Where We Are

66: We

“You think...you think that you’re leaving?”

Iker, who’d dropped his stare back towards Charlie who snoozed happily in his crib, flinched at the sound of Maia’s voice, more than slightly surprised to hear it fill the awkwardly quiet bedroom. It had been quiet, after his revelation, the room had fallen into an uncomfortable silence, and neither he nor Maia had wanted to break it, something which had led to seconds dragging out into minutes. He knew that she was surprised, the way that her eyes had widened as soon as the words had fallen out of his mouth had given it away, and he didn’t quite know what to say to her. He didn’t want to make things any worse by saying the wrong thing.

Clearing his throat slightly, he shifted in his seat before he offered her a stiff nod. “That’s what my agent wanted to talk about” he noted “He said that Porto had made a move for one of their other targets and that they had received a few offers for me. I think it is pretty likely that I am going to be leaving Porto before the end of the month” he explained flatly.

Maia, who was sat a little away from him, merely nodded her head stiffly, something which made Iker sigh softly before he moved a little closer to her, his hand gently rubbing up and down her arm. “I know it is a surprise” he murmured quietly.

Maia shook her head. “You said a year” she murmured.

“Maia...”

“You said that you’d agreed an extension” Maia interrupted “You said that we were going to be here for another year. What changed?” she asked, her blue eyes peeking up at him tearfully.

Iker admired her tearful expression for a moment before he shrugged, another soft sigh falling out of his mouth. “I don’t know” he mumbled “But something did change and it leaves us needing to have a conversation. Can we talk now or do you want to wait?” he asked gently. He knew that they had to talk, with the offers having deadlines, it wasn’t something they could avoid for too long, but he didn’t want to push her into a conversation too soon. He wanted to give her a chance to wrap her head around it before they spoke about what happened next.

Maia sniffled slightly, rubbing her eyes with the sleeve of her sweater, before she shook her head. “We can talk now” she mumbled.

Iker spared her a soft look before he gently reached his hand out, replacing hers as he gently brushed a few loose tears off of her cheek. “You sure?” he posed.

Maia leant into his touch slightly before she nodded. “There’s no point in putting it off” she noted.

Iker skimmed his thumb over her cheekbone before he nodded his head in agreement. “They need answers quickly” he mumbled.

“How quickly?” Maia asked.

“I think we’ve got a few days” Iker mumbled, brushing a few strands of her dark hair off of her cheeks.

“A few days?” Maia squeaked incredulously “We have to decide this massive thing in a few days?” she added.

Iker, who’d been quietly messing with the engagement ring which sat on her finger, ran her words through is mind before he tilted his head, a faint smile appearing at the corner of his mouth. “We?” he asked.

Maia frowned. “What?” she posed.

“You said ‘we’” Iker pointed out “You said that ‘we have to decide’” he added.

Maia tilted her head. “You thought I’d say something else?” she asked, a confused frown pulling at the corner of her mouth.

Iker shrugged. “I worried you might” he admitted.

“Iker...”

“It’s huge, Maia” Iker interrupted “I mean, a little over a week ago, you pushed our little boy into the world, and this move, this is a huge thing to be doing right now, and I worried, perhaps wrongly, that you’d get overawed by it and tell me that you weren’t ready for it” he explained gently. It had crossed his mind, since his agent had called, the thought that Maia would react negatively had been at the forefront of his mind, and he was relieved that she hadn’t, even if she did still seem slightly stunned. He was more than slightly relieved that her initial reaction was one that suggested that she was on his side.

Maia offered him a gentle look before she shook her head, gently slotting her fingers through his. “I’ve said this before” she noted “But if you have to go, then I am behind you, one hundred percent. Am I upset? Yes, I am. I thought we had time, Iker, I thought we could make a plan and be prepared, but that’s not going to happen now and we just need to accept it. It’s going to happen, and we just need to make the best of it” she added, her hand gently squeezing his.

Iker glanced down towards their hands briefly before he lifted them, allowing him to press a soft kiss against the back of Maia’s. “I’m sorry” he murmured.

Maia quirked a soft smile. “It’s not your fault” she mused “Besides, Porto don’t know what they’re losing” she added, placing a soft kiss against his cheek.

Iker snorted out a laugh, something which made Maia’s smile widen slightly before she shuffled a little closer to him, gently tucking herself underneath his arm. “You’re right” she murmured “This move...it’s going to be hard, but I like our chances” she added, offering his torso a light squeeze.

Iker pressed a kiss against her temple. “You do?” he asked.

Maia nodded without hesitation. “You might have missed it, but we’re a pretty good match” she quipped.

Iker laughed. “I didn’t miss it” he noted “But this...it’s a big hurdle, Maia. I will probably have to go ahead and get things set up before you and the children follow. That’s going to mean a few weeks apart” he added, his voice growing slightly more serious. He liked that she was optimistic, her words were reassuring to hum, but he wanted to be slightly realistic. It wasn’t going to be the most straightforward thing they did and he didn’t want to pretend that it would be.

Maia nodded. “I know” she mused gently “And I am not trying to downplay it. It’s going to be hard, Iker, I mean, we’re not just moving house, we’re talking about a new country, but I still feel optimistic about us. We’re good together, and we’ve shown that we’ve got a knack for getting over hurdles. I think we’ll be fine, and I want you to know that I think that. I am not going to let us slip, Iker” she insisted gently.

Iker stared down at her for a moment before he quirked a soft smile. “I love you, you know that?” he mumbled, placing a kiss of her forehead.

Maia shrugged playfully. “It wouldn’t’ hurt you to say it more often” she quipped impishly before she turned her head, pressing a quick kiss against his lips.

Iker held onto her for a seconds, enjoying the soft kiss, before he pulled back, settling his forehead against hers. “I love you” he repeated quietly.

“I love you too” Maia replied tenderly before she pushed herself to her feet, mumbling something about the two of them needing dinner. Iker smiled at her comment and followed after her, his arms hugging her waist tightly, more than glad that she had reacted as she had.
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Thanks to Jayme112234 and FootieJo for the comments :)