Sophia emerged from the bathroom, her long locks wrapped tightly atop her head in a towel, her skin glistening from her recent shower. As she walked into the bedroom she found Tom, sitting on the floor, surrounded by empty pieces of luggage. She smiled sweetly and chuckled. "Getting a lot done there, I see."

Tom sighed and shook his head. "I seem to be lacking motivation. I really, really don't want to pack."

It was the night before his scheduled departure. In ten short hours he would get on a plane, headed for the beautiful Vancouver, British Columbia. Normally, his excitement would be running rampant as he threw his belongings into his bag and placed them by the front door to await his trip. This time, however, he was having a difficult time getting even the least bit excited.

"Oh come on," Sophia objected, taking a seat across from him on the floor. "You're going to have a blast and you know it. Stop being such a downer."

Tom scoffed lightly. "I know I will. I always do. There's just something here making me want to stay. Can't quite put my finger on it."

Sophia smiled, knowing he was referring to her. "I can't imagine what it would be." Tom just smiled and looked at his hands. "Baby, it's going to be fine. You know that, right?"

Tom gulped and nodded his head, his brow furrowing. "I know. I know. I just… " He paused and gulped down a lump in his throat. "I am…going to miss the shit out of you."

Sophia sighed and crawled toward him, taking a seat between his long, lean legs. "I'll miss you, too, baby," she said softly, reclining into his arms. "I know that it's going to suck. I'm not going to fool myself into thinking it won't…but…I also know it's going to be okay. We're going to be okay. I've never been more sure of anything."

Tom pursed his lips and smiled sweetly, kissing the side of her head before nuzzling his chin against it. "Sound pretty confident there."

"I am. I mean…think about it. We've pretty much been inseparable since the day we met. You don't honestly think being on the other side of the continent will change that?"

"Well…it kind of will…" Tom stated with a chuckle.

"In a literal sense. Literal isn't everything, a big jerk."

Tom laughed and tightened his grip on the beauty. "This is why I love you. No matter what you never fail to make me smile."

"It's my job."

"You're good at it," he stated before planting a long kiss on her lips. "Alright. I need to get work."

"Yes you do…" Sophia agreed as Tom rose to his feet. "You should give me your iPod."

"Why?"

"Because there's something I need to do."

Tom woke the next morning with a start. Sitting up, he silenced the alarm and looked around the room. His bags were packed and neatly tucked in the corner by the closet. Sophia laid next to him, groggily moving around, a laptop still tucked under her arm. They somehow hadn't even managed to get into bed; rather they had just fallen asleep on top of it. He was still in his clothes from the night before, jeans and all, which elicited a chuckle once he realized.

"Is it really morning?" Sophia croaked, shielding her eyes from the bright sunlight streaming through the nearby window.

"Unfortunately," Tom answered with a yawn. "I don't even remember going to bed."

"We really didn't," Sophia yawned in return. "We were up talking and I think we just sort of…passed out."

"Seems to be the norm for us," Tom stated, rubbing his face in his hands. "I need to shower. Mum's going to be here soon." He slowly turned and pressed his feet against the floor. "You coming to the airport?"

"Of course," Sophia stated. "Why wouldn't I?"

Tom shrugged his shoulders. "I don't know. There'll probably be paparazzi, always is. I just don't want you in that mess if you don't want to be."

"Eventually people are going to realize we're dating, Tom."

"Not what I meant," Tom argued. "I don't care who knows. I just don't want to throw you to the sharks without your knowledge."

"Well then…just call me Shark Bait."

Tom chuckled, his head in his hands. He stood up but turned back and leaned over the bed, pressing his lips to Sophia's forehead. "Loon."

"You love me."

"That I do."

Sophia sighed as Tom dug what little was left for him to wear out of his dresser. "Are you sure you can't just crawl into bed? I'm not sure I'm ready for this."

Tom pursed his lips and gulped, slowly sliding the drawer shut before turning to face her. "I wish that I could, more than anything."

Sophia nodded, her eyes drifting to the empty pillow beside her and welling with tears. "I know. I know. I'm just being selfish."

Tom smiled and set his clothes on top of the dresser before crawling back onto the bed, looming over her on his hands and knees. "You're allowed to be selfish. You're allowed to be sad. You're just not allowed to cry yet because I can probably only handle that once today." He pressed his lips into hers, firmly, before lying back at her side. He cleared his throat. "Do you want to stay here?"

"What?" Sophia asked confused.

"I mean here, while I'm gone. I know you're not having much luck looking for a place of your own and I thought maybe…you could be a house sitter of sorts while I'm away. You'll have your own space, surrounded by all the things that…are me in a sense."

Sophia smiled weakly, brushing the palm of her hand against his scruffy cheek. "I don't know. Not sure I could sleep in this bed without you beside me."

Tom grinned. "You could stuff pillows in my clothes and pretend."

Sophia laughed loudly. "Get a pillow with your face on it."

Tom frowned. "Creepy."

"Don't act like they're not out there. I guarantee I can find one."

"I'm sure that you can," Tom chuckled. "Seriously. I'll give you the key. It's all yours."

"Are you sure? That seems…like a big move…"

He gulped. "Well, I mean…it's not like we'd be moving in together. I won't even be here and…once I get back I'm pretty certain you'll just…be here all the time anyway…"

Sophia laughed and nodded. "That's pretty likely."

"So do it. Just stay here. It'll do you some good to have some space of your own. I know you're wearing thin on staying with Ben and Mags."

"It's not that I don't love them…I'm just starting to feel like more of a burden."

"Well, I am certain they don't think of you in that way."

"I know."

There was a short silence before Tom spoke up again. "So…is that a yes?"

Sophia laughed. "I will be your house sitter. Yes. I still might run away to Mags's. I have a feeling I'll get a little lonely here."

Tom arched his eyebrows and nodded. "Yeah. Pretty sure I will be familiar with that feeling." He leaned forward and kissed her again. "Promise me you won't sit and wallow. Go out. Have fun. Make friends. Do what you love. Just don't go falling for some other charming Englishman while I'm gone."

"There is not even a miniscule chance of that happening."

"That's all I need to know," Tom grinned. He gave her one more kiss before getting out of bed for the second time that morning. "Alright. Shower. And then we're off."

"Get going," Sophia groaned. "I'm going to lay here and sulk."

Tom chuckled and grabbed his things before heading toward the bathroom. "Hey. I love you," he stated, just his head peaking into the doorway.

"Get outta here, you," Sophia stated with a smile. Tom laughed and disappeared. Once Sophia heard the door shut, it became nearly impossible to fight the tears welling in her eyes.

After a quick breakfast with Diana, the trio headed to Heathrow where they parked the car and all three headed inside.

Tom hugged his mother tightly. "I love you. I'll call you when I land."

"I love you too," Diana said with a smile. She was sad, but it was obvious she had done this a million times before. "Have a safe flight, darling."

"I will do my best," Tom smiled. His blue eyes drifted to Sophia, her dark, obviously emotion filled eyes hidden behind a giant pair of dark sunglasses. "Give us a minute?"

"Of course," Diana beamed. She squeezed her son's bicep tightly before walking a few steps away.

"You know those glasses don't hide anything," Tom stated, reaching forward and moving the shades from his beauty's face to the top of her head. He placed his hands on her face, his thumbs wiping the tears from her cheekbones. "Please don't cry."

"I'm not. Allergies," Sophia stated with a weak laugh. "They're a real bitch."

Tom chuckled and wrapped his arms tightly around her shoulders. "I'm going to call you every day," he whispered before his lips brushed the hair atop her head. "More than once. And if I'm not calling, I'll text you. Or write a million poems and love letters and mail them every day."

"I'm holding you to that," Sophia responded, her voice breaking. She dug into the pocket of her jeans as Tom released his grip on her. "Here. I made you a playlist. It's really…corny and cliché and terrible but…it's every song that makes me think about you."

Tom pressed his lips together and pouted the sweetest pout. "That's…incredible. Thank you. I'll…listen to it every day."

"Please don't. You'll probably start to think I'm crazy."

Tom laughed. "Well that happened a long time ago. When you agreed to go on a date with me in the first place." He paused as call came over the loudspeaker. "I better get going." Sophia stretched up, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck, and he placed his just as tightly around her waist. "I love you."

"I love you too," Sophia said through tears. She pulled back and his lips captured hers in a strong, passion filled kiss. After a few moments, she pulled back. "Go. Before I decide not to let you."

Tom smirked crookedly and kissed her again, quicker this time. "I'll call you the second I land."

"Call your mom first," Sophia commanded, folding her arms across her chest.

"Okay," Tom nodded. "Goodbye, my love."

"Bye," Sophia managed to choke out. As he picked up his carry on, she slid her sunglasses back over her eyes. He turned quickly, pressed his lips against her forehead, causing her to break into sobs. "I love you."

"I love you too, babe," Tom said through gritted teeth, fighting back tears of his own. He walked a few steps away and turned to wave quickly, before disappearing into the sea of people.

Sophia jumped slightly as Diana wrapped her arms around the girl's shoulders. She turned into the mother's embrace and very quickly completely lost it.

"Shh-shh-shh-shhhh," Diana soothed. "It'll be okay, honey. I promise." Sophia nodded but stayed encompassed by the woman's warmth. "Come on. Let's go find something fun to do. Keep your mind off that boy of mine for a bit."

Sophia pulled back and nodded again, wiping her eyes on the sleeves of her sweatshirt. "Yeah. Yeah. That'd be good."

Tom sighed heavily as he shoved his carryon into the overhead compartment, taking only his iPod and a book. A twelve hour flight was surely enough time to get through one. Maybe two depending on whether or not he fell asleep. He sank into his seat in first class and popped in his ear-buds, instantly clicking through the playlists before him. He paused and chuckled, knowing he'd found the one she left for him. She'd named it "Elphaba + Loki." He smiled, imagining the chaos the two power-hungry, anger ridden, lonely characters would cause in some world where they were together. The second he clicked play, however, his eyes began to well with tears. He gazed out the window, chin rested in his hand, a finger to his lips and listened. Listened to the melody, the words, the though Sophia had obviously put into compiling the list. Love song after love song spanning every genre, every era, every part of life. From being lost in love to being heartbroken and then given hope to missing the one held so dear, she had encompassed the entire spectrum. And as he continued to listen, his eyelids slowly began to flutter closed, but he was never more certain of one thing. At that moment, he loved that girl, more than he had when he set foot on the plane. And he was positive that love would only continue to grow.