Once Upon a URL

Part Nine

Heather laid on her bed and skimmed through her dashboard, seeing some of Taylor's posts. Their talk had been good, and Heather was glad that they did that, but she still had feelings for Taylor. And what was worse: was she felt that Taylor had some feelings for her as well. She came across a picture of a beach. Heather minimized the internet page and opened up her pictures and scrolled through the ones she had taken of the beach. She smiled, hoping that this idea would work.

She walked into the cafeteria and looked around. Her normal table was pretty much full. She saw Taylor, Hannah, and Ethan sitting at their normal table, just a couple away from hers. Heather looked between the two tables and then walked to the closer of the two. "Hey," she said quietly and the three of them looked at her. "Can I sit here?" She gestured at the seat next to Hannah and across from Ethan.

"Sure," Hannah said.

Heather didn't move she was looking at Taylor. "Yeah, whatever." Taylor said.

Heather sat down and took a deep breath. "I wanted to ask you something, Taylor."

"Okay."

"I was wondering if I could take you to the beach I told you about." Taylor didn't say anything. "I just figured you'd appreciate it. It's really peaceful and beautiful."

Taylor bit her lip. "Alright. After school."

"Cool," Heather smiled, and then turned to see Mark sitting down next to her.

Taylor walked out of the school towards the parking lot. Hannah was right, and Heather deserved a chance to talk and to prove who she really is. Taylor was going to try and let her guard down some, but she knew she wouldn't be able to all the way. But what mattered: was that she listened to Heather. And if worst came to worst, at least she would get to see a beach that she hadn't seen before.

Heather was standing against the passenger side of her car and smiled when she saw Taylor walking towards her. Taylor felt herself smile a little. Heather opened up the car door for Taylor and then closed it after she got in. Taylor looked at her backpack until she heard the other door open and turned to see Heather sitting down in the driver's seat.

"It's only like a half an hour drive."

"Okay," Taylor said, not sure of what else to say.

They drove in silence; the radio was playing the top 40 hits quietly. Taylor looked out of the window, watching everything speed past them. Heather pulled onto an old looking road that led to a dead end, opening up to a small beach. Taylor continued to stare out the window as Heather got out of the car. After a moment, Taylor got out of the car and walked around to the front of the car where Heather was standing.

"It's beautiful," Taylor said quietly.

Heather nodded, smiling. "Wanna go closer?"

"Okay," Taylor said, trying to hide how much she wanted to.

Heather led Taylor down a path made of rocks that led to the sand. The beach was completely empty except for a couple of seagulls that had just landed. Taylor walked towards the edge of the water, where there was a gentle tide coming in. "I used to come here a lot as a kid," Heather said. She was standing a couple of feet away.

"It's gorgeous here."

"My mom brought me here. Eli hated the beach, so he never came. She used to say it was just for us girls." Taylor looked at Heather. The wind was blowing their hair a little and Heather tried to tuck some of her hair behind her ear. "After my mom left, I would ask my dad to bring me here, but he didn't know where it was. She was the only one that did. As soon as I could drive, I was determined to find it again."

"My dad would have loved this." Taylor hated talking about her parents, unless she had to. But it didn't feel wrong then.

After a while, they walked back up and Heather sat on the hood of her car and stuck out her hand to Taylor. Taylor took it as she sat down next to Heather. "I hope you liked it."

"It's wonderful. Thank you for bringing me here."

"I am the girl you talked to online. And its okay if you don't believe me. I just want you to know that." Taylor didn't say anything. "If you want, I can pretend that you don't exist and ignore you."

"I don't want that."

"I don't either." A little unsure, Heather moved her arm so that it was around Taylor. Taylor took a deep breath and then looked at Heather. Their eyes met, Heather stayed where she was, unsure of what to do. She didn't want to do anything that would push away Taylor. Taylor leaned in and their lips met. They pulled apart after a minute, and Taylor rested her head on Heather's shoulder. They were both smiling as they watched the sun disappear into the water.