Chapter One

~Montserrat~

She rushed around the house, making everything was in perfect order. She passed Aina, who was stretched out on the ground with her pug, Gamper. On the couch not even a foot away, Leo sat watching them, his attention fully on her. She didn’t stop to watch the happy couple, heading into the kitchen.

Olivia was putting the finishing touches on some pastries she had made. “Are you doing alright dear?” she asked. The chef looked up, nodding with a nervous smile.

Montserrat nearly groaned as she heard the doorbell rang, and hurried back past Aina and Leo, neither having seemed to have noticed that the guests had arrived. She finally reached the door, and opened it to greet Olivia’s parents, both of whom looked entirely uncomfortable in the Catalan capital, let alone at the house of the parents of a Barça player. Both smiled unsurely.

“Welcome,” she said, waving them in, “I’m Montserrat, Gerard’s mom.” They walked back through the living room, and she was relieved to see Aina had pulled herself up on the sofa, taking Gamper with her. Both of the visiting adults seemed to recoil momentarily at the sight of Leo.

She encouraged them along as they looked back at the famous Argentine until they reached the kitchen.

Olivia had forced herself to sit, though she stood once more to hug her parents. Gerard had joined her, and rose as well, since it was his first time meeting her parents.

“It’s nice to finally meet you. I’m Gerard,” he said, extending his hand to her father, Daniel. The older man shook his hand firmly, looking up at the tall footballer. “I’m Antonia,” her mother said, also shaking his hand. They all lapsed into a stiff silence, glancing among one another.

Montserrat wanted to pull out her hair at how awkward everything was going.

The quiet was broken when Aina strolled through, walked right passed the adults, and opened the refrigerator. She fished out a bottle of water, and walked by again, Gamper following her closely. She smiled at them, then disappeared.

“Thanks for inviting us over,” Antonia said, speaking up at last. “It’s our pleasure,” Montserrat replied, wondering what magically got the other mother talking, not that she was complaining. Gerard fell into conversation with Daniel, and Olivia just looked relieved that all was going fairly well.


~Olivia~

Had Aina not given a reminder of the conversation that occurred back in the United States, Olivia was sure that no one would have started talking, and they might have been standing there for hours.

They had moved to the living room. Her parents were sitting on the loveseat, she was with Gerard and his mom on the sofa, and Joan sat in the chair. Aina and Leo were on the floor, playing with Gamper, not really participating in the conversation, though she was sure that her friend was listening, just in case, since she would occasionally stiffen at a slightly offensive comment.

“So how long have you been together?” asked her mom. Gerard answered, “It’s been about a year and a half now.”

“And how did you meet?” her dad asked. “Oh, I live in the same building as Aina, and I met Gerard visiting her one day. Things just went from there,” she answered softly though truthfully.

Immediately all eyes were on Aina, who looked up, “What?” “You live in the same apartment building as our daughter?” her mom asked skeptically. The blonde nodded, “Yeah, it’s a pretty nice building in a nice neighborhood. I’m afraid she had to suffer my horrible cooking as a welcome present.” Olivia smiled at her friend’s ability to diffuse almost everything, including her parent’s obnoxious questioning.

She just hoped that more wouldn’t follow.

But of course her parents were not so kind to her. “So, Aina, are you close with other players?” her mom asked, and Olivia instantly recognized the implication. Gerard caught it too, and stiffened.

The female only offered a passive smile, “Of course, I’ve known a lot of them since childhood since Gerard was in La Masia with a good number of the players – that’s the advantage of a home grown system. I do know all of the players personally, especially since I often went to functions with my brother when he wasn’t dating. Of course, I’m closer to some than others.” She elbowed Leo gently in the side, not even blinking as she insulted the Madrid system lightly.

She glanced over at Gerard, and saw the proud gleam in his eye, and she smiled. She was glad that her parents weren’t getting the satisfaction that they were seeking.

She didn’t regret telling them of the pregnancy, especially since they would have otherwise heard from the press.

She was, however, beginning to believe that she didn’t want them around for longer than just visits, because it was obvious that they were far from trying to bridge the gap. She wasn’t even sure she could call what they were putting out effort. She was going to enjoy the time they were there, but she wasn’t going to mourn the day they left either.


~Leo~

He was honestly relieved to return back to his house after Olivia’s parents went to their hotel for the night. He had to put up with passive aggressive remarks from them almost the entire time, though Gerard got it worse than he did.

Olivia had done her best to tame them, but no matter how much she tried to quiet them, they spoke right over her. The only person who seemed capable of rendering them speechless was Aina, either with a sharp look or an ever sharper comment.

He watched as she set Gamper down on the sofa, petting his head lightly.

Even though she hadn’t completely moved in with him, she almost had. She slept there over eighty percent of the time, and most of her stuff had been moved from her apartment. Even Gamper’s stuff had begun to appear around the house.

He watched as she grabbed her things, and walk over toward the bedroom. He followed, scratching the back of his head. “You ok?” he questioned as she shrugged off her coat. She nodded, “It takes more than some bitter Madridistas to ruin my day.” He chuckled, and pulled her into a hug.

Aina pulled back when her phone rang, and glanced at the caller ID. She frowned before answering, “Hello?” There was a pause, and she pulled away from the hug completely, frowning even deeper. “I’ll be right over,” she said, and then hung up.

“What’s going on?” he asked, worried.

She sighed, running a hand through her hair, “Liv is not feeling well, and Geri is clueless.” He nodded, grabbing his keys and coat. “You don’t have to come,” she said, grabbing her own jacket. “I am though,” he responded, following her out the door.