I poured myself a cup of black coffee, the house too quiet with mom gone and thought to wake Katelyn up for breakfast. That though, however, diminished itself, last night must have taken a toll on her. Something had shifted between us, there was this understanding that wasn't there before. I kept telling myself it's because we both had lost a lot but it wasn't that entirely, there was something more.

I shook my head in an attempt to shake the thought from my mind altogether. We bonded over our grief and now had a better understanding of each other, that was it. Nothing more and nothing less. There couldn't be anything more.

After a quick shower, I got dressed and headed for Katelyn's house. The landscaper would be there early and I could show him around before Katelyn got there, he needed to know what he was letting himself in for. The drive was over quick and I waited in the front yard until Dustin's beat up truck pulled into the driveway.

The scrawny guy hopped out of the truck with the door squealing loudly upon closing, "What the hell Lucas? Ya called me here to cut down the Amazon?" He scratched his head ruffling the wild curls until they stood on end.

I laughed, "It's a big job Dustin, you ready for it."

"Ya man, ya know I never say no to work! Might not be pretty now but it sure will be once I'm done with it."

"Wait till you see the backyard."

Dustin squinted his murky brown eyes in the sunlight, "Back's always worse than the front."

We walked around the house since I was still waiting on the okay from the electrician, which led to us having to walk through the tall grass. At first, I was just going to get Dustin to give the yard a good clean up but after my mom told me this was important to Katelyn, I decided to let this be her decision. Dustin may have been a bit strange but he was the best at this and he took every job seriously.

We came to the backyard and Dustin let out a low whistle before scratching his head again, "Man that pool looks like something my dog threw up once. Mary got super pissed cuz it was on her new carpet."

For as long as I've known Dustin he always put these little tidbits of his life and wife, into any conversation. Sometimes it was hilarious other times it was, awkward.

"Like I said, a lot of work but it's important that we get it right."

"So your general clean up then?"

"Initially, yes. But we're waiting for the owner to tell us what she wants to do with the yard."

"Then I'm gonna take a walk around, make some suggestions. This could be a really pretty yard given the right care."

I smiled thinking of Katelyn in a beautiful garden, one as beautiful as her and I knew this was the right choice. She would probably like all the colors and nature around her, though the small spider would suggest otherwise. Dustin and I waited until the sun started rising in the sky. I sent Katelyn a text, thinking maybe she had overslept. Then another hour went by and she still hadn't replied.

Dustin walked up behind me, "So this owner gonna show up in this lifetime?"

"Let me just give her a call, see what's the hold up."

I dialed Katelyn's number and caught the phone between my shoulder and ear. It went straight to voicemail and I frowned, there was no way Katelyn would miss this. I knew how much this must have meant to her, she wouldn't just bail, unless something happened. I felt an uneasy pit form into my stomach as the call went to voicemail for a second time.

Dropping the call I turned back to Dustin, "Dustin, I'm sorry but I think something might have happened, will it be okay to reschedule?"

Dustin's eyes went wide, "Sure, I'll draft up a plan in the meantime. Just give me call when your friend is ready."

Dustin left and i nearly sprinted for the truck, there was a part of me that was urgent to get home, just to make sure. My mind kept playing tricks on me and I had to remind myself this was Katelyn. She's probably still asleep, lord knows that woman sleeps like the dead. Even with the pep talk and the rational explanation playing like a monologue in my head, I couldn't help but feel something is wrong.

When I finally reached home, I topped the truck in the driveway not even caring to park it properly, knowing full well mom would be gone for a couple of days. I raced through the house all the way to the backyard and past the pool. The cottage door wasn't locked and I made a note to tell Katelyn to keep it locked, but right then, I was glad it wasn't.

The living room and kitchen was empty so was Katelyn's room and my heart pounded as I pushed open the bathroom door to find Katelyn hunched in a corner. She had her knees pulled up and her arms wrapped around them. Her head was buried in her arms but I could see her shoulders shake.

"Katelyn?"

Startled, Katelyn looked up, "What are you doing here?"

I took in her bloodshot eyes and tear streaked face, her lashes still wet with tears, "What happened? Are you okay?"

Katelyn's lip quivered like she was on the verge of tears, "Lucas please leave." then she put her head back on her arms as if to shut the world out.

"I'm not leaving you like this."

"I'm a mess Lucas, you don't need to see me like this."

"You're not a mess Katelyn," I said kneeling down beside her, "you're hurt and it's okay to feel that way but you don't have to be alone right now."

She finally looked up but didn't meet my eyes. I cupped her cheek and slowly tilted her face so her eyes could meet mine, "You could never a be a mess. Annoying, bossy and stubborn, sure. But never a mess."

Katelyn sniffed but I saw her lips twitch, "Well you're just as annoying and hard headed."

I pretended to be shocked, widening my eyes as far as I could, "So this is the thanks I get for being the knight in shinning armor?"

Katelyn raised an eyebrow and I could practically see the wheels turning in her head as she tried to come up with a good enough comeback. Then she tilted her head sideways as if studying me, "Nah, I don't see it. More like an ass in tinfoil."

My mouth dropped open just as Katelyn burst out laughing, the sound making me sigh in relief. If I could get her to laugh then she could make all the jokes about me she wants.

"Okay just because you're not feeling to good, I'll give you that one. For now."

Katelyn stopped laughing and grew serious, "Thank you. For this."

It's final, she can say anything and do anything as long as she kept smiling and laughing like that. It was the best music I have ever heard and I would do anything to continue hearing. I shook my head trying to get my thoughts back on track.

I grabbed both Katelyn's arms and pulled her up from the cold floor, "I say we get something to drink."

I lead Katelyn to the living room and she plopped down on the couch. Next I went and got us some of the soda's mom always kept stocked in the fridge.

As I handed Katelyn a soda my hand brushed hers and I fought to gain control of my thoughts, "So what happened?"

Katelyn looked down to study her hands, "I don't want to talk about it, honestly, I don't even want to think out it."

I nodded my head, "Then we don't talk about it now. Tell me something else then."

"Like what?"

"Like, something I don't know."

Katelyn took a moment to think, "My mom knew your mom when they were younger."

"Really?"

Katelyn nodded her head, "Hm, apparently they got into a lot of trouble back then."

"How did I miss that?"

"You were pretty distracted with the porch and your mom told me while we were boxing up the house."

"That explains why she's so protective over you. Does she know about your mom?"

"Yeah, she does. I had to tell her."

I saw Katelyn drift back into her own thoughts and hopped up from the couch, "Okay, let's watch a movie."

The remote was lying on the coffee table and I reached for it the same moment that Katelyn tried to grab it.

"If you put on something sad, I might have to strangle you."

I laughed as Katelyn stretched out on the couch, "I promise nothing sad, besides I don't really do sad movies."

I picked the first comedy from the list making sure to stay as far away from my mom's movies as possible. She was a hopeless romantic at heart and heaven knows the movies she watches are all tearjerkers. Ten minutes later Katelyn and I were in stitches, the movie I chose was named Prank Wars and it didn't disappoint.

"Should I be scared that you're getting ideas here?" I asked.

"You should be afraid, be very afraid." Katelyn said in a monotonous voice.

It took about two second for the both of to burst out laughing. Katelyn was clutching her sides but she didn't stop until tears started running down her face. Then she did the single most adorable thing I've ever seen, she snorted and smacked her hand over her mouth, cheeks going bright red.

"What was that?" I asked through my own laughter.

Katelyn smacked my shoulder and I grinned at her. For the next hour we watched the movie until the credits started to roll. I had to admit that I was enjoying myself more than I would have thought. There was something about her that made it so easy for me to let loose and enjoy the moment.

When the movie was over, I still wasn't ready for our little movie adventure to end, so I looked over to Katelyn, "What are we watching now?"

"I don't know! You pick one, again, since my taste actually sucks."

I laughed but Katelyn suddenly shot up from the couch, "The landscaper! I totally forgot."

"It's okay, he said he'll draft up some ideas for the yard and we can call him whenever you're ready."

"Well in that case," Katelyn walked to the kitchen and started going through the cupboards, "Hey where does your mom keep the popcorn."

I came up behind her as she bent down, nearly sticking her head inside, "Assuming there is any popcorn."

I couldn't help but admire the view and wondered if I should tell her to search all the bottom cupboards. A smile tugged at my lips which I had to quickly loose when Katelyn stoop up.

"Your mom has way to many movies not to have popcorn. So are you going to help look, or not?"

Eventually, I found the popcorn, in exactly the same place it's always been. Katelyn pulled a pot out and pretty soon the whole cottage smelled like a movie theater and we settled down on the sofa. I clicked play, while Katelyn crossed her legs on the couch resting the big bowl of popcorn between her legs.

After the second car chase and a grandiose explosion, I looked over just in time to see Katelyn roll her eyes, "How could anyone believe this is real? Like when does something ever blow up like that?"

"Ask yourself this, if there wasn't thing exploding in a spectacular manner, is it even considered and action?"

"Good point."

The movie kept playing but at some point, I stopped paying attention to it and my eyes started to drift shut. It was only when Katelyn's arm twitched that I looked over to see her sleeping with the popcorn bowl in her hands. I couldn't help but smile and sat up to remove the bowl from her hands and put it on the coffee table.

When I sat back down Katelyn shifted and her head fell onto my shoulder. She looked so peaceful that, I didn't want to move her and disturb the sleep she actually needed. My own eyes were growing heavier and it was harder than ever to keep them open with Katelyn softly snoring next to me. Then sleep pulled me under and I stopped fighting it.