Calamitous (Kaylor)

20

"What do you mean, no?" Karlie asked incredulously. "Why not?" Taylor turned away from her and put her head on her knees.

"They don't want me," she mumbled. "They left me." Karlie was saddened by the sound of Taylor's broken voice.

"But what if they didn't leave you? What if the dream was right?" Karlie pressed, inching closer to the blonde and daring to rest her chin on the other's shoulder. "Wouldn't you want to know if your parents were actually looking for you?" Taylor tensed and was quiet for a moment.

"If they were, they must not have tried very hard," she said, a bite of anger to her words. "It's been 19 years. They would have found me if they actually cared."

"Most police departments close cases after it's been years without a lead. People are presumed dead. And you said that Justice and Luna kept a tight leash on you - maybe you were too well hidden?" Taylor shrugged Karlie's chin off her shoulder and stood. Karlie moved to grab her wrist to prevent her from storming off, but was pleasantly surprised when the girl simply lay on her back on the floor, staring up at the ceiling. Well, it's not ideal, but at least she's not angry with me.

"I don't care. They could have kept looking themselves. I don't want to meet them," she said flatly. Karlie watched her for a moment.

"You're lying." Taylor blinked and met her gaze, confused.

"What?"

"You're lying, Taylor. You want a family more than anything; I can tell." Taylor rolled her eyes and refused to meet Karlie's.

"It's not like it would ever happen," she scoffed. "There's no proof that my dream was a memory. There's no way for you to find them. And you can't prove if I'm lying."

"I know you better than you think, Taylor. Remember? Now, hypothetically, the dream was real. Assume your parents searched for you for a decade but were forced to give up. What's holding you back?"

Taylor's lip started to tremble as she met Karlie's concerned gaze. Finally she cracked and spoke quickly, "I'm afraid that they wouldn't like who they met. That they'd look at me and see a criminal, an evil murderer, and not their daughter. That they'd decide that they don't want me after all and would kick me out of their lives, this time for good. What mom could love a daughter like me?"

Karlie felt her heart shatter. Of course Taylor would feel this way. The worst thing was that it was completely rational, and that there actually could be a large chance of this happening. She slid off the couch and settled on the floor next to the blonde.

"I won't tell you that that's not possible," she murmured soothingly, "but I'd like to hope it wouldn't happen." She heard Taylor sniff a few times. "Also," she said, her eyes lighting up as she thought of an idea, "I'm certain that my mom would love you. You should meet her sometime."

Taylor let out a teary laugh. "You want me to meet your mom?"

"My dad and sisters too. They'd all love you, I swear."

"Well...maybe that would be fun. But everything else, about my dream and my parents and all - it's all hypothetical," the smaller girl said softly. "Right?"

"Yes," Karlie said, feeling a little guilty. "Of course. I'd tell you if I found something."

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Karlie walked into the station early that afternoon with a new goal. She was going to somehow locate Andrea Swift. She'd make contact with her, explain the situation, make sure she knew what kind of life her daughter had been forced into, and convince her to give the girl a chance. If she refused, well, her loss. Taylor would never know.