He'd always thought of Saturday afternoon football matches as the best part of the week. Even through his years of dating Lorna, he'd looked forward to the times they had spent at the City ground, scarves held proudly above their heads, shouting 'til their voices were hoarse. No matter the score, drinking with Izzie after the final whistle, her eyes looking into his from under her sky-blue beanie, was the highlight. Recently though, his idea of a perfect Saturday had changed. It had been weeks since he last entered the City ground, choosing to watch with Izzie over actually attending the game. They sat side by side on her small navy sofa, Izzie snuggled into Tom's side, his arm slung over the back cushion. He leaned over and kissed her temple, the half-time commentary playing in the background. They were losing 2-1, but a quick glance over to her and nothing else mattered. She'd sensed his hurt when she said she couldn't cope with going to the ground anymore. And when he returned after the first game without her there she knew he'd also be foregoing his seasonal seat.

Izzie inched further into Tom's side as the whistle blew for the second half. A player kicked the ball clear across the screen, scoring the equalising goal. Tom and Izzie both clapped their hands together, shouting and cheering. They turned into each other, breathless with elation. Izzie looked up at Tom, "You should be there" she said and her eyes dropped.
"Not without you, Iz" Tom bent to kiss her. She turned her head away from him, leaning back against the sofa. He leaned further into her, "It's not the same," he said, lifting her chin with his forefinger. She looked into his eyes, seeing all that he had given up for her. A tiny smile beginning to play on her lips as she leaned in and captured him in a loving kiss. "Don't get that in the East Stand" he joked, pulling away with a smile.
"Oh, there are perks to staying home" she winked back at him.

They had an unspoken agreement that they never worked on Sunday. She'd always followed the rule, since the girls were tiny. That way she always had a day where her family came first. Since Tom had moved in he'd adopted their rule; no talk of school, no homework, just family. He'd brought with him his own Sunday tradition though, breakfast in bed, and Izzie wasn't going to argue when perfection was being improved upon. So Izzie liked Sunday mornings best; especially since now she woke up next to Tom, not just a faint whisper of him from the night before's dream. It was her turn to brave the Sunday morning chill, and she'd padded quietly down the stairs at 7.15 to begin the proceedings, leaving Tom softly snoring into his pillow. Izzie rounded the bedroom door ten minutes later, a plate of toast precariously balanced on her bump, held up with a mug of tea either side. Tom sat up in bed, laughing as she came towards him. He rose to take the plate from her, before flopping back against the headboard.

Tea and toast gone they lay happily in each others arms. Tom's newspaper resting against Izzie's arm, she looked up at him, blowing the hair from her eyes. "I love you, you know" she said, tracing her fingers absentmindedly along his forearm. His lips pressed to the crown of her head. He smiled down at her, flicking the edge of the newspaper pages with his thumb. She wriggled under his arm, twisting herself as best she could to face him. "Tom" she whined, attempting to manoevre herself between him and the paper.
"Izzie" he whined back, mocking her. She swatted at his arm, before he swept her into an embrace. Rolling her over and hovering above her, careful to rest his weight on his own forearms against the mattress. He leaned his face closer to hers, breathing the same air. Their lips locked, and they both smiled into the kiss.

Obviously they had had disagreements before, usually they blew over within a matter of hours. This one seemed like it was sticking though, both of them too stubborn to budge. Izzie had been brushing out Chlo's hair, watching a sitcom they'd all seen a million times before. With the second scan date approaching, there had been talk of baby names. The couple already had a short-list, and both Tom and Izzie were in agreement; neither of them wanted to name a baby after a relative, neither of them wanted to have a little Tom or Izzie Jr. But Tom had been curious if they could shorten their list any more, by removing pink or blue names entirely.

"No" Izzie said, hands thrown in the air, "Never. Not happening."
"But" Tom began arguing back.
"But nothing!" she retorted, his mouth still open to speak. She glared at him, and he pressed his lips together again. "You were happy when I told you, yes?" He stayed still, "Yes?" she repeated, making it clear she required his response. Tom silently nodded, "and you didn't know then. You don't need to know to be happy now either" She turned away from him, and Tom opened his mouth to argue back. "End of discussion" She didn't even turn to look at him as she left the room.
"It's not about being happy, Iz" he followed her into the hallway, reaching out his arm to pull her back, "Of course I'm happy, and I'll be happy no matter what. But its exciting. Something I can be part of too."
"I said end of discussion Tom. I don't want to know." She pulled her arm away from him, squeezing through the gap between his body and the stairs, and ascending the first few steps, "I mean it, Tom."

She left him stewing for the evening, spending the rest of Sunday night alone in bed with her novel. He'd watched a film with the girls, who both only stayed because they knew first hand what it felt like to be in Izzie's bad books. He thought that she'd still be awake waiting for him when he crawled into bed a couple of hours later. Only Izzie hadn't waited up, she was fast asleep, and it hurt. He curled into her, almost circling her entire body with his. She rolled away from him, not wanting to be near to him even as she slept. He moved to the cold side of the bed and closed his eyes.

"Clarkson. Mr Deathwish himself," Jack leaned down, palms flat on the table. Tom looked up from the newspaper,
"Eh?" one side of his mouth scrunched up.
"Go home and sort out whatever it is that went on over the weekend, for the sake of my sanity as well as my English department" He turned to walk away, "Please" he called over his shoulder, through gritted teeth. Kim pulled her lips into her mouth, holding back a laugh as Tom looked at her worriedly.
"What's all that about?" Tom said, shrugging his shoulders.
"You're stupider than you look, Tom Clarkson. I suggest flowers, and repeat after me," She put one hand on each of his shoulders, and looked into his eyes, " I am sorry Izzie, I respect your decision, please forgive me" He looked away, as she let go of him.