football imagines [requests open]

ruben loftus-cheek.

overdose on confidence

Lola glanced over her semi-naked body in the mirror, a shaky breath slowly leaving her mouth. Her hands trailed over her fast-growing belly, soon reminding the young woman of the unborn being she'd been carrying over the past few months. The thought of bringing someone else onto the planet brought a sense of joy to Lola but at the same time, a lingering feeling of fear seemed to ruin her mood.

The pregnancy could definitely be seen as spontaneous to many. Lola and Ruben had limited time together—with him constantly being at training and matches, whenever they were together, it was never spent without an intimately-charged session between the two. Sometimes so indulged in the moment that the thought of protection never crossed their minds. So when they found out that Lola was indeed pregnant, joyful sensations consumed the Chelsea player but on Lola's side of the situation, her mind sourced a sense of doubt within her.

It wasn't to say that she didn't want to continue with the whole pregnancy process. She and Ruben knew what they were getting into whenever they were caught up in the bedroom so Lola wasn't one to complain about anything. 

However, rather the fact that she didn't know how to or how she should navigate herself during the pregnancy and after. Herself and Ruben were still so young and while she knew that her boyfriend could and will make an excellent parent, Lola on the other hand still had her nagging doubts on whether she was prepared for parenthood within the next upcoming months.

"Hey babe, I'm back from training!" She heard Ruben's voice echo through their shared home. Lola sighed to herself, moving away from the mirror as she pulled on one of Ruben's t-shirt before making her way down the stairs.

"Hey Rubs," she placed a faint smile on her face, greeting him with a short kiss.

He brought her closer into his embrace, refusing to pull away from the kiss, making her grin against his lips. "Hey, babe. I've missed you and our baby," While they were consumed in the kiss when Ruben's hand trailed along her stomach, Lola immediately pulled away from the kiss, a frown soon finding its way on her facial features to which the player easily noticed.

Just as he was about to speak up, she intentionally cut him off, licking her lips. "So, uh, what did you get?" She asked, glancing down at the bag he held in his grips.

He didn't know why Lola reacted negatively to his touch but seeing as she didn't seem like discussing it, he left it for another time. "I know you're probably tired from the day and you don't want to make anything so I got us some pizza to eat," he said, holding up the bags full of food. "We can cuddle and just watch some Netflix. Sound good with you?"

"Yes, it's fine. C'mon, I haven't even been up for so long and my feet are already killing me."

The mere silence that consumed the living room instantly caused an amber alert to ring in Ruben's mind. Whenever he came back home from training, Lola usually wielded an upbeat mood, despite her inconsistent pregnancy hormones. Depending on her mood, she yearned for his touches though when she recoiled from his touch just moments ago, he immediately knew that something was up.

"Babe," he glanced down at his lap, where Lola's head was situated. She hummed, her eyes still trained on the TV as she munched on her piece of pizza. "Why are you so quiet today? You're usually never like this." He questioned, running his hand through her hair.

Knowing that there was no concealing her dull attitude, Lola gave in with ease, sighing. "I just. . . I just haven't been feeling confident with myself lately."

"As in with how you look? Babe, you always look amazing."

She shook her head. "No, not like that. I worded it in the wrong way. I'm just worried about how I'm going to be when the baby arrives. I mean, we're so young and I don't know. . . I'm just scared that perhaps I won't be a good parent for our child." She admitted, her voice on the solid brink of cracking.

As soon as Ruben witnessed a loose tear slip down her cheek, he was quick to set her up, carefully pulling her into his embrace. "Hey, hey, hey. It's alright," he whispered into her ear, pressing kisses on her temper as soon as the waterworks were ignited. When she'd finally run dry of tears, Ruben spoke up, glancing at Lola in the eyes, rubbing her back in a soothing manner. 

"Listen to me. I get it, with us being so young I get why you're so anxious for this whole parenting experience. But please don't doubt yourself 'cause I know you'll be an amazing mother. Our baby will be so lucky to have you as their mother. I mean, yeah, it'll be a tough experience for us but we're going to get through it together, okay?"

With Ruben unfeigned's words, Lola felt her lips curl up due to his reassurance. At the mention of his words, it made her realise that she was in deep need of comfort from the man she loved. Since she found out about the pregnancy, she had been bottling up all of these negative emotions that she didn't even know she carried on her back, leaving her internal pressured to be someone that one couldn't really imagine to be and setting expectations which only brought down her self-esteem.

However, now it came to her that the way she perceived herself was the antithesis of how others like Ruben viewed her—which seemed to be high. While she only saw her raw reflection, Ruben got the privilege to see her as the true woman as she was. So with his genuine use of words, her heart decided to tilt away from Lola's initial thoughts of herself, knowing that whenever it came to the pregnant woman, Ruben only preached the honest truth. 

As soon as she nodded with a timid grin on her face, Ruben reciprocated her mood, placing a soft kiss against her lips. And this time around, when his hand trailed across her belly and she didn't pull away, it only managed to fuel an abundant dose of tenderness into the fair moment.

Once the heavy emotions faded out of the atmosphere in the room, the soon-to-be-parents cuddled up on the couch, their touches and forms of love showcased to one another here and there. As her hands washed over Ruben's waves continuously, he mimicked her action as his hands disagreed on the idea of detaching from Lola's belly, whispering soft words against her skin.

"Hey, baby girl. You may not know this but your mummy is really nervous about your arrival. But don't worry; if she's nervous then it means that she really cares about you and only wants to give you the best possible care in the world."

"Hey, Ruben," he glanced at her, who smiled at him sheepishly. "I love you."

"I love you too. Both you and our baby girl."

Once the heavy emotions faded out of the atmosphere in the room, the soon-to-be-parents cuddled up on the couch, their touches and forms of love showcased to one another here and there. As they consumed themselves back into their series, the sense of doubt evanesced away from Lola's conscience, overpowered by a wave of confidence initiated by the supportive boyfriend.

——

[ requested by PrettyLittleTrent, hope this is what you wanted!

Just a little note; I tender to write a lot of description compared to actual dialogue so then readers and myself can have a better understanding of the character's emotions and thoughts. So if you request for fluff but then if the actual prompt suggests a negative start to a happy ending  then expect angst thoughts with a fluff ending if that makes any sense.

Also, I've got an exam some time this week so I'm not sure when I'll update next though hopefully during the weekend or so :) ]