Silas always had a different definition when it came to love. At a young age, he learned showing emotion was a weakness so he often doesn't show it. When you came along, he cares a little too much and he's afraid of showing just how much he cares. In his eyes, love meant leaving, love meant disappointment, love meant people promising forever and then leaving so he shows it instead.

He would often do things for her without her asking him to. He would buy her favorites then give it to her, he would keep the notes she wrote to him, he would fix her broken alarm clock or help her place a nail in the wall, he would wait for her outside of her class if he finished first. He doesn't know if she can see or feel it but he could only hope and pray that she does.

In her apartment, he could hear the clock ticking. Normally, she would fill the silence but she wasn't. Her usual loudness had suddenly turned silent. She had said too many 'I love you's that he never returned. It wasn't that he didn't want to say it, each time he tried to, the words never come out of his mouth. It was always stuck in his throat. He always wondered how others could say it so easily to their partners while he can't.

It was only until she fell asleep that he could finally say those words but they came out as a whisper.

"I love you,"