Until You Met Me

Lightly tracing the line of Gerard’s jaw with the tips of her fingers, Molly’s lips lifted into a sleepy smile, her eyes studying his sleeping face. She didn’t remember how they had ended up falling asleep on his sofa. They had spent a long time talking, as well as laughing at the letters that Molly had written to him when he had been in England, and she remembered vaguely telling him that she needed to get home, but it clearly hadn’t worked, and when she had woken up a handful of minutes previous, she had found herself curled up against his side, his hand gently settled against her back. It was a sight that she had missed, and whilst she knew that she had to wake him up, and that they still had things that they needed to talk about, she couldn’t resist the chance to sit there and watch him for a minute. She had missed him.

Ghosting her hand over the side of his face, she gently pushed his hair back off of his forehead before she leant up, touching a gentle kiss to his skin. “Gerard” she murmured softly.

Gerard stirred a little, his arm tightening around her waist slightly, before his eyes blinked open. “Hm?” he murmured.

Molly smiled at him gently, her fingers still playing with his hair. “Hi sleepy” she said “Do you think you can let me go?” she asked.

Gerard blinked slowly, his expression still sleepy, before he tightened his arm around her waist, hugging her close. “What time is it?” he prodded.

“A little before seven” Molly replied “But I need you to take me home so that I can get ready for work and be on time. You can come straight back here and nap for the rest of the day if you want to, but I need to leave soon, so I need you to wake up” she added, poking his side as she watched his eyes flutter closed again.

Gerard let out a noise in surprise, something which made Molly laugh softly before she pried his arm away from her waist, allowing her to sit up. Gerard reluctantly followed after her, his eyes surveying the array of envelopes that was still scattered across the coffee table, before he gently took a hold of Molly’s hand, stopping her from stepping away from him.

“Are you OK?” Molly asked concernedly.

Gerard was quiet for a moment, gently twining their fingers together, before he nodded his head, gently pulling her hand to his lips so that he could press a gentle kiss to it. “I’m good” he mused “Just glad that you’re here. It is going to sound dramatic, but this place doesn’t feel the same without the risk of walking into my living room and finding you randomly sitting here” he added impishly.

Molly’s answering laugh was warm and bright, and a sound Gerard knew he couldn’t tire of hearing. “You complained about me having a key for years” she countered “And now I haven’t got one, you’re still complaining. Are you ever satisfied?” she added, her voice warm and playful.

Gerard grinned up at her boyishly, something which made Molly shake her head before she stepped back towards him, pressing another soft kiss against his forehead. “I really need to get home” she murmured “But, if you’re free tonight, you could come over. We could have dinner, carry on that conversation that we started last night. Figure out what we are now” she added, drawing back to study his expression for any sign of a flinch.

They had made progress. The box of letters that was still scattered across the table ahead of them had gone a long way to prove the depth of Gerard’s feeling to Molly, as had his admission that he wanted everything that she was prepared to give to him, but still Molly wanted to talk about it a little more, hoping that the more that they talked about it, the quieter the little worries she still had got.

She had been relieved. When Gerard had announced that he wanted her, her immediate reaction had been one of overwhelming relief, but there was still a little part of her that was unsure. It had only been a handful of days since she had been sat in front of Gerard, watching him look away from her when she asked if he thought that they had made a mistake, and there was a part of her that needed to hear him say, definitively, that he didn’t.

Gerard must have seen the concern on her face, because his impish smile grew softer and almost apologetic as he nodded his head. “I can pick you up from work if you want me to” he said “We can pick up some food on the way through, and then we can talk” he added.

Molly smiled at him gently. “I think I would like that” she mused.

Gerard looked up at her for a long moment, marvelling at her smile, before he pushed himself up to her feet, capturing her in a soft kiss that Molly didn’t hesitate to melt into. Wrapping her arms around his shoulders, she allowed him to draw out the kiss for a few long moments before he drew back, lightly brushing his nose against hers. “I love you” he murmured softly “I know I have done a bad job of showing it, but...”

“I love you, too” Molly interrupted “And I just...I just want to make sure that we’re really on the same page. Last night was good. You showed me a lot of what I needed to see from you I just want to be sure, OK?” she asked.

Gerard’s eyes searched hers before he nodded, something which caused Molly to push herself up onto her toes, pecking his lips gently before she stepped away, insisting that she really did need to get going. Gerard watched her as she moved around his home, marvelling at how at home she looked in his space, before he trailed after her.

He knew that they still had things to talk about. The conversation that they had had the night before, as good as it had been, hadn’t been enough, and he knew that Molly would need more reassurance that he was as serious about their relationship as she was, and he was prepared to give it to her. He was willing to do anything he could to prove that he wanted to be with her for as long as possible.