Where We Are

Sipping on her mug of tea, Maia snuggled a little deeper into the couch, her blue eyes not shifting away from the magazine which was settled in her lap. It wasn’t the first one that she had looked at, since Iker had broached the prospect of the two of them starting to plan their wedding, she had flicked through a few wedding magazines in search of inspiration, but still it made her smile, even if they had yet to make a plan. The idea that they were preparing to plan their wedding was one which had more than a few butterflies in the pit of her stomach.

Taking another sip of her drink, she flipped over another page before the sound of little footsteps reached her ears, causing her to look up, her blue eyes settling on Ella who toddled into the room, Iker in close pursuit. “Mama!” the little girl squeaked, quickly padding towards the couch.

Maia watched Ella step towards her before she ducked down, sweeping the toddler into her arms, something which made Ella giggle brightly. “I thought papa was supposed to be settling you down for the night?” Maia quipped, sparing a playful look up towards Iker who had stopped in the doorway.

“We were just on our way” Iker replied “But I thought that maybe Ella would like to say goodnight to her mother before she went to sleep. You think you can spare us a couple of minutes?” he added, offering her an impish smile.

Maia offered him a small roll of her eyes before she shifted her feet, making room for him at the end of the couch.

Iker flashed her another boyish smile before he took a seat, his eyes quickly settling on the magazine which she had settled in her lap. Quirking an eyebrow, he reached out and lifted it into his hands, leafing through a couple of pages before he shook his head, sparing Maia a small look. “Are you looking for inspiration?” he posed.

Maia, who’d been quietly talking to Ella, lifted her head at the sound of his voice before she quirked a timid smile. “Is it a problem?” she posed.

Iker shook his head quickly. “Of course not” he noted “I’m just a little surprised. I thought you’d already have a few ideas about what you wanted” he explained. It wasn’t something they’d discussed, even despite the fact that he had proposed almost a year previous, the topic of a wedding was one which had only ever come up fleetingly, but he was a little surprised to see Maia flicking through wedding magazines, even if they had started to think about making plans. He had assumed that she would already have an idea about what it was she wanted.

Maia shook her head, a slight amused snort falling out of her mouth. “I’ve never really given it much thought” she quipped.

Iker, who’d been leafing through the magazine, lifted an eyebrow. “Not even since we got engaged?” he posed curiously.

Maia shrugged. “I was a little preoccupied with the fact that I was carrying our son” she retorted “And then, once Charlie had arrived, we were pretty much thrown straight into planning to move out here. It didn’t leave a lot of time to think about whether I wanted to have a church ceremony or not, or whether I wanted to do it in Porto or Madrid” she explained.

Iker nodded his head slowly. “And what about now?” he posed “Any ideas?” he added with a soft, encouraging smile.

Maia admired his smile briefly before she dropped her stare down towards Ella, watching as the little girl blinked sleepily. “I think I have a couple” she admitted, gently combing her fingers through Ella’s dark hair.

Iker watched the small movements of her fingers briefly before he shifted slightly, allowing his dark eyes to catch the stare of Maia’s blues. “Are you going to share them with me?” he asked gently.

Maia stared at him briefly before she offered him a stiff nod, something which made Iker chuckle warmly. “You don’t have to look so scared” he quipped “The worst thing I can say is no” he added, his voice warm and encouraging.

Maia nodded again before she quirked a small smile. “I want to do it outside” she mused softly.

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

“Maybe on a beach or something?” Maia replied “I don’t know why, but I kind of like the idea of a slightly more natural setting” she added, her cheeks turning a soft shade of pink.

Iker admired her blush for a couple of seconds before he nodded his head, wordlessly encouraging her to go on.

“Doing it outside means we’d been looking at a date in the summer” Maia continued on, her voice still slightly hesitant “And I kind of like the idea of a summer wedding. I’d like to do something small, perhaps with just our families and a few close friends. Is this what you had in mind?” she added, sparing him a slightly timid look.

Iker, who’d been listening to her closely, mulled her question over briefly before he quirked a small smile, offering her a gentle nod. “I like the sound of it” he noted.

“You’re not just saying that?” Maia asked “Because if you had other ideas....”

“I’m not just saying it” Iker cut in warmly “I like what you’re thinking, Maia” he mused.

Maia offered him a slightly tentative glance, something which made him shake his head before he tilted his head up, pressing a quick kiss against her lips. “You don’t have to look so concerned” he teased softly “I like your ideas, Maia, I think they suit us, and I wouldn’t just say that. I want to make our day special and means talking about it. I want you to make suggestions, I want you to tell me what it is you want to do, and then we can piece it together, ensuring that we have a day which is memorable” he insisted, stealing another kiss.

Maia held onto him for a second, enjoying the gentle kiss, before she leant back, gently nudging their noses together. “What about you?” she posed “Do you have any suggestions?” she posed between soft kisses.

Iker smiled against her lips. “One” he noted.

Maia leant back. “What is it?” she asked.

Iker spared her a slightly timid look. “I know that it is a tradition for the wedding to take place in the hometown of the bride” he mused “But I was sort of hoping that you’d not mind us getting married in Madrid. It’s OK if you don’t want to, I mean, I know that Porto is a big deal for you, but it...it would mean a lot to me” he explained shyly, his finger light brushing over her engagement ring.

Maia watched the soft moment of his finger for a moment before she turned her hand over, allowing him to slot their fingers together. “Madrid” she mused thoughtfully “I think we can probably arrange that” she added, squeezing his hand gently.

Iker smiled a little, squeezing her hand in return. “You sure?” he asked.

Maia nodded. “Of course” she mused “It’s your day too, isn’t it?” she added, offering him a soft smile.

Iker nodded gently before he leant up, pressing a soft kiss against her forehead. “Gracias” he mumbled tenderly.

Maia closed her eyes at the feel of his lips against her forehead before she tilted her head back, guiding him carefully into another soft kiss. Iker smiled into it for a few seconds before Ella let out a small whine, causing him to duck back, his dark eyes settling on the little girl who looked up at him, her big brown eyes wide and sleepy. “I should probably get her up to bed” he mumbled.

Maia nodded. “Can you check on Charlie too?” she posed, carefully helping him to lift Ella into his arms.

Iker nodded. “Of course” he noted “I’ll pop in on the way down. What are you going to do?” he posed.

Maia shrugged. “Flip through this magazine a little more” she mused “Maybe find something good to watch on TV so that we can cuddle” she added, offering him a small smile.

Iker returned her smile warmly. “That sounds like a plan” he quipped before he padded out of the room, Ella’s head resting sleepily on his shoulder.

Maia watched him out of the room before she shyly tucked her hair behind her ear, a wide smile itching to spread across her face. It had taken them a while, for a few months after she had told him about her first pregnancy, she had doubted that they’d ever figure things out, but they had, and Maia was amazed by how far they’d come. It was good, even despite their bumps, things between her and Iker seemed to only be improving, and Maia was more than pleased. It hadn’t quite been what she had been expecting when she had first found out that she was expecting Ella.