Afire Love

Fashioned Distortions

Hours had passed since Saffron left, her fingers all over her face trying to cover it as she descended down the stairs and out of the door. Even from above, Karlie could feel the clicks of a thousand photographs, the printing of another ten magazines that would hold her and Taylor's face and about millions of tweets that would be demoralising her as if Acacia Brinley didn't exist for that already.

Hard as they tried to hide their faces from the media, and to protect the young girl from all the unwanted attention, Karlie failed to have done it right. Instead, she had just fallen into a deeper hole of controversy and gossip that surrounded her like the Sun that hid beneath the clouds on a sunny day. She tried to face Taylor, maybe even explain stuff to her but it simply wasn't worth it.

Though the couple never talked, there was a kind of mutual understanding that was better left unsaid. Taylor understood by then, that she had to give the model some space, no matter how much she vied for the attention that Karlie endowed upon other girls. She had to take a step back when it came to Karlie, whom she was sure could hardly change her ways. Sure, her ways of expressing frustration were a bit different from normal people, but we both know that Karlie wasn't exactly normal.

Hence, Taylor preferred to maintain her distance, for she herself had secrets to guard. Knowing very well that her love wasn't going to be reciprocated and Karlie would just be another song on the next album, Taylor almost completely gave up on her supposed fancy and continued with her, maintaining the same demeanour as she did before.

Taylor hardly said a thing to her, waving goodbye to Saffron once they reached the LeMarchal estate but after that, nothing but her own breath could be heard, mixed with the hollow whispering of the wind that wove into her hair.

Her fingertips placed on the sides of her forehead, Karlie continued to drive through the calm rest that had clouded upon New York City, but she found it quite ironic actually - when her own mind was at unrest. Beside her, Taylor was hugging herself, shivering under the effect of cold or rather, the exposure that she had to face at the mere age of 24.

Never in her six year old career had she ever been involved in the controversies that seemed to pursue her this single year. Hardly did she know that a single drunken night could lead upto such major problems in her life, where she had hardly seen failure and success was chosen company.

"You know, I always believed that people had a place in this world. The evil-doers meant to be sad, melancholic and the good ones always lived a luxurious life.They deserved it, I used to think. I thought of myself to be the latter, of course."

Taylor stated, her eyes falling upon Karlie, who said nothing. Therefore, she continued.

"You make me doubt my own faith. People like you deserve to be the downtrodden ones, the ones that shouldn't be looked upon. But I guess we all have different outlooks of what's good and what's bad."

Taylor completed, with such distaste and venom in her voice, that it seemed absurd that Karlie hadn't already been affected by it; her pale face and flushed cheeks hardly affected by the model's disposition, who was enlightened enough not to say anything.

The car lurched to a stop, the gust of wind pursuing them as the couple pulled their overcoats closer and walked in through the door, maintaining a personal distance throughout.

Minutes later, they were escorted into the conference room, where they had been called as the paparazzi had been courteous enough to follow them to the publicist's too.

Solemn expressions were common to everyone's faces, the women casting furtive looks in Karlie's direction. Karlie and Taylor took their seat, under the scrutiny of the entire room, where people were still flipping through gossip magazines that had their faces plastered as well as those of Blaze and Saffron.