Spn Gabriel Imagines & Preferences

Right Time Part 2

I decided it would be best to break up with Connor before we left for the convention. And I did, but he didn't seem all that bothered by it. Which, not gonna lie, kinda hurt. Like, eight years together and he can't bring himself to care. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be. I walk into Rich's house and it is surprisingly quiet. I find him in the living room "Hey, where is everyone?". "At Rob's, he has a trampoline. Ayla fell asleep on the sofa, though. So I brought her upstairs, is that okay?" He replies. I nod "Yeah, of course". Rich frowns "Hey, are you okay?". I sigh "Not really, I broke up with Connor. It was a lot easier than I thought it would be. He didn't try to stop me or... anything. He just agreed and didn't seem all that bothered. He didn't even want to see the kids". He stands up from his seat before sitting next to me. Then he pulls me closer to him without saying a word. I frown "Am I crazy to be this upset?". He shakes his head "No, of course not. Via, if he acts like that, then he didn't deserve you in the first place. He should care about you, he should love you and your kids. He should be more in love with you with every passing day. And he should be doing everything he can to make sure you know that. But if he doesn't do anything like that, then it's not your problem. And you shouldn't feel bad for leaving him if it's for your happiness".

I rest my head on his shoulder and he rubs my arm comfortingly. "Richie, that isn't the problem. I... I don't think I was ever in love with him and that both scares and confuses me. I don't regret having kids, I never would. I just think I had them with the wrong person" I admit. He nods, kissing my head "Don't worry, Via. I'm always gonna be right here. And you know, you're allowed to start over-". He is interrupted by a loud crash from upstairs. I immediately sit up when I remember Ayla is upstairs. Forgetting about our conversation for the moment, both of us stand up and quickly head upstairs.

We go into the spare room and Rich turns the light on. I see Ayla on the floor, crying. I gasp before rushing over to her. I pick her up and sit on the bed with her "Ayla, sweetheart. What happened?". She sobs into my chest "Fell". Rich joins us on the bed. "I think she tried to get out of bed, but it was too high for her" I sigh. He nods "Does anything hurt, munchkin?". She whimpers and points to her knee. There's a graze from the carpet and a bruise is forming. I see a graze on her elbow too. I rub her back a little "You're okay, sweetie". "Hey, Ayla. I have a magic trick that makes these grazes disappear. You wanna see it?" Rich offers her. She lifts her head to look at him, then nods. He smiles "Okay, come on then".

Rich carries Ayla to the kitchen sink and sits her on the counter while I sit at the island. "Okay, stay there, sweetheart. I'll be right back" He tells her. I smile slightly, watching as he goes into a cupboard. He gets plasters and a pair of scissors. There's no real need for plasters, but it's more for effect. He goes back over to Ayla and puts everything on the counter. She pouts and he chuckles softly "Okay, munchkin. For this to work, you need to put your feet in the sink". Ayla furrows her eyebrows, then giggles "That's silly, Richie". He smiles "I guess it is, yeah. But it'll help, I promise". She nods before turning herself so that she is sitting with her feet in the sink. Then Rich brings the tap over and turns the warm water on. It splashes her knee and she flinches "Ouch". "Shh, it's okay, munchkin. Just a few more minutes", He tells her softly. As I watched them, I realised Rich was right the other night. Connor wouldn't care this much. He wouldn't even have gone up with me to see if she was okay. He wouldn't just drop whatever he was doing to show her a 'magic trick' to make her feel better. Rich has always been like that though. He's always been there for me.

He is twelve years older than me, he was best friends with my brother growing up and still is. But he's still always cared about me. I remember he always came with my brother to pick me up from school and they took me to get ice cream. They offered to beat up anyone who teased or made fun of me. One time I had accidentally locked myself in the bathroom. My parents were out of town, it was just me and my brother and he had gone out. He sent Rich to check up on me when he tried to call and I didn't answer. He came and sat outside the door. He made me laugh and kept me calm until my brother came back and was able to get me out.

And now, Ayla isn't even his child. But he treats her and Daniel like they are. I watch how he interacts with her. While he washes the grazes on her knees and elbow, he distracts her from the sting by telling her jokes and making her laugh. Then he makes them 'disappear' by making her close her eyes and sticking plasters over them. I smile slightly. After a few minutes, I am brought out of my thoughts when he starts talking to me. He chuckles a little "What?". I shake my head "Sorry, what did you say?". He smiles "Never said a word, Via. But you looked pretty deep in thought there". I nod "Oh, right... where's Ayla?". He sighs "Kinda been dragged into playing dress-up. Tell me, think I look pretty enough?". I chuckle "Good luck with that, Richie. She takes dress-up rather seriously". He winks at me "Oh, well... then it's a good thing I do it for a living". I laugh, watching as he leaves the room. I shake my head, smiling. And that's when I realised it never was Connor I was in love with.
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W.S