She watched his movements from her position on the bed. He placed a folded shirt in the suitcase next to her, looking over and catching her eye, smiling at how perfectly comfortable she looked with the duvet pulled up to her chin.

She returned his smile, albeit a little weakly. He noted her increasingly nervous demeanour, the way her smile was getting more and more strained as the morning progressed, her increased alertness and the way her eyes followed him round the room. He chose to remain silent; any comment from him would only result in vehement denial by her and a strain to their current comfortable silence. Instead, he placed a knee beside his suitcase resting on his side of the bed, balancing himself as he leant over and placed a soft kiss to his wife's cheek. He was rewarded with a broader smile, this time more natural.

She raised a hand from beneath the warmth of the duvet, placing it on his cheek and trailing it down to his chin, her thumb tracing gently across his bottom lip, feeling his warm breaths hitting her skin, and the contrast of his soft lip to the rough stubble of his chin beneath her fingers. As she carried out this action, her eyes quickly became distant, the smile dropped into a thin line of concentration.

He stayed still, allowing her to trace his face for a few moments, enjoying the sensation, though becoming increasingly worried at the dulling expression on his wife's face. Eventually, he captured her hand, moving it from his cheek and briefly placing his lips on the backs of her fingers. He raised his eyes to meet hers, relieved to see some brightness returning as he drew her back to the present.

"Don't forget your pyjamas." She said quietly after some silence.

He eased himself from the bed, took a clean pair of pyjamas from the chest of drawers and placed them still neatly folded inside the suitcase. "Anything else?"

It was his turn to take in her face as she gazed with concentration at the wall over his shoulder. Eventually she shook her head. "Nothing you can pack right now."

He nodded, flipping the lid over the suitcase though not drawing the zip. "Breakfast?"

"I'll come down."

She slipped out from the bed as he left the room, and entered the kitchen soon after him, sitting down at the table and pulling her dressing gown tighter around her.

"You look like you could fall asleep sitting there."

"I think I could." She replied, smiling as he soon placed a mug of steaming coffee in front of her.

He moved around the kitchen for a few more minutes, carrying bowls and plates, knives and spoons, cereal, condiments and milk to the table. She took to watching him again, committing every movement to memory, all the while fighting to maintain her composure in an attempt to avoid alerting him to anything amiss.