I already knew Seren was beautiful. I've known it from the moment I first laid eyes on her.

I just never imagined she would become even more beautiful. To me, at least.

Her beauty, while undeniable, is evolving.

I can see it in the way her lips threaten to escape a laugh at my lame jokes, that aren't even funny. I can see it in the way her eyes soften when her anxiety has settled. I can see it in the way she reaches for my touch, like it calms her.

I can see it, in her.

I can see her pain, still. It wasn't gone, not even close.  But I could see her starting to come back, more and more often. She was here. She was here and she was with me and then she was gone again. I didn't want her to go, anymore. I wanted her to stay here.

I was laying on the uncomfortable couch, the blanket pulled around my head to try and escape the sunlight pouring in through the small windows. I wasn't annoyed that my back was in knots, or that I hardly slept. Something was making Seren scared to go home, and I would gladly sleep one hundred nights on any couch to make it so she didn't have to be scared.

"Morning." I heard her voice say. I popped my head out of the blanket, watching as she giggled. Probably at the sight of my bed head, or couch head,  I guess.

She was here this morning.

"Morning." I couldn't help the wide grin that formed on my mouth. Seren was standing at the edge of the living room, wearing my track pants and her oversized shirt. I could barely make out the outline of her small body underneath the baggy clothes. Her hair was gathered at the top of her head, several small strands were falling onto her face. My favourite thing about her this morning, however, was the fact that she was smiling at me.

I needed to keep it there, that smile, I decided.

"Do you have plans?" I asked her. "For today?"

"No." She said quickly. I loved when she did that. When she said she felt and didn't think twice about it.

"I wanna take you somewhere." I told her, moving the blankets off my legs and sitting up.

"Where?" Seren asked me, as if she thought I would actually tell her.

I wasn't going to.

"A surprise." I smiled up at her, and lost track of all my thoughts when she didn't avert her gaze like her normally did.

"Okay." She didn't argue, which slightly surprised me. But, I had lately learned that what you expect from Seren is rarely what you will get.

I showered and changed quickly, leaving a spare toothbrush out for Seren. When I came back into the room, she had changed back into her shorts and tied the front of her shirt into a knot, leaving her midriff exposed.

"You need to go home? Change or anything?" I asked her, watching her face closely as her expression changed once again.

"No, I'm good." Seren looked back down at the ground. She didn't want me to see her face, because she didn't want me to see her reaction at suggesting we go to her house.

"Okay." I was determined to use today to keep her here with me. Away from whatever is scaring her, whatever is bugging her. Or whoever.

I know she was lying about Jax. I think I know what's going on. And I know what I'm going to do about it.

"Ready?" Seren asked me, sticking her hand out to me. I couldn't escape the goosebumps that formed on my arms as I took her hand in mine. It felt so small. Our hands fit so well together. A perfect fit.

The place I wanted to take Seren was about an hour away, so after putting some gas in the car, I headed towards the highway. Seren didn't say anything when she noticed we were leaving town. She simply turned the music up. It's like my head acted on its on the way it glanced back and forth between Seren and the road. Like she was the sun and everything had their own pull to her. Like my eyes. Or my hand, which has been resting on her thigh this whole time.

It's like every mile away from our city, was another breath Seren took. The further away we got the closer to reality she became. I almost couldn't believe my ears when I heard her singing. It was quiet, I could barely register the sounds. But she was singing. Seren was singing. Her voice was sweet, delicate. Just like her.

"Oh. Hey, I got you something." I told her, remembering the small gift I had picked up. I reached across Seren's lap, opening the glove department and reaching around until I found the small bag. I placed it on her lap, before grabbing the steering wheel again.

"Open it." I told her. She was looking at the bag like it was going to bite her. When she looked at me, I felt my stomach drop. Like I was at the top of a roller coaster and I was about to go full speed. The way she was smiling at me, frankly it was better than anything I had ever seen before.

Her small fingers opened the bag, pulling out the thin bracelet I had put in it. I had seen it at a store my mom had dragged me to a few days ago. It reminded me of her. The beauty of it, but also the way the beads were so intricately attached to one another. Not to mention...

"Pale blue." She smiled up at me, the bracelet in her hands. "It's my favourite colour."