I Know I Was for a While

Stepping quietly into the doorway of his parents’ living room, Lionel quirked a small smile to himself, his eyes settling on Camila who was sat on one of the couches, her fingers gently toying with Oscar’s dark hair as she tried to settle him back to sleep. They had been there for a while, what Lionel had originally intended to be a quick visit had lasted a couple of hours longer than he had thought it would, but he had to admit that he was pleased that Camila didn’t seem to be in a hurry leave, even if she hadn’t relaxed entirely. He was pleased that she seemed a lot less nervous than she had when they’d arrived.

He wasn’t surprised by how welcoming his parents had been, whenever he talked about the prospect of introducing them to Camila, they both seemed to be excited by it, and whilst he wasn’t surprised that they’d welcomed her easily, he was glad about it, knowing that their warm welcome had helped to put Camila at ease almost instantly.

Shifting his weight slightly, he moved to lean against the doorframe for a few seconds before the sound of Camila’s laugh reached his ears, causing him to quirk a sheepish smile before he looked up, admiring the slightly amused expression that had spread across her features. Breathing out a small laugh of his own, he gently shook his head before he stuffed his hands in his pockets sheepishly. “Lo siento” he mumbled “I didn’t mean to disturb you. My madre’s just finished making up a pot of tea and she asked me to come and ask if you wanted anything. She’s baked a cake and everything” he added.

“Really?” Camila asked, diverting her stare away from Oscar and up towards him.

Lionel grinned before he nodded. “She wanted to make a fuss” he quipped “I mean, it might surprise you to learn that it’s not very often that I bring my girlfriend home to meet my parents, and so when I do, she likes to make an effort. She was pretty excited to meet you” he added as he stepped a little further into the room, carefully plopping down into the empty seat beside her.

Camila felt her cheeks warm a little before she turned to look at him, her teeth gently chewing on her lip. “She was?” she asked.

Lionel looked at her for a second, his dark eyes searching her face, before he moved to take her hand, squeezing it softly. “I talk about you a lot” he admitted “The last few months, whenever my mama or papa has called, I’ve tended to find a way to bring you, or Oscar, up in conversation, and I think she was looking forwards to finally being able to put a face to the name” he explained, his thumb gently brushing over the back of her hand.

Camila, who’d been watching the slow movement of his thumb over her hand, smiled gently. “You talk about me?” she asked.

Lionel shrugged, trying, and failing, to distract her from the slightly pink tint which had spread over his cheeks. “I love you” he quipped nonchalantly.

Camila rolled her eyes gently, a slightly giddy grin on her face, before she leant towards him slightly, pressing a soft kiss against his cheek. “I love you too” she mumbled, resting her forehead against the side of his head.

Lionel closed his eyes, quietly enjoying the embrace for a couple of seconds, before the sound of his mother calling his name reached his ears, causing him to huff out a playful sigh before he gently pulled away from her. “Did you want anything?” he asked as he ushered himself back to his feet.

Camila mulled his offer over for a second before she gently nodded her head. “A piece of the cake your mother baked wouldn’t go a miss” she mused.

Lionel nodded. “I’ll be right back” he mused before he padded out of the room, making his way back towards the kitchen.

Stepping into the room, he made a beeline towards the cake which sat on the counter before the sound of his mother clearing her throat reached his ears, causing him to playfully roll his eyes to himself before he turned, offering her an impish smile. “Mama” he greeted.

Celia, who had been placing mugs onto the tray ahead of her, rolled her eyes, but couldn’t stop herself from smiling at the expression that he wore on his face. It wasn’t the first time that she had seen it, since Lionel, Camila and Oscar had arrived at her home, she had caught a bright smile on Lionel’s face more than once, but still it made her smile, glad to see him looking so happy. Watching him for a second, she smiled gently to herself before she shook her head. “You look happy” she mused gently.

Lionel, who’d turned back towards the cake, flinched a little, surprised by the sound of his mother’s voice before he turned to look at her, his smile softening slightly. “You think so?” he asked.

Celia nodded. “I do” she confirmed “Mila and Oscar are clearly good for you” she added.

Lionel breathed out a sheepish laugh, something which made his mother shake her head, a small smile stuck on her face. “She’s lovely” she mused “Mila, that is. You’ve built her up a lot in the last few months, and I was little wary about meeting her, but she’s lovely, Leo, really” she added gently.

Lionel grinned bashfully. “I think she is” he mused shyly.

Celia admired the bashful look on his face for a few seconds before she opened her mouth to say something else, only to be cut off as Camila appeared in the doorway, a sheepish smile of her own on her face. “I’m not interrupting, am I?” she asked “I just got Oscar settled down and I thought I’d come and ask if that cup of tea was still on offer” she added quietly.

Celia nodded. “Of course” she mused “If you head back through to the dining room, I’ll bring it out for you” she added warmly.

Camila flashed her a pleasant smile before she ducked out of the room, something which allowed Celia to turn back towards Lionel, her face warming with a soft grin as she spotted his stare following Camila out of the room. Rolling her eyes lightheartedly, she turned back towards the tray of mugs before she lifted it up into her hands, following Camila out of the room.

She knew that it was still early days, even despite the fact that Lionel and Camila known one another for years, she knew that their romantic relationship was still in its honeymoon phase, and whilst she didn’t want to get too far ahead of herself, she was hopeful that things would work out for them, knowing that they both made each other happy. It hadn’t taken her long to see it, almost as soon as Lionel and Camila had arrived, it had been obvious just how smitten they were by one another, and Celia was optimistic that they could make things last, even if they’d yet to face any major hiccups. There was just something about them which made her hopeful.