Somebody Like Me

Sixty Seven: I Can’t Make It For You

Allowing a soft yawn to fall out of his mouth, Sergio rested his weight against the kitchen counter, his ears plied with the soft rumble of the kettle which boiled a little away from him. It early, usually, it was too early for the defender, but with Noah still suffering from his cold, the little boy had had a particularly fussy night, something which had led to Sergio having a disrupted night’s sleep, even if he and Cassie had taken it in turns to wake up and check on him, he had still spent most of the night awake.

It had been a couple of days, after he and Cassie had discussed the prospect of her moving to Paris, a few days had passed, and Sergio had to admit that things were awkward between them, even if they had both tried to pretend that they weren’t, things between them felt a little forced and tense. He knew what she wanted, from the moment the words had fallen out of her mouth, he had known that she was at least a little tempted by the offer, but it still didn’t sit well with Sergio, even if it was only a matter of months. He didn’t like the idea of being away from Cassie and Noah for a matter of days, let alone a matter of months.

Sparing another gentle yawn, he closed his eyes for a couple of seconds before the sound of Noah’s cries emanated away from the monitor which was tucked into the pocket of his sweater, something which caused him to let out a soft sigh before he quietly pushed himself away from the counter, moving to pad up the stairs. Ensuring that he was quiet, he nudged the door to Noah’s nursery open before he ducked inside, his dark eyes settling on the baby who sat in his crib, soft sniffles falling out of his mouth.

Shaking his head softly, he padded across the room and carefully lifted Noah up into his arms, moving to settle down in the seat beside the crib. “You’re up earlier than I was expecting, Noah” he murmured quietly “I mean, it was only a couple of hours ago that I settled you back down again. You still not quite feeling yourself?” he posed, gently combing Noah’s dark hair through with his fingers.

Noah shifted at the feel of his fingers, his dark blue eyes peeking up at him briefly, before he out let out a whimper, quietly cuddling into his father’s shoulder. Sergio watched him quietly before he ducked his head, pressing a light kiss to the top of his head. “Having a cold is no fun, is it, peanut?” he posed quietly as he lightly tickled the bottom of Noah’s little foot.

Noah snuffled a little more before he closed his eyes, quietly falling back to sleep.

Sergio watched him sleep for a brief second before he rested his head back, closing his eyes briefly before the sound of a light tap at the door reached his ears, causing him to lift his head, his dark eyes settling on Cassie who stood in the door way, her hand fiddling shyly with the zip of the sweatshirt she wore. “What are you doing up?” he posed quietly “Did me and Noah disturb you?” he added gently.

“I heard him stirring” Cassie replied “And I figured, since you got him last time, it was my turn to check on him. How is he?” she posed gently as she stepped a little further into the room, perching on top of a chest of drawers which sat a little away from Sergio.

Sergio watched her quietly before he shook his head, his attention flicking back towards Noah. “He’s still a little grumpy” he mused “But I think he might just be overtired now. He doesn’t seem as bunged up as he did yesterday” he added gently.

Cassie simply nodded her head, something which allowed for a tense silence to fall over them. It wasn’t the first one, since they’d talked about her job offer, awkward silences had almost become a part of their daily routine, but neither Cassie nor Sergio seemed to want to be first to break them, something which led to them hanging around them for a while.

Sergio, who’d been watching as Noah slept quietly, spared a soft look towards his fiancée before he quietly shook his head. “Are we just going to ignore the elephant in the room?” he posed softly.

Cassie, who’d been kicking her feet, flinched at the sound of his voice before she lifted her head, peeking towards him shyly. “Sergio…”

“We need to talk about it, Cassie” Sergio interrupted softly “I mean, we can keep skirting around it, but I think I prefer us when we’re ourselves, and not awkward around one another” he added, a half-hearted smile passing over his face.

Cassie spared him another soft look before she nodded her head, her green eyes fixed on her feet. “I’m sorry for dropping this on you” she murmured softly “I mean, for months, things have been so wonderful between us and this…this thing has caused us a problem and I’m sorry for that. I shouldn’t have put it on you like I did” she babbled softly.

Sergio glanced towards her slightly before he shook his head. “I can’t make your mind up for you, Cassie” he noted softly “I don’t know what it is you want to do, but as for my opinion, it is very simple. I don’t want you to go” he added as he moved to settle Noah back in his crib, affording him the chance to step towards her, his hands taking a hold of hers.

Cassie spared a soft glance down towards their hands, but didn’t say anything, something which caused Sergio to dip forwards, pressing a light kiss against the top of her head. “You said it yourself, nena” he mumbled softly “For the last few months, especially since Noah was born and I proposed, things between us have been wonderful and I…I can’t just let go of that. I know that you’re tempted, I saw it as soon as you told me about the offer, but you asked me to give you my opinion and this is it. I love you, Cassie, and I want you to stay here, with me” he added, lightly kissing her cheek.

Cassie closed her eyes at the contact and gently shifted her arms, wrapping them around his neck as she pulled him into a soft hug.

“I’d miss a lot, Cass” he mumbled gently, taking her silence as a hint to keep talking “If you and Noah went to Paris, I’d miss a lot of things that I’ve been looking forwards to since I saw peanut’s first scan, and I can’t give that up. In a few months, he’ll start talking and walking, and I want to be around for that. I don’t want to miss anything, Cass” he added, pressing a couple of light kisses against her shoulder before he rested his forehead against it, hugging her close.

Cassie cuddled into him softly before she gently pressed a soft kiss against the top of his head. “Sese” she murmured softly, her fingers lightly brushing through his hair.

“And then there is us” Sergio mumbled, holding onto her “I don’t know that we’d make it through 6 months apart. I’ve grown too used to having you around all of the time, Cassie. I don’t want to worry about us fighting, or worse. I want to start thinking about a wedding, about you becoming my wife, and I don’t want to put that off. I want you to stay, Cassie” he added, his voice growing slightly heavier as the words fell out of his mouth.

Cassie’s stomach flipped at the heaviness in his voice before she lightly cupped his cheeks, tilting his head up so that his slightly tearful brown eyes mirrored hers. “Amor” she cooed softy, her thumb gently brushing a couple of loose tears off of his cheek.

Sergio closed his eyes at the feel of her thumb before he leant into her, pressing a strong kiss against her lips. Cassie startled, slightly caught off guard by the kiss, before she wrapped her arms around him, holding him close for a moment before he ducked back. “I know I can’t make up your mind for you” he mumbled softly “It is up to you, but that is how I feel. I love you, Cass, and I don’t want you to go” he added before he stole another kiss, holding her close.

Cassie cuddled into him for a couple of moments, his words hanging around them, before she quietly shook her head. “Then I will stay” she murmured softly.

Sergio blinked a couple of times, briefly contemplating asking if she was sure, but he opted against it, instead opting to hug her a little tighter.
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