If It Gave Us Time

Softly knocking her bedroom door closed, Isla took in a slightly nervous breath, keeping her eyes fixed on the door for a few seconds before she slowly turned around, eyeing Gerard, who’d moved to take a seat at the foot of her bed, slightly uncertainly. She had wanted to speak to him, from the moment that she had left the café that morning, a part of her had been itching to turn around and go back and talk to him, but now that he was ahead of her, she didn’t quite know what to say to him, something which had led to an uncomfortable silence settling around the two of them, one that Isla wasn’t how to break.

Keeping her eyes on him for a few moments, she shifted her feet slightly before she shook her head, a nervous laugh falling out of her mouth.

Gerard, who’d been staring down at his feet, looked up at the sound of her laugh before he quirked a small amused smile, shaking his head to himself. “You don’t have to look so nervous” he noted.

“I don’t?” Isla replied “I mean, the way you’ve been ignoring my texts since this morning tells me there’s a problem. So...” she trailed off, unsure of what to say next.

Gerard grimaced a little at her comment before he reached a hand up, pushing it back through his hair. “What do you want me to say, Isla?” he asked quietly.

Isla just shrugged, her eyes briefly meeting his before they diverted back towards the floor.

Gerard watched her shift on the spot for a few seconds before he shook his head, closing his eyes for a few seconds. “I know it was stupid to get annoyed, OK?” he announced after a few seconds of silence “I know we’ve only really been out on one proper date, and I know that we’ve definitely not had a conversation about whether or not this is official or exclusive, but it annoyed me, alright?” he added, gesturing between the two of them.

He knew that he had overreacted, as soon as Isla had stepped out of the café, he knew that he’d made a big deal out of something that he had no real right to get upset about, but he hadn’t been able to help it. He knew what he wanted them to be, from the moment that they’d reentered one another’s lives, he’d known that he wanted to take the chance on them that they’d missed out on before, and he had thought that that was what Isla wanted too, but her stuttering over the word ‘boyfriend’ had worried him, even if he was sure that it was just her having been caught off guard. It’d still stuck in his throat slightly.

Isla chewed on her lip, mulling his words over quietly, before she shook her head. “You know me” she mumbled.

“Isla...”

“You know how I am” Isla interrupted “Even after all these years, you know it, Piqué, and if this upset you, then I am not holding out much hope for us. It’s not that I don’t like you, because you know that I do, I just...it’s you” she spluttered out.

Gerard blinked a couple of times, surprised by her interruption, before he tilted his head. “It’s me?” he asked.

“I didn’t think there’d be an ‘us’” Isla explained cautiously “You left, and we stopped talking, and all of the ideas that I had of an us...I grew out of them as I grew up and now you’re here and we’re trying to...we’re an ‘us’ and I haven’t quite got my head around it yet. Of course it’s official, and of course it’s exclusive, but calling you my...my boyfriend, that’s going to take some getting used to. I’m going to stutter over it, and for a while, I am probably going to avoid saying it, but that’s just me and you know that. You’re always telling me that I talk to you like you’re someone else, well right now, you’re looking at me like I am someone else. Like I am not the same girl who giggles uncontrollably when I am nervous, or that can’t shut herself up in awkward silences. This is me, Geri, and you can take me as I am, and deal with my quirks, or you can leave” she added, messing with the hem of her sweater so that she didn’t have to look down at him.

Gerard watched her fingers mess with her sweater, allowing a few long seconds of silence to pass between the two of them, before he pushed himself up to his feet. Taking a couple of small steps, he stopped ahead of her before he allowed his hands to cup her cheeks, guiding her into a soft kiss.

Isla, who’d been staring down at her hands, jumped a little as he guided her into the kiss, but didn’t hesitate in melting into it, something which made Gerard smile against her lips before he pulled back ever so slightly, resting his forehead against hers. “Ok” he mumbled.

“OK?” Isla pressed, frowning gently.

“Ok, you don’t have to call me your boyfriend” Gerard noted “Just as long as we know that’s what I am” he added with a boyish smile.

Isla closed her eyes, smiling gently. “It’s what you are” she mumbled “My...uh...my boyfriend” she added, gently settling her hands on his chest.

“My...uh...my girlfriend” Gerard mocked gently.

Isla looked up at him from underneath her eyelashes, something which made Gerard grin down at her for a couple of seconds before he moved a hand, tucking some of her blonde hair off of her face. “I’m sorry for this morning” he murmured quietly “I mean, I knew how nervous you were about your meeting, and I proceeded to act like a bit of a jerk, and I am sorry about that. How’d it go, by the way?” he asked, moving his hands down towards her waist so that he could hold her close, not quite prepared to let her step away from him yet.

Isla shrugged. “They’ve got a few other meetings this week” she noted “But they said they’d let me know either way before this weekend. I think it went well, but you never know” she added.

Gerard nodded before he quirked another smile, dropping a soft kiss on the top of her head. “They’d be fools not to hire you” he mumbled into her hair.

Isla rolled her eyes gently. “You’re just saying that” she mumbled.

Gerard smiled against her head before he pulled back slightly, preparing to say something else before the bedroom door edged open, causing both him and Isla to turn, glancing at Luna who stood in the doorway, grinning at the two of them who were still happily wrapped up in one another’s arms. “I was taking the fact that I’d not heard yelling as a good sign” she teased.

Isla shook her head, but didn’t try to pull away from Gerard, something which made the defender grin. “Do you mind?” she teased.

Luna held up her hands innocently. “Sorry” she quipped “I just thought I’d let you know that I am heading out with Evan, so you two have the place to yourselves. I’ll not be home until the morning” she added with suggestive smirk before she stepped out of the room.

Isla shook her head before she turned back towards, her cheeks a soft shade of pink.

Gerard marveled at the look on her face before he let out a soft laugh. “I’ll cook” he noted before he pressed a quick kiss against her cheek.

Isla went to object, to tell him that he didn’t have to, but Gerard was quicker, padding out of the room before she had the chance to say anything, leaving her stood smiling to herself for a few seconds before she followed after him, hoping that things were smoothed out between the two of them.