in the cracks of light, i dreamed of you

08

Karlie's POV

We curl up in my bed and watch Grey's Anatomy on my laptop for a while. I'll ask her later about the cuts and bruises but for now, I just let her relax. I'm realizing she is a lot more fragile than I thought and I am really going to have to take it slow. I don't want to overwhelm her with questions but I know that in order to help her, I am going to have to get her to open up. I notice her stop paying attention after a little while, lost in thought. I pull her in closer and kiss the top of her head as she begins to drift off. She looks up at me, suddenly very alert. Her eyes are bluer than the ocean and I wish I could look at them forever. With a new found courage, I lean in closing the gap between us. Her lips are soft and her breath is warm and sweet. My eyes flutter shut and I enjoy it for half a second before pulling back and realizing what I've done.

"Shit, oh my god i'm sorry. I didn't mean to ... I shouldn't have. Oh god you're gonna hate me. Fuck, what did I do?" I manage to sputter out

"Karls, calm down, it's ok" She says. My face turns to pure surprise. She puts her hands on my cheeks and leans in so our noses are touching. I rest my forehead against hers and just enjoy being close with her, thankful I haven't ruined things. "I'm not good with feelings, or trust for that matter. And I'm a broken mess that you really don't wanna have to deal with. Believe me, in a day or two, you're gonna want to kick me out." She says, looking me straight in the eyes, fidgeting with her fingers nervously.

"Tay, I'm ok with the mess. And I would never hurt you, on purpose at least. We don't have to do anything you don't want to do though. We can take it at whatever pace feels comfortable for you." I say brushing hair off of her face.

"I need a little bit of time to figure everything out. But, that's not me saying no." She replies. I'll take it though. It's not a no which is more than I could hope for. I just hope this girl doesn't realize she's way out of my league and could get anybody else she wanted.

"That's perfectly ok with me," I say, wrapping my arms around her waist. "I have a question though, only if you're ok with answering. I wanna be able to help you however I can. And that's not me pitying you, I just really can't stand to see you hurting. What were you upset about earlier?" I ask, as gently as possible.

"I don't really wanna talk about it" She says, turning around to face away from me. I can't help but feel a little rejected but I understand she will tell me when she's ready.

Taylors POV

It's not that I don't desperately want to explain everything to Karlie but I'm so afraid of what she would think of me afterwards. She'll realize I'm broken beyond fixing and that she wants nothing to do with that. After only 3 days, I care about her more than anyone I've met so rejection from her would hurt the most. I will tell her eventually but not today. I wonder if I made the right choice asking for more time. Maybe this is the only opportunity I will get to be with her. At the same time, I know she doesn't deserve to get a broken version of me. After a little while, I turn back around to wrap my arms around her waist.

"I'm sorry for snapping. I promise I will explain eventually. It's too much right now though." I say softly. She intertwines our fingers and rubs circles on the back of my hand.

"I get it, it's ok. You don't have to apologize." She responds. She plays with my hair until I fall asleep on her chest, listening to her heartbeat. Sleeping next to her is my new favorite thing and waking up knowing she stayed is even better. I fall asleep and dream of only good things.

A few hours later

We wake up in time to hear Tracy calling up to us that dinner is ready. For the first time, I understand what a normal family feels like. I laugh a lot at Kimby's stories and truly relax and enjoy myself. After dinner, we clean up the kitchen and head into the living room to watch a movie. The whole family curls up on the various chairs and sofa, bundled up in blankets. Kart suggests we watch a baseball movie and nobody objects. Karlie watches with intense fascination with everything. I admire her curiosity and ability to listen with everything she's got. Over the course of the movie, I shift closer and closer to her until by the end, our limbs are tangled together and my head is on her shoulder. Tracy and Kurt seem to exchange knowing glances throughout the movie and I pretend I don't see. I need to deal with my feelings before I think about anyone else besides Karlie and I. Good parents always do seem to have a knack for knowing things though.