Where We Are

39: There’s No Point In Pretending

Neatly tying the lace of her shoe, Maia lifted her head, her blue eyes offering her reflection a cautious glance. It had been a while, since Ella had arrived, Maia was certain that she could count on one hand the amount of dates that she and Iker had had, and she had to admit that she was slightly excited about the prospect, even if it did mean that her mother and father had to spend the night in her apartment. She was excited about the prospect of spending some time alone with Iker. It was rare, with the season having started up again, Iker found himself busy more often than not, and she was excited by the idea of them taking a few hours for themselves, even if Iker had kept her in the dark with regards to his plans. She was simply looking forwards to spending some quiet time with just her boyfriend for company.

Straightening up, she smoothed out the material of the sweater she had opted to wear before she stepped towards her bed, moving to wrap her coat around her shoulders.

“Are you nearly ready?”

Maia, who’d moved to smooth out the material of her jacket, lifted her head at the sound of her mother’s voice before she tilted it, something which made Carolina laugh. “Your boyfriend is in the living room making awkward small talk with your papa whilst he tries to settle Ella” she explained “He asked if I could come and check on you. He mumbled something about not wanting your papa to hit him” she added, an amused smile on her face.

Maia scoffed, mumbling a small comment beneath her breath, before she shook her head. “I think I am about ready to go” she noted “Do I look alright?” she added, her voice softening slightly.

Carolina smiled a little, not missing the shy tone of her daughter’s voice, before she allowed her eyes to wander up and down Maia’s frame. “You look beautiful, Maia” she mused.

“You sure?” Maia pressed timidly “Because if there’s something....”

“Princesa, that boy is smitten with you” Carolina interjected “You could walk out of this bedroom in a bin liner and he’d still smile in that way he does. You don’t have to be worried about that” she insisted, her voice warm and reassuring. It wasn’t the first time she had had to reassure her, Carolina could still recall the first time that Maia and Iker had gone out on a date, and she found it sweet that Maia was still so nervous, even if she was certain that she didn’t have a thing to be concerned about. She liked that Maia was so keen to make things work with Iker.

Maia spared her mother a slightly dubious look, something which made Carolina scoff playfully before she stepped towards her, lightly adjusting the material of the coat that she wore. “You look beautiful, sweetheart” she insisted “And you have to get moving. I don’t think Iker would forgive you for making him spend the whole night making small talk with your papa” she added teasingly as she stepped towards her, wrapping her in a tight hug.

Maia hugged her mother back tightly before she stepped out of the room, something which made Carolina’s smile soften slightly. She knew that it was still a work in progress, even despite the fact that more than a year had passed since Maia had walked back into Iker’s life, they were still very much in a phase where they were figuring things out, but Carolina hoped that it worked out for them that time around, even if things weren’t straightforward. She wanted to see her daughter happy.

~#~
“Are you cold?”

Maia, who was sat on a bench, smiled at the sound of Iker’s question before she lifted her head, shaking it slightly. It had been a good night, with it having been a while since they’d gone out on a date, Iker had been keen to make the most of it, and Maia had enjoyed herself, even if they had simply opted to see a movie and get some dinner. It’d merely been a while since they’d headed out together and she was more than happy to make the most of it.

“I’m alright” she noted “And that means you can keep your jacket” she added, gesturing with her head towards the coat which sat in his hand.

Iker, who’d moved to settle down in the seat at her side, scoffed playfully. “I wasn’t planning on giving it to you” he teased “But if you are cold, we can head back to the car. It is starting to get a little late” he added, sparing a glance down towards his watch.

Maia nodded. “We can head back soon” she murmured “But right now, I am pretty content to just sit here for a few minutes. You want to join me?” she posed.

Iker smiled at her words before he shifted a little closer to her, wrapping an arm around her shoulders before she turned, cuddling into his side. “I’ve had a good night” she murmured, breaking the quiet which had settled over the two of them.

Iker, who’d started to trace shapes against the material of her trousers, quirked a small smile. “You have?” he posed.

Maia nodded. “It’s not been the most original date” she mused with a coy smile that made him let out a soft laugh “But it’s been nice. It’s going to sound slightly sappy, but I’ve sort of missed this part of our relationship” she added as she looked up at him, her blue eyes meeting his darker ones.

Iker shook his head. “It doesn’t sound sappy” he murmured “I kind of miss it too” he admitted.

Maia smiled at his admission. “It’s different now” she murmured.

“It is” Iker confirmed “But it’s a good kind of different, no? I mean, we’ve got Ella now, and we’re living together. That’s not exactly what I envisaged when you left my house on the morning we broke up” he admitted.

Maia shook her head. “You broke up with me” she corrected.

Iker tilted his head. “Huh?” he posed.

“You always say that we broke up” Maia noted “But we didn’t do anything. You broke up with me” she added, her teeth chewing on the corner of her lip.

Iker blinked a couple of times, surprised by her words, before he nodded his head slowly, something which made Maia shake her head. “I’m sorry” she murmured “I don’t know why I pointed that out. It was a long time ago” she babbled, pushing her hair behind her ear.

Iker admired her familiar nervous habit before he shook his head, his hand gently squeezing hers. “There’s no point in pretending that we don’t have a past, Maia” he murmured “We both know that we do, but you said it yourself. That was then and this is now and now” he added, squeezing her hand once more.

Maia, who’d shyly dropped her stare towards their hands, nodded. “You’re right” she mused.

“It happens from time to time” Iker quipped, a faint boyish grin on his lips.

Maia returned his smile gently before she shook her head, pushing herself up to her feet. “I’m just going to pop to the bathroom and then we can start thinking about heading back towards the car. Does that sound like a plan?” she posed.

Iker nodded. “Sounds good to me” he noted.

Maia flashed him another smile before she stepped away, making her way towards the bathroom which stood a little away from them. Iker watched her walk away before the sound of vibrating reached his ears, causing him to divert his stare down towards the bench, settling it on Maia’s phone which she had left behind. Tilting his head slightly, he scooted it a little closer before he frowned, his dark eyes caught on the message which filled the screen, Melena’s name at the top of it.
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Thanks to FootieJo for the comment :)