When We Were

“Luca?” Lionel prodded quietly as he stepped into the bedroom doorway, his stare landing on the little boy who was sat next to Emilia, gazing at Maisie who was still asleep in her crib. He still couldn’t quite believe how well Luca had taken everything. He had been worried, when he and Emilia had first gotten together, Lionel had been concerned that Luca would come to resent him for taking some of his mother’s attention, and he had assumed that his reaction to Maisie would be similar, but in the handful of days that had passed since the little girl had arrived, Luca had been nothing but the doting older brother, something which had been a pleasant surprise to both Lionel and Emilia. He seemed to adore being around Maisie, whenever he could, he would spend his time sitting with his mother and sister, and Lionel knew how much Emilia loved it, even if she hadn’t said anything. The beaming prideful smile that she wore spoke volumes.

At the sound of Lionel’s voice, both Emilia and Luca looked up. “Yeah?” the little boy asked.

“You’ve got to get dressed for school” Lionel mused.

“Now?” Luca protested.

“If I am going to drop you off on time, yeah” Lionel replied with a grin.

Luca sighed before Emilia leant over, kissing the top of his head softly. “You’ll be home before you know it” she mused “And, when you do get home, nana and grandpa will be here. You’ve missed them, no?” she prodded.

Luca seemed to think about the question for a second before he nodded.

“Then that’s something to look forwards too. We might even get a hold of Uncle Jordi too” Emilia noted “But right now, I need you to go and get dressed. You can come and say goodbye to Maisie before you go, yeah?” she asked, gently smoothing out his slightly scruffy hair.

Luca let out a reluctant noise before he gently pushed himself off of the bed, padding out of the room.

Lionel watched him up the hall before he turned back to look at Emilia, his own smile mirroring the one which had been quick to light up her face. “He loves her” he fussed.

Emilia nodded her head, unable to stifle her wide grin. “He really does” she cooed.

Lionel marveled at her for a second before he shuffled towards the bed, sitting down at her side. Settling in, he watched Maisie sleep for a few seconds before he felt Emilia’s head against his shoulder, something which caused him to lift his arm, gently wrapping it around her. “Your parents have finally decided to give in and come and visit, have they?” he prodded as he turned and kissed the top of her head gently.

Emilia let out a quiet laugh. “They were being polite” she retorted “They both know that as soon as they get here, my mama’s going to go overboard, and they wanted us to have a few quiet days before that happened” she added.

Lionel smiled against her hair. “How bad can Marcella be?” he mumbled.

Emilia sat up to look at his face, her eyebrow raised amusedly. “She hasn’t seen Luca since the summer” she noted “She’s not seen me face to face since I moved here, and I’ve just given birth to her second grandbaby. You mix all of that together, add the fact that she adores you anyway and that she’s not had the chance to fuss with me over Sam and Jordi’s baby, and you’ll realize how grateful you were to have a few days that were just the four of us” she added with a smirk.

Lionel playfully pulled a face. “Should I just stay out of the way?” he asked.

Emilia gently nudged his ribs, a slight pout on her face. “If I have to be here, you do too” she noted.

“They’re your parents” Lionel retorted.

“They’re your potential in-laws” Emilia tossed back.

Lionel arched an eyebrow, something which made Emilia’s cheeks flush a light shade of pink. “What?” she squeaked.

“Nothing” Lionel replied, a faint smirk pulling at the corner of his mouth. It was the first time Emilia had mentioned something to do with marriage, and he didn’t want to press it. If it was going to happen, then it was going to be a while.

Emilia’s blush turned a shade deeper, but before she had the chance to say anything, Luca plodded back into the room, his school backpack on his shoulders. “Can I say bye to Maisie now?” he asked.

Emilia blinked a couple of times before she nodded, shuffling away from Lionel slightly to make room for Luca between the two of them. Luca quickly filled it, gently resting his head against Maisie’s crib before he reached his hand through the railing, his hand tentatively brushing Maisie’s. “I’ll see you later, Maisie” he cooed softly.

Maisie stirred in her sleep, her blue eyes opening for a second, something which Luca grin proudly. “You’re lucky you don’t have to go to school” he noted “I’d love to stay here all day” he added.

Lionel laughed. “She’ll have to go one day, buddy” he mused.

“Yeah, but not now” Luca argued “I have to go now” he added.

“Yes, you do” Emilia confirmed “And you should get a move on. You’ve got school, Leo’s got training” she added.

Luca huffed before he pulled his hand back, shuffling back to his feet.

Emilia smiled at him gently before she pulled him towards her, hugging him gently. “Have a good day, baby” she cooed.

Luca huffed, a pout on his face. “Maisie’s the baby now” he noted.

“You’re still my baby too” Emilia replied with a cheesy grin.

Luca let out another huff, something which made Emilia laugh before she pressed a kiss against his cheek. “See you later, Luca” she mused.

Luca padded out of the room before Lionel leant over, pressing a kiss against Emilia’s lips. “I’ll see you later?” he prodded.

Emilia smiled up at him shyly, nodding her head slightly.

Lionel flashed her a warm grin before he turned, leaning over the frame of Maisie’s crib to press a kiss against her head. “Don’t run your mama too ragged” he mumbled as he gently stroked the fine dark hairs on the top of her head “She’s got to deal with nana Moretti later. You don’t know it yet, but that’s a huge deal” he added.

Emilia let out a laugh, shaking her head. “Get out of here, Lionel” she quipped.

Lionel pressed another kiss to Maisie’s head, smiling gently as her blue eyes opened again, before he pulled away and turned back to Emilia, stealing another soft kiss before he jogged out of the room. Pulling the door to behind him, he felt his smile soften a little as he heard Emilia muttering to Maisie, before he moved to catch up with Luca, his head still not entirely around the fact that Maisie had arrived.