The Things That You Do

Clipping a piece of her blonde hair off of her face, Alexa settled down onto the couch, her blue eyes settled on her laptop which sat on the coffee table ahead of her. It had been a few days, after she and Lionel had headed out for their first date, a little over a week had passed, and with Lionel having departed for the world cup, she found herself waiting for his video call, something which she had found herself looking forwards to more than she thought she would.

It wasn’t the first time that he had called, since he had left, he had called her a couple of times, and whilst their conversations still seemed awkward, it was getting slightly easier, something which pleased Alexa, even if they did still have a way to go. She was more than happy that things between them seemed to be getting slightly less awkward.

Brushing a few more loose hairs off of her face, she checked her reflection briefly before the sound of an incoming call filled the air, causing a faint smile to appear at the corner of her mouth. Shaking her head gently, she ducked forwards and accepted the call, allowing Lionel’s face to appear on the screen. “You know, you really don’t have to call me this often” she pointed out “I am not likely to forget who you are in a few days” she added impishly.

Lionel rolled his eyes, but quirked a small smile, something which made Alexa smile a little in return. “Hola, Leo” she greeted warmly.

“Hola” Lionel mimicked “It’s good to see you” he added, his voice soft and warm.

Alexa’s cheeks warmed a little at the tone of his voice before she shook her head, shyly looking down at her lap. “It’s only been a couple of days” she pointed out.

“I know” Lionel noted “But I am still glad to see you. You look nice” he complimented warmly.

Alexa snorted out an amused laugh before she shook her head. “I am pretty sure that you’re just saying that” she quipped “But thank you. I was in the middle of getting ready to head out when you texted” she added.

Lionel tilted his head. “Am I interrupting your plans?” he posed “Because if I am...”

“You’re not” Alexa interrupted “I’ve not got to be anywhere for a while yet” she added.

Lionel offered her a slightly dubious look, wordlessly asking if she was sure, before he nodded. “You’ve got plans?” he posed curiously.

“I do” Alexa confirmed “Does that surprise you?” she quipped with a small teasing smile.

Lionel admired her teasing smile for a moment before he shrugged nonchalantly, causing Alexa to let out a small scoff. “You know I have other friends, right?” she quipped playfully.

Lionel offered her a slightly impish smile before he nodded. “I know” he noted “I am just teasing you. What’ve you got planned?” he asked, trying to keep the conversation moving. They were still a little awkward around one another, after what had happened between them, it wasn’t a surprise to Lionel that things weren’t as straightforward as they had been before, but he was pleased by the progress that they were making, even if their conversations were still a little forced and littered with silences. They were slowly getting used to one another again.

“Marco has invited me over for dinner” Alexa noted “It’s the twins’ fifth birthday so he’s throwing a little family get together” she explained.

“Your niece and nephew are five already?” Lionel posed, his voice warm and curious.

Alexa smiled, nodding her head. “It’s a pretty strange thought” she mused “But they are, and Isabel is a pregnant again. They’ve got a little boy due in a couple of months” she fussed.

Lionel smiled. “Marco must be over the moon” he quipped.

“Something like that” Alexa noted “I mean, he grumbles from time to time about the prospect of having three young children, but that’s just Marco. He’s great with Ariana and Adrian, he has been since they were born, and I am sure that he’ll be great with the new baby too. I mean, I still can’t quite believe that my big brother is a papa, but he’s a natural” she enthused warmly.

Lionel looked at her for a moment, allowing a small silence to hang between them, before he let out a soft sigh. “How’s your madre doing?” he asked.

Alexa’s expression fell slightly before she shook her head, offering him a light shrug of her shoulders, a sight which made Lionel sigh slightly. He knew that it was still a tender topic, even despite the time that had passed since her father’s death, he knew that it was something which still hurt for her to think about, but still he wanted to ask about it, even if it wasn’t something she liked to talk about. He wanted to make sure that she was doing OK.

“Alexa?” he prodded gently.

Alexa shook her head gently before she lifted her hand, tentatively playing with eh clip in her hair. “She’s doing better” she mused thoughtfully “I mean, she’s still not herself, but she’s getting there. She misses him, Leo, we all do” she added, her voice slightly heavy.

Lionel nodded his head understandingly. “I know you do” he noted softly.

Alexa was quiet for a few seconds before she shook her head, offering him a half-hearted smile that didn’t quite reach her eyes. “You know, they’re probably going to ask about you” she mused, trying to change the subject.

Lionel lifted an eyebrow. “You think so?” he posed.

Alexa nodded. “Our first kiss wasn’t exactly subtle” she pointed out “And I know for a fact that Isabel is itching to talk about it. She’s already texted” she added with a playful roll of her eyes.

Lionel chuckled before he shook his head gently. “What do you plan on telling them?” he asked.

Alexa shrugged. “I don’t really know” she noted “I mean, we’ve been out on one date. What do you want me to tell them?” she posed. It wasn’t something they’d talked about, with Lionel having departed with the Argentina squad only a matter of days after their first date, they’d not had time to discuss what it was that they wanted to tell people about them, and she wanted to talk about it, even if it was a little premature. She didn’t want to say something which upset him.

Lionel thought for a moment before he spoke up. “You should tell them that we’re figuring things out” he noted “You should say that we’ve been out once, and we both had a great time, but we’re taking things one step at a time. It’s new, we’re still trying to figure it out, and it’s going to take us some time” he explained gently.

Alexa listened to him, mulling over his words, before she quirked a small smile. “I think that that sums it up nicely” she noted warmly before the sound of her phone beeping filled the air, causing her to let out a soft groan. “That’s going to be Marco. He doesn’t trust me not to be late” she quipped with a roll of her eyes.

“I should let you get going” Lionel noted “I’ll call you in a few days?” he posed.

Alexa nodded. “I’ll be looking forwards to it” she enthused.

Lionel offered her a shy smile before he shook his head. “I know it’s going to sound silly” he noted “But I...uh...I miss you, Alexa” he babbled.

Alexa blinked a couple of times, slightly surprised by his words, before she timidly ducked her head, trying to hide the soft hue of pink which had arrived on her cheeks. “It’s not silly” she mumbled “I miss you too” she added, smiling at the camera bashfully.

Lionel’s shy smile widened a little before the sound of her phone echoed again, causing her to shake her head, a playful groan falling out of her mouth. “I really ought to go before Marco shows up here” she noted “I’ll speak to you soon, Leo” she added.

Lionel nodded enthusiastically before he offered her a small wave, ending the call. Alexa stared at the blank screen for a couple of seconds, allowing the silence to settle over her, before she smiled a little to herself, her fingers timidly messing with her hair. She knew that it was early days, after all, she and Lionel had only been on one date, but she was cautiously optimistic about them, even if she didn’t want to get ahead of herself.