Cliffs Edge [Kaylor]

three

"Are you sure you don't want to go through the back again, Miss Swift?" One of her guards turns in his seat to look at her.

"It should be fine, I think they're technically closed for another twenty minutes." Taylor just hopes Karlie is working her shift. She knows that the girl bartends – she was only a waitress for that one night in particular – and that her shift starts around 3:30, meaning that she must be in there preparing for when they open for the evening. It's worth a shot, and if she's not there then Taylor will just go home and try again another day.

The front entrance is open, and Taylor feels her heartbeat quicken when she sees Karlie standing behind the large bar that dominates the center of the room. There's another girl standing with her, though she looks a bit young to be handling alcohol. Taylor approaches slowly, taking her surroundings in. She never really saw this side of the bar when Cara dragged her here. They had been confided to the back corner in order to avoid garnering too much attention. 

There are large flat screens mounted over the bar and rustic looking tables are scattered all over the place. The exposed brick, worn wooden flooring, and the dim lighting gives the entire thing a very rustic feel. It almost reminds Taylor of her apartment, but just a tad shabbier. She still wonders why Karlie wrote this place off as a dive bar. It's cozier than most of the high-end bars in Los Angeles.

"Uh, we're closed." The voice comes from Taylor's left. She turns her head and sees a caramel skinned woman who's as tall as she is. Taylor swears she looks familiar. Her brown eyes widen when she gets a closer look at Taylor. "Oh shit."

"Hi. I'm just here to see Karlie, I hope it's okay that I just walked in. The door was open..." Taylor trails off, suddenly feeling out of place. Why did she come here? Karlie probably doesn't even want to see her, plus this is her job. Taylor hadn't really been thinking, and now she feels like fleeing. Maybe it's not too late to turn around and go home. That thought goes flying out the window when Karlie finally takes note of her. Her eyes widen for a moment but then a small smile overtakes her face. 

Taylor's learned that Karlie doesn't smile much, and when she does it's usually just a small grin. Taylor hopes to see the real thing one day.

"What are you doing here?" Karlie doesn't sound or look upset, so Taylor's fear of rejection alleviates. Only a little, though.

"I'm here for a drink. This is a bar, right?" Taylor says coyly. Karlie lets out a disbelieving snort but that just makes Taylor even more determined. She sits her purse down on the bar and perches on the stool directly across from where Karlie is standing. Her security awkwardly lumbers onto the two stools on either side of her.

"This is a closed bar," Karlie corrects her, checking her phone for a moment. "For another twenty-three minutes. Meaning I can't make you a drink."

"I can! What do you want?" The young blonde girl who is also behind the bar speaks up, looking at Taylor with excited eyes. Taylor flashes a victorious smirk in Karlie's direction before turning her attention back to the blonde.

"Do you have red wine?"

Karlie lets out another snort, rolling her eyes at the choice of drink. Taylor sticks her tongue out while the adorably perky blonde nods eagerly, already reaching under the bar for a wine glass.

"That's like the classiest thing I've ever served here. I'm Gigi by the way, big fan! I went to your Red tour in East Rutherford and it literally changed my life. Like, I saw God or something. I couldn't talk for four days afterwards because my throat hurt so badly."

Taylor smiles throughout the entire exchange, wondering if Gigi is going to stop and breathe. She doesn't, and continues to talk as she pours Taylor a glass of wine and slides it over to her.