The sky was blended pinks and oranges, with a hazy violet coming up over the horizon. Audrey reached up and swirled her hand around, as if she were dipping her fingers into a swimming pool. Eli watched her, wondering what she was thinking about.

She had to be thinking about something, Eli had learned, as that was the only time she was totally silent. She was lying on a park bench, head on his lap, staring into the evening sky, almost like she was watching for something to happen. Eli lifted his head up to look.

"Eli?" His head snapped back down. Audrey was looking at him now, her hand back on her stomach. "What happened to your Dad?" She asked.

"I don't know." Eli shrugged, absentmindedly twirling a strand of her hair, which was currently flowing over his leg. Audrey smiled at the small, affectionate gesture. "He wasn't even around when I was born." He shrugged again, not used to thinking about his real Dad. He wasn't even a part of Eli's life, except for the DNA aspect.

"Do you ever think," Audrey paused, "What your life would have been like if your Dad had been around?" Audrey often thought of it, even though her family talked about him like he was the most vile person on earth. Even though it was his fault that she was sick.

"No." Eli answered honestly, and when Audrey looked at him again, he was smiling. The setting sun was shining onto the blonde hair that was fallen over his face where he was looking down at her. She reached her hand up to brush her fingers through his fallen hair.

****

"Why do they always pick the tiny towns to stop in for so long?" Audrey whined, "No free WIFI? What a joke!" She threw her arms out dramatically. "What are we supposed to do for three more hours?" Eli walked beside her, contentedly licking his ice cream cone.

"The ice cream truck was pretty cool." Audrey admitted, wiping her hands on her dress. She had practically eaten hers in one bite. "I haven't seen one of those in a long time."

Eli nodded, but remained characteristically silent, taking in the sights around him. Audrey, bored and slightly annoyed at Eli's complete silence, felt a mischievous spirit take hold of her.

"Let me taste your ice cream?" She asked sweetly.

"Gross." Eli commented, scrunching up his nose.

Audrey stopped in her tracks. "Come on, yours looks so good!" Eli didn't respond. "And besides, what's so gross? We've swapped spit before."

"Gross." Eli shook his head and kept walking.

Audrey ran up to keep in step with him. She reached up to grab his ice cream, but he held his arm up, out of reach. She started to jump up and down, trying desperately to get to it. "Eli!" She exclaimed between jumps, "Let me," Jump, "Taste your," Jump, "Ice cream!" Jump.

Eli laughed at her efforts. "You know, I would have let you try it without that swapping spit comment."

Audrey suddenly stopped jumping, out of breath. She coughed a few times and then cleared her throat. "You okay, Aud?" Eli asked, eyebrows crinkling in concern. Audrey's eyes twinkled when she looked at him, and then she suddenly swiped his ice cream.

His mouth hung open as he watched her skipping down the street, ice cream in hand. She wore a black dress patterned with tiny pink flowers that swished around her as she skipped, and Eli tried to keep it all in his memory, the girl with bouncing curls and perfectly pink lips and the brightest smile, before he ran to catch up with her.

She had stopped in front of a brick building, and Eli noticed that half of his chocolate ice cream was gone. He raised an eyebrow and followed her line of sight to the large, purple curtained window on the building. "Do you hear that?" She asked quietly.

Eli listened carefully. It sounded like classical music. "My Grandma used to have this playing all the time." She breathed out, still listening closely. Suddenly, she was off again, handing Eli his ice cream back and going to the door. "Audrey."

"It's a community center." She assured, pointing to the cracked printing on the glass door. She pushed it open and walked inside.

Audrey followed the music as it got louder and louder, eventually coming to a stop at an open hall. Eli followed closely behind, and rolled his eyes when he saw.

Senior couples slow danced around the hardwood floor, quite gracefully, Audrey thought. She smiled warmly.

"I have an idea."

"Please, no."

Audrey spun to face Eli. "Do you wanna take a guess at how many school dances I've been to?"

"Not really." Eli winced.

"None!" Audrey ignored his sarcasm. "Absolutely none."

"And right now, you're thinking," Eli paused, looking around and then lowering his voice into a whisper, "That you can make up for prom by dancing with a bunch of old people and wristband boy?" He held his arms out to emphasize his point.

Audrey frowned up at him, but the pair were interrupted before they could continue. "Hello there." An old man with steely blue eyes and a surprisingly thick head of hair greeted them.

"This is technically a senior class, but we'd be happy to have some fresh young recruits." He grinned at them, and Audrey grinned back. "Will you two be joining us?"

"Sure,"

"I don't think-"

Audrey shot Eli a glare. The older man followed her gaze and eyed Eli suspiciously. "What's with the wrist gear, son?" He asked. Eli flushed and looked down at his wrists.

"He's a runner." Audrey answered.

"A runner?" The man quirked an eyebrow up, unconvinced.

"Yes," Audrey said, "He's very dedicated to it. In fact, look at the time," She pointed to a clock on the wall and turned to Eli, "I think it's time for you to do some laps." Eli opened his mouth to object, but then saw the withering look on her face. He shook his head and walked out.

The older man stuck out his hand. Audrey shook it with a sheepish smile. "I'm David." He said.

"Audrey." A woman walked up to them, red-orange dyed hair and blue eye shadow in a silver glittered dress. "I'm Lucille." She greeted, and then peered down the hallway. "Boyfriend troubles?" She asked sympathetically.

"Oh," Audrey blushed, "He's not really my boyfriend."

"Not really?" David frowned.

"Well, it's just-"

"That's the trouble with young people." David interrupted. Audrey noticed this with her grandparents too. Old people always interrupted. It was like they knew what they had to say was more important than what you had to say. She sighed.

"My Grandson brought a girl to my house last week, and when I asked him about her, he said 'we aren't putting labels on it'. What the hell does that mean?"

"David," Lucille patted his shoulder. She looped her arm into Audrey's and pulled her into the room. "Come and sit, dear. Have a drink." Lucille sat at a small white plastic table with a still flustered David, and Audrey hesitantly sat between them, still watching the dancing going on in front of her.

"It's not the labels thing," Audrey placed her elbows on the table, "It's just complicated." She tried.

"What's complicated? You love him, he loves you, it's easy."

"I don't love-"

"What exactly makes it complicated?" Lucille interrupted, taking a sip of punch. Audrey sighed and looked at her. "I just don't know what to do." She said, feeling her dam of untold thoughts breaking again. Lucille stroked her arm consolingly.

"What do you do if you like someone. I mean, really like them. But, you aren't going to see them again after next week. Like, maybe ever?"

"Why won't you see each other?"

"I'm going one place, and he's going somewhere else. I dunno, I just started thinking about it today. I don't want to not see him again, and I know I started it, but-" Audrey paused for a breath, "I don't even know if he feels how I feel. If I tell him, it could be totally embarrassing." Audrey leaned back in her chair and put her hands over her face.

"Of course he loves you, just look at you." David said in his harsh tone, and Audrey rolled her eyes half heartedly. She sat up a little straighter. "I also don't think he should go to New York. Alone, I mean. But, I can't say that either. He'll think that I think he's weak, which I don't,"

Audrey chewed on her lip momentarily, "I just don't think he should be alone, and so far away, and what if he gets sad again and no one's around and-" She stopped to breathe, her heart racing with worry, eyes downcast.

"Gosh," Lucille half laughed, "You've got all that to tell him before the end of the week?" Audrey nodded, and tucked her hair behind her ears. "You have to tell him," David offered, "Soon." Audrey looked at Lucille, who nodded in agreement.

"What if he takes it bad?" Audrey asked.

"He won't." David said, as if he knew Eli personally. "I've said it once, and I'll say it again. If you love him, and he loves you, it's easy." He put a large, warm hand on top of hers. "Worrying about someone is caring about them." He said with a small smile.

"And everybody loves to know they're cared about." Lucille added. "He'll know you have good intentions."

Audrey smiled and then nodded to herself. "I'm gonna go get him."

"Good idea." David patted her on the back as she got up.

Eli was sat outside on the sidewalk, scratching around his itchy wristbands. Audrey walked out and stood behind him, awkwardly crossing her arms. "Hey," She said, "I'm sorry for being such a bitch in there." Eli stood up and brushed off his jeans.

He simply smiled at her, "So, you're not mad at me?"

"No!" Audrey said, a little too loudly. "No," She said, trying to be more casual, making Eli chuckle. "I just had this feeling, like, if I had known you, I would have had a prom date." She rolled her eyes at herself and scuffed her flats on the concrete. "Not that I'm still hung up about prom or anything." She laughed at herself. "I sound so dumb."

"No, I get it." Eli said, although he never had any interest in spending any more time at school while he was there, and certainly not with the people he went to school with. "So, you want to go in there?" He asked, nodding towards the community center.

Her eyebrows crinkled, "But-"

Eli grabbed her hand and walked her inside. He pulled her right to the middle of the dance floor, where old couples danced elegantly around them.

Eli looked around him with a frown. Audrey tried to contain her smile. "So, how do we do this?" He asked, half to himself, as he watched the older couples whoosh around the dance floor with ease.

"Just like this." Audrey said, slipping her arms around his neck. Eli's confusion deepened, and Audrey rolled her eyes dramatically. "Hands on my waist." She explained. Eli's heart rate quickened as he carefully placed his hands on her waist, the tips of his fingers brushing her back. She smiled up at him.

"That's not proper form!" David shouted over the music, still sitting with Lucille at the table. Lucille slapped his arm. Audrey just smiled wider and watched Lucille give her a thumbs up. She looked back up at Eli, who was staring down at her, dark eyes searching her face, committing it all to memory.

Audrey pulled herself closer to him, and rested her head on his chest. She closed her eyes and listened to his rapid heart beat.

Eli ran a hand though her hair and traced her jawline gently, tipping her chin up to look at him. "You okay, Audrey?" He asked softly.

She nodded, her eyes shining, "I'm just really glad you're here." She said, just as softly. Eli felt his lips twitch up. He wondered if she meant 'here' with her, or 'here' on earth, alive.

Either way, he felt the same. "Me too." He said, and really meant it. For the first time in a long time, Eli was glad to be 'here'.