If It Gave Us Time

Gently sipping on the glass of wine that she had bought for herself, Isla spared a glance towards the door of the restaurant, patiently awaiting Luna’s arrival. It had been a little while, after the date that she and Gerard had been out on, she’d not seen him for a couple of days, and whilst she had tried to make plans for another date, Gerard had appeared a little uncertain, something Isla was certain was connected to his accidentally having said ‘I love you’ to her. It had been a surprise to her, for a moment, after the words had tumbled out of his mouth, she hadn’t been able to quite believe that he had said them to her, but before she’d had the chance to respond, he’d seemingly taken them back, something which had led to her saying nothing at all, not wanting to admit that she felt the same way if saying it to her was something that he regretted.

Watching the door for a few seconds, she watched as Luna stepped through it before she offered her a small wave, a half-smile tugging up the corner of her mouth.

Luna grinned at her in return before she shuffled towards the table, plopping down into the seat opposite Isla. “Hi” she mused “I’m sorry I am a few minutes late, but I’ve just spent the afternoon with Evan’s mother and sister. They’re very keen on the two of us starting to make plans, so they tend to pop round to the apartment and it’s pretty hard to get them to leave once they get there. Have you been waiting for me for long?” she asked, neatly hanging her jacket on the back of her chair.

Isla shook her head, taking another sip of her drink. “Five or ten minutes” she replied simply.

Luna quirked an eyebrow, noting that Isla hadn’t made an attempt to make a joke, but didn’t say anything, instead opting to collect a menu from the stand at the end of the table. “So” she mused “How is it being back at your parents?” she asked.

Isla scoffed quietly. “It’s exactly as I thought it would be” she mused “My madre can’t resist treating me like a teenager, and my papa’s still a little awkward about the whole thing, but it’s not too terrible” she added playfully.

“You sure?” Luna pressed “Because if it is...”

“It’s fine, Luna” Isla mused “Besides, I am sure that you and Evan have appreciated the privacy” she added with a suggestive smirk.

Luna scoffed, but didn’t say anything to refute it, something which made Isla giggle before she shook her head. “Have you started to make plans?” she asked after a beat of quiet.

Luna’s expression lit up, but she tried to act nonchalant, shrugging her shoulders gently. “We’ve started on a few little things” she noted “I mean, we’re both pretty keen on things happening pretty quickly, so we’re looking at narrowing down a date in the next few months. We’ve started on a guest list, which reminds me, should I be including a plus one with your invitation?” she asked.

Isla let out a small nervous laugh, gently bumping her glasses back up her nose. “That depends” she mused “Would Gerard and I actually have to be in the same place?” she asked.

Luna frowned. “What?” she asked.

Isla shrugged. “I’m being dramatic” she mumbled.

“You?” Luna noted “Never” she added sarcastically.

Isla glared at her for a second before she shook her head, letting out a soft sigh. “He kind of told me that he loved me the other night” she admitted quietly.

Luna’s expression softened into a light smile. “Really?” she asked.

Isla nodded, trying, and failing, to hide the little smile that tugged at the corner of her lips. “He sort of just babbled it out” she mused “And when I didn’t say anything back to him...he kind tried to make out like he didn’t say it, so I didn’t say it back to him. I mean, you should have seen him, Luna, he was more awkward than I’d seen him in a long time, and I didn’t want to make it worse by saying it back to him just in case he hadn’t meant to say it all. Does that make any kind of sense at all?” she asked.

Luna nodded her head slowly. “You think he regretted it?” she asked.

Isla shrugged. “I don’t know” she replied “I mean, he didn’t mean to say it then, and then he tried to back track on it, but I don’t know if that means he regrets saying it, or whether he’s worried that I don’t feel the same way. Either way, I tried to make plans for us to meet up and do something either tonight or tomorrow, but he sounded pretty reluctant earlier when I called him” she added, shyly twisting a piece of her blonde hair around her finger.

Luna watched her for a second, thinking over what she had said, before she gently shifted her foot, nudging it against Isla’s beneath the table. “Do you feel the same way?” she asked gently.

Isla, who’d moved to take another sip of her drink, hesitated for a second before she settled the glass down onto the table, a goofy smile flooding her features. “He’s an idiot” she mused “But yeah, I feel the same way. I love him, Luna” she added, her voice warm and giddy.

Luna marveled at the smile which lit up Isla’s features for a moment before she shuffled out of her seat, moving to wrap her jacket around her shoulders. “Did you drive?” she asked.

Isla frowned. “I took a taxi” she mused “Why, where are we going?” she asked.

Luna grinned at her. “You’re going to tell that boyfriend of yours that you love him” she announced before she grabbed a hold of Isla’s hand, tugging her back to her feet.

“I’m going to do what?” Isla squeaked.

“You’re going to tell him” Luna repeated “What’s the point in waiting?” she asked.

“What if he didn’t mean it?” Isla protested “I mean, it was...”

“He meant it” Luna interrupted quickly “Isla, it’s so obvious that he meant it. He loves you, anyone who’s ever seen the two of you together could tell you that. He is in love with you” she added, her voice softening as a slow smile spread across her face.

Isla stared at her for a few seconds, her blue eyes searching her face, before she nodded her head gently. “OK” she mused softly.

Luna grinned at her before she squeezed her hand, guiding her out of the restaurant.

~#~
Running a hand back through his hair, Gerard padded through the hallway, his ears filled with a soft repetitive tapping which emanated away from the front door. He had been having a quiet night, after he had rejected Isla’s invitation to grab dinner, he had settled himself down to get a little work done before he prepared himself dinner, but the knocking had caught his ear, even if it was quiet and tentative, he had still managed to hear it from his spot in the office down the hall. Ruffling his hair slightly, he reached for the front door handle and pulled it open, the complaints that he had prepared faltering slightly as his eyes met Isla’s.

“Lala” he breathed “I...uh...I wasn’t expecting you” he added.

Isla smiled up at him. “That’s hardly surprising” she quipped “You know, since you’re avoiding me” she added.

Gerard shook his head. “I’m not avoiding you” he replied “I just...I had things to do” he added.

Isla quirked an amused eyebrow. “Things to do?” she asked “What ‘things’?” she teased.

“Isla...”

“What you said the other night” Isla interrupted “Did you mean that?” she asked.

Gerard blinked, surprised by both the interruption and the question, before he shifted his feet slightly, mumbling something she didn’t catch beneath his breath.

Isla smiled a little, amused by how nervous he looked, before she stepped a little closer to him, her hands gently cupping his face so that she could coax him into meeting her eyes. “I love you” she murmured quietly.

Gerard’s eyes widened a fraction. “What?” he spluttered.

“I love you” Isla repeated.

Gerard stared down at her for a few seconds, allowing the words to hang around them, before he breathed out a small laugh, something which caused Isla to lift an eyebrow. “Me loving you is funny?” she teased gently.

Gerard shook his head. “No” he replied “I just...that’s a happy laugh. You love me” he added.

Isla smiled up at him and nodded, one of her thumbs gently tracing the line of his cheekbone. “That I do” she confirmed “And you...?” she trailed off.

Gerard scoffed playfully. “My awkwardly announcing it to you the other night didn’t make it obvious?” he joked “Of course, I love you too, Lala” he announced.

Isla bit her lip gently, trying to stifle her smile slightly, something which made Gerard grin down at her before he leant forwards, pressing his lips to hers tentatively. Isla felt his slight hesitation and moved one of her hands, knotting her fingers with his before the sound of a car horn reached her ears, causing her to pull away, giggling softly. “Sorry” she murmured “That’s Luna. She’s my ride” she added.

Gerard gently rested his forehead against hers. “Have I mentioned that I hate your roommate?” he mumbled teasingly.

Isla giggled before she pushed herself up onto her toes, pressing a quick kiss against his lips. “I’ll be right back” she mused “Providing that you’re done with avoiding me, of course” she added between teasing kisses.

Gerard scoffed, but didn’t say anything, instead kissing Isla softly once more before she jogged away, mumbling a quick conversation with Luna through her car window before she made her way back towards him. “Dinner?” she announced.

Gerard grinned and nodded. “I’d love to” he agreed.