If It Gave Us Time

“Why aren’t you dressed yet?” Luna asked as she stepped into Isla’s bedroom, her eyes quickly settling on the blonde who was sat in the middle of her bed, dressed in nothing but a t-shirt and a pair of underwear “You do know that you’re supposed to be at the café in less than an hour, right?” she added playfully before she stepped across the room, pulling Isla’s wardrobe open.

Isla, who’d been staring down at the phone in her lap, rolled her eyes to herself before she looked up, glancing towards Luna who’d started to flick through the clothes which were hung up inside of her wardrobe. “I do know that” she replied “I just...I was thinking about...maybe...not going?” she added, wrinkling her nose at how awkwardly the words had come out of her mouth.

She knew that it was something that Luna wouldn’t want to hear, with her having asked her to set her up a few days previous, she knew that telling Luna that she didn’t want to go was something which was likely to annoy her, but she couldn’t shake the knot in her stomach, no matter how hard she tried, and she knew what it meant for her date, even if she had been the one to ask Luna for a setup. She knew that it was likely to be a disaster.

Luna, who’d been quietly thumbing through the clothes in Isla’s wardrobe, let out a sigh before she turned around, fixing her stare on the blonde woman. “Isla...”

“I know I asked you” Isla interrupted “And I know that you went out of your way to find someone, but...I don’t know...I guess I am just nervous and you know how I get when I am nervous” she added, pushing some of her blonde hair off of her face.

Luna watched her for a second, not missing how uncomfortable she looked, before she shuffled towards the bed, settling down beside her. “You know that this isn’t the first date you’ve ever been on, right?” she quipped, gently taking Isla’s hands in hers.

Isla scoffed out a laugh, her fingers still messing with her hair. “I do know that” she mused.

“Then what are you so worried about?” Luna prodded “You’re going out for coffee with someone. I think even you can get through that without too much damage” she teased.

Isla rolled her eyes gently before she shook her head, her fingers pushing the frames of her glasses back up her nose. “What’s he like?” she asked quietly.

Luna, who’d shuffled back towards the wardrobe, shrugged. “He’s a friend of a friend” she mused “My friend Sofia knows him and from what she says about him, I think there’s a lot about him that you’ll like. Apparently, he’s very funny, not to mention, exceedingly handsome” she added, her voice warm and teasing as she spared a playful wink over her shoulder.

Isla caught her wink before she shook her head, letting out a quiet laugh. “Exceedingly handsome, huh?” she quipped amusedly.

“Sofia’s words, not mine” Luna pointed out quickly.

Isla offered her a dubious look, something which made Luna roll her eyes before she reached into the wardrobe, pulling out a set of clothes before she tossed them towards Isla. “Put them on” she quipped “And then get out of here. It’ll be fine” she insisted before she stepped out of the room.

Isla watched her out of the door, grinning amusedly to herself, before she turned her eyes downwards towards the clothes which she held in her hands, something which caused her stomach to give a familiar turn.

Gently messing with the material of the sweater, she briefly contemplated following Luna and telling her that she didn’t want to go, before she let out a quiet sigh, moving to start getting changed.

~#~
Sipping on the mug of tea that she had bought for herself, Isla shook her head to herself, her blue eyes surveying the nearly empty café in search of the man that Luna had set her up with. She had been sat there for a while, despite her hesitation about going, she had arrived at the café that Luna had selected for her date almost half an hour early, but with the time of the date having been and gone, she was contemplating leaving, almost certain that the man that Luna had set her up had stood her up.

Taking another sip of her drink, she allowed her eyes to make one more lap of the quiet café before she sighed to herself, slipping her phone out of her jacket pocket. Placing her mug down onto the table, she dialed Luna’s familiar number before she pressed the phone against her ear, listening as the call went straight to Luna’s voicemail.

Huffing out another sigh, she listen to the message before she caught the beep, something which caused her to shake her head to herself. “You owe me for this, Luna” she mumbled quietly “I mean, I’ve been sat here for nearly an hour, and I don’t think I’ve seen a guy come in by himself, let alone one looking for his date. Did you give me the wrong day or something? Either way, I’m on my way home. I’ll see you in a bit” she added before she hung up the phone, stuffing it back into her pocket.

Leaning forwards, she quickly finished up her drink, before she shuffled back up to her feet, pulling her jacket back around her shoulders. Sparing a glance down at the table, she made sure that she had everything that she’d bought with her before she shuffled away from it, making her way towards the door. Reaching for the handle, she watched as the door was pulled out of her grasp before she stepped out of the way, allowing a tall man to hurry inside. “Sorry” he mumbled as he sped past, quickly making his way towards the counter.

Isla watched after him for a second before she made a move to leave, only to stop herself as she overheard him speaking to the woman who stood behind the counter. “I’m looking for someone” he noted “I...uh...I don’t know who exactly, my friend set me up on a blind date. Have you seen a woman who looks like she’s waiting for someone?” he pressed.

Isla quirked a slightly amused smile, not missing how flustered he sounded, before she stepped up behind him, her hand lightly tapping his shoulder. “I think you might be looking for me” she mused sheepishly, her eyes peeking down at her shoes.

“You think so?” the man quipped.

Isla nodded and opened her mouth to reply, only to stop herself as she lifted her head, her blue eyes widening as she stared up at him. “Geri?” she spluttered.

Gerard’s lips quirked upward slightly. “Lala?” he breathed.