In The Darkest Hour

Part Two - Chapter Twenty-One: Surprising Gerard

Isla took a deep breath as she kept a tight hold of Milan's hand, she didn't want to lose the little boy when they had only just arrived in Manchester; she was a little nervous about being in the strange city. 

Gerard had no idea that his girlfriend and son had flown out a week earlier than planned to be with him, Isla hadn't wanted to put it off any longer and she wanted nothing more than to get settled in the English city. 

"Mama," Milan whispered holding his hands up wanting to be picked up, it had been a long trip for the toddler and the day wasn't over yet; she was hoping that Milan would be okay until they got to the apartment. 

Isla turned her focus to the stadium before her, she picked Milan up and balanced him on her hip; she was a little grateful for the fact that no one seemed to recognise her, she wasn't sure how to deal with fans. 

Milan cuddled into Isla's arms, his tiny hands clutching at her print jersey top as they walked towards the strange stadium that sat ahead of them; it wasn't the Camp Nou and Milan wasn't sure what to make of it. 

"Where is papa?" Milan whimpered burying his head into Isla's shoulder, he held on to her tightly as he played with the rose gold-plated sterling silver flower necklace; he wanted to see his father and he didn't know where he would be. 

Isla sighed trying to settle Milan, she wasn't quite sure where Gerard was right now and she hoped that he would be pleased to see them; she couldn't imagine what he had been through since moving to Manchester alone. 

"We'll see him soon," Isla promised softly, she reached into her nude snake tote bag and got out the tickets that she had for the match; she was sure that Gerard was going to be just fine with the new team. 

The couple weren't sure what was going to happen when the season was over, Barcelona hadn't given Gerard much hope for a future return but they would cross that bridge when they came to it.

***

"Look there's papa," Isla whispered pointing out Gerard to Milan, it was strange seeing her boyfriend in the red of Manchester United but she was sure that it wasn't going to be for long. 

Milan clapped his hands making Isla smile, she couldn't wait to see Gerard's face when he found out that they were here; she had spoken to him the night before and he'd seemed down about being in the city alone. 

Isla pressed a kiss to the top of Milan's head, she was tired and she was hopeful that they would be able to get some rest later that night; she couldn't imagine what else was going to happen for them. 

Isla wanted for things to go back to normal, she couldn't imagine what the future held for them; she wasn't going to consider how things would work out if the rumours didn't stop. 

Tracy was still leading her hate campaign against Gerard even if he no longer lived in the same country; she wasn't stopping and Isla was still refusing to speak with her mother who had taken to calling her recently. 

Isla had changed her mobile number, she wanted little to do with the woman that couldn't just let go of the past; she was destroying what Isla had for her own gain and she didn't care who she hurt in the process. 

Milan cheered at the sight of his father, he clapped his hands while they watched the match start; he was a big fan of his father's when it came to football. 

Isla watched Gerard and smiled a little, it was going to take some getting used to watching him in a red jersey; she was sure that everything was going to be just fine. 

Milan chattered quite happily while they watched Gerard play, things were going to be just fine and Isla hoped that they wouldn't have any more problems while they were in Manchester.

***

"Piqué you have visitors," called Louis van Gaal when the match was over and everyone was getting ready to shower and head home, Gerard paused turning to look at his new manager; he frowned wondering who it was since he was alone. 

Gerard wiped the sweat from his face before slowly heading out of the locker room to see who was there; he wanted to shower and head back to his apartment so he could call Isla and speak with her and Milan. 

Gerard ran his hands through his damp hair, he stepped out of the locker room and stopped at the sight of his girlfriend and son; he truly hadn't been expecting this since he was sure that Isla wasn't due for another week. 

"Papa surprise," Milan shouted rushing forward and hugging his father's legs, he smiled up at Gerard who seemed frozen at the sudden surprise; he turned to look at Isla as she slowly walked over to them. 

Gerard opened and closed his mouth, he ducked down to pick his son up trying to figure out what was going on; he cuddled Milan and tried to work out what was going on, he couldn't believe that Isla was actually here with him. 

"What are you both doing here?" Gerard asked trying to work it out, he was sure she had told him that she wasn't going to fly out for another week; he'd had it marked on the calendar and he had been counting down the days until he got to hold her again. 

Isla laughed softly before she pushed herself up onto her tip toes and kissed his cheek, she had missed him and she was glad to finally be able to see him again; phone calls and skype hadn't been enough. 

"I thought we'd surprise you," Isla replied with a shrug of her shoulders, she was tired and she hoped that Gerard would want to go straight home after showering; she couldn't believe that she had actually left Barcelona behind again after everything that had happened.

Gerard nodded his head, his thoughts were racing and he couldn't have been happier that they were here with him; it felt like a dream and he hoped that it wasn't, he kissed the top of Milan's head. 

"Our things are in the rental car," Isla murmured sure that they had packed enough for their stay, there was nowhere in the world that she would rather be right now and she was sure if they did need anything then she could pick it up or have Montserrat send more things out. 

Gerard nodded his head, he smiled stepping forward and kissing Isla wanting to hold her close for a moment; he might have been a little sweaty but this was the first time he had actually seen his girlfriend in weeks. 

Isla smiled into the kiss, she had missed Gerard when they had been apart and she hoped that things would be okay; she worried about the future and she couldn't imagine what was going to happen with Barcelona. 

"Hola," Gerard whispered pulling back from Isla, he brushed some hair from her face and he knew that they were going to be okay; he wasn't going to forget that he had an engagement ring hidden in his bedside table. 

Isla smiled up at Gerard before hearing someone clear their throat, she sighed stepping back from her boyfriend knowing that he had to leave and shower. 

"I won't be long," Gerard promised carefully setting Milan down before he kissed his girlfriend again, he hurried away knowing that he couldn't wait to show them their home for their next few months and he hoped they liked it.