Back to me

Chapter 13

Cara was scrolling through her social media dashboard when Karlie's phone rang in her hands.

A picture of Taylor decked out in photoshopped gang gear flashed on the screen.

"Ello?" Cara answered.

"Cara?" Taylor asked. "Why do you have Karlie's phone?"

"Mine's charging and she doesn't keep a lock on her's, so I figure I can use it as needed." She examined her own phone which was still dead, even though it had been charging for a whole two minuets.

"Are you kidding me?" Taylor whined. "I've been telling her put one on since we first meet!"

Cara could hear a deep sigh on the other side of the line. "Is she there?"

"She's in the other room, hold on-"

"Wait!" Yelled Taylor.

Cara paused from getting up from her bed.

"It's probably better that you picked up, could you just tell her to meet me at our usual place as soon as possible?"

Cara beamed. She had been monitoring the two for awhile now-- not in a creep way, just as an observant and snoopy friend. She and Martha liked to call them 'Operation: Kaylor.'

"Sure, I'll pass the message." She promised excitedly.

"Thanks, Cara."

---

Karlie promptly arrived at the Starbucks near Juilliard. She had a hunch about what this way about, but she hopped she was wrong.

It was easy to find Taylor, just follow the direction of the paparazzi's cameras. Since they knew that she frequented this cafe, Taylor should've chosen a new place, but she stayed because Karlie could easily commute from school to here.

The giant men with flashing machines was the one negative about being friends with Taylor. Turning her head from the cameras, Karlie ducked inside.

Taylor sat at their usual table, anxiously gnawing at her bottom lip. Karlie sat across from her and worriedly folded her hands over her lap. Taylor wasn't usually a nervous person, or at least, she didn't usually show it.

They hadn't talked since the snowstorm. It was obvious to Karlie what this was about, but she stayed optimistic and hopped Taylor would surprise her.

"I thought about going to your house, but that seemed kinda weird, and you've got a roommate, so then I decided here's fine, but I really should've taken your schedule into account--" Taylor nervously chuckled and brushed a strand of golden hair behind her ear to distracted herself from her mindless rambles.

Karlie's heart fell. This is exactly what she was dreading. Maybe she could just turn and run away, but that'd probably make matters worse.

Taylor pretended to be engrossed by the sugar packets and avoided eye contact. "I should probably just get to the point."

Karlie stayed quiet, allowing Taylor to gather her words. But she should've stopped her right there and save the poor girl the torture.

"As you know, I turned 25 last month." She swallowed the lump in her throat. "I asked for someone to light up my world, and then I accidentally grabbed your phone... Then we started hanging out... And now I wanna hang out even more, on a date-- the romantic kind."

Finally, she looked up, hoping to find that beaming smile that she was so accustomed to. Instead, Karlie's eyes were begging her not to continue.

The small smile of Taylor's slowly slipped from her face.

"Taylor," Karlie tentatively began. "You are the most amazing person I know, and I'm so unbelievably glad our paths crossed, but I can't..."

She didn't think she could look at that disappointed expression any longer, but Karlie felt she owed it to Taylor to at least look her in the eyes.

"Maybe under different circumstances, in a differnt situation... But we wouldn't work, and I'd rather save us both the heartache in the long run."

Taylor tugged the corners of her lips, it was a difficult task, for it felt like she was lifting the weight of the universe. She wasn't even sure if she had actually smiled, but she had at least tried.

"I understand." She nodded too many times. "Um, I hope we're still fine."

"We're always gonna be fine." Karlie assured and reach over the table to give Taylor's hand a small squeeze.

Taylor slipped her hand out and rose to her feet. "I should probably go, I have to get ready for an interview tomorrow, but thanks for coming out."

She shifted towards the door and awkwardly wiggled her fingers in an attempt of a wave. "I'll see you later, Karlie."

"I'll see you later, Taylor." Karlie waved before Taylor curtly nodded and went on her way.

Josh, the barista, came by with Karlie's usual drink. He slid it towards her with a sympathetic smile.

"It's on the house."

"Thanks," she said as she sadly took a long sip.