If It Gave Us Time

“Is there anything else you’d like me to capture?” Isla posed as she glanced away from her camera, offering a pleasant smile towards the couple who stood ahead of her. It had been a long day, despite the fact that the wedding was a small one, Isla had been kept busy for most of the day, and she was looking forwards to finishing, more than ready to get off of her aching feet.

“I don’t think so” Camille mused “Eduardo?” she posed.

“I think we’ve already covered everything” Eduardo replied “I think you might be done for the day, Isla” he quipped, offering her a pleasant smile.

Isla smiled gently in return before she moved to settle her camera down, allowing her to gently shake the newlyweds’ hands. “I’ll have these printed as soon as I can” she mused “Congratulations, you two. It was a really lovely day” she enthused gently.

Eduardo and Camille shared a small smile before they excused themselves, stepping back into their reception.

Isla watched after them, marveling at how happy they looked, before she turned to clearing up her equipment. It wasn’t a first for her, since she had started her work as a wedding photographer, she had attended various weddings for people she had known since her childhood, and whilst she was pleased to see that things were working out for those around her, it still stuck in her throat slightly, knowing that it was likely to be a while before she found herself in a position to be planning a wedding.

She didn’t want to rush things, with Gerard and her having been together for less than a year, and the baby only a matter of months from coming along, she knew that any prospect of an engagement was way off, but still she couldn’t help but let her mind wander towards it, even if she knew that they didn’t have to push things along quickly just for the sake of it. A small part of her couldn’t help but wonder if it was a thought that had crossed Gerard’s mind too.

Shaking her head to herself, she carefully placed her camera back into its case before the sound of someone clearing their throat reached her ears, causing her to lift her head, her eyes settling on Sergio who stood ahead of her, a glass of champagne and a glass of orange juice held in his hands. “I just ran into Camille and Eduardo” he announced softly “They told me that you were done, so I thought I’d bring you a drink. The champagne’s for me obviously” he teased boyishly.

Isla smiled despite herself, something which caused Sergio’s small smile to widen a fraction before he stepped across the room, tentatively offering the glass of orange juice out towards her.

Isla took it out of his hand before she sipped at it, offering him a small grateful smile. “Gracias” she mused “I needed this” she added.

Sergio, who’d moved to perch on the table which held her equipment, offered her a small shrug. “I figured” he quipped “I mean, have you actually stopped at any point today?” he asked, a knowing smile on his face.

Isla rolled her eyes, pushing the frames of her glasses back up her nose as she tried, and failed, to distract him from the soft blush which had started to creep along her cheeks. “I’ve got assistants” she played along, resting against the table next to him

Sergio rolled his eyes playfully. “I bet you still do most of it yourself” he quipped “You’ve always been a perfectionist, Lala. I can already picture you standing behind your boyfriend, yelling at him whilst he tries to decorate the nursery” he added, hesitating a little before the word ‘boyfriend’ fell out of his mouth.

Isla’s expression softened a little before she shook her head, her eyes settling on the bump which was noticeable beneath her shirt. “Sergio...”

“Why’d you have to be with him?” Sergio mumbled ruefully, cutting her off.

Isla sighed, gently pushing her glasses up her nose again. “Why does it matter to you?” she asked “I mean, seriously, Sergio, it’s been years and now...”

“I broke up with my fiancée” Sergio mumbled, interrupting her again “I’d been with her for years and things were going great, but as we got closer and closer to the wedding, I started to really think about spending the rest of my life with her and I...I realized that I wasn’t quite as in love with her as I thought I was. You see, I’ve dated a lot, but never have I really felt the way I did about you, about anyone else, Lala” he admitted, turning his head slightly so that their eyes met.

Isla held his stare for a second before she shook her head, returning her stare to her stomach. “That can’t be true” she murmured.

Sergio smiled tenderly. “You’re still useless at accepting compliments” he quipped.

Isla sighed. “Sergio” she warned softly.

Sergio held up his hands innocently. “Sorry” he mumbled impishly.

Isla offered him a half-hearted smile before she shook her head, returning her stare back down towards her feet. “I love him” she mumbled after a few seconds “Gerard, that is. That’s why I am with him. And even if I wasn’t with him, I don’t think that this would work, Sergio. We had our good times, I can’t deny that, but it just...we weren’t quite what I was looking for. I really did fall for you, but like you said about you and your fiancée...” she trailed off, stuck for the right thing to say.

Sergio exhaled a sigh, quietly allowing her words to settle in, before he nodded his head slowly.

“I’m sorry, Sergio” Isla squeaked, breaking the uncomfortable silence “I just...I don’t want to give you the wrong idea by suggesting that if Gerard wasn’t in the picture, that there’d be some kind of hope for us. It’s...we’re...it’s not like that” she added, flinching a little at how harsh the words sounded to her.

Sergio caught the flinch in her expression before he shook his head, offering her a brief rueful smile before he leant towards her, gently brushing his lips against hers. Isla startled, surprised by the kiss, but Sergio was quicker, deepening it for a couple of seconds before Isla finally came to her senses, shoving herself away from him. “Wh...what was that?” she spluttered.

Sergio scratched the back of his neck sheepishly. “A last ditch attempt to change your mind?” he suggested.

Isla just shook her head, not able to find the right words to respond.

Sergio stood up and stepped towards her. “Isla...”

Isla put her hands up, stopping him from getting closer. “Get away from me, Sergio” she mumbled.

“Lala...”

“Just go, Sergio” Isla snapped “Please, just go” she added, her voice softening a little as she looked up at him.

Sergio hesitated for a split second before he nodded his head, quietly slipping out of the room.

Isla watched him go before she shook her head to herself, still trying to wrap her head around the kiss. Letting out a sigh, she pushed the tips of her fingers back through her hair before she felt her phone buzz in her pocket, something which caused her to slip it out, a lump quickly forming in her throat as she read the cute little message that Gerard had sent to her, asking when she was going to be home. Staring at the text for a few seconds, she felt her stomach twist before she closed her eyes, knowing that she had to tell Gerard what had happened.