first cold and I should probably get home. He’s probably worn Cassie out” he added brightly.

Marcelo nodded his head. “We can take a raincheck” he noted “But you’re eventually going to have to come on a boys’ night out. I don’t think you’ve come out with us since you and Cassie got together” he added, playfully nudging the Spaniard’s ribs.

It wasn’t the first time, since Cassie, and later Noah, had arrived in Sergio’s life, the defender had developed a habit of ducking out of nights out with his teammates, and whilst Marcelo and a few of the others missed spending time with him, he found the idea of Sergio wanting to get home to Cassie kind of sweet. It was a marked change, after things with Pilar had fallen apart, Sergio hadn’t quite been himself, but Marcelo had to admit that Cassie coming along had been good for the defender, even if things had moved quickly between them, they were more than good together and Marcelo, like a lot of their friends, hoped that they made it work for a while to come.

Sergio, who’d moved to pull his shirt over his head, rolled his eyes. “I am sure that that isn’t true” he quipped, a small grin on his face.

Marcelo feigned thought for a second before he shook his head, a cheeky smile appearing on his face. “You should get back to Noah” he quipped “I mean, he’s your son after all and if he’s anything like you, poor Cassie’s going to be dead on her feet” he teased brightly before he padded away.

Sergio watched after him briefly, a small amused laugh falling out of his mouth, before he shook his head, moving to collect his phone which sat on the top of his bag. Checking the screen for any message, he frowned a little when he found it blank, before he sent a quick message to Cassie, telling her that he would be home shortly. It wasn’t like her, usually after a match, Cassie always sent him a message, and to find the screen blank worried him slightly, even if it was only a small thing, it had a few knots in the pit of his stomach. Shaking his head, he moved to settle the phone back down into his bag before he finished getting changed, a knot twitching in the pit of his stomach.

~#~
Pushing the door closed behind him, Sergio let out a soft relieved sigh, glad to be home. It had been a long night, with the match and the press to deal with, it’d taken him a little while to get home, but he was pleased that he’d arrived, even if he did have a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach. He was glad to be home for the night. Quietly toeing his shoes off, he peeked into the living room briefly before the sound of Noah’s cries filled the air, causing him to shake his head slightly before he padded up the stairs, stepping into the nursery where Cassie sat, trying to soothe the little boy.

“Is he alright?” he posed softly.

Cassie, who’d been mumbling softly to Noah, lifted her head at the sound of Sergio’s voice before she nodded her head. “He’s not quite himself” she mused softly “And it’s been pretty hard to settle him all night, but I am sure that he’ll be asleep soon” she added, her fingertips lightly brushing the dark hair off of Noah’s forehead.

Sergio watched the movement of the fingers for a moment before he took a couple of steps into the room, offering his arms out towards her. “I can sit with him” he mused softly “I mean, you’ve taken care of him all night and it seems only fair. I’ll watch him and you can head to bed if you want to” he offered gently as he carefully moved to lift Noah into his arms.

Cassie offered him a soft look, briefly contemplating his offer, before she shook her head. “I’m alright” she mused softly.

“Are you sure?” Sergio posed as he moved to settle down on the floor, his dark eyes peeking up at her “Because I’m pretty sure that I can handle it if you wanted to head to bed. It’s starting to get a little late” he added, offering her a boyish smile.

Cassie shook her head softly before she dropped her stare down towards her lap where her hands fiddled shyly with the bottom of the shirt she wore, something which caused Sergio to tilt his head slightly, a small frown playing at the corner of his mouth. Watching the small movements for a second, he allowed a silence to settle over them before he shook his head. “You didn’t text me after the game” he mumbled.

Cassie, who’d been quietly messing with her shirt, blinked a couple of times at the sudden sound of his voice before she lifted her head. “Huh?” she posed.

“You didn’t send me a text after the game” Sergio repeated softly “You nearly always do, especially after we win, and you didn’t tonight, and now you’re being quiet. Is there something on your mind, nena?” he posed, his voice soft and curious.

Cassie spared him a soft look before she quietly shook her head, something which caused Sergio to scoff slightly. “Come on, Cass” he noted softly “I know you better than to believe that. You were fine with me before I left earlier and now you’re being quiet. Has something happened?” he posed, trying to keep the slight annoyance out of his voice. It wasn’t the first time, Cassie tended to make things a little difficult when she wanted to, but he knew better than to push her, knowing that the more he did, the more she would pull away.

Cassie shifted a little in her seat, her green eyes settled on her feet, before she gently shook her head. “It can keep until the morning, Sese” she protested softly. She knew that she had to tell him, if she wanted to contemplate the offer, it was only fair that she let Sergio know about it, but she wanted to put it off for a little while, even if she knew that she couldn’t avoid telling him forever. She wanted a little more time to wrap her head around it.

Sergio, who’d moved to settle Noah down into his crib, shook his head. “It’s clearly bothering you, Cass” he countered gently “And I want you to talk to me about it. You ought to know by now that you can talk to me about anything” he added as he stepped towards her, his hands gently taking a hold of hers.

Cassie spared a brief glance down towards their hands, briefly mulling his words over, before she spared a light sigh. “I got a call” she breathed softly “After you left, I got a call from my editor and he…he made me an offer” she added gently, her green eyes briefly meeting his before they dropped back towards their hands.

Sergio tilted his head. “An offer?” he posed gently “What sort of offer?” he added.

Cassie swallowed slightly, her eyes briefly glancing towards his face, before she quietly shook her head. “He…he offered me a job in Paris” she mumbled quietly.

Sergio, who’d been watching their hands quietly, blinked a couple of times before he lifted his head, his brown eyes meeting hers as her words hang in the air around them.