When We Were

“Baby, are you ready to go?” Emilia called as she sat down onto the couch, moving to pull her shoes onto her feet. They were running a little late, with the football season having reached its second international break, she had made plans to collect Lionel from the airport once Isaac had collected Luca from her apartment, but with the doctor having yet to show up, she was starting to feel a little anxious. They seemed to be getting along alright, after she had introduced Isaac to Lionel, she had been worried that Isaac would react badly, but if anything, things felt better between the two of them, something Emilia was relieved by, knowing that her and Isaac being on good terms was likely to beneficial to Luca.

“Is papa here yet?” Luca prodded as he wandered into the living room, glancing up briefly from the tablet he held in his hands.

“Not yet” Emilia replied, tying the laces of her trainers “But I want you to be ready when he does get here. Is everything in your bag?” she asked.

“Yes” Luca replied as he climbed onto the couch next to her, his eyes still fixed on the cartoon which played on his tablet.

“You’ve got shoes on?” Emilia prodded.

Luca nodded.

“Did you pick up a sweater?” Emilia asked.

Luca hesitated for a second before he sighed, something which made Emilia smile softly before she leant over, pressing a kiss against the top of his head. “Go and find one” she mumbled into his hair.

Luca huffed a little before he shuffled off of the couch, padding back towards his bedroom. Emilia watched him go, giggling a little to herself, before the sound of her phone ringing caught her ears, causing her to shuffle it out of her pocket and press it against her ear without so much as a glance at the screen. “Hello?” she noted.

“I’m so sorry to call at the last minute” Isaac’s voice replied, his tone soft and apologetic “I would have called sooner, but this is the first chance I’ve had all day. Emmy, I can’t come and get Luca tonight. I can’t take him for the weekend, either” he added quietly.

Emilia glanced up at the hallway, making sure that Luca wasn’t coming, before she shook her head, sighing quietly. “Isaac...”

“I got stuck covering a shift” Isaac interrupted “We’re short staffed, some cold is doing the rounds and a few of the doctors are out and are due to be out all weekend. I said I’d help to cover, but it means that I can’t get away. I know it’s last minute, and I am sorry for that. I should have called you sooner” he added apologetically.

Emilia closed her mouth, sitting quietly for a couple of seconds before she pushed her hair back off of her face. “OK” she murmured softly.

“OK?” Isaac asked.

“Yeah, OK” Emilia repeated gently “I mean, if you can’t get away then you can’t get away” she added.

“Emmy...”

“It’s fine, Isaac” Emilia cut in slightly abruptly “I’ll see you next week, yes?” she asked.

“Yeah, I will see you then, Emmy” Isaac replied softly.

Emilia nodded her head to herself, ending the call before the sound of Luca’s footsteps reached her ears, causing her to turn her head, watching as he stepped back into the living room, struggling to pull a sweatshirt over his head. Smiling gently, she pushed herself out of seat before she tugged the sweater down, revealing Luca’s face. “So” she cooed “Your papa isn’t coming. He’s stuck at work” she added, smoothing out his messy hair.

Luca’s expression softened. “Oh” he breathed.

Emilia kissed his forehead gently. “I have something else in mind” she murmured “You remember Uncle Jordi’s friend Leo?” she asked tentatively.

Luca nodded.

“Well, he’s a friend of mine too” Emilia noted “And he’s just come back from Barcelona. I was going to go and pick him up at the airport. Would you like to come with me? We were going to grab some dinner too, maybe some ice cream” she added, offering him a hopeful smile.

Luca’s eyes lit up. “Ice cream?” he asked.

“If we’ve got time” Emilia quipped with a little shrug.

Luca grinned and nodded his head, something which made Emilia smile gently before she took his hand, leading him towards the front door. She was apprehensive, introducing Luca and Lionel officially was a big step for a relationship which was still slightly tentative and hesitant, but part of her wanted to do it, not just so that she didn’t have to miss out on spending time with the footballer, but also because it meant a lot to her that the two most important men in her life got to know one another.

~#~
Anxiously checking his phone for what felt like the hundredth time, Lionel fiddled with the strap of his bag, trying to squash the little bubble of doubt that had started to grow in the pit of his stomach. He knew that Emilia was coming, when they’d talked on the phone a couple of days previous, she had insisted, despite his playful protestations, that she would pick him up from the airport, but with the minutes ticking by, he couldn’t seem to stop himself from worrying that she had changed her mind. It’d been better, despite the two of them still being slightly uncomfortable with the distance, the weeks between his trips home seemed to have passed quicker, and he was excited to see her, something he hoped she shared in too, even if she’d said it more times than he could count. He doubted that he would relax until he found himself stood ahead of her.

Pressing the home button on his phone, he watched the screen light up before he felt a light touch against his arm, something which caused him to turn, his greeting smile faltering slightly as he looked down towards Luca who’d stopped ahead of him, a wide grin on his face. “Luca” he breathed.

“Hola!” Luca greeted brightly.

Lionel felt his smile grow a little wider. Luca’s enthusiasm was infectious. “I wasn’t expecting you” he quipped “What’ve you done with your mama?” he added.

“She’s coming” Luca replied “She’s just slow” he added.

Lionel laughed.

“Luca, what’ve I told you about running off?” Emilia asked as she reached the little boy’s side.

“I didn’t run off” Luca replied “I found Leo” he added, pointing at Lionel.

Emilia blinked a couple of times before she offered Lionel a sheepish smile, her cheeks already glowing a light shade of pink. “I didn’t see you there” she mumbled “I was so busy trying to find him. He’s...”

“Too quick for you?” Lionel finished for her, an impish smile on his face.

Emilia laughed softly. “Yeah, something like that” she mused “Anyway, I’m sorry I’m late. Isaac didn’t call until the last possible minute. But we made it” she added.

Lionel smirked. “I told you that you didn’t have to come” he quipped.

“And I told you I was going to come anyway” Emilia replied just as playfully.

Lionel laughed, his stare moving between Luca and Emilia for second, something which made the brunette smile at him softly, wordlessly apologizing for catching him off guard. Lionel shook his head before he smiled down at Luca. “Are you hungry?” he asked.

“Mama said I could have ice cream” Luca replied.

“I said we’d see” Emilia corrected him.

“Ice cream sounds good” Lionel noted.

“Leo wants ice cream too” Luca chirped “Now we have to get it” he added, tugging on Emilia’s sleeve.

Emilia nodded, a doting smile on her lips. “I suppose I’m outvoted” she noted.

Luca grinned before he started to walk away, leading Emilia and Lionel towards the exit. Lionel quickly fell into step with Emilia, his fingers skimming the side of her hand, before he leant over, pressing a brisk kiss against her cheek which turned her skin a deeper shade of pink.