BEAUTIFUL CRAZY

thirteen. you goin' somewhere

Tyler smiled, watching as Wren traced her fingers across his bare torso. They'd been up for a while, but neither really wanted to get out of bed. And the rain beating against the house was oddly calming, both rather enjoying the sound as it hit the roof and even the window.

When she reached the scar on his side, she giggled a little following its path with her fingertips.

"What?" He hummed, dragging his fingers through her hair.

"We match." She tugged her shirt up, exposing the stitches on her side – she had taken the bandage off after waking up that morning.

He chuckled, kissing the top of her head. And while they weren't a perfect match, if they stood side-by-side – him to her left – they would almost line up. If she were a few inches taller, that is.

"What happened?" She asked softly, turning so her chin was pressed into his chest as her fingers absently circled the scar. "If you don't mind sharin'."

He smiled at her, he loved that she wanted to know. "It was my first rodeo, I drew Rango. He had a nasty reputation, threw riders before the first second. Landed a few in the hospital. I was new, so I played it cool. Acted as if I wasn't scared."

"Were you?"

"Shitless," he nodded and she chuckled. "But Boone, he grabbed me and told me it's just eight seconds. eight seconds then it's over and we can get pizza. And when they called my name, I told myself it was just eight seconds – if I lasted that long."

"Did you?"

"No, he threw me in under two." He said, and she laughed, throwing her head back and he just smiled at her. His eyes trailing down to the layered purple marks on her neck that he knew went lower. "And he was on me faster than I could even get to my feet, his horn caught me just as I jumped up on the fence."

"Did it hurt?" Her palm covered the mark as if trying to ease the pain that was no longer there.

He nodded, "didn't notice it at first, what with the adrenaline. My mama was the first to say something once I got out of the arena, and she made a huge fuss. But it was barely anything."

"I still can't believe that you rode bulls," she muttered. "I followed the circuit for a couple of years, but I woulda remembered you. Had a thing for bull riders, ya know."

"Did you now?"

She hummed as she nodded her head, "dated one once."

"Yeah?"

"Few years younger than you, name was... Caleb Walker. He was pretty, but he couldn't focus on much for longer than 8 seconds. Sav said that's why he went into bull riding."

"Well, baby, you have my full attention." He mumbled, kissing her forehead and she smiled as a comfortable silence fell over them.

She was perfectly content to spend all day in that bed, listening to the rain and the sound of his heartbeat. She'd never been much for cuddling before, but she'd never wanted to be close to a man the way she wanted to be close to him. And she couldn't begin to comprehend just how good his arms felt around her.

And he never wanted to let her go. Her in his clothes curled up against his side, it was perfect. Especially with the way she was smiling up at him, he's never seen a smile so pure and bright. And her laugh, that damn laugh was so infectious that he couldn't help but laugh when she did.

In that moment, he knew he'd do anything to keep her in his arms with that smile on her face.

"Hey, baby," he said after a while of comfortable silence and she hummed in response. "Come with me."

She turned, meeting his eyes, "what?"

"Come with me." He repeated softly. "We can meet up with the crew, get back to chasing. A-and after... I-I just want you with me."

"Really?" Her eyes were wide, like she couldn't believe it.

"Yes."

"What about Kate? And my music? I-I mean, I don't have much in the way of a home, but my life is here and yours isn't."

"We can figure it out," he nodded almost desperately. "We can hit every bar in the midwest. Or-or we could do something on the channel for your music. Or you could make your own. We can figure it out as we go, but I don't wanna go without you."

"Tyler..." she pushed herself up, looking down at him. "what if you get tired of havin' me 'round?"

"I won't." He insisted, but she still seemed hesitant.

"Can I think about it?"

He smiled softly, reaching up to tuck her hair behind her ear. "'Course you can."

She leaned down and pressed her lips against his, "come on, Kathy made breakfast."

"How do you know that?"

"She always makes breakfast, especially when we have company." She hummed, then she pushed herself up and grabbed a pair of shorts from the drawer – it had been her room when she spent the holidays there. And he just watched her, loving her in his shirt. "You don't hurry up, you ain't gonna get any pancakes."

He chuckled as he pushed himself up, and she let her eyes rake over him – he looked damn good in those boxers. She hummed to herself as she pulled her shorts up her legs, then she slid out of the room in search of Kate.

"I need advice," she rushed out as she stepped into Kate's room, pushing the door closed behind her. "Why you eatin' up here?"

She shook her head, "advice on what?"

"Tyler may have asked me to go with him," she shifted on her feet as her cheeks burned.

Kate smiled softly, sure she was still torn up about the night before but she could see just how happy he made Wren.

"You wanna go."

"What would I tell Savannah? I'm met a cowboy and now I'm following around like a puppy?"

"You tell her the truth, you love him."

Wren choked on an inhale, "love?" Kate just nodded. "No, I don't think... I mean, I like him and I like bein' with him. And he makes me feel a little gooey inside, and when I see him I just want to look at his face. And his brain, ugh, he's so smart, Kate. So much so that it scares me a little."

"Why's that scare you?"

She shrugged, "I'm not really book smart. Not like you. And I don't like feelin' less than. And I don't want him to see me as less than."

Kate pushed herself up, crossing the room, "you are not less than anything. And you are smart, maybe not about the science part, but you have that feeling – that gut feeling about things. And from what I've seen, it's rarely wrong. Whether it's about a storm or not."

"Kate, I'm scared."

"Since when are you scared? You're so sure of yourself, so confident."

"What if you're right? What if I do... love him?" She took a breath. "What if he changes his mind?"

Kate took a breath, not really sure what to say. But she knew she had to say something, "I can't believe I'm doing this, but... you gotta ride your fears. You can't run from 'em."

Wren smiled softly, "you know, that's good advice. Advice you should take, too." Kate only nodded. "And don't worry, I won't tell him you quoted him."

Kate chuckled, pulling her in for a tight hug, "we can lose touch this time."

Wren grinned, squeezing her just a little, "I'm afraid you're stuck with me."

"Good." With that they pulled apart and Wren took a deep breath, "now go pack. I know Mama has some of you stuff around here."

"I love you, Kate. Don't think I ever told you that."

"I love you, too, Madeline."

"And you had to ruin it." She shook her head, making the blonde laugh before they shared another hug.

Wren smiled as she made her way towards the guest room, she could hear Tyler and Kathy talking downstairs. She rushed into the room and haphazardly packed a bag with what little clothes she'd left behind. Then she pulled her hair up into a ponytail, slid her feet into her boots, and she made her way down stairs.

"These are delicious." Tyler mused, motioning to the nearly gone pancakes on his plate. "Baby, you gotta-" he was cut off as Wren let her bag hit the floor and his eyes lit up.

"You going somewhere?" Kathy asked, a knowing smile tugging at her lips.

"Yeah. Yeah I am."

Tyler stood up, the chair scraping the floor a little, then his arms were around her, pulling her in close. He tucked his nose into her neck, inhaling deeply as if he had been holding his breath waiting for her answer.

Wren giggled a little, wrapping her arms around his torso as she turned her head little and lightly kissed his cheek.

"Let the girl breathe," Kathy huffed jokingly after a while of the two just holding each other. The two chuckled as they pulled apart, then he leaned down and pecked her lips before pulling her chair out for her.

>>>>> • <<<<<

Wren smiled, holding onto Tyler's hand they stepped off the porch and into the rain. Neither at all bothered by it. She hummed to herself, trying to avoid stepping in puddles and they made their way towards his truck. And his smile was near permanent as he watched her.

"I know we gotta get back to the crew, but you think we can make a stop first?"

"Sure, where?"

"Home," she told him as he rounded the truck and he opened the door for her. "Wanna see Savannah. We didn't exactly part of the best of terms. It's not far from here, just a couple towns over."

"I think we can swing it," he nodded, leaning down to press his lips against hers. Then he lifted her up into the truck, making her squeal a little as he lifted her off her feet. "Damn, baby, that was cute."

"Shut up." She shoved his chest a little and he chuckled as he took a step back, she situated herself in the seat and he closed the door before making his way towards the driver's side. He opened the back door and tossed their bags into the backseat before climbing up behind the wheel.

He couldn't stop his smile from growing as he looked at the girl that sat in his passage seat, part of him couldn't believe she had agreed to come with him. The other part wanted to make sure that no matter what, she never left that seat.

"You ready to go?"

She leaned over the console, being careful not to hit any of the buttons or switches, then she kissed his cheek, "yeah, I'm ready."

He just smiled at her as he reached to put the key in the ignition, and she shifted in her seat to get comfortable, only to jump when a knock came at the window.

Tyler turned to see Kate standing just outside his door and Wren leaned over the console with a creased brow as he rolled the window down, "you coming with?"

She shook her head a little, "you said you could get a new model running?"

Tyler grinned and looked over at Wren before looking down at Kate, "yes, ma'am."

"Does this mean you're finally gonna teach me somethin'?"