If You Love Me

Carefully pushing the door closed behind him, Gerard let out a small relieved noise, his ears doused by the quiet which filled the house. He had only been gone for a few hours, between training and a few of his teammates wanting to make a fuss of the new arrival, he had been away for a little longer than he had been hoping for, and he was pleased to be home, not wanting to spend any more time away from Nora or Alba than he had to.

Adjusting his bag on his shoulder, he quietly stepped through the house before he made his way towards the kitchen, his blue eyes settling on Maria who stood beside the stove, stirring the pot which sat on the top of it. Blinking a couple of times, he frowned before he took a couple of paces forwards, stepping into the eye line of the older woman who lifted her head, greeting him with a welcoming smile. “Gerard” she grinned “You’re home” she enthused.

Gerard nodded. “I am” he confirmed “And I hope you don’t find me rude, but what are you doing here and where are Alba and Nora?” he posed, a small confused frown on his face. He wasn’t entirely surprised, with Alba’s arrival, he had anticipated that his and Nora’s families were likely to be around more for a while, but still he was a little caught off guard by the sight of his girlfriend’s mother in his kitchen, more so by that fact that Nora and Alba weren’t with her.

Maria noted the frown on his face before she stepped towards him, patting his shoulder gently. “You don’t need to look so worried” she mused “Your girls are fine. Nora’s asleep in the living room and Alba’s napping in her Moses basket in there too. I was just making some lunch” she explained, smiling up at him warmly. It wasn’t the first time that she had seen it, from the moment that she had met Alba, she seen the paternal side of him, and she found it sweet, even if he did still look slightly uncertain of himself. She had little doubt that he would make a wonderful father.

Gerard offered her another look, something which made her shake her head gently before she took a hold of his hand, guiding him into the seat which sat beside the kitchen counter. “You know that you can relax now, right?” Maria posed, moving to place a plate down in front of him. “I mean, Nora and Alba, they’re both home, and they’re both doing well. Everything is good right now, Gerard” she added, putting some food onto the plate.

Gerard watched her place the food onto his plate before he nodded his head. “It’s better than good” he replied, offering her a small smile in thanks.

Maria marveled at the smile on his face before she took her own plate, settling into the seat at his side, allowing the room to fall quiet aside from the sounds of their cutlery against the plates. Eating her meal, Maria spared a sideward glance towards the defender before she set her cutlery down. “Have you thought about maybe proposing to Nora?” she posed, breaking the silence which had settled over the two of them.

Gerard, who’d been chewing a mouthful, choked at the sudden question, something which caused Maria to push herself up to her to herself up to her feet, quickly retrieving a glass of water that she swiftly deposited into his hand. “Lo siento” she breathed “I didn’t mean to scare you” she added, her voice more than a little flustered.

Gerard took a few deep breaths, trying to calm himself down slightly, before he shook his head. “It’s alright” he breathed.

Maria shook her head. “I really am sorry” she noted “I shouldn’t have said anything. I mean, you two have just welcome little Alba into the world and I shouldn’t be pushing. It’s really none of my business” she babbled, her cheeks tinting a soft shade of pink. She knew that she was overstepping, from what Nora had told her, the topic of an engagement wasn’t one that she and Gerard had covered, but she had allowed her curiosity to get the better of her. She knew what Nora wanted, for as long as she could remember, her daughter had been keen on the idea of getting married, and she had wanted to test the waters, wanting to know if it was on the cards.

“Has she said something to you?” Gerard asked, his voice slightly curious.

Maria shook her head. “Not in so many words” she replied “She’s talked about it before but not since the two of you got together. I shouldn’t have said anything, it’s between the two of you, and I am sorry for overstepping” she insisted.

Gerard allowed her to finish babbling before he reached his hand out, gently settling it on top of Maria’s which fiddled shyly with the glass of water which sat on the counter. “Don’t worry about it” he noted “It’s a fair question to ask and I am not going to hold it against you” he added, offering her a teasing smile.

Maria shook her head, a shy smile on her lips. “You know, I am very glad that you and my daughter stopped messing around” she noted “I mean, you wasted a good few years by shying away from it, both of you, but I am glad that one of you finally took the dive and told the other how you felt. You’ve only gotten better together as the months have passed” she enthused warmly.

Gerard smiled bashfully at her words.

“I don’t know when you plan on doing it, or whether you plan on doing it at all, but, Gerard, should you want it, you have my blessing and I have no doubt that if my husband was around, he’d agree with me. He’d have liked you an awful lot” Maria enthused, patting the defender’s cheek softly before she leant up, pressing a soft kiss against it. She didn’t want to put pressure on him, whatever happened between him and Nora, it would happen at a pace that they both felt comfortable moving at, but she wanted to put it out there, even if it didn’t change things for a while.

Gerard smiled bashfully at the soft kiss before the sound of crying reached his ears, causing him to whip his head up, his blue eyes settling on Nora who stood in the doorway, a fussy Alba in her arms. “I hope we’re not interrupting” she breathed “I just thought that I’d bring someone to see her papa. I can come back if you two are having a moment” she added, her voice caught between teasing and curious.

Gerard, who’d pushed himself to his feet, shook his head as he stepped towards her, greeting her with a swift kiss before he lifted Alba into his arms, cooing excitedly to the little girl. Maria, who’d hung back slightly, admired the three of them together before she quirked a small fond grin, wordlessly noting that it was more likely to be a case of when, not if.