In the End

36: I Suppose You Could Do Worse

“Have you spoken to Gerard today?” Jacob asked as he slipped into the seat beside Ariella, his eyes briefly glancing down towards the pitch which sat ahead of them. It had been a while, after she had visited for the holidays, Jacob hadn’t seen his daughter face to face for almost four months, but with Barcelona in Madrid for the final of the Spanish cup, Ariella had been quick to invite her father, and her two younger brothers to the match, something the older man hadn’t hesitated in taking her up on. It was rare, with both him and Ariella being preoccupied by other things in their lives, they didn’t speak or see one another as often as he would have liked, and he was keen to make the most of opportunities to see her, even if he knew that she would more than likely have plans to spend the evening with her boyfriend. He was more than happy to have a couple of hours with her.

Ariella, who’d been chatting quietly with Alex and Diego, looked up at the sound of her father’s voice before she nodded, a small smile pulling at the corner of her mouth. “He called this morning” she mused “I mean, we only spoke for a couple of minutes before Leo stole his phone off of him, but he seemed to be alright” she added.

“He’s not nervous?” Jacob posed.

Ariella shrugged. “He didn’t seem it” she replied “Although, even if he was, I don’t think I’d know it. I don’t think I’ve ever seen him nervous” she added, a soft laugh falling out of her mouth.

Jacob smiled at the soft sound before he shook his head, returning his stare towards the pitch as the two teams filed out onto it. “What about you?” he posed “You think they’ve got a good chance?” he added.

“I think so” Ariella replied “I mean, they’ve been in pretty good form, and they’ve already got a couple of wins over Sevilla under their belts this season. I don’t want to be too optimistic, but I think they’re in with a good shot” she added.

“I hope not” Alex contributed with a playful roll of his eyes “Gerard will never shut up about it if they win” he added.

Ariella scoffed playfully. “You know he only does that because you tease him all of the time” she retorted.

“He started it” Diego quipped.

Ariella rolled her eyes. “You know that you love him really” she quipped.

Alex and Diego shared a brief look before Alexa quirked a small grin. “He’s alright” he mused “I mean, as far as guys for your big sister to be dating go, Gerard’s pretty decent. Aside from his taste in football team, you could have done a lot worse than him” he added, his voice warm and sincere. They hadn’t spent much time with the defender, with Ariella living in Barcelona, her two younger brothers had only seen the two of them together from time to time, but still it was enough to know that the defender was good for her, even if Alex and Diego had never paid much attention to the guys that Ariella had dated before. There was no denying that the happiest that they’d seen her coincided with the time that she had spent with the defender.

Ariella, who’d flicked her attention back towards the pitch, smiled a little at her brother’s words. “You really mean that?” she posed.

Alex nodded. “He’s a decent guy” he noted “I mean, even papa likes him, and that’s saying something” he added.

Jacob smirked over the rim of the cup he was drinking from. “I was wary at first” he mused “But he grew on me. He’s a pretty good catch, Ella” he added, nudging her shoulder playfully.

Ariella’s cheeks flushed a light shade of pink before she shook her head, gently gesturing ahead of herself and down towards the pitch. “Do you think we could focus on the match?” she posed.

Jacob chuckled, not missing the blush which had appeared on her cheeks, before he nodded his head, wordlessly noting just how happy Ariella looked.

~#~
Gently wrapping her arms around herself, Ariella stood on the touchline, her blue eyes settled on Gerard who stood a little away from her across the pitch, grinning brightly for pictures with his teammates. It had been a good match, with Barcelona having scored an early goal, the game had been open and free flowing, and it’d made for an enjoyable game, even if Barcelona had suffered a couple of scares. The result had turned out to be a positive one in the end. Tugging the material of her light sweater around herself a little more, she watched him happily for a few seconds before he lifted his head, catching her eye, something which made her blush softly before she flashed him a timid smile.

Gerard smirked a little at her shy smile before he stepped towards her, moving to greet her with a soft hug. “You made it” he enthused warmly.

“You thought I wouldn’t?” Ariella countered, taking a small step back “Even after I made plans with my papa and brothers?” she added playfully.

Gerard offered her a sarcastic smile, something which made Ariella giggle before she pushed herself up onto her toes, pressing a light kiss against his cheek. “Congratulations” she breathed.

Gerard merely grinned at her, something which caused Ariella to lift her hand, self-consciously tucking her dark hair behind her ear as a comfortable silence passed between them briefly. Admiring his smile, she tentatively messed with her hair for a few more seconds before the sound of Antonella’s voice reached her, causing her to turn and greet the other woman warmly.

Gerard took a pace backwards and watched the two of them for a couple of seconds, a fond smile spreading across his face as his blue eyes admired Ariella. Smiling to himself, he allowed them to finish their conversation before he took a step forwards, his hand gently taking a hold of Ariella’s before he turned her back towards him.

Ariella opened her mouth, preparing to complain about him having caught her off guard, but Gerard was quicker, capturing her into a soft kiss that she didn’t hesitate in melting into. Kissing him back, she allowed a soft smile to spread across her face before she gently pulled away from him, her blue eyes mirroring his. “What was that....?”

“Move in with me” Gerard interrupted.

Ariella blinked.

“I know it’s sudden” Gerard noted “And I can see that I’ve surprised you. I can’t think of another time that I’ve seen you speechless” he joked.

Ariella merely stared up at him.

“I’m sorry for just blurting it out” Gerard continued “It’s just...it’s been on my mind. We’ve been together for six months now and...”

“Gerard, come on” Lionel’s voice interrupted “They want some pictures of the whole team with the trophy” he added as he jogged past, patting the tall defender’s shoulder.

Gerard flinched, surprised by the interruption, before he turned back to Ariella, offering her an apologetic smile. “I...I have to go” he breathed “You’re staying at the hotel tonight, aren’t you?” he asked.

Ariella nodded.

“I’ll see you there” Gerard mused before he leant towards her, stealing another quick kiss before he dashed away, joining his teammates back out on the pitch.

Ariella watched him jog away from her before she quietly shook her head, her ears still buzzing with the words that had fallen out of his mouth.
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Thanks to Jayme112234 for the comment :)