Sky Full Of Stars (Kaylor)

All I Want For Christmas Is You ; Chapter 10

Taylor was incredibly on edge as she patiently awaited Karlie's arrival. Wearing a bulky wool green Christmas sweater, a terribly corny Santa hat and comfortable red sweatpants, she killed the time by disinterestedly watching her cat Meredith assault one of her toys with her sharp claws. The baker fiddled with the laces of her pants, and exhaling deeply, she averted her gaze and looked up at the far more interesting grey ceiling of her living room. The ominous, naked pine tree stood in the corner, right beside her black and lustrous piano. The veterinarian had assured her days before that she herself would have taken care of buying decorations, as long as Taylor got the tree. Despite all the doubts and questions she had asked herself during the hunt — the baker had visited a Christmas tree farm, as suggested by Karlie — Taylor still found the perfect Christmas tree for her modest New York apartment.

The baker sighed dramatically, and just as she was about to check the time on the display of her electronic device, a knock sounded at her front door. Taylor got up with the speed of a lightening, and practically run towards the threshold. Karlie stood on the other side, with her usual beaming smile and unwieldy shopping bags held in both of her hands. She was dressed in a similar attire to Taylor's: under the trench coat and the adorable grey beanie, hid a red Christmas sweater and soft white sweatpants.

"Hey! Come in!"

Karlie muttered a quick thanks to the older woman, as the baker stood to the side and let her in. The veterinarian made a beeline for the living room with the intention of already getting down to business, and deposited the bags on the small coffee table. Meredith approached her almost immediately, and Karlie kneeled by the sofa so as to pet the welcoming cat.

"You're the only one she loves so much," Taylor grumbled as soon as she witnessed the lovely reunion.

"Oh, come on," Karlie smiled, getting up and walking towards the pouting woman. "Don't be jealous," she teased, encasing Taylor in a tight and breathtaking hug. The baker's frown immediately vanished, and she inhaled the sweet scent that she had terribly missed during the last few weeks. They hadn't managed to hang out before the twentieth of December, and the fact alone made the grip around Karlie's back tighten.

"Hm, I missed you," the comment slipped out before she could stop it.

"I missed you, too," Karlie replied, and hearing the smile in her voice made Taylor blush even more than before. They parted far too soon for the baker's liking, but then the veterinarian clasped her hands together and grinned down at her. "So," she began. "You ready to set the best Christmas tree of all time?"

"Don't get ahead of yourself," Taylor giggled.

"Come on. Let me show you what I bought,"

They momentarily sat down on the couch, one beside the other, and for almost twenty minutes Karlie described every detail of each decoration she had so devotedly bought. The veterinarian liked talking about everything related to Christmas, and Taylor loved listening to her, no matter what she talked about.

"So, I was thinking," the veterinarian suddenly stood up. "We should start with the decorations around the apartment. Maybe—we could put some lights on the railing of the stairs?"

"Yeah, sure. Let's do this," Taylor smiled excitedly, Karlie's own happiness and enthusiasm contagious. Karlie handed her a roll of led Christmas lights, and together they wrapped the thread around the railing. After many uncontained laughs and jokes, they managed to succeed in their task without Meredith coming in the way.

"I hope she won't play with it," the baker stated, observing the alternating rhythms of the lights. She decided that she liked how it had turned out; maybe Karlie wasn't so bad at decorating, and maybe she wasn't overestimating herself when she had said it to her a few weeks ago during their road trip.