Until You Met Me

Sipping on her mug of tea, Molly sleepily scrolled through the messages on her phone, her lips quirking upwards into the ghost of a smile as she spotted one from Poppy, making reference to the news of her engagement. It was starting to settle in. When she had woken up that morning, and spotted the ring on her finger, she had still been awed by the sight of it, but, mostly, she had just been happy.

She had thought that it would happen eventually. On the one occasion that they had discussed it seriously, Gerard had told her that it was something he wanted, and she had told him the same thing, and whilst she had envisaged them waiting a couple of years, and had been terrified that she would feel it was too soon if he asked earlier, she had had only one answer when she had been stood in front of him. She loved him, she saw her future with him, and when it started made no difference. She just wanted them to be together.

Setting her mug down onto the counter, she typed out a quick reply to her sister’s message before she felt a hand settle against the small of her back, something which caused her to look up, smiling softly at Gerard. “Morning” she said.

“I thought you’d left already” Gerard mumbled, ducking down to kiss her forehead.

Molly’s fingers twisted into the material of his t-shirt, keeping him from putting too much space between the two of them. “Where would I have gone?” she asked “I told you yesterday. I have no plans but spending time with you for a few days” she added.

“That was before this, though” Gerard quipped, the tip of his finger tracing the ring on her finger “Honestly? I thought your mother would have gotten to you by now” he added, his lips lifting into a playful smirk.

They weren’t in a hurry. Gerard's proposal had come out of the blue, and it had come along a lot sooner than either he or Molly had expected, but he doubted that that was going to stop people from asking about when a wedding was likely to follow. He knew how excited everyone was for them. It had been more than obvious when they had shared the news with their parents, and whilst he and Molly weren’t in any kind of rush, he knew that people around them would try and push. They had wanted to see them happy, and together, for a long time, and now that it was official, they were more than ready to celebrate.

Molly rolled her eyes. “It’s not even nine in the morning yet” she pointed out.

“She doesn’t have to call” Gerard countered, padding towards the fridge “She could have emailed you a few helpful wedding hints” he added.

“I haven’t heard from her since yesterday” Molly said “She isn’t going to be that bad, you know. I mean, yes, she is going to want to be involved, but I am pretty sure she’ll let us do things in our own time. She’s just happy for us” she added.

Gerard held up a hand in apology. “I know” he said “And I am happy that she is happy” he added.

Molly flashed him a small, appreciative smile before she picked up her drink again, allowing a comfortable silence to settle between them as Gerard padded around the room, making a start on breakfast. For a moment, Molly just sat and watched him, marvelling at how comfortable they were around one another, before she diverted her stare down towards her cup, fiddling with the handle for a beat before she spoke. “Can I ask you something?” she asked.

Gerard, who’d been pouring himself a glass of juice, glanced over at her, his expression growing slightly apprehensive. “What’s up?” he asked.

“Nothing’s up” Molly replied “I just...I think there’s stuff we need to talk about now that we’re engaged” she added.

Gerard's first instinct was to flash a grin and make a joke, but the stern look that Molly sent in his direction stopped him. She knew him too well. Huffing out a laugh, he leant against the counter, nodding his head. “OK” he quipped “What do you think we need to talk about?” he asked.

“Where are we going to live?” Molly asked “How long an engagement are we going to have? Is it going to be a big wedding, or something smaller and more intimate? Take your pick” she added.

Gerard blinked a couple of times, slightly caught off guard by the barrage questions, before he blew out a long breath. “The engagement stuff...We’ve been engaged for twenty four hours, Molly” he replied “And I know it is going to sound like procrastinating, and I know how much you hate that, but I really think that that is a conversation that can hold for a little while. I know that that isn’t very you, but is there any harm in just...just being engaged for a little while?” he asked.

Molly’s expression softened as she shook her head, a shy smile tugging at the corner of her mouth. “No” she said.

“We can talk about living arrangements if you want to, though” Gerard quipped.

“Have you thought about it?” Molly asked.

“A little” Gerard answered “I like where I am, but I know that you like where you are. That’s about as far as I got” he added, smiling helplessly.

Molly let out a soft laugh. “You don’t want to move into my one bedroom apartment?” she asked.

“I would do” Gerard answered “But one bedroom? You don’t think we’re going to need more than that?” he asked.

Molly tilted her head, trying, and failing, to hide her smile. “Is that your way of asking if we’re going to have a baby, Gerard?” she asked.

“Are we?” Gerard asked.

“I hope so” Molly answered.

“Then one bedroom isn’t enough” Gerard said “And I am pretty sure that you’re not going to want to commute from here every day, so, I guess we’re going to have to go house hunting. Let’s just...let’s not rush it, though. We will find something, I want us to find something, but I don’t want us to get overwhelmed trying to make everything happen quickly. I like us, Molly, where we are right now, and I...”

“I don’t want to lose it, either” Molly finished for him “I want to move forwards, but I am not in a hurry to lose sight of us. We’ll do things one step at a time, OK?” she asked.

Gerard's answering smile was a little relieved. “OK” he agreed.