but, the new couple had to go back mexico since it was their home. the hardest part was saying goodbye.

karl kept on asking for one last hug, desperate to keep the two for just a little longer. he loved his friends that he could see whenever he wanted, but he was really going to miss his favorite couple. they had joked about moving in with karl, but in all honesty, karl wouldn't mind.

the three of them were all near tears, but none of them cried. they knew they would see each other soon. they had a great time together, but not everyone has best friends in the same country.

"god, i miss him already." alex sighs. reyna nods, keeping her eyes on the road.

"i know." she says quietly. they didn't speak much, eventually leading to alex falling asleep. reyna worried for herself, as well as alex. she didn't want karl and alex to loose touch. she knew karl wouldn't willingly do that, but sometimes it just happened.

reyna would hate for that to happen with her and karls friendship, but she would hate it a lot more if it happened to his and alex's. truth be told, she cared about alex more than she had for anyone else, including herself. she'd seen him hurt, but she'd do anything to prevent it from happening.

reyna sighed while slowing up at a red light. she looked to her right, smiling at the sleepy expression on alex's face. she watched the light turn green with a sigh.

she knew that alex had the same feelings for her, yet she was still terrified. she had never trusted someone so much, never felt so much for one person. part of her wanted to just disappear and go back to being alone so that she couldn't run the risk of hurting him, but another part of her just wanted to be around him.

reyna didn't want to ruin her relationship with alex, it was the last thing she wanted. yet at night she dreamed of loosing him, waking up in tears. she was still so, so scared. this one person, this miracle of a man had changed her life completely in less than a year.

people come and go. the people who are supposed to stay, leave. reyna reminded herself. she thought back to her family, how they threw her out like she was never even born.

she couldn't say that she didn't trust alex, because she did. the problem was reyna felt like she was trusting him too much, and she was going to end up being hurt and alone. she thought she was replaceable to alex.

the more she thought about it, the more she believed it. alex had done more for her than she's done for anyone in her life. she's hasn't done anything for him.

reyna didn't notice alex waking up a few minutes later, too focused on the highway in front of her.

"good morning." alex grumbles, clearing his throat.

"hey, feeling a little better?" she asks, referring to the sleepless night he had prior.

"a little." alex adjusted his hoodie. "are you okay?"

"just a little lost in thought." she answered. "nothing to worry about."

it wasn't hard to see that reyna wasn't telling the truth, but alex knew she'd tell him eventually. his thought process surprised himself. for the first time, he didn't overthink it, he didn't assume that she didn't trust him or didn't want to talk to him, he just knew that he trusted her to tell her soon enough.

"do you want to listen to some music?" alex asked, knowing how much she enjoyed it.

"yeah, you can pick." she said. she knew he would probably play something stupid to try to get her to laugh, but she didn't do anything to stop him.

her suspicions were proven correct when he started playing his lice song, alex clutching his stomach from laughter. reyna tried to keep a straight face, but started to laugh with him.

before the song could even end, he started playing 100 gecs, then skipping right after the first verse.

"hey little pissbaby!" alex wheezes.

"please, spare me." reyna giggles. alex continued playing songs until she sung along with him, laughing as they drove down the road.

"i can't wait to see tiger." reyna remembered, feeling like talking again.

"oh yeah, do you want to meet my mom." alex says nonchalantly.

"what?" reyna panics.

"when we pick tiger up, do you want to come see my mom." alex repeats.

"well, i don't think she'd like me very much." reyna says.

"i mean this genuinely, she would love you." he grabs her hand that isn't on the steering wheel.

"you'll have to meet her eventually." he points out.

"okay, okay." she sighs.

"let's go!" alex claps. "wait now she's going to like you more than me."

"i doubt that." reyna smiles slightly.

again, they stopped at a hotel when they both got too tired to drive. again, they shared a bed, ending up cuddling and not leaving the position they were in for hours longer than they were supposed to. eventually though, they did get back home to mexico, ready to meet alex's mother.

well, as ready as reyna could be.

"hola mama." alex greets as he opens the door. a short woman smothers him in a hug, instantly perking up when she notices reyna standing by the door.

"ella hablan espanol?" she asks alex.

"si, perdone por entrometerme." reyna says quietly as alex's mother ushered her inside. "me nombre es reyna."

"ella es mi novia." alex says timidly.

his mother looks at reyna, then at alex. she looks between her son and his girlfriend a few times before speaking.

"pero ella es mucho mas guapa que tu." she says, making reyna laugh and alex's smile disappear. "estoy bromeando, eres muy guapo." she squashes alex's face together, making him embarrassed.

"entrar, por favor!" she pushes the shorter girl inside. "no lo creo." she repeats.

"por que?" alex whines.

"ella es mas baja que tu." she mumbles.