There Was You

Stuffing his hands into the pockets of his shorts, Iker lifted his head, sparing another glance towards Riley’s door which stood ahead of him before he shook his head, letting out a quiet sigh to himself. He had been stood there for a while, after the way that things had ended between them the night before, he had wanted to make sure that they were still alright, but he hadn’t quite worked up the nerve to knock on the door, even if he had stepped closer to it on a couple of occasions. He hadn’t quite found the stomach to knock.

He knew that it hadn’t been the right moment, when Riley had looked up at him and asked him to stay, he knew that the only answer he could have given her was no, and whilst he knew that she knew why he’d said it, he wanted to ensure that it hadn’t cause a problem for them. He knew that it would happen, with things between him and Riley progressing, there was going to come a moment where they took the decision to spend the night together, but the previous night hadn’t been it. It was too soon, too new, and Iker didn’t want to rush things.

Closing his eyes, he took in a deep breath before he took a couple of steps forwards, gently knocking his hand against the door a couple of times before he stepped back, waiting patiently for a few seconds before it swung open.

Marisol, who was stood inside the apartment, quirked a grin as she pulled the door back, not missing how sheepish the keeper looked. “Iker” she greeted.

“Marisol” Iker breathed “I was...I didn’t know... what are you doing here?” he stumbled out

Marisol laughed gently, amused by his stuttering, before she shrugged. “I bought Riley breakfast” she mused “My wedding pictures came back from the photographer and there’s some great ones of her in there so I thought I’d bring them over for her. What about you? Couldn’t stay away, huh?” she teased.

Iker choked out a small sound, his cheeks flushing pink, before he shook his head, shyly fixing his stare on his feet. “It’s not like that” he said quickly “I just...I wanted to talk to her about something, but you know what? It can probably wait. I should...”

“Iker?”

Iker blinked a couple of times, surprised by the sound of Riley’s voice, before she stepped into view, greeting him with a slightly timid smile. “Hi” she squeaked.

“Hi” Iker breathed, just about stopping himself from leaning over and greeting her with their familiar hug.

Riley lifted her eyebrow slightly, a little surprised that he hadn’t moved to hug her, before Marisol cleared her throat, rolling her eyes playfully. “Aren’t you going to come in, Iker?” she asked.

Iker reluctantly pulled his eyes away from Riley before he shook his head, offering Marisol a small sheepish smile. “It’s fine” he quipped “I just... I only wanted to talk to Riley, and it’s something that can wait. You two should...”

“You’re more than welcome to join us” Riley interjected softly “I mean, if you want to, of course. Marisol always brings too much food for just the two of us, so I am sure we could spare something for you to eat. You don’t have to stay, but if you did want to, that’d be OK, wouldn’t it, Marisol?” she posed, glancing up at her friend for confirmation.

She knew that it hadn’t been Marisol’s intention, the wad of unlooked at wedding photographs which sat in Riley’s living room made that clear enough, but part of Riley wanted Iker to stay, even if he and Marisol did already know another. Spending time with her friends, even if they were already his friends, was just another little part of integrating him in to her life.

Marisol didn’t hesitate in nodding. “Of course” she mused “I’d love to get to know Riley’s new boyfriend” she added impishly.

Riley rolled her eyes gently at Marisol’s teasing before she turned back to Iker, offering him a small smile. “So?” she asked.

Iker hesitated for a second before he nodded his head, not able to stop himself from smiling back at her. “OK” he noted.

“Great” Marisol announced “I’ll go serve up breakfast. You two can kiss or whatever you usually do when you open the door to one another that I clearly interrupted by being here” she added, flashing a cheeky smile over her shoulder as she skittered away towards the kitchen.

Riley rolled her eyes before she turned back towards Iker, her cheeks glowing a soft shade of pink. “I’m sorry about her” she mumbled.

Iker shrugged nonchalantly. “It’s nothing I haven’t seen before” he quipped.

Riley nodded her slowly. “You needed to talk to me about something?” she asked.

“I was just...last night was...”

“It was the right thing to do” Riley interjected softly.

Iker opened and closed his mouth a couple of times, something which made Riley giggle softly before she stepped towards him, pressing a soft kiss against his lips. “It wasn’t the right moment” she mumbled “I knew it as soon as I said it, and you were right to stop it. Not that I didn’t want to, I did, it just...”

“Wasn’t the right moment” Iker finished for her, a gentle half-smile quirking the corner of his mouth upwards.

Riley breathed out a soft laugh before she nodded her head, timidly pushing her hair behind her ear. “We’re good?” she asked.

Iker nodded before he leant towards her, only to stop when the sound of Marisol clearing her throat reached his ears, something which caused him to gently roll his eyes before he pulled away, turning towards where Marisol stood in the door way, trying, and failing, to stop herself from grinning amusedly at them. “Sorry” she quipped “I didn’t meant to interrupt” she added.

Riley shook her head, offering her friend a playfully dubious look. “Don’t lie, Mari” she quipped.

Marisol just flashed her another impish smile before she gestured over her shoulder. “Come on” she mused “You can make out later” she added.

Riley snorted, mumbling a comment about having seen more than her fair share of Marisol and Nuno being all over one another, before they followed her through towards the living room. Plopping down onto the couch, Riley collected the mug of tea which sat on the coffee table before she sat back slightly, watching as Marisol collected the stack of pictures, flicking through them as she talked about them animatedly. Taking a sip of her drink, she felt a light touch brush against her other hand, something which caused her to smile into her drink, sparing a glance at Iker out of the corner of her eye before she dropped her stare, watching his fingers gently brush hers. Smiling to herself, she gently turned her hand over, allowing him to knot their fingers together before he squeezed her hand.

Marisol, who sat opposite them, glanced between the two of them, admiring the giddy smiles that they wore, before she gently cleared her throat. “Ry?” she prodded.

Riley looked up at the sound of her name. “Hm?” she asked.

“Weren’t you telling me about some work party you’re going to tomorrow night?” Marisol asked.

Riley frowned momentarily, slightly confused by why Marisol was asking, before she caught her friend’s glance, seeing that she was sending it towards Iker, something which caused Riley’s face to brighten in realization. “Our boss is leaving” she noted “They’re throwing him a party to say goodbye. Would you...would you maybe want to come with me? I mean, if you don’t want to, that’s fine, I just thought I’d extend the invitation. Other people are bringing their...their partners and I thought...” she trailed off, smiling shyly to herself.

Iker watched her for a moment, marveling at how timid she still got around him, before he gently squeezed her hand. “I’d love to go” he noted.

“Really?” Riley asked.

Iker didn’t hesitate in nodding. “Sure” he quipped “I mean, if you want me there, then yeah, I’d like to be there” he added with a little smile.

Riley just grinned at him, something which made Marisol, who was still watching the two of them, smile too, certain that whatever it was that was between them was something good for them both.