If It Gave Us Time

Staring down at the empty mug which sat on the kitchen table ahead of her, Isla let out a quiet sigh, listening to the sound of Gerard’s footsteps as he paced about upstairs. She hadn’t seen much of him, since he’d rushed out of the bedroom earlier in the morning, Isla wasn’t certain that she had actually laid eyes on him again, and it made her a little uncomfortable. there was clearly something bothering him, the look on his face when he’d stepped out of the room had made it more than obvious, but she hadn’t been able to catch up to him for long enough to probe it, even if she had tried to catch him a couple of times. She’d been greeted with muffled excuses that she’d only heard half of before he’d been off into a different room, clearly attempting to avoid being around her.

Closing her eyes, she listened to his footsteps above her for a few more seconds before she shook her head, pushing the chair back slightly as she moved to her feet. Pausing for a second, she briefly thought about leaving things as they were before she scoffed quietly to herself, quickly moving to step out of the kitchen before she made her way up the stairs, finding the room that Gerard was in. Without hesitation, she pushed the door open and stepped inside, something which made Gerard startle before her turned around, his eyes widening a fraction as they landed on her. “Isla...”

“What is wrong with you?” Isla interrupted quickly.

Gerard frowned. “Huh?” he asked.

“What is wrong with you?” Isla repeated “I mean, you’ve been weird with me all morning. Since I woke up, I don’t think I’ve seen you for longer than a few seconds, and every time I’ve tried to talk to you, you’ve made some kind of excuse and left the room. So what is it, Piqué? Because it’s clearly something” she pressed, the tone of her voice difficult to place.

Gerard, who stood a little away from her, watched her for a second, thinking over her words, before he let out a soft sigh. “Sorry” he mumbled “I know I’ve been a little off this morning, and I’m sorry for it. I’m just being silly” he added.

“Silly about what?” Isla pressed.

Gerard quirked a crooked half-smile. “It’s something you said last night” he admitted “I mean, I knew you were drunk when you said it, and I told myself over and over again that you probably didn’t mean it, but then you didn’t mention remembering it and I just...I don’t know, I got myself upset for no reason” he admitted, sheepishly scratching the back of his neck.

Isla blinked a couple of times. “You...you wanted me to mean it?” she spluttered.

Gerard’s expression slackened. “You know what I am talking about?” he pressed.

Isla shifted a little on the spot, trying to come up with something to say, before she carefully pushed her glasses back up her nose, her blue eyes studying his expression carefully. “You asked me to...uh...to move in here with you, officially” she mumbled “And I...I kind of said yes, but I didn’t think that you wanted me to mean it. You didn’t mention it when we were talking this morning and I just...I assumed that you wanted to forget about it. You’re upset that I didn’t admit remembering it?” she pressed.

Gerard shook his head, laughing quietly to himself. “Why wouldn’t I want you to mean it?” he pressed “I’ve been asking you to move in here practically since we got together. Why on earth wouldn’t I want you to say yes?” he pressed, his voice caught between teasing and frustrated.

Isla shrugged sheepishly. “I don’t know” she murmured “Maybe now that there’s a chance that I actually am serious about it, you freaked out” she suggested, more in hope than expectation.

Gerard snorted, an amused smirk on his face. “Why would I freak out?” he pressed.

Isla merely offered him another shrug, something which made Gerard chuckle before he stepped towards her, his hands happily settling on her waist. “Is it possible that you freaked out a little?” he asked, his voice softening a little.

Isla shook her head. “I meant it” she murmured “I mean, yeah, I was a little tipsy when I said it, but I knew what I was saying and I meant it. I want to move in here with you” she added, a faint smile tugging at the corner of her mouth as she looked up at him.

Gerard held her stare, his blue eyes searching hers for a moment, before he tilted his head. “Seriously?” he asked, his voice more than a little surprised.

Isla’s shy smile grew a little, amused by the tone of his voice. “Seriously” she confirmed “I’m happy here, and with things between me and my parents still a little off, I can’t see myself going back to live there, so it’s either here, with you, or I find my own place. I can do that if you’d prefer me to” she added, her voice caught between teasing and cautious.

Gerard shook his head quickly. “I don’t want that” he noted “I just...uh...I don’t want this to be because you’re not happy with your parents. You said it before, when I suggested that you start splitting your time between here and your parents place, you said that you didn’t want us to move in together just because we have to, and I just...I want to be sure that you want to move in here and that you’re not just agreeing because you don’t want to go back to your parents’ place” he added.

There was no doubting that it was what he wanted, almost from the moment that he and Isla had become official, he had taken to suggesting that they move in together, but he wanted to ensure that it was something she actually wanted, not liking the idea of her forcing things forwards between them just because she wasn’t on the best of terms with her mother and father. It had improved slightly, after she had spoken to them for the first time, the tension between them seemed to have eased somewhat, but it still wasn’t entirely fixed, something which had made Isla reluctant to head back to their home, a fact that played on Gerard’s mind. He wanted it, he wanted to love with her, but he wanted her to want it too, not just feel it was necessary.

Isla, who’d started to mess with the bottom of Gerard’s shirt, was quiet for a moment, mulling over what he’d said before she shook her head. “I want this” she murmured “I’ve wanted to tell you that for a little while. Ever since Christmas” she added.

“Lala...”

“I’m still upset with them” Isla interrupted, cutting off what she was sure would be Gerard insisting that she wasn’t making him believe that she meant what she said “And you’re right, there’s a big part of me that’s just trying to avoid going back there, but there’s a bigger part of me that’s just...I’m so crazy about you” she gushed with a soft giggle which was directed down at her feet.

Gerard’s face lit up. “Huh?” he prodded.

“You didn’t just blame my papa” Isla mused “And you didn’t sit here and agree with me. You tried your hardest to make me smile and laugh, and I love that about you. You make me feel better, even when I don’t think it’s going to happen, you say the right thing or make one of those awful jokes, and that’s why I want to do this. Not because of them, but because of you” she insisted, peeking up at him through her eyelashes for a brief moment before she shook her head, shyly looking down at her feet again.

Gerard admired her for a second before he carefully reached out, tipping her chin back slightly so that she looked up at him. “Then we will find some boxes” he mused softly “And we’ll go and grab the rest of your stuff and move it in here” he added.

“Just like that?” Isla quipped, grinning up at him playfully.

“Just like that” Gerard replied with a nonchalant shrug.

“You really want me here all the time?” Isla prodded.

Gerard scoffed. “That’s a question you need to ask?” he quipped, wrapping his arms tighter around her waist.

Isla giggled, her arms wrapping around him as she buried her face in the side of his neck. Gerard tightened his grip on her before he dipped down, kissing the top of her head softly. “I love you” he mumbled gently “And if this is really what you want, then you ought to know that there’s nothing that could make me happier. I’d love it, nena, really I would” he insisted quietly.

Isla turned her head slightly, kissing his shoulder softly. “I love you too” she mumbled softly.