In the End

13: You Know The Answer To That

Pushing a hand back through his dark hair, Gerard attempted to style it slightly, his blue eyes studying his reflection in the bathroom mirror. It had been a while, after the dinner that had seen Ariella introduce Adrian to him and their friends for the first time, he couldn’t quite recall another time that he had gone out with his friends, but with Cesc having flown out to Barcelona for the evening, he, Lionel and Gerard had made plans, something the defender was hesitantly looking forwards to.

He had missed it, with things between him and Ariella being as they were, he’d opted to try and give her a little space by ducking out of opportunities to spend time with their friends, but with her having departed for Madrid, he had been quick to accept Lionel and Cesc’s offer of a boys’ night out, even if he was pretty certain that the topic of the brunette would be one which arose quickly in conversation. He was kind of looking forwards to a night out with his friends.

Passing his hand back through his hair once more, he adjusted a few wayward strands before the sound of the doorbell snipped into his ear, causing him to let out a small sigh before he spared another glance towards the mirror, scanning his appearance quickly. Nodding his head to himself, he moved to collect his wallet and keys from his bedside table before he padded down the stairs, pulling the front door open to Cesc who greeted him with a warm grin. “You took your time” he quipped “I was starting to think that you’d opted to bail on us” he added.

Gerard, who’d moved to pull on his jacket, offered the midfielder a shrug. “It crossed my mind” he quipped “But, it’s been a while. I guess I can grace you with my presence for a couple of hours” he added, a boyish smirk stretching across his face.

Cesc snorted out a laugh before he shook his head, wordlessly noting just how nice it was to see a grin perched on his friend’s face. He knew that he was still struggling, after he had departed back to London for the start of the new season, he had ensured that Lionel kept him in the loop as to how the defender was doing, and Lionel had told him that he still wasn’t quite himself, even if he did keep trying to pretend that it wasn’t bothering him. He still seemed to be stuck on Ariella. “Come on” he quipped “Leo’s meeting us in town. We’re going to grab a couple of drinks” he added.

Gerard quirked a smile. “That sounds like a plan” he quipped.

Cesc mirrored his smile before he reached up, patting the taller man on the shoulder before he stepped ahead of him, making his way towards the waiting taxi, hoping that the night ahead of them was a good one for his friend. It was something that he needed, after all that had happened, a night to relax was something he was in need of, and Cesc hoped that he enjoyed it, even if it was inevitable that the topic of Ariella arose in the conversation. He was hopeful that it wouldn’t ruin the night for the defender.

~#~
Tracing the pattern of the label which was attached to the beer bottle in his hand, Gerard quirked a soft smile, watching as Lionel and Cesc playfully bickered beside him. It had been a good night for the three of them, with none of them having training the following morning, they’d been keen to make the most of the night off, and Gerard had to admit that he was glad that he’d gone, even if he had caught one or two thoughtful looks from the other two which he knew signaled their want to ask about a certain brunette, he was pleased that he had opted to go along with them.

Lifting the bottle to his lips, he took a long sip before his eyes caught sight of the bartender who had stopped beside their table, placing another bottle down onto the table’s surface. “We didn’t order anything” he quipped.

“I know you didn’t” the bartender replied “I was asked to give this to the guy with the nice eyes by the blonde by the bar” he added, gesturing towards a pretty blonde woman who sat a little away from them, subtly watching the interaction.

Gerard followed the line of the bartender’s gesture, his blue eyes briefly catching the blonde’s, before he quirked a small thankful smile, something which caused her to smile back at him before she turned away, resuming talking to the group of women who sat around her.

“Aren’t you going to go over there?”

Gerard, who’d returned his stare towards the bottle which he held in his hand, startled slightly at the sound of Lionel’s voice before he looked up, a small frown pulling at the corner of his mouth. “Huh?” he posed.

“Aren’t you going to go and talk to her?” Lionel rephrased “I mean, you could at least thank her for the drink” he added encouragingly.

Gerard quirked a small smirk, amused by Lionel’s encouragement, before he shook his head, taking another sip from his drink. “I don’t think so” he quipped.

“Why not?” Cesc asked.

Gerard shrugged. “Because I am not interested” he retorted simply.

Cesc tilted his head. “You’re not?” he posed “I mean, she’s a pretty good looking girl...”

“You know that I’m not interested in anyone, Cesc” Gerard repeated, cutting the midfielder off “At least no anyone else” he added, his eyes settling on his hands once more.

Cesc and Lionel shared a glance before the Spaniard sighed, something which made Gerard shake his head, his blue eyes narrowed on the other two. “You don’t think I know that it is stupid?” he muttered “You don’t think that there is a part of me that wants to walk over to that woman and pretend that I am not still incredibly hung up on my ex? I know that you’re trying to help, and I appreciate that, but I will work through this my way and right now, that doesn’t include talking to some woman I don’t know, not when I am still trying to get over the woman that I thought I’d end up with” he added, his voice softening slightly. He knew that they were only trying to help, that their encouragement to talk to the other woman was only an attempt to distract him from Ariella, but he didn’t want to go through with it, not when he knew that he was nowhere near over Ariella. He didn’t want to simply use the woman as a distraction.

Cesc sighed. “Lo siento” he murmured.

Gerard shook his head. “You don’t have to apologise” he quipped “I know that you mean well” he added.

Cesc smiled half-heartedly. “You’re still hung up on her, aren’t you?” he posed.

Gerard didn’t hesitate in nodding. “You know the answer to that” he quipped.

“And you don’t want to try and move on?” Lionel posed “Even if it is only for a one night stand?” he added.

Gerard shook his head. “Not right now” he quipped “I mean, eventually, that’s the aim, but not right now. I spent two years getting to know her, falling in love with her, and I am not just going to get over it straight away. It’s still a bit too hard for me to think of being with anyone that’s not her” he explained.

Lionel nodded thoughtfully.

“Have you heard from her since she got to Madrid?” Gerard posed, sipping on his drink.

“Antonella spoke to her” Lionel replied “She called Ariella the other day and they spoke for a while. She’s enjoying spending time with her papa and her little brothers” he added with a faint smile.

Gerard quirked a grin, one that had always been especially reserved for Ariella, before he shook his head. “I’m glad” he quipped.

Cesc and Lionel shared another look before the argentine sighed. “You want her back?” he posed.

Gerard glanced up at him, surprised by the question, before he dropped his head, shrugging his shoulders. “I don’t know how well that would work out” he mumbled.

“That’s not what I asked” Lionel countered “If she changed her mind, if she wanted to give things another shot, would you want to?” he asked.

Gerard hesitated for a moment, mulling the question over, before he quirked a small smirk, pushing a hand back through his hair. “What do you think?” he quipped.

Lionel quirked a sideward smile. “You really do love her, don’t you?” he quipped.

Again, Gerard didn’t hesitate in nodding before he pushed himself up to his feet, pulling his jacket around his shoulders. “You know the answer to that too” he quipped “I should get going. Leo, I’ll see you at training. Cesc, it was good to see you, hombre” he added, offering the pair of them a brief hug before he strode away from the table, making his way towards the exit.

Lionel watched him go for a second before he shook his head, hoping that whatever happened next to the defender was good for him.
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Thanks to FootieJo for the comment :)