If You Love Me

Wrinkling his nose slightly, Gerard turned onto his side, his hand searching blindly for the alarm clock which sat on the end table, beeping irritatingly. He wasn’t surprised by the noise, for a while, he had been aware that Nora tended to set her alarm clock a little earlier than he was used to waking up, but still it irked him a little, even if he had been expecting it, he had been hoping for little while longer to sleep. Letting out a small noise, he blinked a couple of times before he spared a small yawn, moving to switch the alarm off.

“I forgot that I had set that”

Gerard, who’d been trying to wake himself up slightly, startled a little at the sound of Nora’s voice before he carefully turned onto his side, smiling a little at the sleepy expression which graced her features. It wasn’t the first time, after the first night that he’d spent curled up in her bed, it had been a couple of weeks, but he doubted that he would get tired of waking up beside her, even if it had taken a little getting used to, he had grown to like waking up beside her.

Admiring her for a couple of seconds, he gently reached his hand out and tucked a few loose blonde hairs off of her face, something which made her wrinkle her nose slightly. “I’m sorry for leaving the alarm on” she mumbled softly “I mean, it’s Saturday after all and I don’t have anywhere to be” she added quietly, her head still contently rested against her pillow.

“It’s OK” Gerard noted softly “I mean, I’d have liked some more sleep, but it’s alright” he added, flashing her a boyish smile.

Nora rolled her eyes sleepily before she shuffled a little closer to him, cuddling into his side. “Do you have to go?” she posed quietly, breaking the comfortable silence which had settled around them.

Gerard, who’d moved to trace shapes lightly into the material of her pajama shirt, shook his head. “Not any time soon” he mused softly “Why, you trying to get rid of me?” he added, pressing a brief kiss against the top of her head.

Nora scoffed playfully before she shook her head. “I am not trying to get rid of you” she noted gently “I was just wondering if you had some time to stick around. I know you’ve got a match later and was wondering whether or not I needed to make breakfast for you” she added, her blue eyes peeking up at him softly.

Gerard smiled down at her softly before he ducked forwards, pressing a soft kiss against her forehead. “I can stick around for a little while” he noted gently.

Nora nodded her head at his response before she attempted to push herself up, something which Gerard was quick to stop, his arms settling around her waist. Nora spared a soft glance down towards his arms before she tilted her head, peeking at him over her shoulder. “What are you doing?” she posed, a crooked smile on her face.

“You said that you didn’t have anywhere else to be” Gerard noted “And I figured that we could make the most of it. We could lay here for a little longer and then think about breakfast. What do you say?” he added, offering her a small smile.

Nora feigned thought for a couple of seconds, something which caused Gerard to squeeze her waist lightly, earning a light giggle before she gently climbed back into the bed beside him, cuddling happily into his side. Gerard smiled a little at the embrace, tangling their legs together, before he leant down, pressing a soft kiss against her head as a comfortable silence settled over the two of them.

“You should come tonight”

Nora, who’d been quietly tracing patterns into the shirt that Gerard wore, startled slightly at the sound of his voice before she lifted her head. “Huh?” she posed.

“The match” Gerard noted softly “You should come to it” he added.

Nora tilted her head softly. “Why?” she posed softly.

“Two reasons” Gerard replied “One reason is that I like having you there, and the second is…is that my parents are coming tonight and I figured that it would be a good time for you to see them” he added, his voice softening slightly. He knew that Nora was slightly apprehensive, even despite the fact that she had met his mother and father more than once, she tended to shy away a little whenever the idea came up in conversation, and he wanted to ease her into it, wanting her to be relaxed and calm.

Nora offered him a soft look, allowing his words to hang around them for a couple of seconds, before she let out a soft sigh, something which caused Gerard to lean into her slightly, pressing a soft kiss against her cheek. “You know that you’ve already met them, right?” he posed, his voice caught between teasing and soft “And that they already like you? Nora, nena, it’s going to be fine” he added, gently peppering her face with soft and tender kisses.

Nora’s cheeks warmed at the feel of his lips against her skin before she squirmed away from him slightly, something which made him shake his head lightly. “They like you, Nora” he enthused softly “They have done since I introduced you to them for the first time, and they’re pretty excited that you and I finally figured us out. My madre in particular is thrilled” he added, offering her a soft smile

Nora spared him slightly dubious look, something which made his smile widen a little before he knotted their fingers together, allowing him to press a kiss against the back of her hand. “We’re good together, Nora” he noted gently “Even if it is only early days, we’re already pretty good together, and I am sure that they’ll see that. We’re pretty adorable, even if I do say so myself” he added impishly, pressing another kiss against the back of her hand.

Nora rolled her eyes, mumbling something about him being an idiot, before she spared a soft glance down towards their hands. “You want me to come tonight?” she posed softly.

“I do” Gerard replied swiftly “But I am not going to push you, Nora. If you don’t want to…”

“I want to” Nora interrupted softly “I mean, you’ve already done it for me, so it seems only fair that I do it for you. If you want me there, then I am there” she insisted, a faint smile pulling at the corner of her mouth.

Gerard marveled at the soft smile for a moment before he leant into her, sneaking a couple of quick kisses before he ducked away, mumbling something about breakfast before he stepped out of the bedroom. Nora watched him out of the room with a familiar smile on her lips. It was still a work in progress, they were still in a phase where they were getting used to the changes that had occurred in their relationship, but Nora was happy. They were good, settled, and Nora was hopeful, even if it was still early. She was hopeful that things would be good for a while.