Disclaimer: Hey! They're not mine, they're...not mine. Someone else's. Katims, Metz...those people's. Not mine. Title comes from a song by Aerosmith, called, amazingly enough, "Fly Away From Here". I drove my roommate crazy listening to it while writing this story!

The sun was just beginning to rise in the east, painting the New Mexico sky in brilliant pinks, deep reds and dark purples, as the last of the stars faded from sight. A soft wind blew from the west, kicking up some of the loose sand that made up the top layer of the desert surrounded the little town of Roswell. The streets were as deserted as one would think they would be on a Saturday morning at six o’clock in the morning. A few paper boys, cursing their inability to get a job with better hours were up and about, and the night shift of the local police department was sitting around staring at the clock and waiting the one hour they had left until they could go home and get into bed.

Other then the sleepy cops and disgruntled paperboys, no one else in their right mind would be up right now, and the little town was quiet and still, the chirping of the occasional bird or the bark of a maniac dog the only noise, at least at the moment. The roar of a car engine destroyed the quiet for just a few minutes, before it was killed, and the driver of the car climbed out of it.

Shoving his hands into his pocket, he leaned against the hood of the car, knowing that she would be out in just a few minutes. If he wasn’t mistaken, she was finishing up the letter she was writing to her family, to explain what was going on. He let a smile, a bit of a rueful one, touch his lips. He was glad he was getting out of here, just so he wouldn’t have to face the wrath of her brother or any of their friends, after they discovered what they had done, what had been going on right under their noses for months now.

The door swung open, and she appeared at the doorway, several bags clutched in her hands. He hurried forward to help her with her luggage. She flashed a bright smile at him, pushing herself up on her toes to kiss him softly on the mouth. When she pulled away, her smile faded, but the happiness in her eyes didn’t.

“Do you think this is a good idea?” She asked, her voice soft and quiet.

The young man shrugged, and reached up to tuck a lock of her hair behind her ear gently, a wide grin on his face. “Hey, this was your idea, not mine.” She lifted an eyebrow at him, and he chuckled, stroking her cheek with his fingers. “You know I do. I love you, and I wanna be with you. If this is the only way…then…well…”

“I’m asking you give up your entire life.” He could see that she wasn’t going to let this go until he assured her that this was something that he really wanted , that she was what he really wanted.

“Your asking me to trade it in for something better.” He told her, reaching out to slip his arms around her waist, and pulling her to his chest.

Her smile was back, and she dropped her bags to wrap her arms tightly around his neck. “I love you.”

He blinked, and pasted a disbelieving look to his face. “Really!? I thought you just asked every handsome guy you knew to run away with you!”

“Cute.”

“I know I am.” His grin faded, and he leaned forward until his forehead rested against hers. “Seriously though—I love you too. More then anything.”

“Good.” She smiled again, closing her eyes and inhaling softly. He mimicked her, wondering what she was thinking. “I’m glad we don’t have to use the code anymore.”

“Hey, I kind of liked getting to yell ‘You forgot your purse!’ across the campus at lunch time.” He chuckled, and she followed suit. “Of course, we really should have worked on your response.”

“You didn’t like ‘thanks geek boy’?” She laughed, and he rolled his eyes at her. She quelled her merriment, and touched his face gently. “You know I didn’t mean it.”

“I know. Now, can we go before we get caught? Somehow, I just don’t think I’d enjoy having the crap kicked out of me by the male members of your family.”

She widened her eyes in comic horror, and she hefted two of her bags, leaving the other three for him. “Good point—I rather like you. I think I want to keep you in one piece.”

“Good thing. I think I’d like to keep myself that way.” He laughed, hefting the remaining three bags and carried them toward his car, where she was already stowing her stuff with his. He grunted as he tossed the rest of her bags in, and grinned down at her. “What exactly did you bring? Your rock collection?”

She rolled her eyes. “I don’t have a rock collection, silly. Those are my bricks.” Her face was completely serious, and he lifted an eyebrow.

“Tell me you’re kidding.”

“Hmmm. Maybe.”

He heaved a longsuffering sigh, and clapped a hand to his chest. “You’re lucky I love you, babe.”

Her completely serious “I know” took him completely off guard. Shooting a look in her direction, he noticed the sadness in her eyes, and it tore at him like a physical pain. Closing the back end of the car, he captured her face in both of his hands, and made her look up at him. For a long moment he studied her face, before leaning forward and pressing a gentle kiss to her lips.

“And I’m just as lucky you love me. You know you’re everything to me.” He told her softly, rubbing at her lip with his thumb. Her blinding smile touched his heart in a way he never thought was possible, and he pulled her into his arms, wrapping her tightly to his arms. She laid her head on his chest, feeling his heartbeat right under her ear. He laid his cheek against her silky hair, and stroked her back gently, his fingers curving strange patterns into her baby blue shirt.

For a moment, they stood still as statues, soaking in the warmth of the slowly rising sun and basking in each other’s love. A sudden light lit up in her house, and they blinked and swallowed. Exchanging a look, the separated, and headed for the car, she sliding into the passenger side as he dove for the driver’s seat. Starting the engine, he pulled away from the curb, as she slid across the seat to him, snuggling up into his side.

Something that might have been a startled shout reached their ears over the roar of the engine, and she looked up into the rearview mirror, just in time to see Kyle, in a pair of sweatpants and nothing else run into the street watching them drive away. She bit down hard on her bottom lip, fighting back tears…

Until he lifted his hand in silent farewell, a smile she could recognize a mile away on his face.

Tess smiled in return, even though she knew he couldn’t see her expression, and laid her head on Alex’s shoulder, as they drove toward the rising sun.