In The Darkest Hour

Part One - Chapter Seven: Shared Pain

Isla squeaked in surprise as she walked into Gerard, she stared up at him for a moment since she hadn’t been expecting to see him; she had been making lunch for her and Milan when she had bumped into him.

Gerard blinked staring down at Isla, he hadn’t really looked at her when his mother had introduced her; she looked familiar and he had no idea why.

“Hola?” Isla whispered taking a step back from Gerard, she hadn’t realised that he was up let alone that he could come down for lunch; she wasn’t sure quite what to say to her boss on their first meeting.

Gerard stared down at the small brunette, he wasn’t sure how he felt about having another woman in his home but someone needed to look after Milan right now.

“Hola… you’re Isla right?” Gerard replied awkwardly, he didn’t know why his mother had hired Isla but she was sure she had picked the right reason; he knew how much Montserrat adored Milan and she would have only hired the best for the little boy.

“That’s right… Isla Cortez, Milan’s nanny,” Isla confirmed carefully, she watched Gerard worried that he would recognise her; he had met her several times when he had been at the hospital with Isabel.

Isla just hoped that Gerard hadn’t paid enough attention to her when he had been at the hospital, she could only imagine what would happen if he had paid more attention.

“Have we met before?” Gerard asked curiously, he couldn’t shake the feeling that Isla was very familiar to him and he had no idea why; he frowned a little while Isla looked at him nervously.

The last thing that Isla wanted was for Gerard to realise that she had worked at the hospital; she could only imagine how he would react and it wasn’t pretty.

“I don’t think so,” Isla lied searching Gerard’s face for a moment, she would have to speak to Montserrat about what was going to happen now.

“Would you like some lunch? I’m making pancakes,” Isla asked walking into the kitchen, she peeked at Milan who was sitting in his high chair; she knew the little boy couldn’t have any but she was making them for her.

Gerard followed after her, he wasn’t sure what to make of Isla and he was a little nervous about having her around; he doubted that anyone had expected to ever move again.

“Pancakes?” Gerard questioned watching Isla move about his kitchen, she had barely been working for more than a day and she already knew her way around his home.

"It rubbed Gerard up the wrong way since this was the home that he was meant to share with Isabel and their family; now it was the house that he shared with his son and a nanny.

“Cocoa-Banana pancakes,” Isla corrected, they were her speciality and she loved making them; she grinned at Gerard moving to carry on with what she had been doing.

Gerard stared at Isla, he had never heard of them before and he wasn’t sure what to make of the woman that was offering to feed him; he guessed that it had something to do with his mother.

“Come on… what could it hurt?” Isla asked grinning at Gerard, she could see how thin he was and she knew it wasn’t good for him; she would fatten him back up in no time and she knew that he wouldn’t be allowed back to training until he had put the weight back on.

Gerard stared at her for a moment, he slowly nodded his head in agreement as his stomach grumbled wanting him to eat.

Isla laughed softly moving to finish up with the pancakes, she peeked back at Gerard as he sat move the breakfast bar; she was a little nervous about having him around her but she would have to cope.

***

“So what do you think?” Isla asked watching Gerard scoff down her pancakes, he was on his second plate and she was glad to see him eating; she had just finished her own and she was now doing the washing up.

Gerard sipped on his orange juice, he felt full for the first time in ages and he had a feeling that his mother had told Isla to fatten him up when he got his appetite back.

“Not what I was expecting,” Gerard admitted putting down his fork, he had been expecting it to be horrible but he had actually enjoyed the pancakes that Isla had given him.

Milan babbled happily in his high chair making Gerard peek at him, he swallowed at the sight of his son and he knew that he was going to have to spend time with his son sooner or later.

“You don’t have to rush… it’s okay to take your time,” Isla reassured moving to take Gerard’s plate, she could see the hurt in the footballer’s blue eyes and she knew that he was suffering.

Gerard turned to look at Isla, he didn’t want any pity and he wanted to just pretend that he could be okay; it was always going to take time for him to get over what had happened.

“What would you know about what I’m going through?” Gerard snapped moving to glare at Isla, he didn’t want her telling him how he should feel and what was okay; he refused to speak with a therapist because he didn’t want to hear the same things over and over again.

“Because I’ve been through the same thing,” Isla said staring right back at Gerard, she stared at him for a moment before she put down her cloth and moved to get Milan so that she could take him upstairs for his nap.

Gerard looked at Isla, he slowly realised why his mother had picked Isla to be Milan’s nanny; she had been through the same thing that he had and he doubted anyone would lie about that.

“You lost someone…” Gerard whispered watching Isla pick up Milan, he swallowed feeling his stomach churn; he wouldn’t wish this pain on anyone especially the woman before him.

Gerard had barely spoken to Isla for more than an hour and he knew that she was a nice person; she hadn’t pushed him to talk to her and had been more interested in getting him to help her make pancakes than anything else.

“My fiancé… he was in a car accident two years ago,” Isla said swallowing the lump that had formed in her throat, it was hard to think about how she had lost Louis but she knew that Gerard wouldn’t judge her; they had both lost someone that they had loved.

Gerard racked his brain for a moment, he was sure he would recall something from the news about something like that but nothing came to mind; he was sure that was how he recognised Isla.

“I’m sorry for your loss,” Gerard murmured feeling bad for snapping at her, he was still so confused about things even if he had set himself a mission to get justice for Isabel; the person who did this deserved more than losing the job.

Isla shook her head, she smiled a little at Gerard as she cuddled Milan and rested the little boy on her hip; she had a feeling that she would be able to turn Gerard’s life around.

“It’s okay… it’ll always hurt but I know Louis would want me to be happy, he would want me to go on with my life and live for him,” Isla replied softly, she smiled at Gerard; she watched him knowing that he needed to grieve properly and when he was ready he could let go and move on with his life.

“And I’m sure where Isabel is… she’d want you to do the same, be a wonderful father, a great footballer,” Isla whispered before she walked out of the kitchen and took Milan upstairs, she had to give the little boy a bath and she was sure that Gerard would want to think about what she had said.