If You Love Me

Pulling his shirt over his head, Gerard let out a small frustrated noise, tossing his shirt towards his locker. It had been a difficult morning, with his mind fixed on the small moment that he had had with Nora, he’d been distracted throughout the training session, and he was irked with himself for letting it play on his mind. He knew that it wasn’t the biggest deal, the moment that he and Nora had shared could hardly be called a fight, but still it upset him, even if he hadn’t been entirely surprised by her reaction. He was still slightly irked that she had reacted like she had.

Shaking his head slightly, he moved to collect his clothes from inside of the locker before he sat down on the bench, untying the laces of his boots.

“Are you OK?”

Gerard, who’d been focused on pulling his boots off of his feet, startled a little at the sound Lionel’s voice before he looked up, offering the argentine a small shake of his head. “I’m fine” he noted gently.

Lionel, who’d padded towards how own locker, scoffed. “Sure you are” he countered “That’s why you’ve looked miserable since you showed up this morning” he added, offering the defender a knowing smirk.

Gerard rolled his eyes slightly before he shook his head. “It’s nothing” he noted “I mean, me and Nora, we had a bit of a moment this morning, but it’s fine” he added, pulling his shirt on.

Lionel watched him for a moment before he tilted his head. “What happened?” he pressed softly. He knew that it wasn’t any of his business, whatever happened between Gerard and Nora was very much between the two of them, but still he wanted to offer the defender the opportunity to talk to him, even if he knew that it was likely to be in vain. He wanted to help.

Gerard spared him a soft glance, briefly contemplating insisting that it was nothing, before he let out a soft sigh “It’s stupid” he noted “I mean, we’ve been together for almost 5 months, and for a while, she’s spent more time at my place than at hers, so I suggested that she leave a few changes of clothes at my place, but it freaked her out” he explained, shaking his head slightly.

Lionel, who moved to sit down beside him, mulled his words over quietly before he shook his head. “You know Nora” he noted gently.

“I do” Gerard agreed “But this isn’t some huge step, Leo. I was asking her to leave a couple of changes of clothes in my wardrobe, not move in with me or marry me, and it upset me that she reacted like she did. I know her, Nora’s always been meticulous and thoughtful, but I thought she’d be a little more prepared to make the little steps forwards” he explained softly, his blue eyes briefly peeking up towards Lionel before they dropped back down towards his feet. He wasn’t entirely surprised, for as long as he had known Nora, she had tended to be careful and thoughtful, but still he had been expecting a slightly warmer reaction to the little step that he had suggested, even if it was still early days. He had hoped that she would be a little warmer towards the idea them slowly moving things forwards.

Lionel offered him a small look before he gently patted his shoulder. “It’s new” he noted “You and Nora, you’ve been friends for a while, but the idea of having a future with you, it’s new, and it’s going to take her some time to get used to it. Isn’t it still a little strange for you?” he posed gently.

Gerard offered him a glance before he nodded. “A little” he confirmed gently.

“It’s probably the same for her” Lionel mused “And that means for a little while, you’ve probably got to take it easy. You’re still getting used to one another, hombre, and it’s going to take a little while, but I have no doubt that you and Nora, you’ll get it right. You’re onto something pretty special, amigo” he insisted with a grin before he pushed himself up to his feet, musing something about seeing the defender later.

Gerard watched him step away before leant towards his locker, quickly pulling his phone into his hand before he pulled up Nora’s number. Opening a blank message, he typed a few words to say that he wanted to see her before he sent it, stowing the phone back into his bag.

~#~
Pulling her blonde hair up into a loose ponytail, Nora let out a soft sigh, quietly padding around the kitchen as she moved to prepare herself some dinner. It had been a quiet day, after she had headed out with her sister, she had been quick to return to her apartment, but still she hadn’t been able to shift her attention away from the moment that she and Gerard had shared, even if she had attempted to distract herself with some work. She still felt a little unsettled by the way that they had left things.

Ensuring that her hair was pulled off of her face, she moved to pull open the fridge before the sound of the front door opening and closing reached her ears, causing her to frown slightly before she stepped out into the hall, her blue eyes softening at the sight of Gerard. “Gerard?” she breathed softly.

Gerard, who’d been focused on toeing off his shoes, lifted his head at the sound of her voice before he quirked a faint smile. “I know where you keep the spare key” he noted softly “I hope you don’t mind” he added gently.

Nora shook her head. “Of course not” she noted softly “I’m just a little surprised to see you” she added, folding her arms over her chest sheepishly.

“I did send you a text” Gerard noted gently “You didn’t get it?” he asked.

“I left my phone in the bedroom whilst I was doing some work” Nora explained softly.

Gerard simply nodded his head, something which allowed an awkward silence to settle over them for a few seconds before Gerard stepped forwards, offering his hand out towards her. “I think we need to talk” he mused softly “Do you think that that is something we can do?” he added.

Nora spared a glance down towards his hand before she lifted her own, knotting their fingers together, offering his hand a soft squeeze. Gerard smiled softly at the contact before he lightly lifted her hand, allowing him to press a kiss against it before she led him through towards the living room, knowing that they had to talk.