Until You Met Me

Letting her hands slip off of the steering wheel, Molly leant back into her seat, exhaling a soft breath that shook a little as it escaped her. It hadn’t taken her long to get there. After she had talked to Ava, she and Poppy had returned to Poppy’s home for just as long as it took Molly to pack up the things she had left scattered around the spare bedroom, but now that she was sat outside of her home, the excitement that she had previously felt had dissipated, leaving a knot of anxiety twisting painfully in the pit of her stomach. She knew that it was where she wanted to be. The conversations that she had had with Ava and Gerard had confirmed to her that the mistake was Ava’s, and that there was no reason for her to feel any less sure of Gerard’s feelings for her, but still she was hesitant to climb out of the car, not entirely sure of what waited for her on the other side of the front door.

Lifting a hand, she gently rubbed her forehead, giving herself a moment to compose herself before she heard something knock against the window, causing her to flinch before she looked up, finding Gerard looking through the window at her, a small, shy smile on his face. Blinking a couple of times, she allowed her eyes to search his face for a moment, noticing how tired he looked, before she gently pushed the car door open.

Gerard took a step back, making space for her to climb out of her car. “You’ve been out here for a while” he commented.

Molly pushed the door closed with a slightly embarrassed laugh, keeping her back to him. “You noticed that?” she asked.

Gerard smiled down at his feet. “I might have had an eye out for your car” he answered “Just in case” he added.

Molly closed her eyes at his answer, drawing in a breath that she let out slowly, before she finally turned to look at him. “I am sorry” she whispered “I...I know I have left you here, waiting on me, and I am sorry for that. I just needed a little time to...”

“To think” Gerard finished for her “I know, Molly. I wasn’t taking a shot” he added, offering her a small reassuring smile.

He knew why she had pushed him away, and he wanted her to know that he understood it, even if he had missed her. She had been hurt by what had happened, and she had needed the space to figure out what to do next. She had needed to get her head around what had happened, who was to blame, and whether or not there was any chance that they could recover from it.

Molly blinked at him, something which caused Gerard to smile slightly before he took a couple of steps backwards, settling down on the doorstep. “Sit with me?” he asked.

“You don’t want to go inside?” Molly asked.

Gerard replied with a small shrug. He knew that she was nervous and he didn’t want to overwhelm her, even if the house that they were stood in front was the one that they shared. He was prepared to take things one step at a time if it meant helping Molly to relax a little.

Molly tilted her head slightly before she moved towards him, settling on the step next to him.

For a few moments, neither of them said anything. Molly’s stare was fixed on her feet, and Gerard’s was fixed on her, studying her like it was the first time that he’d seen her. She looked tired, and her eyes were red, like she had been crying not that long ago, but that wasn’t what captured his attention. Almost immediately, his stare settled on the ring that sat on her finger. “You’re wearing your ring” he said gently.

Molly looked down at her hand, gently pushing the ring around her finger. “I didn’t know what to think” she said “When you told me what had happened between you and Ava. I couldn’t get my head around it. I couldn’t figure out how I had missed her feelings for you. It made me feel naive. It makes so much of what’s happened between me and her make so much more sense, and I couldn’t understand how I missed it. I got scared, too, because this...this keeps happening and for a second I...I didn’t know if I was brave enough to fix it again” she admitted.

Gerard didn’t say anything, but he did gently take Molly’s hand in his, squeezing it gently.

“Every time this gets good, someone does something stupid” Molly continued “We’ve both been culpable, and for a second, I couldn’t be sure that I had it in me to fix it again, not knowing if we were going to mess it up again” she added.

“We don’t just mess up” Gerard argued softly “You say it like we’ve only had bad moments. Like there haven’t been amazing ones, too. There could still be amazing ones to come” he added.

“Gerard...”

“I know that it hasn’t been easy” Gerard interrupted “And I know that I have played a big part in that. I have been hesitant at times, too hesitant. I have stuck my nose into things, and made things worse. I don’t always think before I do, but I don’t want to just quit, Molly. I want this. I want you and me. I want to live in this house with you. I want to plan a wedding with you, have children with you. I love you, Molly” he added.

Molly, who’d been gently toying with his fingers, swallowed before she looked up at him. “You were stupid” she murmured “Trying to fix things with Ava. I know you think you were doing the right thing but...”

“But it wasn’t my business” Gerard interrupted “I didn’t understand the full situation. I shouldn’t have interfered and I am sorry for that” he added.

“I spoke to her” Molly murmured “Ava” she added.

“And what did she say?” Gerard asked.

“That you couldn’t have stopped the kiss any faster” Molly answered “That you never even thought about lying to me. That all you wanted to do was hurt me as little as possible because you are always trying to do the best by me. She told me that all you want is me” she added.

Gerard gently tucked her hair behind her ear before he traced her jaw with his thumb. “I love you” he said gently.

Molly’s eyes searched his face for a long moment before, finally, her lips quirked into a soft smile. “I love you, too” she whispered “And, if it is OK with you, I would really like to come home. I want to be where you are” she added.

Gerard’s answering laugh was soft, something which made Molly smile before she leant up, gently brushing a thumb over his cheek. Gerard’s eyes closed at the touch, relishing it, before he felt Molly’s lips brush over his, something which caused him to let out a soft sigh of relief before he gently cupped the back of her head, drawing her into another kiss that neither one of them hesitated to sink into, losing themselves in one another.