If It Gave Us Time

“You’re sure about this, aren’t you?” Gerard asked as he stepped into the spare bedroom, settling another pot of paint down beside the ones which already resided there. It had been a while, after they’d patched things up between them, a few weeks had passed, and with Isla’s pregnancy progressing quickly, they’d opted to start work on a nursery, wanting things in place for when their son or daughter decided to put in their first appearance. It was still a while away, with Isla barely over six months pregnant, they still had a few months before her due date arrived, but there was no denying that there were both wishing the days away, more than a little excited to see their little family all together for the first time.

Isla, who’d been settling a couple of rolls of wallpaper down onto the floor, quirked a small smile to herself before she lifted her head, glancing at him over her shoulder. “Am I sure about decorating a nursery for our baby?” she retorted playfully.

Gerard rolled his eyes, offering her a playfully pointed look. “You know that’s not what I meant” he quipped “I meant, are you sure about the colour scheme, because if you’re not, now’s the time to say it. I only want to do this once” he added.

“What makes you think I could have changed my mind?” Isla prodded, tilting her head amusedly.

Gerard snorted amusedly. “Maybe because you’re the most indecisive person I’ve ever met?” he played along “I mean, I’ve watched you change your mind after ordering at a restaurant. Is it really out of the question to think that you’re going to be a little indecisive when it comes to a nursery for our baby? What about his name?” he added, his voice softening a little.

Isla offered him another small smile. “Her name” she retorted softly.

Gerard smiled gently before he stepped towards her, gently pushing her glasses back up her nose. “I just want to be sure that you’re sure” he mumbled.

Isla felt her cheeks flush a little as their eyes met before she nodded her head, glancing down at her feet. “I’m sure” she mused.

Gerard offered her a playfully dubious look, something which made Isla rolled her eyes before she pushed herself up onto her toes, pressing a soft kiss against her lips. Gerard smiled gently into the kiss for a few seconds before he carefully drew back, leaning up to press a kiss to her forehead as the sound of the doorbell filled the air around them. “Your papa?” he mumbled against her skin.

“And Rodrigo” Isla chirped “My papa offered to help, and my mama volunteered Rodrigo. I said that it was OK. It is, isn’t it? I mean, it’s practically a rite of passage in my family, but if you wanted it to just be...” she trailed off as she pulled back from him a little, admiring the amused smile that he wore.

“What’s that look for?” she squeaked.

Gerard just shrugged lazily, something which made Isla roll before she leant up, stealing another quick kiss before she stepped away from him, ducking out of the bedroom for a few moments before she reappeared again, her father and brother in tow. “Daniel, Rodrigo” Gerard greeted with a pleasant smile “Thanks for the offer to help” he added.

“Offer?” Rodrigo snorted playfully.

Gerard smirked a little. “Thanks for being too scared of your mother not to show up” he rephrased playfully.

Rodrigo saluted him playfully. “You’re welcome” he quipped “Now, where do you want us?” he added.

Gerard laughed before he gestured towards the paint, something which made Rodrigo nod before he moved to pick it up, pouring a little into one of the trays which sat on the floor.

~#~
“You’ve missed a bit”

Gerard, who’d moved to sit down, smirked a little at the sound of Isla’s voice before he turned, glancing at where she stood in the doorway. “That was probably Rodrigo” he quipped “I mean, don’t get me wrong, your brother’s a great guy, but he’s really useless at decorating. Your papa told me that it took nearly a week to get Arthur’s first nursery finished?” he added.

Isla nodded. “He decided to hang the wallpaper before he’d painted, and ruined it” she quipped “So he had to tear down the first lot of wallpaper, only to hang the second lot upside down...it was just a mess. It was really amazing that they had a room ready by the time Arthur was born” she added with laugh.

Gerard shook his head a little before he shifted his weight, making a space for her at his side. “I thought you were going to be gone for most of the afternoon” he quipped.

Isla sat down beside him before she took a hold of his arm, encouraging him to wrap it around her shoulders. “I was supposed to be” she mused “But I was feeling pretty tired, so I rearranged a couple of meetings for later in the week so that I could come home and take a nap. What about you? I thought my papa and Rodrigo were helping?” she added.

“They went to grab lunch” Gerard replied “They said they’d be back in a bit” he added.

Isla nodded slowly before she turned her head, taking a gander around the room.

Gerard watched her for a second, admiring the expression on her face, before he gently bumped her side. “Well?” he asked.

“Well what?” Isla quipped.

“What do you think?” Gerard asked.

“About the room?” Isla retorted, offering him a sideward look.

Gerard nodded. “I know it’s not made much progress” he quipped “But it’s something, no? Can’t you just picture it when it’s done?” he added, his voice growing a little in excitement.

“You can?” Isla asked, a little in awe of how excited he seemed.

Gerard nodded. “I was thinking we could put the crib over there” he mused, pointing towards a corner of the room “We could put a chair next to it for us to sit in during night feeds. We could put a changing table over there with a wardrobe and maybe get a chest of drawers too. Rodrigo was talking earlier about how much stuff they had when Arthur came along and...” he trailed off as he noticed Isla looking up at him, trying, and failing, stifle her grin.

“What?” he pressed.

“You’re cute” Isla replied, shrugging nonchalantly.

“You knew that already” Gerard countered boastfully “What’s with the smile?” he added.

Isla smiled a little before she shook her head, gently pushing her hair behind her ear. “I guess I kind of like that you’ve put so much thought into things like rooms layouts for the nursery” she admitted “I mean, I know we’re excited about Sprout coming along, but we’ve not really thought about things like that, and I...I like hearing you talk about them” she added, nudging her glasses shyly.

Gerard watched her mess with her glasses before he leant across, touching a light kiss to her temple. “I like the name Elijah for a boy” he mumbled as he moved to lean his head against her temple “And Maddison for a girl” he added quietly.

Isla merely closed her eyes, grinning softly.

Gerard took a couple of seconds to admire her smile before he leant up again, kissing her head softly. “We’re having a baby, Lala” he teased softly.

Isla laughed softly before she turned to look at him, her blue eyes mirroring his. “Yeah, we are” she mused “You think we’re anywhere near ready for the chaos that’s going to bring?” she asked.

Gerard shook his head. “Is anyone ever ready for it?” he quipped “I mean, we’re probably better prepared than Rodrigo and Cara were, so that’s good, right?” he teased.

Isla just smiled at him, something which caused Gerard to lean towards her again, pressing kisses to her forehead and nose before he leant back slightly, his lips ghosting over hers. “We’re going to be fine” he mumbled “I mean, it’ll take some getting used to, but me, you and Sprout? We’re going to be fine, Lala. I know it” he added.

Isla’s eyes flicked between his eyes and his lips before she quirked a faint smirk. “You say that now” she mused “But this baby’s half Piqué and you were a nightmare as a kid” she teased.

Gerard scoffed. “Because you were so perfect?” he played along “This kid’s half Vasquez too” he added.

Isla grinned. “You’re right” she mused “We’re so screwed” she joked.

Gerard laughed. “Screwed?” he quipped “No. Our kid’s going to be amazing” he added brightly.

Isla playfully pushed Gerard’s shoulder, something which allowed the defender to catch her hand, pulling her into a soft kiss that she didn’t hesitate in reciprocating before the sound of footsteps coming up the stairs reached their ears, causing Isla pull back. “I really should go and take that nap” she mused.

Gerard helped her back to her feet before he smiled at her. “Dulces sueños, Lala” he mused as she stepped out of the room.