We Might As Well Just Fuck

Chapter 6

"Why do you have so many pictures of Karlie?" Taylor instantly dropped all the papers she had been holding in her hands, jumping in her seat as a British voice interrupted the previously quiet room.

She turned around and noticed Ed standing behind her with a raised eyebrow and a smug smile.

"None of your concern," she said, trying to hide her embarrassment at being caught. "Hey!" she exclaimed as Ed quickly reached for the papers she had just dropped. She tried to take them back but he quickly walked away towards the other side of the room.

"Is this her résumé?" He asked curiously as he examined the paper. However, Taylor quickly snatched the paper back, glaring at him as she did. "Why do you have her résumé?"

"I... borrowed it," she answered, her response sounding more like a question than she would have liked.

"You stole it." When Taylor blushed slightly, he knew he hit the nail right in the head. He smiled bigger at the new information, "That's kind of stalker-y, no? Most people just ask for a person's number, you know?"

"I was just curious," Taylor said defensively, returning to the table to gather all the papers back in a neat pile.

"Curiosity killed the cat, Tay," Ed said teasingly, but under his lighthearted comment, Taylor could hear the hint of seriousness.

"Then it's a good thing they have nine lives," she responded lamely, ignoring his warning.

"Okay whatever," he said with a sigh, "By the way, I'm playing tonight again. No new material, but I am playing if you want to go."

"I think you just want me to give you a ride," Taylor said with a knowing grin.

Ed smiled sheepishly. "Yeah, yeah," he said before exiting the room.

Taylor shook her head before sitting down once more. She grabbed the paper she had been holding previously, it was a list of all the modeling jobs Karlie had done while living in Boston. She didn't know much about the modeling business, but her résumé was quite impressive, if Taylor said so herself.

Karlie had done about 20 different small campaigns for local businesses, all her employers writing her great letters of recommendation. She seemed to be a demi-celebrity of sorts in Boston. She had gotten a major in computer programming, with a minor in fashion, an unlikely combination. Taylor found it admirable that she managed to make a name for herself without anyone's help, all the while, going to school and getting a degree. And even better, it wasn't a degree in psychology.

She had included head-shots, and some of her best campaigns. Taylor particularly liked the picture where she was smiling the smile she had become so accustomed to, the one that made you want to smile just by looking at it. And Taylor did just that as she looked at the picture once more.

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"I'm gonna be in the back if you need me," Ed said, as the two parted ways at the entrance.

Taylor nodded in acknowledgment, soon making her way towards the bar. She was instantly greeted by a wave and a big smile.

"Hi!" Karlie said enthusiastically, "What can I get you today?"

Taylor was about to ask for a beer before she thought better of it, remembering the conversation they had the previous night.

"Surprise me," she said finally, with a light smile.

An excited look crossed Karlie's features as she quickly gathered a number of different ingredients. Taylor felt a weird sense of pride at being able to make the brunet happy with such a simple request.

It didn't take Karlie long to finish the drink, soon placing it in front of Taylor.

"This one is called a dark 'n stormy," Karlie said proudly.

Taylor took the cold drink in her hands, taking a big gulp without thinking about it, and was surprised by the slight sweetness of the drink. "What's in it?" Taylor wondered as she looked closer at the drink.

"Mostly ginger beer and rum," Karlie said, before asking hopeful, "Did you like it?"

"Yeah, it's great," Taylor told the girl, causing Karlie to smile proudly. Taylor finding it endearing that the brunet could find happiness in the simplest of things.

"Hey, pretty thing! Can you come here for a second," a guy at the other end of the bar called for Karlie.

"One second," Karlie said with a forced smile before looking back at Taylor. "I don't understand why men think we like to be referred to as 'thing,'" she said with an eye-roll, before approaching the guy.

Taylor kept her eyes glued to Karlie as she made her way towards the man. He was probably in his thirties, wearing a black button-up shirt and a smug smile. It was obvious the man thought highly of himself. His tan was so dark, you could easily see where his wedding ring had been before he assumingly took it off. She wondered who he was trying to fool.

Taylor rolled her eyes as he unmistakably tried to flirt with Karlie, however, the green-eyed girl was having none of it, keeping her expression neutral. It seemed he had given up after a few minutes of getting nowhere, Karlie quickly retreating to get his drink.

The blonde focused her gaze back on her own drink, not wanting to be caught staring.

"Well that was annoying," Karlie said, standing in front of Taylor once more. "You didn't need to look at him to know he's a douchebag, his voice alone made that clear."

Taylor smiled, happy that Karlie hadn't bought into his tricks. "Do you get that a lot?" She wondered.

"Eh, one or two a night," she answered with a shrug, "nothing I can't handle."

"When you become a more well-known model, I'm sure you'll get more of that," Taylor commented, causing Karlie to grimace in disgust.

"Let's not talk about that. Is Ed playing tonight?" She wondered, changing the subject.

"Yep," Taylor said, "he's in the back getting ready. He's opening today."

As if on cue, the lights in the bar dimmed slightly, as they turned on the small stage's lights.

Ed quickly came out onto the stage, "Good evening, my name is Ed Sheeran and I'll be playing for you today."

He started working on creating a beat with his loop pedal before beginning to sing, "You're just a small bump unborn, in four months you're brought to life..." 

"I swear he has the voice of an angel," Karlie commented as the song ended, a few tears in her eyes.

"That he does," Taylor agreed as another song started.

"How long have you two known each other?" Karlie asked as she leaned forward against the bar.

"Two years," Taylor smiled, "He's my best friend."

"I can tell," Karlie said with a small laugh, "I'm guessing it's not easy to gain that title."

Taylor laughed as well, "Yeah, I guess it's not." She felt slightly surprised by how much Karlie seemed to have picked up about her, maybe even a little uncomfortable.

"Think I'll ever make the friends list?" Karlie joked, a playful smile on her face.

"You're off to a good start," Taylor allowed, "Your expertise in drink-making helps, too."

"Well, I better make your list, because you've already made mine."

N/A: Hello! I've written 3 chapters, this is one of them. I don't want to post them all at once so I thought I would post them after each part gets around 90 votes. It usually takes a day or two to reach that so it seems like a good, reasonable number. So that's that :). 

As always, I hope you like this chapter. Xx.