The Things That You Do

Yawning softly into his hand, Lionel shifted his weight slightly, resting his shoulder against the frame of the bedroom door as he watched Alexa who was sat in the middle of their bed, cooing softly to Thalia who was laying ahead of her. It had been a while, after the little girl had arrived, a little over a week had passed, but still Lionel was in awe of the sight of her and Alexa together, even if it was something he had seen a lot of. He didn’t quite know that he would ever find himself tired of seeing Alexa with their children. Quirking a sleepy smile, he watched the two of them together for a few moments before the buzzing of his phone in his pocket reached his ears, causing him to let out a quiet sigh before he fished it out, scanning the text message which filled the screen.

“Is it anyone important?”

Lionel, who’d been typing out a quick reply to his mother’s text, looked up at the sound of Alexa’s voice before he quirked soft smile, his eyes taking in the sight of Alexa who’d lifted Thalia up into her arms. “My mother” he replied “She and my papa got in last night and she’s asking what time I’ll be by to pick them up from their hotel. I think she might be a little excited about the prospect of meeting her” he added, gesturing towards Thalia who stretched out slightly in her mother’s arms, a yawn falling out of her mouth.

Alexa watched the baby for a moment, a doting smile on her lips, before she shook her head. “I’m surprised that they managed to wait this long” she mused, her fingers gently adjusting the feet of the pajamas that Thalia wore.

Lionel shrugged slightly before he stepped further into the room, settling down on the edge of the bed. “They didn’t want to overwhelm you” he quipped “I mean this in the nicest way, but your mama and Marco, they’re pretty full on, and my parents didn’t want to put too much on you so soon after Lia was born. They thought that you’d appreciate a few quieter days before they came over to make a fuss” he added as he looked up at her, a soft expression on his face.

Alexa admired the expression he wore fleetingly before she shook her head, fidgeting shyly on the spot. “They didn’t have to do that” she mused “I mean, I know my family is a little too full on, but they didn’t have to delay coming. I really don’t mind” she added shyly.

Lionel watched her fidget for a second before he shook his head, a grin spreading across his face. “They really didn’t mind” he quipped “I mean, I’ve had a few video chats with them since Lia was born, so they’ve already seen her, and they were happy to give us some space for a few days. They’re not going to hold it against you, Alexa” he added warmly.

He knew that she was nervous, whenever the topic of spending time with his mother and father arose in conversation, Alexa tended to get the same self-conscious and shy expression on her face, and he wanted to reassure her that she didn’t have anything to worry about. His parents were fond of her, even before they’d gotten together, his mother and father had liked her, and he saw no reason for her to be nervous, even if it was something which occurred nearly every time they spent time together. He was sure that there was no reason for her to worry.

Alexa glanced up at him slightly, something which made Lionel chuckle before he reached for her hand, offering it a gentle squeeze.

“I’m sorry” Alexa mumbled, staring down at their hands “I know it’s not the first time that I’ve met them, and I know I should be better at it by now” she added.

Lionel squeezed her hand. “You are better at it” he quipped “I mean, the first time we spent time with them after we’d gotten together, I thought you were going to throw up the moment my mother stepped through the door” he joked impishly.

Alexa rolled her eyes, trying to keep the grin off of her face, but she failed, something which caused Lionel to grin triumphantly. “You’re doing fine” he quipped.

Alexa smiled at him gently before the sound of his phone buzzing filled the air again, causing him to roll his eyes playfully before he slipped it out of his pocket. “My madre’s getting impatient” he mused “I should get dressed and go and get them. Do you want me to take Zach with me?” he posed, standing up before he stepped towards his wardrobe, collecting a clean set of clothes.

Alexa shook her head. “It’s fine” she mused “I am sure that I can handle it” she added.

Lionel offered her a look over his shoulder, wordlessly asking if she was sure, before he nodded his head, padding towards the bathroom.

Alexa watched him out of the room before she shook her head, trying to shake the small lump which existed in her throat. She knew that there was nothing to be worried about, things had always gone well between her and Lionel’s parents, and she hated that she still got nervous. She knew that there was no need for it.

~#~
“How are you feeling, Alexa?” Celia posed as she padded into the living room, placing a mug of tea down in front of the blonde woman. It had been a quiet morning, with Alexa still appearing a little shy around Celia and her husband, the conversation had been a little forced and disjointed, but Celia didn’t mind, even if she was slightly surprised that Alexa was still worried about saying the wrong thing around them. She didn’t want to push her into something which made her uncomfortable.

Alexa, who was flicking through a book with Zachary, smiled gently. “I’m feeling OK” she mused “I mean, other than being a little long, the labour was pretty straight forwards, and with Leo around and fussing, I’ve not been allowed to overexert myself” she added, sparing a playful glare towards Lionel who merely grinned in return.

“You just had a baby” Lionel replied “And I wanted to take care of you. Surely you can’t hold that against me” he added, rolling his eyes playfully.

Alexa scoffed, playing along, before she shook her head. “You’ve not been so bad” she quipped, her voice softening slightly.

Celia, who was watching the two of them, smiled a little at their interaction before Jorge stepped into the room, a crying Thalia perched in his arms. “I think someone is in need of her mama or papa” he quipped.

“I’ll take her” Alexa mused “It’s about her lunch time. Leo, can you take Zach?” she posed.

Lionel nodded his head dutifully before he pushed himself up, moving to lift the toddler onto his hip.

Alexa spared him a thankful smile before she stepped towards Jorge, collecting Thalia from his arms before she ducked out of the room.

Lionel watched her out of the room before he took the seat that she had vacated, his eyes settling on his mother who grinned at him. “Why are you looking at me like that?” he posed, settling Zachary down on his lap.

“I can’t just be happy for you?” Celia retorted innocently.

Lionel rolled his eyes, something which made his mother smile warmly before she leant across, gently patting his cheek softly. “I really am just happy for you” she quipped “I mean, we could sit here all day and try and figure out just how you managed to miss that girl for as long as you did, but I’m just glad that you got there in the end. She’s always been so good for you” she fussed warmly.

Lionel rolled his eyes, but couldn’t keep the smile off of his face, something which caused his mother to pat his cheek once more. “The sooner you marry her...” she trailed off, her voice warm and teasing.

Lionel let out a soft sigh before he shook his head, diverting his attention towards Zachary who sat happily in his lap, babbling to himself. “It’s a work in progress” he noted “I mean, now that Lia’s here, it’s the next thing to focus on, but I still don’t think it will happen for a little while yet” he added gently.

It wasn’t something they’d talked a lot about, with a lot of focus on preparing for Thalia’s arrival, the prospect of him and Alexa getting married had been pushed to the back of their minds, and whilst it was something he wanted to happen quickly, he doubted that it would. it was big thing, planning a wedding was likely to be something which took some time, and he knew that Alexa wouldn’t want to rush it, even if they’d already been engaged for a little over a year. He had little doubt that she would want to take her time.

Celia noted the shift in his voice, not missing the slight hint of disappointment, before she gently shifted her hand, squeezing his shoulder reassuringly. Lionel glanced over his shoulder, offering his mother a half smile, before Zachary let out a small cry, something which caused him to stand up. “He needs a nappy change” he quipped “You two will be OK for a few minutes?” he asked, looking between his parents.

Celia nodded. “We’ll be fine” she insisted.

Lionel nodded his head gently before he padded out of the room, something which caused his mother to shake her head, hoping that everything would be alright. They were good together, for a long time, everyone had thought that Alexa and Lionel were good together, and she would have hated to watch things falter.