Where We Are

Shifting slightly in her seat, Maia spared a glance towards the house which sat ahead of her, a familiar knot twitching in the pit of her stomach. She knew that it couldn’t be avoided, with the baby on the way, it had only been a matter of time before she was reintroduced to Iker’s family, but still she felt apprehensive.

She hadn’t seen them in a while, not since she and Iker had broken up, and she was worried about their reaction to her. It had been her fault, the reason for their breakup had been caused by her, and she was worried that they’d be upset with her, even if Iker had been quick to reassure her that his parents were more than looking forwards to seeing her. She was worried that they’d not be overly happy to see her.

Gingerly tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear, she allowed her eyes to study the house for a moment longer before the sound of the car door at her side opening caught her ears, causing her to look up, her blue eyes settling on Iker who looked down at her, a warm smile perched on his lips. “You OK?” he posed.

Maia offered him a soft look before she lightly shrugged her shoulder. “I’m a little nervous” she admitted “I mean, I know that I’ve met them before, and when I saw your madre on that video chat we did to tell her about baba, she seemed to be pretty happy to see me, but I can’t shake the nerves. It’s been a while, Iker, and I guess that I’m slightly wary of how they’ll react to me given the way that you and I...” she trailed off, her blue eyes mirroring his darker ones.

Iker held her stare for a couple of seconds, mulling over her words, before he carefully knelt down beside the car, his hand gently moving to take a hold of hers which fiddled shyly with the button on her coat. “You’re going to be fine, Maia” he noted, knotting their fingers together “My parents...they’re not upset about the way our relationship ended, merely that it did end. They liked you, Maia, they liked us, and that’s not changed. They want you here, they’d never have invited you if they didn’t, and that means you’ve got nothing to be worried about” he insisted, lightly brushing his thumb over the back of her hand.

He knew that she was worried, ever since he had suggested visiting his parents for the holidays, she had appeared nervous and uncertain, and he wanted to reassure her that she had nothing to be concerned about. His parents were excited to see her, they were itching to make a fuss of her and her bump, and he was certain that they’d be more than welcoming to her, even if mother had already dropped a couple of hints about nudging the two of them back together. He was sure that Maia would be fine.

Maia, who’d been watching his thumb skim over her hand, allowed his words to hang around them for a moment before she lifted her head, peeking into his eyes softly. “You sure about that?” she posed.

“Certain” Iker returned confidently “Besides, it’s already pretty late. Aren’t you tired?” he posed, his spare hand settling on her bump.

Maia smiled at the feel of his hand against her bump before she nodded. “I am pretty tired” she confirmed.

“Then we should head inside” Iker mused “We can say a quick hello to my parents and then you can head upstairs and get some sleep” he noted as he pushed himself back up to his feet, extending his hand out towards her.

Maia eyed his hand for a split second before she placed her own into it, allowing Iker to curl his fingers around it before he led her towards the door, pressing the doorbell gently. Maia shifted a little at the shrill sound, something which caused Iker to offer her hand a comforting squeeze before the door pulled open, revealing Carmen who wore a soft, doting smile. “Iker, Maia” she breathed “I was starting to think the two of you had changed your minds. It’s good to see you” she added, allowing the pair to step into her house.

“It’s good to see you too, Mrs Casillas” Maia greeted timidly “It’s been a while” she added.

Carmen smiled, not missing the nervousness in Maia’s voice, before she took a pace towards the younger woman, quickly wrapping her in a warm hug. “It’s good to see you too, sweetheart” she enthused warmly “And it’s Carmen. You know that” she added as she stepped back.

Maia’s cheeks flushed a soft shade of pink before she quirked a shy smile. “Carmen” she repeated.

Carmen flashed her another encouraging grin before Iker cleared his throat. “Have you made up a room for Maia, mama?” he posed “I mean, it’s starting to get pretty late and I think she’d like to get her head down. Is that alright?” he posed gently. He knew that there was no avoiding it, with him and Maia due to stay for a few days, eventually his mother and Maia would end up alone together, but he wanted to put it off for a little while, wanting to allow Maia to ease herself into it.

Carmen looked up at the sound of his voice before she nodded. “Of course it is” she enthused “But, with your brother staying too, it means that the two of you are going to have to share a room. I know that that’s a little awkward but...”

“It’ll be fine” Maia interrupted “It’s not like we’ve not done it before” she pointed out with a hesitant smile.

Carmen nodded her head. “It’s the first door at the top of the stairs” she noted politely.

Maia offered her another shy smile before she stepped passed her, collecting her bag before she bid the older woman goodnight.

Iker watched her up the stairs before he let out a soft sigh, his eyes flicking back to his mother. “Mama...”

“I didn’t do it on purpose” Carmen cut in, knowing what was coming “Your brother called at the last minute and insisted that he wanted to stay, and I said that he could. I am not trying to push you, Iker. I know you, I know that you’ll want to take your time and do it right, and I want you to do it your way. I want you to be as happy and as comfortable as you can be” she insisted gently before she pushed herself up onto her toes, pressing a motherly kiss against his cheek as she mumbled a soft goodnight.

Iker sighed a little at the contact before he quietly trudged up the stairs, padding towards the bedroom that his mother had directed him to. Hesitating for a second, he briefly thought about ducking back downstairs before he lightly tapped his hand against the door, not wanting to walk in on Maia unannounced. “Maia?” he posed.

“You can come in” Maia’s voice returned “I’m decent” she added, her voice slightly teasing.

Iker quirked a small smile at her joke before he nudged the door open, his dark eyes settling on Maia was sat at the foot of the bed, searching through her bag for her pajamas. “You need a hand?” he posed, noticing the way she was awkwardly huddled over.

Maia hesitated before she nodded, something which caused Iker to step towards her, settling on the floor ahead of the bag. Without a word, he looked through her clothes for a few moments before he pulled out the pajama shirt and shorts that she had been looking for. “These?” he posed.

Maia nodded. “My hero” she enthused with a small smile.

Iker let out a small laugh before he pushed himself up to his feet. “The bathroom is down the hall” he pointed out.

Maia nodded quietly and moved to step past him, only for him to place his hand against her wrist, lightly pulling her to a stop. “I’m sorry” he murmured “This...us sharing a room, it’s likely to be strange and I’m sorry. If I had known...”

“You don’t want to share a room with me?” Maia interrupted, lifting an eyebrow.

Iker spluttered. “It’s not that” he babbled “I mean, we both know where we’re going, but it’s just...it’s soon” he added, his voice flustered.

Maia stared up at him for a second before she let out a soft laugh, something which caused Iker to lift an eyebrow. “You’re laughing?” he poked.

“You’re cute” Maia countered “You get all flustered and nervous and it’s cute. I was teasing you, Iker” she pointed out.

Iker tilted his head. “You were?” he asked.

Maia nodded. “I was trying to lighten the mood” she quipped “You’re right, this is a little soon, and it might be a little awkward, but as I said before, it’s not exactly our first time. I am sure that we can handle spending a few nights in the same bed” she added, sparing a glance towards the bed which sat behind them. She knew that it would be awkward, with their relationship the way it was, the prospect of sharing a bed had been a while off, but she was confident that they’d get through it, even if they were slightly awkward about it. It was only a few days.

Iker offered her a small look, wordlessly asking if she was sure, before he nodded his head. “We can handle it” he agreed.

Maia nodded. “We can” she agreed “And now I am going to head to the bathroom. You staying up here?” she posed as she stepped out of the room.

Iker nodded his head slowly before he turned, offering the bed a small glance. He knew that it would be strange, with things as they were, the idea of sharing a room, let alone a bed, was one which appeared awkward to him, but he was sure that they could figure something out, even if it was awkward. He had little doubt that they could handle it.