I watch her from the ajar door, flying through the air like my beautiful butterfly. Her black leotard hugs her body, accentuating her perfect ass and perky boobs. Her face has a healthy sheen of sweat gathering across it and her blonde hair is tied tightly to the back of her head in a smart bun. Her sapphire eyes burn brighter, ablaze under the studio lights, she looks even more gorgeous when she dances because I know it's something she loves and something she's fought for.

I'm so proud of her, she's been working her absolute ass off with dance training every day, even when I can see how much her muscles ache and the routines not going right. Even when she wants to give up she doesn't and I admire that so much about her. She's still fretting about Julliard and I think that's what's driving her perfectionism through the roof. She's even been going to therapy, trying her hardest to open up. I know it's hurting her and everything's taking its toll on her. She usually comes home red-eyed, blotchy skin and keeps to herself for a while but I always try and do everything I can to make sure she feels better and losses the weight of the past for a while. I'll sometimes make her watch a film and eat ice cream whilst we cuddle on the couch or we'll end up going to the gym together. Although we usually end up just messing about with me helping her pull herself up on the bars. Or we'll go for a drive listening to music- that's our favourite thing to do when the sun setting and the horizon is just dark blue and orange, we drive around listing to each other's music and grab some food.

Fuck me. I am so fucking whipped... not that I'd want to be anything else with her.

If anyone could see how shitting mad I am for this girl they'd never believe it.

Atlas' routine comes to an end, her head lifts slightly as her lungs push oxygen into themselves. Her head stops when she sees me and a big grin spreads across her face. She brushes the curly baby hairs out of her sweaty face as I walk into the studio.

"Hey Blondie, Hey Gia." I nod over at Gianna my sisters, and now Atlas', dance teacher. Atlas has been training with her for a few weeks now and every time mom or I pick up my sister all we hear is how amazing both of them are doing for their age groups. I can't help the bolt of pride that shoots through me whenever I hear that. These feelings are so strong and as much as it scares me, I'm trying to embrace them rather than lock them out.

"Hey Blaze." She nods back opening her water bottle and throwing Atlas hers, "You can take off if you want Atty. That routine is looking pretty perfect, incredible even, especially for Julliard. Great extensions but if you want to be a really picky focus on your feet coming out of the grande jete in that last section" Gia winks at Atlas who stands with a tight-lipped smile, she worried since she hasn't even got an audition letter yet. But I know she will.

"I think I just need to run-"

"Actually you should run and get a shower." I interrupt her need to run it again and wrap my arms around her waist pulling her tiny body into mine. Her chest rises and falls rapidly still trying to suck in the air. I keep my eyes on her forehead as I brush away some more stray hairs tucking them behind her ear so I don't look down at her chest.

What? I'm only fucking human.

"But I should really go through-"

"I'm taking you out..." I stop her again, her eyebrows shoot up and eyes widen like saucers as I pull her closer into me drawing small circles on her back, the gap of bare skin her leotard leaves. Her skin pebbles under my finger making me smirk, "On a date." I finish and look around the studio. Gia waves over her shoulder at us with a small smile gracing her lips as she leaves through the door.

"A...a date... our first... date?" Atlas stutters over the words becoming increasingly flushed and tries to hide her blush by pushing her head into my torso but I catch the wide grin on her face before she does.

"Yeah, our first date. If that's okay with you?" I take the opportunity to untie the bun on her head, letting her long blonde hair flow down her back as I move the red scrunchie onto my wrist. Her head shoots up again to meet my eyes.

'Yes! I-I mean... uh sure... of course.... Yep." She grimaces at the words flowing out of her mouth which makes me chuckle but prompts me to place my lips on hers in a chaste kiss, except she's the one who deepens it, linking her arms around the back of my neck and pulling herself up onto her pointe shoes still fastened around her feet. I can feel her smile against my lips, she probably finds it funny how much easier they make it to kiss me.

She pulls away looking even more flushed before.

"Where are we going?"

"It's a surprise. Go get showered." I instruct watching her eyes light even more. She drops back onto her feet and bites on her lower lip untangling her arms from my neck. She places a final kiss on my cheek before she scurries off towards the locker room down the hall.

"I can help you in the shower if you want," I shout after her with a smug smirk, I'd fucking love to help her in the shower but I know she's not ready for that kind of thing and I'm totally okay with that. I'll wait as long as she fucking needs. Just kissing her is the best thing I've ever felt, her lips being the best thing I've ever tasted before.

She freezes and makes a muffled sound, spewing off some random syllables before darting into the changing room with blotchy cheeks.

"Will, you at least give me a hint?" Atlas hops in the passenger seat looking up at me with bright doe eyes. Her damp hair swings down her back and her naturally flushed cheeks glow post-shower. Usually, I'd give in... yeah I'm a fucking sap but this time I'm keeping it a secret. I shake my head with a grin and lean across her to buckle her belt in. She deflates into the seat pouting looking ahead and not at me.

I chuckle at how cute her stubbornness is.

"Those are for you, if you want to stop pouting. It's a long drive so I thought you might get hungry." I turn the ignition on and gesture to the cupholders in between our seats. On the way over to pick her up, I'd stopped at 7-Eleven and picked her up a few of her favourites. Her eyes widen like saucers as she pulls out the Blue Rasperry Slurpee, condensation dripping down her dainty fingers. She takes a long sip as her fingers rummage through the snacks, a box of Reeces Pieces, Oreos and Mike and Ikes. She lets out a small gasp, often getting this excited around these certain snacks, valuing the small things.

"Now I feel bad for pouting." She blushes to open the box of Mike and Ikes. She pops a few into her hand, the box rattling when she places it between her legs and knocks the candy back into her mouth.

It takes about an hour and a half to get where we're going, just outside Georgia, but Atlas doesn't seem to mind. She's just singing along to whatever she's put on. Probably my mistake letting her have control but she looks so fucking happy. She uses her phone as a microphone howling out Teenage Dream by Katy Perry. Her hair flies around her head with the window slightly cracked open and her cheeks flush with all the added dancing she's doing writhing around in her seat. I'm trying desperately to keep my eyes on the road but it's hard when the most gorgeous girl is sat fucking around next to me. She flips her damp hair over her head dramatically as she shouts out the last chorus to the song. Her vanilla scent hits me making me long to be closer, not separated by seatbelts and a centre console. I just want her straddled across my legs, her small hands around my neck as she-

"I fricking love this song. Sing with me." She bites on her bottom lip, pushing her weight onto one arm as she leans closer to me. Fucking hell she needs to stop doing that.

"Yeah, No fucking way. I don't sing." I scoff looking at the road ahead, it's not that busy luckily- I don't think my patience can tolerate traffic right now.

"You know you'll want to. Nobody can resist the power." She waggles her eyebrows and I let out a short laugh. Sometimes I sit here and think how the fuck did I even do anything before I met Atlas Grove. She's everything I didn't know I needed and has quite literally flipped me upside down. Sure it's fucking cliché but it's true. What a sap I am.

The intro to 'Lose Yourself' fills the space in the car, I internally groan, Atlas giggles menacingly and starts doing the talking bit at the beginning. When you look at a girl who dances like a swan, wears pale blue ribbons in her hair and spends most of her time with her head in a book... you wouldn't think she'd know most of the lyrics to Eminem. She knows most of Drakes catalogue which only makes her that much fucking hotter.

"You better rap with me Blazey. I know you know it." She grins at me turning up the volume, making sure it's on an even number since it freaks her out if it's on an odd level. I shake my head, a small smile curving my lips. I'm not fucking rapping.

"His palms are sweaty, knees weak, arms are heavy. There's vomit on his sweater already, mom's spaghetti." Atlas' head bops forward and backwards, "He's nervous, but on the surface, he looks calm and ready To drop bombs, but he keeps on forgettin'. What he wrote down, the whole crowd goes so loud. He opens his mouth, but the words won't come out, He's chokin', how, everybody's jokin' now, The clocks run out, times up, over, below" The lyrics to 'Lose Yourself' just flow out of her mouth, trying to look more menacing she scowls but it's laughable she even thinks she could be scary, she hasn't got a mean bone in her body. "Come on, the chorus! Please?" Her hand reaches over to squeeze my arm with wide blue eyes, I grab her hand and hold it in my lap.

"I'm not-"

"Please... you know you want to." She bites on her fucking lip again.

Needless to say, I ended up, very tonelessly, rapping the chorus with her.

"Callaway Resort and Gardens...?" Atlas looks at the sign by the entrance, her eyebrows turning down in confusion but quick perk up trying not to offend me. I smirk and grab her hand linking our fingers as I pull her through the entrance.

"Yeah, I thought I'd volunteer us for some weeding, help with the garden maintenance you know? I'm all for going green." I pull her into my side and pull our linked fingers to the top of her shoulder so she's tucked into my side.

"Funny." She rolls her eyes.

"I'm not joking." I deadpan stopping our bodies abruptly. Her face drops and pales, eyes wide, guilt coursing through her irises, "I'm joking." I grin, she lets out a visible breath and punches me in the arm. It doesn't hurt, more a tickle but it makes me laugh even more.

"You're an ass." She huffs.

"That's me, baby."

We keep strolling through the garden, I don't know what Atlas thinks we're doing but she looks content with just looking at the plants and flowers. The sun shines down on her glossy hair, making her eyes sparkle in the light. A chill through runs through the air rustling the tree leaves but Blondie just clings tighter to me trying to conceal our warmth.

"What's your favourite book? Like of all time?" She turns to look up at me suddenly, curiosity flashing through her features as her tiny fingers grip the back of my jacket. The question reminds me of the time I saw her studying my bookshelf, she thought I was asleep but I had one eye open watching her. It was the first night she ventured into my room. She wouldn't even sit on the bed, she just stood by the doorway awkwardly and flushed. I kept telling her it was okay but it took her a while to actually sit next to me. It's just a natural thing now.

"Why?" I draw out the syllables.

"Because I want to know more about you." She shrugs, her free hand falls to tough one of the bushes we walk past, brushing her hands across the green leaves.

"You already know a lot about me, you probably know the most about me." I press a kiss to the side of her temple, it's true- I don't think I've ever told anyone as much as Atlas, people that know things about me have taken it from what they've seen. I've never told anyone else explicitly or talked about my fucking feelings. She smiles, a coating of red covering her cheeks.

"But that's what people do on dates right? They learn more things about each other." She asks nervously. The reason I picked this kind of date is that I didn't want her to feel any pressure about the whole thing. She's so persistent on being perfect all the time I just wanted her to have fun.

"Well we've kind of done everything backwards haven't we babe." I squeeze her tighter to my body, her free hand moves across to my torso, resting her nails on my shirt.

"Alright then... I'll test you." She murmurs.

"Test me?"

"How much do you know about me?" She smiles smugly at me, she probably thinks if my memory is anything like my attention in French class I won't know much but I've got this in the fucking bag.

"Alright... Your favourite colours are sky blue and yellow because you can't choose just one. You love Drake as much as Taylor Swift and prefer dancing to lyrical music to classical. Your favourite Avenger is Thor... although I think that may be to do with his muscles more than anything else..." Her face flushes.

"Objection... that... that is not true! He gains a dad bod at one point and I still like him, besides Nat is also my favourite because she's badass and she's hot." Her neck heats trying to justify but I've seen the way her eyes widen slightly when he walks on screen.

"You have to sleep on the left side of the bed, the volume has to be on an even number, you love making me sit through the torture of Dance Moms. Your favourite drink is either Sprite or those Blue Slurpees. You feel lost if you not currently reading a book. You don't like eggplant, you hide behind your hair when you get nervous and the make-up items you can't live without is that brow shit and mascara even though you don't need them. You're a perfectionist in every sense and in addition to that you feel incomplete without having a coat of nail polish on your nails." She stares up at me through her dark lashes, her mouth open floundering for words, I feel a burst of pride shoot through me. She doesn't say anything just smiles contently as I lead her onto a more earthy path, I place a kiss on the corner of her lips, "How'd I do?" She just nods dumbfounded, "We're here by the way." She doesn't realise I've stopped our bodies, she draws her eyes from my gaze and her mouth drops even more when she sees the glass window, rectangle pane structure.

"Wha-"

"Come on." I pull her arm slightly moving us forward again, her face of confusion is a picture. We reach the front door and open it, the muggy heat hitting us immediately. She falls back into me slightly, unsure of herself but I lead her through to the main attraction. The earthy smell hits me full force and the heat sticks in my lungs, I'm actually nervous. Most people might find this kind of date unconventional or even borning but-

"Oh. My. God." Atlas steps away from my chest making me miss her contact, "Blaze... this... I." She shakes her head looking down at her shoes, "A fricking butterfly sanctuary." She scoffs and when she turns back to me her eyes are glassy, she walks into my chest hugging me with all her might. When she pulls away she places a kiss on my cheek and I shrug. I'm not usually the 'thoughtful' one but like I said Atlas is changing me and I suppose I like it.

She clutches my hand, pulling me down the pathway past tall canopies of dark green leaves and brown stems. Bright luscious plants sit off in the jungle of the plantation. Various arrays of butterfly perch on bits of fruit set out for them to feed on or the exuberant flowers. Atlas' face brightens with every tiny creature she sees, like each one adds a point to her happiness tally.

"What about me?" I ask suddenly watching her recoil from a large leaf she was inspecting, the butterfly had flown off at the sound of my voice, "What do you know about me?"

She steps closer to me, pulling her lower lip into her mouth. She stares at me wistfully, longingly, "Well Beckett. I know that you can be one moody ass but you're actually a big softie. You run your thumb across your lip when you get nervous... that's a rare thing but it happens. Your favourite drink is Gatorade- the blue one. You secretly like dance moms but your favourite films are the Fast and Furious films. You like NF because you find his lyrics clever and comforting but you have mainly Drake and Travis Scott on your workout playlist. I've converted you into a full-blown Swiftie. You hate peppers and when Gemma is upset. You have an awful sleep schedule and stay up late reading when you think I'm asleep. I know you push yourself and are too hard on yourself but I know your rewards come from football and you have a pre-show ritual that no one else knows about... Mr Blaze Beckett taps the tunnel wall four times before every game... you can deny it but I know the truth." She giggles as my fingers dig deeper into her waist, my spine zipping with energy. She pays attention to the smallest things that literally no one else knows about, my ritual... fuck. How the fuck did she know that... no one knows that. I dip my head to meet hers and engulf her in a strong passionate kiss, she gives in wrapping her arms around my neck. I slip my tongue through her swollen lips and hear a small sound escape the back of her throat. It goes straight through me, igniting parts of me that feel on fire right now.

When she pulls away I swipe my thumb down her bottom lip watching her face blotch, she may not think it but she is... the best fucking thing I've ever tasted.