If You Love Me

Staring up at the door which stood ahead of him, Gerard spared a soft sigh, trying to work up the nerve to tap his hand against the wood. It had been a while, after his nearly moment with Nora, he had opted to avoid her for a few days, but with the date that Spain were due to depart for the Euros approaching, he had opted to visit her apartment, wanting to ease the awkwardness which had grown between them before he left. He knew that it wasn’t going to be fixed easily, for a while, things between him and Nora hadn’t felt as easy as they’d done in the past, but he wanted to attempt to smooth things over, even if he couldn’t ease the tension entirely. He wanted to make sure that things were alright between the two of them,

Pushing a hand back through his hair, he spared the door another soft glance before he gently stepped towards it, knocking his hand against it. Taking a pace back, he watched the door for a couple of seconds before Nora pulled it open, her blue eyes softening a little at the sight of him. “Gerard” she breathed gently “I…I wasn’t expecting you. What…why are you here?” she posed softly, her fingers fiddling nervously with the zip of her hoodie.

Gerard watched the small movements of her hand, briefly contemplating walking away, before he shook his head, offering her a small smile. “I thought I would drop by” he noted gently “I even bought dinner. Do you think that I could come in?” he added, gently lifting the bag of food which he clutched in his hand.

Nora stared at him for a moment, still slightly surprised by the sight of him at her door, before she shook her head, offering him a small smile. “You bought dinner?” she posed.

“I did” Gerard confirmed with a grin “I went by that Italian restaurant that you love and picked up your favourite. So, what do you say? Can I come in?” he asked, his tone bright and playful. He knew that things were awkward, the look on Nora’s face when she had opened the door had confided it, but he didn’t want to fixate on it. he much preferred being around Nora when they were smiling and teasing one another, not when they were awkwardly trying to skirt around the elephant in the room.

Nora feigned thought for a couple of moments before she spared a small laugh, stepping out of the doorway. “You know where the plates are” she noted gently.

Gerard flashed her a boyish grin before he stepped into the apartment, quickly making his way into the kitchen. He knew that it wasn’t going to be the most comfortable evening, he and Nora had been through a similar routine more than once, but still he wanted to make the effort, even if things between him and Nora were likely to be a little awkward for a while. He didn’t want to head away for international without making an attempt to smooth things over between the two of him.

~#~
“How was dinner with your madre?”

Nora, who was pushing the last of her dessert around her bowl, looked up at the sound of Gerard’s voice before she shrugged her shoulders lightly. It had been a pleasant night, after Gerard had arrived with dinner, they’d settled down in front of the television and chatted, and Nora had to admit that she was pleased with how it had gone, even if there had been a few awkward pauses and babbled words, things had felt calm and familiar between them. She knew that they were avoiding the issue, since she and Gerard had sat down, they’d made no mention of the party, let alone the moment that they’d shared, but Nora preferred it that way, even if she knew that they couldn’t avoid it forever. She had enjoyed spending the evening with her friend.

“It was Ok” she noted “It was the usual” she added.

Gerard nodded. “How is Emilia’s pregnancy coming along?” he posed, placing another spoonful of dessert into his mouth.

“It’s going well” Nora enthused softly “She found out a couple of weeks ago that she’s going to have a little girl and she’s thrilled, but Mateo is still pouting. He was hoping for a little boy” she added with a small smile.

Gerard chuckled softly. “That doesn’t sound unlike your brother-in-law” he teased.

Nora spared a small giggle before she shook her head. “He’ll be fine” she quipped “He’ll pout until the baby’s born and once she arrives, he’ll be all smitten” she added softly.

Gerard nodded his head quietly, allowing a small awkward silence to fall over the two of them. It wasn’t the first one, since he had arrived, they’d sat through a few awkward silences, but neither of them wanted to be the first to break it, something which irked Gerard a little.

Shifting slightly in his seat, he spared a soft look towards Nora before he opened his mouth, only to be cut off by Nora who shook her head, offering him a shy smile before she dropped her stare, focusing it upon her fingers with fiddled aimlessly with the bottom of her blonde hair, twisting it softly. “I know what you’re going to say” she mused softly “The other night, it was…it was close, but it shouldn’t of happened” she murmured softly.

Gerard simply stared at her, not quite sure of what to say.

“I don’t know how it did happen” Nora continued softly, shaking her head slightly “But…but I guess what I am trying to get to is that it is OK if you just want to forget about it. I mean, it was an almost kiss, not an actual kiss, and if you just want to pretend that it didn’t happen, then I am OK with that” she babbled, her cheeks tinting a soft shade of pink.

Gerard allowed her words to hang around them for a few moments, quietly mulling them over, before he nodded his head, flashing her a small shy smile. “If that is what you want, then that is fine by me, Nora” he noted, trying not to let on that he was lying. It wasn’t what he wanted, if anything, he was irked that Lionel had strolled out when he had and ruined their moment, but he didn’t want to let on to Nora who, as far as he could see, simply wanted to forget about it.

Nora offered him a small look, not missing the slight waver in his voice, before she nodded her head. “I think it’s for the best” she noted softly.

“Then consider it forgotten” Gerard replied, offering her another small smile.

Nora admired the smile, not missing that it seemed slightly forced, before she shook her head. “It’s getting late” she noted softly “And I have work tomorrow. Do you mind?” she posed, gently peeking towards the door.

Gerard followed the line of her stare before he shook his head. “Of course not” he noted gently before he pushed himself up to his feet.

Nora watched him stand up before she stepped towards him, quickly pulling him into a soft hug. “I’m glad that you came tonight, Gerard” she murmured softly.

Gerard, who’d startled slightly at the soft hug, hugged her close for a few seconds, wordlessly ruing the fact that he had ducked out of talking to her like he had.