Cliffs Edge [Kaylor]

eight

Taylor jets off to Los Angeles for work, and maybe it's for the best. She and Karlie are in such an odd place right now that she doesn't even know how to act around the bartender. She doesn't know how affectionate she can be with her, or if Karlie even enjoyed that kiss on her birthday. Karlie is such a confusing maze of emotions, and whenever Taylor thinks she's taking a correct turn, she ends up hitting another dead end and having to backtrack.

Now Taylor is forced to push Karlie to the back of her mind for a few days. She is about to release an album, which means there's a hundred different things that need to be done between now and October. She has a single coming out soon, Tree is setting up all kinds of appearances and interviews, and Los Angeles is where she needs to be right now. Although she's excited for new beginnings, Taylor can't help but feel as if she has left behind some very important unfinished business back in New York.

She is distracted during her meetings with her label, even when they give her the green light for the three bonus tracks she wishes to add in for the deluxe edition of the album. She checks her phone countless times, hoping to see a text from Karlie, only to be met with nothing. Tree notices her inattentiveness but doesn't bring it up until the third day. They are sitting in Taylor's Beverly Hills home and going over her schedule up until the holidays, and Taylor is hardly listening.

"Taylor."

"Hm?" She glances up from the screen of her phone. She's preoccupied with her group chat, making plans for the little sleepover she's hosting tonight.

"The View after the Ellen appearance?" Tree repeats herself.

"Oh." Taylor's eyes glance back down at her phone. Her group chat is moving at an alarming pace, with everyone texting a million things at once. "Is that before or after the Kimmel performance?"

"After. But before Kimmel you have the short promo stint in Australia, and the Seth Meyers interview is next week. Plus the MTV Music Awards is at the end of the month. And you still have to take those pictures for the Rolling Stone piece, and Vogue has been reaching out for an article."

Taylor glances at Tree's laptop, her head spinning from all of the things that the publicist has just thrown at her. There is an elaborate calendar opened, and there are so many different events penned in that Taylor feels a small wave of anxiety wash over her. How had she let everything creep up on her like this?

"Wait, what's today?" Taylor's voice cracks a little as she takes a closer look.

"The seventh." Tree looks at her like she has two heads. "Are you alright? You've been out of it for weeks."

"I guess I just thought I had more time..."

"More time for what? The album is finished and your schedule is laid out. Tour preparations start soon, everything is going as planned."

"More time for Karlie."

"Well I'm sure she'll understand. What's going on there, anyway? You said it was nothing."

"Are you asking as my publicist or as my friend?" Taylor sighs as she sends one more message to her group chat before locking her phone, giving Tree her undivided attention.

"I'm always your publicist first."

Taylor expects the answer before Tree even says it. Tree is the best at what she does, which is why Taylor hired her, and she needs to be in the loop for everything. Even Karlie.

"It's...something now. I think? I don't know."

"So you're seeing one another?"

"No, not really. I don't even know if Karlie dates." Taylor murmurs. Has Karlie ever had a relationship before? Or is that something that she just prefers not to do because of her struggle? Taylor has no idea how these things work.