Metamorphosis

Disclaimer: I own nothing

A/N: So Metamorphosis is coming to an end. However the story, in a way, continues through its sister story-Closing the Gap-when you will see Trina come home in there. There are two more chapters to come here in Meta.

Chapter 33 (The Small Things)

The leaves of the trees blew past the train windows as unrecognizable flashes of green. The beautiful moments were the ones where the view opened into a breathtaking glimpse of open meadows with flowers and shimmering lakes that brought pleasure to Trina's eyes.

Behind her Jason stood with his strong arms around her waist as her hands were perched on the smooth curvature of his forearms. "It's beautiful out there," Trina said with a small breath. She felt his body shifting down and his chest pressed up against her back as his head moved to rest beside hers.

"It truly is." The muscular tones of his body relaxed and an exhale blew like a gentle breeze from his lips. Trina reclined her head, touching the back of it to his left shoulder.

"Have you ever ridden the train out to the city before?" She raised herself up on her toes and turned partially. For her, she'd never been on a train-even in Los Angeles where they had a subway system, she hadn't bothered to take it.

Jason smiled softly as his tender gaze moved into hers. "On occasion." Her eyebrows rose and she glanced back to the window. Jason turned his eyes to their reflection. His shoulders rose with a breath and his eyelids closed. "Dr. Wyatt doesn't like for me to, but there are certain exceptions."

"Such as? You seem to be capable of being responsible and taking care of yourself."

"It's more he wants to insure safety of everyone at the camp." His shoulders rose once more, then fell sharply. "I haven't had a great deal of reason for leaving the camp either. Until now."

She straightened her back and smirked as the feeling of pride grew inside her. "So. What changed?" She knew the answer, but she wanted to hear him say it. Her gaze fell on the transparent reflection in the window where she could make out a similar, knowing smirk on his face.

"I have a girlfriend that has never been to the city and wants to visit." She reclined her head and started to laugh as her heartbeat skipped like a record player. Jason watched with fondness as her eyes squinted and her cheekbones rose. She could see the delight in his gaze and quieted while bringing her fingers to her lips.

The blood rushed to her cheeks when she saw his half-lidded gaze. "I love the way you smile." Her eyes dropped and her hand slid over to her cheek, cupping it gently.

She turned fully to face him and watched him. Jason pulled his hands from her body and curled them around the railing just beneath the window and on either side of her.

As his chest expanded, it came within an inch of hers. His eyes locked with Trina's and his lips separated slightly. Trina placed her elbows flat on his wrists and gripped his lower biceps with her fingertips.

Her body arched forward and Trina blew out slowly while still gazing into his loving eyes. "I know there's not much to see, but it's Montana. I've never been here before." She looked over her shoulder with childlike eagerness. "It's beautiful and amazing."

"Well that is the point of travelling. It's all the experience." Jason leaned back, turning his eyes up thoughtfully. "So, is there anywhere you want to visit in the world?" His gaze rolled back to her and she let out a thoughtful hum.

There were many places that she'd love to see, some more than others. "Well Ireland maybe." Ireland was one of the top places she wanted to see, along with Spain. "Spain too." Her father came from Spain, Holly's family was from Ireland.

Jason raised an eyebrow and Trina curled her behind her ear. "Um, my mom is from Ireland. Mom and Dad are both from those places-Dad's from Spain." The corners of Jason's mouth slid back into his cheeks and he nodded receptively. "So above all else, I'd love to visit those two."

"Well, Ireland is beautiful." Jason's hands closed around the railing and his gaze moved to the window. Trina looked back just as the leaves of more tree branches brushed against it. "Granted I've never been, but the pictures are great to look at."

"Yeah." Her eyes lit up with joy and she looked back at him with an wide smile. "I've seen pictures of the coast, and they are just as remarkable as the castles!"

Jason looked back to her, tilting his head and smiling warmly. "Maybe one day you'll get the chance to visit." He raised his hand up. Curling his fingers, he used the knuckle of his forefinger and thumb to slide a strand of hair from her face. Her lips fell apart and her hands pushed forward on his arms.

"Maybe one day." The beating of her heart sounded out loudly, with the intensity of the train's vibration against the track. With her chest pressed against his, she felt the heavy beats of his heart and admired how calm and powerful they were.

The train's engine roared as the train shot into a tunnel. For a split second everything turned pitch black and Trina gasped suddenly, raising her hands up and cupping the back of his shoulders firmly.

The lights lit up, bathing them with a warm and amber glow. Jason's eyes widened for a bit and the left corner of his mouth drifted up, drawing into a smirk. "Are you afraid of the dark?" Trina cleared her throat and breathed out slowly.

She felt like the train's vibrations had bled into her and she'd become the train. "No." She inhaled and let her body melt into him. "That's my sister." The blood rushed to her cheeks and Jason chuckled once. "I just got a little bit startled, that's all. You know I've never been on a train."

"It's not something to be frightened of." His hand cupped her left cheek and Trina felt herself lean against the window of the train. She dropped her hands down on the railing and closed her eyes. Her lips closed and puckered a bit.

Jason leaned forward, sliding his hand around to the back of her head, holding it there as pressed his lips against hers. Trina let her body fall limp and she started to moan as his right arm swung around her waist.

The train struck a part of the rail that gave it a turbulent shake that caused Trina to tense. Jason's grip tightened and his left arm fell around her waist. She groaned softly, pushing herself against the security of his body and moved her arms around his neck.

The lights went out for a split second once more and Trina focused her energy on the power from Jason's kiss. Her leg began to bend and her foot slid up along the wall of the train. Sunlight spilled into the train and she could feel his body relax. Her eyelids slid open and Jason pulled his lips away from hers, leaving her breathless and yearning.

"You see?" Jason closed his mouth and his eyes sank to Trina's lips. "It's just a train, just a vehicle getting you somewhere you've never been." His hand leaned forward and his lips caressed her forehead. "How are you enjoying your first time?" His whisper was like silk wrapping and warming her, soothing her to a lull of comfort.

"Like I would be willing to try anything as long as you're with me." She bowed her head, pressing it into his chest and peering down with a subtle smirk. "Within reason, of course."

"What does that-oh." His chest bounced a bit as he chuckled. "You know I wouldn't make you do anything you didn't want to do."

"I know. I'm teasing." She took his hand and guided him to the chairs near them. It was nice that they had the entire cabin to themselves. She took a seat first, closest to the window. Jason sat down beside her, holding her right hand with his left.

She leaned closer to him and tightened her fingers between his. Her head fell onto his shoulder and her eyes rolled up towards his chin. "Have you written your family lately, Tri?"

"Yeah, did I tell you about Tori's last letter?" She looked towards the door of the cabin and closed her eyes. "Apparently she's been dating this guy, Ian, for a few years now. She was keeping it a secret, but mom and dad found out a while back, so she said she wanted to tell me."

"What do you think about it?"

"Ian's a good guy, he's been friends with the family for a long time. If Tori cares for him and he cares for her, that's good." She still wanted to sit down and talk to Ian, and she would make sure to do exactly that when they got back home. "She says there's a lot going on right now and tells me not to worry about it, but apparently mom and dad are doing well."

"So, you think they'll stay together?"

"Tori thinks so, anyway, but I suppose we'll see. She says they're still working on it."

The good news was that her mother's affair ended and her father cut ties with Gary. "What about you?" Jason's head reclined and his shoulders rose suddenly.

"Hard to say." His shoulders crashed with an exhale and he shook his head. "Uncle Erwin sounds troubled when I talk to him, but he won't tell me anything for risk of worrying me about something I don't need to worry about."

"Oh." She turned onto her side and pulled her hand to his chest. "Well. Maybe it's nothing then."

"I'm not incredibly worried. Usually if it's something he can't handle, he'll let me know."

She didn't say anything after that, too eager to close her eyes and fall asleep cuddled up to the man she loved. She felt his arm go around her, holding to her tight as she drifted into sleep.

When she awoke, her eyes took a few seconds to adjust. She looked towards Jason with a smile, seeing his chin to his chest and his eyes closed. Trina raised her hand up, gently caressing his cheek opposite of her. She leaned over to kiss his jaw.

The train began to slow and her eyes darted to the sign above the door. Helena. "Oh, we're here already?" With that, she nudged him until his eyes opened. "We're here." He blinked twice and raised his head slowly.

"How long have we been asleep?" It didn't feel like a long time, but she wasn't sure what time it was.

"Travis and Lindsay did say to spend the day out here, so let's enjoy it." Their friends had something planned, but neither of them were sure exactly what that was. They were eager to talk them into having a date in the city.

"What's first on our agenda? Please don't say shopping." Trina started to smirk as a devious feeling rose up in her. Jason rolled his eyes and smiled back at her. "Of course.

"You said it first."

"We could do something else if shopping isn't your thing."

"I don't mind a little shopping." He stood up and extended his hand to her. She placed her hand in his and stood up. Her eyes moved into his and her lips curved into a tiny smile. "Let's just try not to go overboard, shall we?"

"How overboard is overboard?" She wouldn't make him empty his wallet or even his card, since she wasn't that kind of person, but she definitely didn't feel comfortable making him spend too much of his money if he didn't have to. She closed her hands together in front of her waist and perked her shoulders up. "I promise I won't buy a lot of stuff."

"Not worried about that."

They had a wonderful time exploring the city, and the hours seemed to fly by without warning. Jason appeared half-asleep as she tried on shoes, outfits, and even purses. At most she knew it was because he wasn't a mall kind of person, and while she didn't say anything, she could tell being caught up in the mall made him extremely uncomfortable.

There was one item in particular that Trina saw when they were investigating the Helena city mall that caught her attention. Part of what caught her attention was its shape; it was a stunning diamond encrusted necklace with a butterfly pendant at the bottom. It reminded her of Tori's tale, and she spent perhaps the longest part of their exploration gushing about it.

The edges of the wings and the back of the pendant were gold plated while the insides of the wings were encrusted with diamonds and rubies. The chain of the necklace itself was gold plated.

The only problem was the price. While they didn't buy much, since a big part of their date out involved dinner and then a movie, Trina wasn't about to ask Jason to spend nearly two hundred dollars on a necklace. Even though he had a lot of money saved up from his years working at the camp, and other jobs he had while going through high school and college, she did not want to take advantage.

It didn't look like he'd seen her gawking at the necklace either.

On the train ride back, she stood before the window she'd been at before, gazing out at the scenery with her hand between her breasts and her eyes wide with wonder. "It doesn't get old, does it?" Trina asked wistfully. Jason approached from behind, his wrists locked behind his back and his shoulders seemed to rest in a flat line.

"Honestly, no. How can something so beautiful ever get tiresome?" Sensing his words weren't in relation to the nature outside, she could feel her ears and cheeks starting to burn. Her eyes closed and a chuckle fell from her lips.

"You already have me, you don't have to keep trying to court me."

"Oh don't you worry," He said with a laugh, "As long as I live I'm going to keep trying to." She turned around with a start, gasping as he pulled his right hand from his back and gently cupped her cheek. "You're worth it. You're worth everything."

"Yeah…" She bowed her head and Jason's lips pursed.

"Something the matter?"

"Not at all!" She raised her head back up and placed her hands gently on his shoulders. Her heart skipped a beat and she quickly cleared away the grogginess in her throat. "It's just…you know how it's been for me. I've never had anybody tell me I was worth anything to them, you know? So…we've been together a while now and it's still a little bit of a shock."

"I understand."

"Not to mention, this is the longest I've ever been with anyone. I'm glad."

"I'm glad as well." Jason turned his head to the shopping bags on the seat near them. There were only about three or four. "I'm surprised you didn't buy more than that." There were clothes, some body lotions and a few other things that she thought were so great that they needed to be bought.

Even though she didn't appear like it to people that didn't know her, like Tori's friends, she truly didn't like love to be about material gifts. She preferred actions and people that wanted to spend quality time with her. Those were her 'love languages' as people referred to it; although that referenced relationships with just about anyone ranging from friends to family.

"You love me, you want to be with me. You spend time with me and treat me like you care, I don't need gifts to prove that." Trina raised her hand to her mouth and started to hum. "Not that I wouldn't take a gift from someone, it's just, I don't need gifts to know someone cares-if they act like they do and they take time to be with me-"

"Yeah I understand, and I am the same way."

She lowered her hand and raised an eyebrow at him. "Why so curious all of a sudden?" Jason gazed at her with half-lidded eyes and a tiny smile. He circled his finger in the air and she slowly turned to face the window.

Trina could feel her heart starting to pound as she watched his reflection. He moved his second hand from his back. She could see him holding something, but was unable to make it out. "Close your eyes."

"Oh." She did as instructed and chuckled nervously as he pulled her hair away from her neck. Within a moment she felt a cool metal chain around her throat, then something light, but weighty that came to rest on her chest. Her heartbeat sped up and she could feel her knees buckling. "Can I open my eyes now? Please?" Her lips curled up as she raised her hand to the pendant.

Her thumb ran across a familiar, smooth and rounded tip, then slid down across what felt like a sea of crystals bonded together. "Sure." Trina's breath caught in her throat and her eyes flew open just as the train shot into the tunnel where she could see her reflection perfectly on the window.

Resting on her neck was the butterfly necklace from the mall. She cried out in amazement and threw her hands over her mouth. "Oh god. Jason, you-I can't believe-you bought this?" She spun around, staring at him with large oval eyes.

"You were gushing about it, I could tell you wanted it." He gave her a smile and she looked down at the pendant. She wasn't about to turn it away, but she didn't like making him spend that much money on it.

"I-I'm not so materialistic that I would have asked, but…" Tears welled up in her eyes and she looked back at him with a tiny squeak. "Thank you…Oh god, this cost so much, I don't want to sound ungrateful."

"You don't." He placed a finger beneath her chin and tilted her head up. Jason pecked her lips and gazed deep into her eyes. "I'm not worried about the cost. It's worth it to see you happy. Plus, someone as sweet and beautiful as you should have something as beautiful as this."

She pushed her arms around his neck and leaned up, kissing him passionately on the lips. It felt weird not being able to give him anything in return, but she knew she had plenty of time for that.

When they returned to camp they found Travis and Lindsay waiting for them outside the front gates, which were closed. Travis had his hands in his pockets and was leaning against the gates while Lindsay bounced on her toes and had her hands behind her back.

A sure sign something was going on.

"Welcome back lovebirds," Travis said with a smirk. Immediately his eyes went to the pendant. "Holy shit…" The man chuckled and Trina watched Lindsay's eyes widen. "Well, I guess that makes it all that more official?"

Trina moved her hand over the pendant and bowed her head, blushing madly. Lindsay's jaw dropped and the woman rushed over. "Oh my god, seriously?" Lindsay pulled Trina's hand away and swooned. "Those are real gems!"

"Jason surprised me with it…" Lindsay dropped her hands to her hips and shot a look at Jason.

"Just great. Before we can even get into our surprise for you guys, you go and top it!" Jason raised an eyebrow and Lindsay turned around, waving her hand in the air. "Whatever though, I'm glad you've got something to commemorate your relationship with."

"It's a gift."

"I know that, I'm only teasing." Lindsay looked back and started to smile. "I'm glad you two had a great time, but your night is about to get much better…Travis and I need to still you away though."

"Separately of course," Travis remarked while grabbing his best friend's wrist. "Trust us on this."

So what did you think? It really is the small things that count, the cuddling and the talking, and just spending time together. Sometimes that includes buying something you see her gazing at and surprising her with it as a gift. I hope you've enjoyed this chapter. What do you think Travis and Lindsay have in mind? Note that this chapter takes place a while after the last one. There was a small clue to their plan in the last chapter...The next chapter we will see that, and it's a kind of finality. The one after that concludes with that daddy-daughter date promised to Trina by her father. I thought it would be better to put that in here rather than in Gap.