A/N: A couple of things. 1.) This is my first time writing for Heartland. I recently got into the show thanks to Netflix, and got an itch to write for it. With that said, I'm only on episode 7 of season 3, so please ... no spoilers. 2.) I would love feedback. Did I keep Amy & Ty in character? Was it believable. Things like that. 3.) I have recently started a long multi-chaptered Heartland fic, but I'm looking for someone willing to beta read it who would be willing to toss ideas around. I have a general idea, but I work better and much faster if I have someone that helps me figure out more specfic ideas, so if you're up for something like that, feel free to PM me. Otherwise, please enjoy this.


Amy stifled a sigh as she stared down the gravel drive. Two months he had been gone, and she had feared that maybe this was the time he wasn't going to come back. That was until he called her earlier that day to inform her that he was headed back to Heartland. Though he didn't tell her that he missed her or that he loved her, she could hear the unsaid words in his voice. The way that he got choked up when he said heartland, was a dead giveaway.

She's always known that Ty was different than most guys. Hell, she knew that Ty was different than most anyone she had met. He was a wild spirit at heart, and occasionally he needed to be released. Set free to wonder the world. It was generally an annual thing, and Amy had started to get used to it. Usually at the beginning of summer he would take off, leaving her with no details of where he was going or how to get a hold of him.

This time was the longest he had been gone, and it had frightened her. It wasn't that he didn't love her, Amy never doubted that, but she was afraid that their life together had finally gotten to suffocating for him. That he finally realized that he didn't belong tied down.

In the distance, Amy heard the roar of a motorcycle engine as a cloud of dust kicked up around Ty's bike. She couldn't help the smile that crept along the edges of her mouth. Staring down at her clasped hands for a moment, Amy twirled her wedding band. As Ty's bike drew closer, Amy could hear the baby crying from the monitor sitting beside her. For a moment she looked at the monitor, before making a move to get up. She sent a wave toward Ty, before moving to go back into the house.

Quick steps had her standing in front of the nursery. Amy softly pushed the door open and smiled at her baby boy. Even if he was only seven months old, Amy could tell that Tyler was going to be the spitting image of his father.

"Hey, Ty-Ty," Amy cooed at her son, before hefting him into her arms.

As she nestled him onto her hip and handing him his bottle, she turned around to exit the nursery. Just as she stepped into the hallway, she heard the front door open. She couldn't help but smile brightly, as she walked toward the front door quickly.

"You're daddy's home, Ty-Ty." Amy cooed softly, before rounding the corner and stepping into the kitchen.

"Amy." Ty whispered softly, as he met her eyes. "I've missed you so much." His eyes drifted close as he engulfed his small family in his arms. "I missed both of you so much." He whispered, before pressing a kiss to both Tyler and Amy's head. "I love you both so much."


Later that night, after they put Tyler to bed, Amy snuggled in next to Ty on the couch. She can't help but feel the distance that seems to be growing between them. It's almost as if Ty's words and actual feelings aren't one in the same. Amy can vividly remember him saying that he loved her upon his return earlier on in the day, but sitting beside him now she can feel the familiar ache in her chest when he's gone. It's almost as if he isn't really there.

"Ty …" She starts, but quickly trails off. If she puts the words out there, then she is admitting to her insecurities. Admitting to the fear she feels each and every time he walks out that door. The fear that maybe this time, he won't come back.

He sighs, and the sound pains her. In that one sound she can hear the unhappiness that dwells within him. Amy feels the tears prick at the back of her eyes, and tries her hardest to swallow past the lump that had formed in her throat.

"Amy ..." It's his turn to trail off, but Amy knows better. She knows that he plans on continuing. She knows this because she's seen it a million times before. Ty isn't the most graceful speaker. Words don't come easily to him. She knows that he has something important to say, and she hopes with everything inside of her that what he is about to say isn't going to tear her heart in two.

She could feel him wiggle underneath her, so she lifts up just enough to allow him to stand up. He paces the floor in front of the couch for a few moments before dropping to his knees in front of her. Tears are in his eyes, as he reaches forward and grabs her hand.

"I hate leaving you. Every single time I walk out that door, I hope that you'll say something to pull me back. I wish that I didn't..." He groans, as his free hand rakes through his messy brown locks of hair. "I wish I didn't feel this need to leave. This need to be free, if only for a little while. It hurts me to leave you … to leave Tyler. You are my family. Always have been, and it kills me to know that I'm hurting you." The tears that had filled his eyes slowly start to cascade down his cheeks. "I guess what I'm trying to say, Amy, is that I would understand if the next time I leave … if you lock the door and never let me back in. I don't deserve you. I see that now ..."

Amy couldn't take it anymore. The pain that was etched so deeply into Ty's handsome face. The tears that were slowly falling down his cheeks, leaving small, salty tracks in their wake. The fact that he thought that she didn't love him anymore was the worst.

"I could never do that, Ty. I love you." She put as much into the words as she could. "I won't lie. Watching you leave, it breaks my heart. Knowing there is a chance that you could walk out that door and never come back. It haunts me the entire time you're gone, Ty."

Shaking his head, Ty placed to fingers on Amy's lips to stop her words in their tracks. "Never." He growled in a low whisper. "I could never go away forever. Our lives are far too entwined for me to ever leave you forever."

Amy chuckled lightly against the couple of tears that slipped down her own cheeks. "Well, I could never give up on you. Not really. If you promise to always come back to me, Ty, then I promise to always be right here waiting for your return."

Ty smiled softly, "I love you so much, Amy Borden."

She smiled back, as she leaned forward slightly and pressed her forehead against Ty's, "I love you too, Ty Borden."

With the crackle of the baby monitor sitting beside Amy came the shrilling cry of baby Tyler, which caused both parents to smile even more.

"I think he's got your attitude." Ty whispered.

Amy shrugged softly, as she grabbed Ty's hand before standing up. "It's the Bartlett attitude really. I always got my attitude from my grandpa."

Ty chuckled, "I see. So that's why we named him after Jack."

Amy shrugged, "Eh, partially."

Ty nodded in agreement, even though he knew that Amy was only kidding. He knew the real reason that Tyler's middle name was Jackson. He knew that if it hadn't been for Jack's willingness to take a chance on him, then he would have never cleaned up his life … and he would have never married the love of his life.