Kaylor: The Timeline

Chapter 9.2

July 22, 2014

"I heard that you're dating Karlie Kloss," Selena says, her voice sounding smug.

Taylor sits up as straight as can be, pushing Karlie off of her. She tries to think of a response, but instead remains silent, holding her breath as she stares at Karlie. Without knowing what exactly is going on, Karlie still looks tense as her green eyes stare steadily into Taylor.

"Well, aren't you?" Selena asks, still smug but her voice tinged with accusation.

Taylor is still silent, shocked by the suddenness of this reveal, and unsure of just how to move past it.

"Taylor, I already— Cara, shut up," Selena laughs, her voice sounding far away, as though no longer as close to the phone.

"Cara..." Taylor says slowly, glaring at Karlie now. Karlie widens her eyes, immediately recognizing that Taylor's mood has shifted.

"Well, it's my birthday—"

"Happy birthday, I texted you, and I was going to call you and I wore an 'S' necklace and—"

"AND SO I rented a nice boat and invited Cara along. Precisely three minutes ago, you know what Cara asks me? She asks me what I think about you and Karlie," Selena says, ignoring Taylor's attempt at a subject change.

Taylor purses her lips and looks to Karlie. "Go. Call Cara now. Go," Taylor says tersely, pointing a finger out of the room. Karlie quickly gets up and leaves the room, sneaking a tentative glance as she leaves.

"Oh! So she's there now with you?! Cara, Karlie is— Oh, she's calling you?" Selena asks, her voice a combination of excited laughter and amusement.

"Selena," Taylor breathes, feeling none of the excitement that Selena obviously feels. "Has Cara told anyone else?"

"No! Okay, Taylor, first of all, I am completely mad at you for—"

"Selena!" Taylor exclaims, pinching the bridge of her nose. "Has she told anybody else?"

"Taylor, no, she hasn't told anybody. She promises," Selena says, her voice now much more comforting, perhaps sensing her best friend's nervousness.

"What...what the fuck is going on, oh my god," Taylor groans, lying onto her back, staring at the ceiling as she tightly clutches the phone against her ear in an attempt to get her hand to stop shaking.

"Okay, stop, relax, everything's fine. Listen to me, this is what happened. Cara is with me for my birthday. We are in the middle of the ocean on a boat. We are drinking. Cara says 'Oh my god! Finally someone I can talk to! What do you think about Taylor and Karlie?' I had absolutely no idea what she meant, and she could tell, but then I could tell she was keeping something from me. For half an hour I bothered her, and then she told me you're dating," Selena says firmly, in an even tone of voice. "No one knows. I know. Cara knows. She's never told anyone else. And then I just called you immediately."

Taylor takes a deep breath, telling herself that everything is okay, her secret is still safe, but suddenly she feels like this secret is out of her control. First Josh, now Selena, all in the know despite Taylor's best efforts. There would always be a leak.

"Taylor?" Selena asks tentatively.

"I'm fine," Taylor says through gritted teeth.

"Taylor, everything's okay!" Selena says with a slight coo in her voice. "Don't freak out, seriously, don't."

Years and years of friendship have made each girl extremely familiar with each intricacy and component of the other's emotions.

"Okay, I'm fine," Taylor replies, trying to convince herself of this as she says it.

"Were you seriously not going to tell me?" Selena asks.

"No! I was going to tell you, I was going to tell you when I was in town for the Teen Choice Awards!" Taylor says quickly. "Selena, no one knows. You don't understand, like absolutely no one. I just told my family last weekend, and I accidentally sort of told Ashley a couple days ago. Karlie's family doesn't know, seriously no one. It's been...complicated."

"How have I not known any of this, Taylor?" Selena asks, sounding slightly disappointed.

"Selena, no one knew. Looking back I probably should have...been confiding in friends. Just for my mental health alone, but—"

"'Looking back'? How long has this been going on for? I just saw Karlie and Josh at the Met Gala!" Selena replies sounding confused.

Taylor is shocked into silence, having completely forgotten that Selena was there for that night.

"Oh, Taylor," Selena says, the disappointment in her voice no longer slight.

"Selena, it was difficult! You have no idea, seriously—"

"Yeah, obviously not, Taylor! You haven't told me anything!" Selena says with a hollow laugh.

"I—"

"I'm not judging you, you're my best friend. I'm always on your side. But I'm still...so lost," Selena assures Taylor, trying to explain her feelings.

"I— We—" Taylor tries to begin, her voice is strong even if the words are not flowing. "I don't even know where to begin," her voice a small mutter, losing the confidence she had seconds ago.

"Was it the road trip?" Selena asks.

"Yes," Taylor admits quietly.

"And then since the move to New York you and Karlie have been..."

"Yes," Taylor admits, in the same volume.

"But Josh and Karlie were..."

"Yes," Taylor admits, somehow managing to make her volume even quieter than it was, ashamed to be reminded of that reality.

"So then how long have you and Karlie been totally, like, official and everything?" Selena asks.

"It will be a month this weekend, I guess," Taylor replies. They are both quiet on the phone for a moment, Selena obviously absorbing the information, while Taylor just adjusts to her new situation. "Selena, there's just so much more to it than all of that. There's so much more to explain and to tell you, it can't be summarized—"

"Okay, then you, me, sleepover, next time you're here. Got it?" Selena orders, and Taylor can't help but smile at the familiarity of Selena's voice, being able to so easily imagine what her face looks like now as she says this. She maybe even tapped her finger against a surface for emphasis, despite Taylor not being there to see it.

"I got it," Taylor sighs. Other friends may have asked for every detail, other friends may have even been hurt at being kept in the dark, but her and Selena had a bond like no other. It was a bond that could only be crafted after years of friendship, after years of seeing each and every one of each other's highs and lows. She thinks about telling her that no one can know, that she can't tell anybody, regardless of the situation. I shouldn't have to remind my best friend of that.

"And I obviously won't tell anybody. And I'll do my best to be patient and wait for this story, but I might plan a couple hours for a phone call soon," Selena says, before Taylor can even ask.

The contract. "I know you won't tell anybody, I know...but...Selena, there's this thing— wait, is Cara really close to you right now? Because she doesn't know this."

"She's on the deck of the boat on the phone with Karlie, I'm inside," Selena says.

"Okay, she doesn't know about this, but...Selena, I'm going to have my publicist email you an NDA. Well, if you want to wait until I see you in person, but—"

"Taylor, an NDA?" Selena asks in disbelief.

"Selena, I know that it seems like a lot—"

"What are you going to do? Sue me if I tell my mom?" Selena asks with a laugh.

"No, of course not. But, I mean, you know I would never do anything, but I just need to be sure you won't tell anyone," Taylor says, closing her eyes as she says it, knowing how contradictory it all sounds. She waits for a response, and then adds, "But I don't even want you to tell your mom."

"Taylor, years ago we said that if one of started to...lose touch with who we are, we would say something. In the past year, you've told me plenty of times when I've been making mistakes. Taylor I think...you're so grounded Taylor, you're so down to earth. That's what makes you, you. How can you...have everyone sign an NDA just because you're dating someone? Are you going to have like a whole army of signatures and—"

"Selena, I can't be dating a girl. You know that. You know what would happen to me, the things people would say about me. You know what people would say about Karlie, and you know that there's no way she's ready for that," Taylor replies. "You saw me go through a horrible year, and I've seen you go through horrible things too, all because of the media. You understand."

"Taylor, you can't be asking your best friends to sign contracts just to legally bind them into being best friends. I'm your best friend, that's why I won't tell anybody. Not because of some contract—"

"It makes me feel safe, Selena! Okay! I don't know Karlie's friends! I'm sure they're great, but they're not you! They're not Abigail, they're not Brit, they're not Ella, they're not Ed. I can't...there can't be any mistakes. There can't be any leaks. I can't go through something like that, Selena, there's nothing left in me to go through a media shit storm again, okay?! I just can't. The idea of it completely, fucking, I don't know! I don't know, I feel horrible thinking about people finding out! You don't understand the level of anxiety, I had a nightmare about it! They make me feel safer, and I'm allowed to do things for myself that make me feel—"

"Okay! Okay, Taylor!" Selena interrupts. When Taylor has been silenced, she repeats, "Okay, Taylor," in a much calmer tone.

Taylor dabs at her teary eyes when her voice cracks as she says, "I just, I don't know, Selena, I've never done something like this before but—"

"I am on your side, I told you that. And all of your friends are on your side. We're all going to be happy just because you're happy, we'll do whatever we can for you," Selena says in a soothing voice. "All of us."

"Okay," Taylor says, nodding her head as she squeezes her eyes shut, hoping the tears disappear on their own.

"Look, I know right now isn't the best time, I know you're on some sort of date with your girlfriend," Selena says, her voice becoming much light at the end, "but I am going to tell you exactly what I told Karlie at the party you had after the Met before I knew about any of this. I don't know what she does, but she makes you happy, so whatever she does she should keep doing it. And you deserve to be happy, Taylor, and you're allowed to do whatever you need to to feel happy. Especially after what you've gone through."

Taylor smiles a shaky smile. "Thank you, Selena," Taylor replies in a hoarse whisper.

"I don't know a lot about what's been going on, and I definitely don't know anything about your relationship, but I still know she's good for you, okay?" Selena says. "So chill out right now, because Cara hasn't told anyone."

"Yeah, I'm okay," Taylor replies, believing her own words much more than she did earlier.

"You owe me a long talk at our sleepover," Selena reminds her.

"I know I do," Taylor says. "You're not ready for what I have to tell you," Taylor laughs shakily, thinking of all the drama that has occurred since March in her life.

"Okay, so...it's my birthday and I'm sort of on a boat..."

"You can go have a good time," Taylor softly laughs. "I mailed you a package for your birthday, but I guess you won't get it until you get home."

"I will call you when my celebration is over and I am home safe," Selena says.

"Alright, don't let Cara get you guys carried away, be safe," Taylor says.

"Don't worry about me. Alright, I love you Taylor," Selena says. "I'm glad you're happy."

"I love you, too," Taylor replies with a smile. "I hope you have an amazing birthday. It's going to be a great year for you."

With a final goodbye, Taylor hangs up the phone and breathes a sigh of relief as she settles against her couch. Her hands are still shaking, and her heart is racing, but she feels surprisingly calm, or as close to it as she could be given the circumstances. One more deep breath, and Taylor stands up from the couch, in search of Karlie.

She hears the sounds of quiet giggles and finds Karlie in the rarely used dining room. Karlie's laughter and easy smile quickly vanishes from her face when Taylor walks towards her.

"I got to go, Cara, I'll see you soon," Karlie says quickly, hanging up the phone and setting it down on the table.

Karlie watches her approach, and Taylor sits in the dark mahogany dining room chair right beside Karlie, feeling suddenly exhausted as she rests her head on her hands, examining the swirls of the wood on the table.

They sit quietly, until Karlie interrupts the silence beginning, "I'm sorry I was just laughing, but—"

"It's okay, I don't care about that," Taylor says monotonously.

Once more they sit quietly, and Taylor can feel Karlie studying her profile.

"You were going to tell Selena anyway. And Cara didn't tell anybody else. And she only brought us up because she figured Selena is your friend and would have known," Karlie says, interrupting the silence once more.

"I know," Taylor sighs, sitting up straight and looking at Karlie now.

"Are you...are you mad?" Karlie asks hesitantly.

Taylor shakes her head. "I'm just...honestly, I'm tired," Taylor replies with a small smile.

Karlie nods her head knowingly and tucks a lock of Taylor's hair behind her ear, before resting her hand on Taylor's thigh. "You worry too much, everything's fine. And everything will continue being fine."

"And you worry too little," Taylor replies with a small laugh. "Even if everything is fine for now."

Karlie smiles, biting the bottom of her lip. "Yeah, well, it's a good balance. Maybe we can organize some type of trade where you give me a bit of the worry and I'll give you a little of the carefree, though," Karlie says.

"There's an idea."

"I'm sure Tree would love to facilitate some sort of contract for the exchange," Karlie says, sounding smug.

Taylor rolls her eyes with a smile. She gets serious though when she moves to the edge of her seat and takes both of Karlie's hands in her own. "Karlie, this is really real now. I mean, it always has been, but it's not just us now. It's not just our own arguments and needless drama. Other people know, only more people will be finding out, paparazzi is starting to pay more and more attention to you, I'm coming out with a new album, I'm going to be doing months of interviews—"

"And everything will be fine, either way," Karlie says, sounding sure of herself when she says it.

"No, listen to me," Taylor pleads softly. "You need to...we can't have loose ends. Ever. We can't. I know how stressed out you were last week, but there's still things you need to do. You need to get a contract from Cara. You need to get a contract from Josh. Within like...days. Hours."

"Okay, so, I'm going home on the 29th and even though Cara and Jourdan are coming before then, I sort of don't want to tell them until after I tell my family, so—"

"Babe, no," Taylor interrupts softly, slowly shaking her head. "I'm sorry, but you need to do this as soon as possible. Cara has known for months, she's a loose cannon, she doesn't understand the seriousness of all of this. You need to work with me here, you need to try to understand."

"Okay, fine," Karlie says, nodding her head.

"You can tell Kimby and Kariann tomorrow, before Cara and Jourdan," Taylor offers.

"I'd rather tell my whole family at the same time, tomorrow with the twins, we're just—"

"We're just friends," Taylor finishes.

Karlie hesitantly nods her head and Taylor offers her a small smile.

"It's okay," Taylor assures her. "It's going to be fun."

Karlie returns the smile and gives Taylor's hand an assuring pulse.

"And Josh...you need to see him, how about Thursday?" Taylor asks.

"I can text him," Karlie agrees.

Taylor bites on her lip, staring at the resolve in Karlie's face, yet Tree's words resound in her head. She was young, naive, but she was confident. Maybe even falsely so. But there was nothing Taylor could do to change that, only time could. And unfortunately, Taylor was completely positive that time would indeed change Karlie's blind confidence.

Taylor reaches out and gently puts a hand on Karlie's face, keeping her jaw steady and lightly grazing her defined cheeks with her thumb. "I love you so much. I'm the happiest I've ever been because of you, and I really mean that," Taylor says softly. Karlie's dimple twitches under Taylor's thumb, as she obviously does her best to keep from smiling her signature smile.

"I love you more," Karlie replies with a competitive, yet smaller smile, leaning closer to Taylor.

Just when Taylor begins to roll her eyes Karlie's lips meet hers. When Karlie slowly, yet firmly, rubs her hands down the sides of Taylor's arms, resting at the crooks of her elbows, Taylor can't help but feel secure, feel safe. Maybe even a bit of the naive confidence Karlie emanates.

They break apart from their kiss, keeping their faces only inches apart.

"Okay, so tomorrow, Kimby and Kariann. Thursday, Josh. Friday, Cara and Jourdan. Tuesday, my family," Karlie lists off.

"Thursday, Rolling Stone. Friday, Abigail. Wednesday, Ingrid's concert," Taylor replies, in much the same manner.

"We got this," Karlie says with a smile, raising her hand up for an encouraging high five.

Taylor can't help but laugh when she slaps Karlie's hand, and at the purely blind enthusiasm her girlfriend has.

"Okay, now, Wii Tennis," Karlie says, clapping her hands together as she jumps up from her chair. "Do you think I'm strong enough to carry you into the den over my shoulder?" Karlie asks, pulling at Taylor's arm.

"We aren't going to find out," Taylor says drily, pulling her arm away from Karlie as she leads the way back to the den for their casual night in.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

July 23, 2014

"When are we going to Taylor Swift's apartment?" Kimby asks, as the Kloss sisters walk side by side down a Manhattan street, peering into interesting store windows.

"Well, probably not until you just start calling her Taylor," Karlie replies with a smile.

"No, she's Taylor Swift," Kimby answers.

"She's Taylor Swift," Kariann agrees.

"You hung out with her before! You had fun!" Karlie exclaims, putting an arm out to keep the twins from walking further while a few bicyclists speed past.

"Yeah, but she's still Taylor Swift," Kimby insists. "Stop, I know how to walk," Kimby adds, lightly pushing at Karlie's arm.

"I'm convinced one of you are going to be side swiped by a taxi or walk into a food cart or something," Karlie says, suddenly hyper aware of the bustle of New York City now that her younger sisters are walking beside her.

"We know how to walk!" Kimby says with a bit more force, pushing at Karlie's arm once more.

"Fine," Karlie murmurs, but grabbing ahold of the more passive Kariann's hand nonetheless. She keeps a sharp eye on Kimby, when she begins to walk a bit further ahead of them, obviously enjoying the infectious energy of the city.

"Can we go to that candy store we went to last time?" Kariann asks.

"Yeah, we can do that. We're taking the next left up here," Karlie says, speaking loudly for Kimby who is now leading the sisters.

When they round the corner, Karlie stops short, squeezing Kariann's hand and grabbing the back of Kimby's shirt.

"Hey! Don't pull on my—"

"Turn around, we're going to come back here later," Karlie says sternly.

"What? Why?!" Kimby protests.

"Look, do you see the three photographers," Karlie says, nodding across the street, a bit further a ways up.

"Oh," Kimby says, finally standing still. "So what? They won't know who you are probably, right?"

A couple of months ago, Karlie would most likely agree. Or, at the very least, know that on such a high class Manhattan street, a celebrity shopping hot spot, she would be mostly ignored. But now, with paparazzi often waiting for her by her apartment and gym almost daily, she isn't sure if being ignored by paparazzi is a part of her life anymore.

"I don't know, lately they've been paying attention to me. And I don't want that for you guys," Karlie says, and she can already tell that Kariann is eager to turn around. Kimby, the more stubborn of the girls, continues to stare up the street. "Kimby, we'll come back here," Karlie assures her.

"Alright," Kimby sighs, finally turning around to walk with her sisters. They're in New York City after all, so it doesn't take long for the sisters to find something else to attract their attention.

They decide to grab some lunch, sitting at a table outside on the sidewalk of the restaurant, enjoying the slight summer breeze blowing through the street, people watching as people of all different styles and backgrounds walk past.

"Why is this so expensive, but so small?" Kimby asks, after their waitress has left them with their plates of food with disappointing serving sizes.

"Because it's New York City," Karlie says simply.

"It's really good," Kariann says instead after taking a bite, less of a cynic.

Karlie spots two photographers jogging up the street before her sisters do, and she tenses up. Not now. Karlie internalizes a groan, realizing that they were coming their way, and she instantly regrets opting for a table outside. However she breathes a sigh of relief when they run past, not even glancing in her direction. Kimby and Kariann perk to attention, as do many of the other restaurant's customers, at seeing paparazzi on the pursuit of someone, somewhere. Many of the people walking along the sidewalk change their direction, and follow the direction of the paparazzi, curious to see who is important enough for such attention, blocks away from here.

"Why do you care about the paparazzi now?" Kariann asks, noticing Karlie's reaction.

"I don't care about them, I just wouldn't want you guys to have to deal with that," Karlie explains.

"And why do the paparazzi care about you?" Kimby asks.

Karlie shrugs. Because I've been hanging out with Taylor so much. She doesn't want to admit it out loud, mostly because Taylor would feel horribly guilty if she knew this to be true.

"Wait! Karlie! Did you see the girl who photobombed you when you were out with Taylor?! It went viral!" Kimby says suddenly, immediately grabbing her iPhone. She does a quick search and passes the phone to Karlie.

The sisters all laugh, passing the phone around the table, looking at the pictures of Karlie leaving from her lunch date with Taylor only a few days before.

"Oooh, that must be it, Karlie!" Kariann says suddenly. "More people probably recognize you outside of work since you've been with Taylor so much."

Karlie keeps her smile plastered on her face, when their waitress returns at just the right moment, asking the sisters if they would like refills for their drinks. It was a welcome distraction, since it was a topic Karlie would prefer not getting into. When Kimby begins speaking about some of the events her friends and her have enjoyed this summer so far, Karlie is able to smile at the right moments and enjoy her sisters' company, all the while checking over her shoulder and her sisters', on the look out for paparazzi.

She's thankful when their lunch concludes quietly and privately.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I'm scared," Kimby says bluntly, when a member of Taylor's security opens Taylor's apartment building's door for the Kloss sisters.

"Why are you scared?!" Karlie laughs, surprised by the statement.

"Um, Taylor Swift," Kariann replies for Kimby.

"Taylor is the least scariest person you will ever meet, I promise," Karlie laughs. "And you already spent a day with her!"

"Yeah, it doesn't even seem real," Kimby replies. "That was just a weird day all around."

"Well, that's true," Karlie says absentmindedly as they climb the stairs to Taylor's sixth floor, thinking of how sick she was and how she had managed to convince herself that what her and Taylor were doing was platonic somehow. Karlie pulls out the apartment key she has gotten so used to using, and nears Taylor's apartment door.

"You have a key?" Kariann asks, sounding surprised and a bit confused.

"Oh!" Karlie says, realizing the mistake she has made. We're just friends tonight. "Um...yeah, just because getting into the building alone is such a hassle."

Kimby reaches out and gently touches the key. "This is Taylor Swift's key," Kimby says, in awe.

"Don't be weird!" Karlie says in a hushed whisper, pulling the key back and inserting the key into the lock. "Seriously," Karlie warns, pausing before turning the lock and door knob.

"I'm pretty sure you're unaware that your friend is Taylor Swift. Do you not understand?" Kimby asks in disbelief.

"Now you sound just like Taylor," Karlie says with an ironic laugh, pushing the door in. "Hello?" Karlie calls out.

Immediately, her sisters stop short in the doorway, perhaps in awe of the apartment.

"Come on," Karlie says softly, gesturing for them to follow.

Scott Swift greets them as they all enter the living room, holding his arms outwards.

"Hello!" he exclaims cheerfully.

"Hey Mr. Swift, how are you?" Karlie says, self conscious of the blush that has formed on her cheeks when they quickly hug in greeting, knowing that the last time she has seen him was when Taylor told her family of their relationship.

"I'm great, Karlie! How have you been?" he asks.

They exchange pleasantries and Karlie introduces him to her sisters.

"Where's Taylor?" Karlie asks curiously, surprised that Taylor didn't greet them immediately, practically hopping up and down in excitement.

"Well, she was busy in the kitchen, but then I think she was going around and taking down photographs— Oh," Scott says, stopping himself short and quickly looking away from Karlie. Taylor had said she was going to have to tell her father about a billion and one times not to accidentally reveal anything to the twins. Even that might not be enough.

But the twins don't even notice anything odd, too busy silently gawking at the apartment they're in. Something Karlie always forgets to appreciate is just how Taylor her apartment is. Being on the inside of this place is surely an experience, and there is a lot to take in. There are antiques, unique furniture, home crafted decorations, awards, photographs, flowers, candles, musical instruments, and too many other knick knacks to name. Even the color scheme matches, and thinking about it now, it comes as a shock to Karlie that Taylor was able to put this apartment together so intricately without the help of an interior designer. Karlie couldn't say the same about her own apartment.

"Hello!" Taylor's voice chimes out, as she rushes down the stairs, a huge smile on her face.

It's a complete sensory overload for the teenage girls. They weren't even past the Grammy awards that were mere feet away from them, but here was Taylor Swift bouncing down the stairs, excited just to see them. Karlie laughs when she looks at her sisters' faces, stony faced and shocked.

"Hey buddy!" Taylor exclaims, brushing past Karlie to embrace Kimby in a hug, with Kariann following. Their arms are robotic as they move, unable to comprehend just how to return a hug to Taylor Swift. "And hello to you," Taylor says, much less enthusiastically when she finally turns to Karlie. She gives her a quick kiss on the cheek, which comes as a surprise to Karlie, before embracing her in a hug.

Karlie simply smiles down at Taylor, out of habit wiping away at her cheek, knowing that a lipstick stain has been left there. She looks beautiful wearing a white dress, and white heels and headband to match, her blonde hair pulled into a wavy up do, her classic red lip and winged eyeliner looking more perfect than usual.

"Don't be shy," Taylor encourages, putting a hand on one shoulder of each of the sisters. "Don't be," Taylor says again, "Remember? We didn't even need her to have a beautiful friendship." Taylor nods her head in Karlie's direction as she speaks. "I'm really not that cool, I swear."

"She's really not," Karlie chimes in.

"Isn't Karlie just the best?" Taylor says sarcastically, looking to Kimby as she rolls her eyes, causing the girl to laugh. She looks down and gently grabs Kariann's hand by her side and examines it. "Do you guys seriously not have guitar picks in hand? I thought for sure my dad was going to bombard you with guitar picks. Are you slacking, Scott?" Taylor asks, addressing her father now.

Scott throws his hands in the air. "We haven't been on tour in so long!" He exclaims his explanation.

"It's probably better this way because I feel like he ruins potential friendships when he hands people picks with my face on it. Like, why would friends of mine want picks with my face on it? Why would anyone want that?" Taylor asks, sliding an arm around each of the sisters' shoulders when calling them friends and guiding them to walk with her. "Can I give you a tour?" Taylor asks.

They each nod their heads enthusiastically as Taylor leads the way with a Kloss sister on each side of her. Karlie and Scott Swift take up the rear, occasionally flashing each other knowing and hidden smiles. Watching Taylor with her younger sisters is something Karlie has unfortunately never experienced until now, but she's surprised by how natural Taylor is with them. She even has Kariann, the shyer of the sisters, laughing and talking within minutes of their tour, and Karlie truly does feel as though she is unnecessary to their relationship when she remains mostly silent for the apartment tour, watching her girlfriend and sisters chatter away.

"So this is my pool table," Taylor says, guiding them towards the den. "You'd think that by owning a pool table, I would have some sort of skill in regards to this game, but I am, in fact, the absolute worst pool player that you will ever see. Like people are convinced that I'm a shark or something, and I'm purposely horrible to trick them, but eventually they realize that I'm just an embarrassment to the game," Taylor says drily.

"So we'll play her tonight," Karlie says, leaning against the table. "For entertainment."

"Yeah, Karlie's favorite hobby is forcing me to do things I am horrible at to laugh at me," Taylor replies. "We went to the gym together yesterday, and her and her personal trainer just point at me and laugh, I swear to God."

Karlie bursts into laughter, always able to be endlessly amused by Taylor now joining her at the gym.

"She's so annoying at the gym," Kimby agrees, nodding her head.

"Right?!" Taylor exclaims. "She threw a medicine ball at me yesterday and I swear to you my life flashed before my eyes. I couldn't stop it, the velocity of it coming at me was inhuman, it slammed me in the stomach and I fell over. I just laid there for the rest of the morning because I literally could not go on," Taylor adds drily.

"I mean, not literally, you could have stood up, you just chose not to because you were being dramatic and high maintenance," Karlie insists.

"I just don't understand what she has to prove to at the gym," Kimby says, carrying on her conversation with Taylor as Kariann laughs, completely ignoring Karlie.

"I know, like congratulations, Karlie, you already have shiny abs what more do you want? What is your purpose?" Taylor replies, as Karlie laughs, raising an eyebrow to Taylor.

A buzzer sounds from the distant kitchen. "Oh! Cool, dinner is ready! So I was thinking we could eat, and then go for a walk once it gets dark out because no one really bothers me as much when it's late, and then we could come back for dessert and play some games or something?" Taylor asks.

The entire party is enthusiastic with their nodding heads of agreement, as they follow Taylor to the kitchen. When Taylor leads them into the kitchen and explains that she remembered talking about their favorite meals when spending time together last month, Taylor shows them the many dishes she has ready for them, set up along the kitchen table. She spent the time to make both girls' favorite dinners, along with multiple side dishes, resulting in far too much food for only five people. When Taylor argues on Kimby and Kariann's behalf for their right to have a glass of wine or two along with everyone else at dinner, Karlie is undoubtedly sure that her girlfriend has completely won over her sisters before their night has even started.

As if Karlie needed another reason to be in love with Taylor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Karlie and her sisters stand back when Taylor pauses to take a picture with a fan. The sisters laugh when watching Scott jump in the back to expertly photobomb the picture, and a few seconds later the group is on their way down the Manhattan street for their late night summer stroll.

"I thought we would sort of get mobbed walking around with you, to be honest," Kimby says when they all fall into step together.

"At night, it's easier actually. I mean, these are all mostly residential streets. And my security keeps most people back. But the paparazzi aren't around as much at night, too," Taylor replies.

"Oh yeah, Karlie was getting annoyed with them today," Kariann replies.

"Oh, no I wasn't," Karlie replies quickly, when Taylor looks back at her.

"You so were," Kimby replies. "We didn't get to go to the candy store, and basically the only reason why I wanted to come here was for Karlie to buy me classy candy."

"Wait, what happened?" Taylor asks, and Karlie immediately recognizes Taylor's voice turn into one of worry.

"There were pap—"

"Nothing happened, I just don't like buying people food that I can't even enjoy," Karlie speaks over Kimby.

"You're such a liar," Kimby replies. "We didn't go down this street because there were paparazzi and they've been bothering her lately, apparently."

Taylor immediately looks to Karlie, her blue eyes looking hurt with her mouth slightly open and brow only slightly furrowed.

"No! Not true, Kimby, you don't know what you're talking about," Karlie answers.

"Oh my god, relax, I won't tell mom and dad," Kimby replies, rolling her eyes. "You even got freaked out at lunch when they went by. We aren't stupid, Kariann saw too. You said you didn't want us to have to deal with that when we're with you."

Taylor quickly looks down at the sidewalk and crosses her arms, and Karlie wants nothing more than to embrace her in a hug right here and explain how none of what happened was a big deal at all, but since they're on a public street in the city she opts for smacking the back of Kimby's head instead.

"Hey! What the fuck, Karlie," Kimby says, quickly spinning around to face Karlie and retaliate.

"You're being rude!" Karlie hisses, grabbing Kimby's hands before they reach her with much power.

"She's not being rude!" Taylor insists, pushing her hands between them. "Walk," Taylor adds, mostly looking at Karlie.

The sisters give each other one last glare before each taking a step back and continuing their walk down the sidewalk.

"I can't believe she hit me," Kimby mutters to Kariann, as they walk ahead of Taylor, Karlie, and Scott.

Karlie stares at Taylor, waiting for her to look to her. Her arms are still crossed, so even if Karlie wanted to take a risk and hold Taylor's hand as they walk, she couldn't. Taylor is very stubbornly staring straight ahead, despite it being practically impossible to be unaware of Karlie's stare.

"There were no paparazzi," Karlie lies quietly to Taylor, as Kimby and Kariann talk among themselves. Both Scott and Karlie are looking at Taylor tentatively, both knowing her well enough to realize her mood has been sourly deflated.

"Go apologize to Kimby, she's probably confused," Taylor replies, still staring straight ahead.

Karlie stares at her for a moment longer as they walk, before sighing and jogging up ahead to her sisters. She puts a hand on each one of Kimby's shoulders and squeezes as she arrives behind them.

"Get off," Kimby grumbles, twisting away from Karlie's grip.

"Hey, listen," Karlie says quietly, pulling Kimby closer to her. "Taylor gets upset when she thinks paparazzi follow me now because I've been hanging out with her so much. I'm sorry, I shouldn't have hit you, I was just panicking."

"Oh," Kimby replies, sounding a bit guilty now.

"I shouldn't have hit you, I'm sorry," Karlie says again.

"It's okay, I guess," Kimby shrugs.

They slow their walk and soon the Swifts join beside them once more. Karlie keeps her smile to herself when both of her younger sisters pepper Taylor with different curious questions and enthusiastic stories, perhaps in the hopes to lighten her mood together. But by the time their walk has ended as they arrive in front of Taylor's apartment once more, perhaps only Karlie can tell that Taylor's laugh and smile is forced.

"Can I post the picture we took together on Twitter?" Kimby asks, as they climb the stairs up to Taylor's sixth floor.

Karlie looks to Taylor, unsure of what the answer will be. Taylor seems to hesitate just as much before smiling a small, yet genuine, smile and says, "Sure." Taylor looks to Kariann and adds, "You can too, if you want."

"I don't think I will," Kariann says with a shrug, as they file into Taylor's apartment.

"Yeah, you'd probably get a lot of attention from it," Taylor says, her voice low.

"I enjoy that," Kimby says, as she takes a seat on Taylor's couch, looking right at home. Kariann does the same, lifting Olivia onto her lap. "Kariann doesn't."

As Scott bids them all goodnight, Taylor excuses herself to the bathroom, not looking at Karlie as she does it.

Shit. Karlie watches Taylor's retreating back as she heads up the stairs to her master bathroom, knowing she is feeling guilty for something she could never help.

"I'll be right back," Karlie mumbles to her sisters, who are far more concerned with their phones now than with her anyway. Karlie morosely climbs the stairs, not entirely eager to follow Taylor but feeling as though she has to.

When Karlie gently pushes in Taylor's bedroom door, Taylor quickly sits up from lying down in her bed.

"Don't be upset," Karlie says right away.

"It's because of me that the paparazzi—"

"Or maybe I'm just really successful," Karlie cuts her off with a smile, leaning against the edge of the bed. "Don't be obnoxious and think it's because of you." Karlie's smile quickly fades when Taylor's lips don't even do as much as twitch.

"You couldn't have a nice day with your sisters because of me," Taylor replies.

"We had a great day! We didn't go down one street, that was all," Karlie insists, crawling onto the bed now as well to sit near to Taylor.

"It does bother you. This stuff bothers you even though you say it doesn't," Taylor says, sounding sad as she leans back against her pillow.

"No it doesn't! You know how shy Kariann is, and even Kimby probably wouldn't be a huge fan of that. But I don't care at all, it doesn't bother me, I promise," Karlie replies, putting an arm around Taylor.

"Your life is changing because of me," Taylor replies, sounding stubbornly sad. "Even Kariann knows that it's not worth posting a picture with me."

"Oh come on," Karlie says quietly, pulling Taylor a bit closer. "Smile," Karlie orders, smiling at Taylor beside her. "Smilesmilesmilesmilesmile," Karlie says quickly, holding Taylor's face in one of her hands.

However, Karlie's goofy plea has the opposite response when Taylor's eyes fill with tears. "This my fault. This is exactly what I didn't want for you."

"Taylor! Stop! I love you, I don't care about any of that," Karlie replies, wrapping Taylor in a hug now. "I'm serious, I don't care. It doesn't bother me."

"I hate this," Taylor says, her voice cracking.

Karlie holds her tight, wondering if there is anything to say to make Taylor feel better. In such an abnormal situation such as this, coming up with resolving words seems almost impossible. Do the words even exist? "Let's tell Kimby and Kariann right now. I want to tell them tonight, about us. Right now," Karlie says.

Taylor pauses her sniffling and leans away from Karlie slightly. Her watery eyes study Karlie. "Now? I thought you wanted to tell your family all at once."

"I changed my mind. I loved tonight, with my sisters and your dad. And they love you, and probably love your dad even more," Karlie says with a slight laugh at the end. "Can we tell them right now? Do you want to?" Karlie asks.

Taylor is quiet again, studying Karlie. "They'd have to sign a contract."

"I know, don't worry, they will. They do whatever I tell them because I'm their cool older sister," Karlie says with a smile.

With that, Taylor's lips twitch and her blue eyes shine with the hint of a smile. "Right now?" Taylor asks, sounding very serious.

"Right now," Karlie repeats, with a big smile.

Taylor greets her smile with a matching one of her own, prompting Karlie to quickly lean in and give her a kiss, feeling as though her smile is like a rainbow on a cloudy day.

"I need to go to my office and make copies," Taylor says, quickly scooting off of the bed and hustling out of the room, excitement sounding in her voice.

With Taylor out of the room, Karlie nervously twirls a lock of her hair around her finger, just now thinking about the spontaneous decision she has just made. Her sisters were supportive of her, and they were in awe of Taylor, realistically their responses would be positive. But Kimby didn't have much of a filter, and the general shock of the announcement could spur some questions and comments that Karlie would prefer not to hear, especially with Taylor in the room. And today at lunch, when being interrogated about Josh, Kariann had remained mostly silent. How did she really feel about the breakup?

"Are you sure this is okay?" Taylor asks before even walking through the doorway. She nervously stands at the door, but her smile gives away her excitement. She is clutching a stack of paper tightly in her hands, ever so slightly bouncing on the balls of her feet.

"This is great," Karlie says, standing up with a smile. She reaches out for Taylor's hand and kisses her temple before they go towards the staircase to return to where Kimby and Kariann await.

They walk into the room hand in hand, and Karlie can't help but smile feeling Taylor's hand nervously clutch hers a bit tighter.

"Hey guys, we're dating. She's my girlfriend," Karlie announces, nodding her head to Taylor, before even sitting down on the couch along with her sisters.

There is a beat of silence.

"Oh. My. God," Taylor groans. "Seriously? That's how you do it? Are you serious?" Taylor says, shifting her weight on her hip, looking at Karlie in utter disbelief.

"Ha ha, funny," Kimby replies, not even looking up from her phone.

"No, I'm serious, we're dating. Want to see me kiss her? Watch," Karlie says, trying not to laugh when she grabs Taylor's waist and pull her towards her.

"Okay! Stop! What are you doing?!" Taylor says, pushing at Karlie to keep her distance, her eyes wide filled with shock and amusement. "Are you insane?"

"I'm trying to tell them!" Karlie replies, laughing.

"This is how you do it?!" Taylor exclaims, her laughter now mingling with Karlie's, but sounding much more shocked than anything else.

"Kimby, I think they're being serious," Kariann says, curiously watching the pair.

"We are! I'm telling the truth," Karlie replies, spinning to face her sister as she puts an arm around Taylor. "She's my girlfriend. I'm in love with her."

"You're so annoying," Taylor says, shaking her head and looking down, as her cheeks become shades darker.

Karlie stares at her sisters, who are both looking at her very confused. Kimby looks at Karlie, with a slight smile on her face, but her brow is furrowed, as if trying to figure out still if Karlie is joking.

"But you like men," Kimby says slowly.

"Yeah, no, maybe, I don't know, kind of sort of," Karlie says, rolling her eyes with a shrug. "Still dating her," Karlie adds with a smug smile.

"Is this really how you do things? Is this how you tell people important stuff?" Taylor asks in disbelief, looking at Karlie with not quite so different of an expression as the Kloss twins.

"Yeah, what is going on?" Kariann pipes up, looking between Karlie and Taylor.

"Can you stop being dumb and annoying and do this right? They're obviously confused," Taylor says, trying not to laugh.

"Yeah what the hell is happening?" Kimby asks.

"Sit down and stop being an idiot," Taylor says, pulling Karlie to the couch by the hand.

"Are you guys being serious?" Kariann asks, directing her question to Taylor when Karlie and Taylor sit beside each other, their legs pressed against each other.

"Um.." Taylor says, looking to Karlie, obviously wondering if this is a question Karlie would like to answer instead. When Karlie just gives Taylor a big, innocent smile instead of answering the question, Taylor looks back to Kariann and says drily, "Yeah, I don't know whyyy, but I'm dating her."

Karlie laughs and leans her head against Taylor's shoulder, staring at her sisters. They return Karlie's stare with questioning looks of their own, as if still waiting for a joke to be revealed.

"Um," Taylor says, breaking the silence as the twins still stare at their sister. At the sound of Taylor's voice, they hesitantly look to each other, as if about to ask each other if they are also confused.

"Seriously? You're like...girlfriends?" Kariann asks, but still looking to Kimby, perhaps more interested in her reaction now.

Karlie dramatically sighs before wrapping her arms around Taylor, keeping her tightly in place as she gives her a big kiss on the cheek, doing her best not to laugh and break her lips into a smile when Taylor squeals and does her best to squirm away from her.

"Stop! Karlie, stop!" Taylor says, pushing at Karlie's neck.

"You're really dating. Like, this is real," Kimby says.

"Yes, genius, that's what we're telling you," Karlie says, crushing Taylor into the side of the couch as she leans against her. She has no need for a couch cushion when Taylor is beside her.

"Well, okay. I am officially shocked," Kimby says. "But, I mean, okay," Kimby shrugs, before gesturing to Karlie and Taylor in front of her. "I am cool with this."

"How did this...when did this happen?" Kariann asks.

Just when Taylor says, "March," Karlie says, "Last month."

"Oooooooooooh," Kimby laughs, clapping her hands together as Karlie playfully glares at Taylor. "Better than Josh."

"Wait, when we went over that time, and Karlie was sick, you guys were..." Kariann trails off, perhaps not even knowing just what to ask.

"We were 'friends' then," Karlie replies, putting air quotes around the word 'friends.'

"Well. Okay," Kariann says.

Kimby nods her head and glances around the room. "So are we playing games? What games do you have?"

"That's it?" Karlie laughs. "Nothing else to say?"

"What else am I supposed to say?" Kimby laughs. "I'm probably just going to ask you a billion questions when Taylor isn't here," Kimby admits.

"What can you not ask in front of me?" Taylor laughs. "A bit scary."

"Well, as long as you're not like Josh we shouldn't have a problem," Kimby says nonchalantly, twirling her hair. "But we're protective."

"Oh, shut up," Kariann says.

"I know you are. I was so thankful that looks can't kill the day I answered the door for you guys at Karlie's apartment," Taylor says, laughing.

"Oh, don't even listen to her," Karlie says to Taylor, waving off her sister. "She's obsessed with you."

"I'll be good to her," Taylor says, smiling to Kimby.

"Okay," Kimby replies. "Kristine is scarier than me anyway."

"Oh no, she's not," Karlie assures Taylor, when her head quickly whips around to look at Karlie.

"Yes she is," Kimby and Kariann reply in unison.

"Okay, can you guys be quiet?" Karlie says, shaking her head as she gives them a look. "You guys have to sign these contracts, okay? Listen to me, you can't tell anybody about this. No one. You can't tell Mom and Dad yet, you can't tell your friends, you can't tell our cousins or aunts and uncles, you can't tweet it—"

"Okay, we get it," Kimby sighs, reaching her hands out for a contract.

Taylor pipes up, saying, "I am genuinely so sorry that you guys have to sign these things, I know they're—"

"Are you serious? People would lose their shit if they found out you were dating a girl," Kimby says. "No offense," Kimby quickly adds.

"Yeah, I get why we have to sign them," Kariann says simply. "I won't tell anyone. She has a big mouth," Kariann says, pointing to Kimby with her pen before signing a contract.

"Thanks for the words of confidence," Taylor replies drily.

"I won't say anything!" Kimby insists, casually tossing the large stack of paper back at Taylor.

"You guys took this better than Karlie did," Taylor says with a small laugh, collecting each stapled contract.

"That's because we're cooler," Kimby says with a pointed smile to Karlie, as she stretches her arms above her head. "So what games do you have?" Kimby asks again.

Karlie sits back and watches Taylor and her sisters decide upon a game, speaking back and forth and even playfully arguing about which ones they would be playing together tonight. When Taylor stands up and says she'll be right back with some games.

"Oh my god!" Kimby exclaims, in a hushed excited whisper once Taylor is out of the room, crushing Karlie in a hug.

"I am so shocked, but now everything makes sense when I keep thinking back about everything," Kariann says, with a huge smile on her face.

"So you approve?" Karlie laughs, returning the hug to Kimby tightly.

"I approve of her as a friend, but we'll see. We'll see," Kimby replies noncommittally.

"She's really sweet," Kariann answers.

"Kimby, why are you so annoying?" Karlie laughs. "What is your problem? You love her!"

"Yes, I know I do. But, we. Will. See," Kimby says again with more emphasis. Karlie tilts her head to the side gives her a disapproving look. "Sorry, but Josh sucked. You have bad taste."

"He did not suck," Karlie says quickly.

"See? Still have bad taste," Kimby says shrugging her shoulders.

"Taylor is amazing, Karlie," Kariann says.

"Thank you, Kariann," Karlie replies, giving Kimby a very meaningful look as she answers her other sister.

"What?! I said I love Taylor, but we'll see how I feel about this! What's wrong with that? Give me a couple days to process this, and see how the relationship is and stuff. She's coming to your birthday, right?" Kimby asks.

Karlie nods her head.

"Well, she has that over on Josh," Kimby mumbles.

Before Karlie can defend her soft spoken ex, Taylor has returned with multiple board games in hand, with flushed cheeks and a smile on her face. Karlie smiles and watches her walk the whole way over, her own happiness multiplying when seeing Taylor's obvious joy.

My sisters know. The thought sinks in, becomes reality, after months of keeping such an important part of her life hidden from them, and a smile so big takes place on her face that her cheeks ache. They know. She would have sisters to talk in, confide in, tell them all the good and the bad as they happen. She felt as though she had lost them for some time, and now have them back in her possession.

When Taylor opens a box, with assistance of Kimby as they set up their first game as they sit on the floor, Karlie can't help but embrace Kariann in a hug with one arm, nuzzling her face against her younger sisters, and wrapping a long arm around Kimby's neck as she sits in front of her on the ground. Taylor looks up and gives Karlie a quick knowing smile before focusing her attention back on the game. And just like that, Karlie's life feels a lot more normal than it has in months.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Poor Taylor, dealing with Karlie's dead weight in Trivial Pursuit," Kimby teases, as her and Kariann pull even further ahead in their game.

"I haven't been in a classroom in a while!" Karlie says. "These questions are hard."

"Every question your team has gotten right are ones Taylor knew the answer to!" Kimby says. "Even I'm able to help Kariann out a little. How do you feel about being the least educated in the family?"

Taylor laughs a bit at the constant teasing that seems to go on between Karlie and Kimby, but when she looks up she seems to think Karlie isn't laughing quite so lightheartedly as she usually does.

"She has a more math and science-y type of brain, that's not a great help with Trivial Pursuit," Taylor says, wondering if this was a subject Karlie would prefer not to be made fun of over.

"There's a science category!" Kimby replies.

"Not the type of science she does," Taylor replies.

Karlie is quiet with a small smile on her face, seemingly ignoring the conversation going on right in front of her as she focuses on the game board.

"She goes to random workshops for coding, big deal," Kimby says sarcastically, rolling her eyes. The teasing isn't out of the ordinary, it's what Kimby does, but Taylor can't help but think Karlie has grown unusually quiet with this subject of making fun, but Kimby doesn't seem to notice.

"She's probably the smartest one of all of us," Kariann chimes in, looking at Kimby.

"Kariann, you're the smartest. You had the best GPA out of all of us. Wait, what did Kristine have?" Kimby says. "Karlie, did you take the SAT?"

"No, I didn't," Karlie replies.

"I still think Karlie is the smartest," Kariann answers. "You're the dumbest," Kariann adds with a sly smile.

Kimby shrugs and flips her hair over her shoulder. "Still not the least educated in the family. I'm doing more than high school," Kimby replies, poking Karlie's shoulder.

"I was on the road for most of my high school career," Taylor replies, looking to Karlie and knowing something just isn't quite right with her during this conversation. Soon, Kimby and Kariann are far more interested with asking questions about Taylor's road life and high school stories, but Karlie remains unusually quiet until the game is over, when Kimby and Kariann manage to fill in their pinwheel game piece in first.

"Are you guys sleeping over?" Taylor asks, cleaning up the game board.

The twins both look to Karlie, waiting for her to answer for them. "Do you guys mind?" Karlie asks.

They shake their heads and plans are made for them to sleep together in the guest bedroom that Taylor has dedicated to Karlie. Being the great host that Taylor is, she quickly leaves the room to make sure the bed is perfectly made for them and that spare pajamas are laid out.

When they all retire for the night shortly after finishing the game, they climb the stairs to the second floor together and when separating to their different bedrooms, Kimby says, "Goodnight, but don't have too good of a night because me and Kariann are right down the hall and we don't need to be traumatized."

"Oh my god, go away. Go to bed," Karlie laughs, prodding Kimby's back to continue moving down the hall.

"I'm serious," Kimby says over her shoulder, following closely behind Kariann further down the hall.

"Goodnight," Karlie says, rolling her eyes to Taylor when they go into Taylor's bedroom.

"She's funny," Taylor says, smiling as she closes the door behind her.

"She can be," Karlie agrees, quickly collapsing onto Taylor's large bed.

Taylor goes to her dresser and throws a light cotton teeshirt to Karlie before grabbing one for herself.

As they change into simple pajama ware, Taylor says, "I thought at first you and Kariann were the cutest. Because she just loves you so much and she's so sweet, and you always make sure to let her get her word in when Kimby is talking over her. So I thought you two had the cutest relationship, but then I realized Kimby loves you just as much and completely idolizes you, but just loves picking on you. It's like her thing with you, and she loves when you give it right back to her. She loves the attention from you. So now I'm just confused about who you're the cutest with."

Karlie smiles at the descriptions of each bond she has with her sisters, and Taylor crawls onto the bed and cuddles close to Karlie. Taylor leans in to give Karlie a soft kiss, with a delicate swipe of her tongue. Breaking the kiss, she puts an easy arm on Karlie's waist.

"I can't believe we told them," Karlie says, softly laughing as she rests her head on the pillow.

"Are you happy?" Taylor asks.

Karlie laughs a bit, perhaps at the simplicity of the question, before answering, "Yes. It doesn't even seem real. Like, I just can't believe they know, finally, after all this time."

Taylor smiles and pushes Karlie's hair over her shoulder. "I love them. They're both so cute."

"I guessss," Karlie smiles, intertwining her legs with Taylor's.

Taylor silently traces her finger along Karlie's exposed collarbone, absentmindedly adoring her tan skin. "Are you okay?" Taylor asks nonchalantly, pausing her fingers a bit lower, on the center of Karlie's chest. "I thought Kimby was getting to you a little bit at the end of the game."

"Oh," Karlie replies, shrugging her shoulders. Just when Taylor thinks she isn't going to say much more than that, Karlie says, "I'm fine."

"You know you're smart," Taylor assures her with a smile, playing with the loose fabric of Karlie's teeshirt. "That game is just weird. It's a bunch of pointless fun facts."

"I'm the only one of my sisters now who hasn't gone past high school. Kristine graduated from college and the twins are working on it," Karlie says. "And my dad, I mean, he's a doctor. My mom went to school too."

"Karlie! You just took classes at Harvard!" Taylor says, lightly kicking at Karlie's legs. "Harvard as in the number one college in the country. Like, that really prestigious Ivy League school."

"It was a week long thing, it's not the same," Karlie argues.

"Um, you realize Harvard is Harvard right?" Taylor asks, in disbelief. "And you do those coding workshops all the time. Do you think I could do any of that stuff?"

"If you wanted to, yeah. It isn't like I'm working towards a degree at all," Karlie replies firmly.

Taylor sighs, and gives her a small smile as she pokes her chest. "You're so stubborn."

Karlie shrugs and holds Taylor's hand against her, playing with her fingers.

"You could get a degree if you wanted to," Taylor says. "You could chip away at classes, it doesn't need to be a four year thing. It's not like you just can't go to school if you want to."

"I can't start now, I'm too busy. Which I guess is a good thing, but I don't know," Karlie says.

Taylor pushes Karlie's shoulder and guides the model to lie on her back before lying on top of her. "Of course it's a good thing. Do you really not think you're learning as you travel to all these amazing places? College students don't get to do that."

"Modeling isn't really the end goal for me," Karlie replies.

"It doesn't have to be, Karlie! You're twenty one, do you not realize how much time you have to do whatever it is you want to do?" Taylor says. "And what you're doing now is amazing, you know."

"No, I know it is. I love being able to do what I do but...oh well, it doesn't matter," Karlie replies.

"And your Kookies, that's amazing that you're doing that. I can't believe how young you were when you started that, I was hearing about it before I even met you!" Taylor says.

Karlie laughs and says, "Taylor, stop! I don't need you to, like, pump me up or something."

"You just seemed a little down," Taylor replies, now lightly tracing her finger along Karlie's cheeks, chin, and lips as she looks down at her.

"I'm fine," Karlie insists.

"If you want to go to school, you're going to go to school eventually. You can do whatever you want to do, Kimby was just messing with you," Taylor replies.

"I know she was, I really don't care," Karlie says.

"Liar," Taylor says with a small laugh.

"No," Karlie says with a competitive smile, lightly tugging on the collar of Taylor's teeshirt to connect their lips.

When Taylor feels a hand slip up the back of her shirt, Karlie pushing the shirt up far enough to lightly grip her shoulder, Taylor smiles, breaking their kiss, saying, "Your sisters are down the hall."

"So what, there are walls. And a closed door," Karlie says, rolling over and settling down on top of Taylor instead.

She kisses Taylor's neck, laughing against her skin when Taylor tries pushing her back.

"Karlie, no, I'm tired, I want to go to sleep," Taylor laughs.

"What a debbie downer," Karlie laughs, nipping Taylor's neck.

"Okay, that's a hard no. I have the Rolling Stone interview tomorrow," Taylor says, pushing at Karlie's shoulders more firmly.

"Do you know how many photoshoots I have gone to, with marks all over me because of you?! It's so embarrassing! They have to load me up with extra makeup!" Karlie laughs.

"Well, I'm tired," Taylor laughs, rolling her eyes.

"You know what you haven't figured out yet?" Karlie asks, whispering in Taylor's ear. "You give models hickeys where no one else can see them."

Taylor's body shivers from the combination of Karlie's hot breath against her, the unexpected seductive whisper, and just the very idea of what Karlie is implying. Taylor keeps her stare focused on the ceiling, not wanting to look at Karlie's smug grin, undoubtedly feeling Taylor's body naturally react to Karlie's whisper.

"Are you sure you're tired?" Karlie asks with a small laugh, kissing Taylor's jaw.

"We're going to sleep, Karlie," Taylor insists. "Turn off the lights," Taylor adds, patting Karlie's back.

With a dramatic sigh and a final kiss to Taylor's neck and collar bone, Karlie relents and gets out of the bed. "I'm going to go see if they're asleep," Karlie says, quietly easing the bedroom door open and slipping into the dark hallway.

Taylor smiles when she returns. "You're such a cute older sister."

"I just wanted to see if they were gossiping. They were," Karlie says, and the model's smile is the last thing Taylor sees before she shuts off the lights.

"When are we going to start sleeping like normal people?" Taylor asks, laughing when Karlie pulls her tightly against her, cradling Taylor's smaller body with her taller one. They have yet to feel the need to sleep peacefully side by side without entangled limbs.

"Never," Karlie says. Taylor shivers when Karlie holds her even more strongly, pressing her nose to the back of Taylor's head, breathing her in. To be adored in this way was something Taylor had thought to be impossible and purely fictional by the time 2013 had ended. "I loved today," Karlie sighs. "Spending more time with your dad. Kimby and Kariann spending time with him, and spending time with you. Telling Kimby and Kariann about us."

"Today was amazing," Taylor agrees, smiling in the dark as she reaches a hand back to place lightly on the side of Karlie's face.

"Do you ever think about how far we've come? Sometimes I just think about the road trip, or before you moved to New York, and it's just so crazy," Karlie replies.

"I think what's even crazier is just in June, when I got back from tour, I was convinced we were never going to be together. That was just last month," Taylor says.

"Why are we so stupid?" Karlie laughs.

"We've already agreed that we're stupid, let's not talk about it anymore," Taylor says. "I'm embarrassed for us."

"I love you," Karlie says quietly in the dark.

"I love you, too."

Those are the last words they speak aloud for the rest of the night, but they stay up later, aware of each other's consciousness by means of light kisses on different body parts such as shoulders, necks, and hands, along with movements of the legs and embracing each other tighter. When they finally fall asleep, they are a mess of tangled limbs, difficult to figure out just where one begins and the other ends.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

July 24, 2014

"Hey, Tree, quick question, I was thinking about everything you said and I was wondering if you think it would be a good idea to, like, go for a walk in Central Park with the journalist? It will cause a major scene obviously, and if we want people to feel bad for me and think the media is crazy and—"

"Yeah, no, that's good. Do that, if security lets you. Do you need me to come over before?" Tree asks, as Taylor switches her phone to speaker mode as she begins brushing her hair in her bedroom mirror.

"No, I just woke up, I think I'll be fine," Taylor replies, smiling when she hears all three of the Kloss sisters' laughter meet her ears from the kitchen on the floor below.

"Okay, good luck. Not to put a whole lot of pressure on you, but this written piece is—"

"The first one I'm doing for the new era and the first one since me and Karlie have been together and it's really important," Taylor finishes for her in a monotone.

"Pretty much," Tree says. "But you'll be great."

"Hopefully," Taylor mutters. "Also, Tree, Karlie told her younger twin sisters about us. And they've signed contracts so I have those with me."

"Okay, and what about Cara and—"

"Cara is coming here tomorrow to spend time with Karlie, along with her friend Jourdan. Karlie is meeting Josh for coffee today," Taylor replies.

"Finally, things are moving along," Tree answers.

"It seems like it," Taylor agrees. "But let me go, because I need to get ready and do a final clean up of the apartment."

With Tree wishing her good luck, Taylor hangs up the phone. She has been resisting the urge to join the Kloss sisters and her father downstairs for about an hour now, thinking through everything that she feels the need to inform Rolling Stone magazine, and therefore millions of readers, about. She has practiced reciting responses out loud to questions she is sure will be asked, and has even thought up different stories and experiences to share. Never has an interview been so formulaic before, but a lot was on the line for her today. The response she receives from this written piece could very well dictate the type of year she would have with the general public. The very thought of having millions of people laugh and criticize at the things she decides to say for this interview puts her on edge. A part of her would much rather not do this interview at all, not even know what people will think of her now and her attempt at a reinvention. And then of course there was Karlie, a secret like no other. How do I do an interview with such a huge secret to keep? So much of what she has to say today, and what she has to say correctly, is instrumental to her and Karlie being able to have a public relationship in a year or two.

With so much on the line, and so much to fear, Taylor is surprised to find herself most afraid of just how it will feel if this relationship doesn't last quite as long as Taylor and Tree have made plans for it to. As if a breakup could feel any worse, what would it be like knowing that so much hiding and so much orchestration will have all been for nothing?

Taylor doesn't need this additional worry, there's plenty on her plate today, but she truly can't help where her mind travels with stress. Just when she feels as though she is on the brink of formulating yet another worry to have in her head, Karlie pops her head into the bedroom.

"Can you come downstairs now? I made you an omelet," Karlie says, looking impatient.

"It sounds like you're having fun down there without me just fine," Taylor says with a smile, but putting down the different notes she has prepared with this morning.

"That's because your father is our favorite human being alive," Karlie laughs.

"He's for sure an above average human being," Taylor replies drily, as they slowly walk down the staircase together, two of their fingers linked.

The kitchen is a room Taylor would much rather observe as a fly on the wall, especially when her father and the twins barely even glance up at her when she arrives into the kitchen. She tries listening to them speak, to figure out just what it is they are all talking and laughing about, but she remains to be completely lost on the subject matter.

"Do your sisters and my dad have inside jokes now?" Taylor asks, when Karlie hands her a plate with a picture perfect and very large omelet along with a side of chopped fruit.

"Apparently," Karlie replies, smiling as she slides both a glass of orange juice and coffee in front of Taylor. Taylor doesn't even have to take a sip of her coffee to know that just the right kind of cream and the right amount of sugar is already in it.

"What are you guys talking about?" Taylor asks, leaning closer to the trio to her right.

"Eh, you got here too late, there's too much to explain," Kimby replies, waving Taylor off absentmindedly without even glancing at her, apparently much more comfortable with the Taylor Swift than she was less than twenty four hours ago. Kariann and Scott act as though they didn't even hear Taylor and carry on with their conversation.

"They're so not impressed by me," Taylor says with wide eyes as she looks back to the laughing Karlie.

"I told you, you're really not all that special," Karlie says, with a glint in her green eyes when she uses a fork of her own to chop a piece of Taylor's breakfast off for herself. "Just normal and boring."

Taylor shakes her head, looking at the trio once more in disbelief. "What is happening?"

Karlie laughs and collects her sisters' and Scott's empty plates and glasses before bringing them to the sink.

"Kimby and Kariann, you guys should get ready to go, I need to bring you to the train station to go back home. Scott, do you want to come with us or do you want me to come back here to get you?" Karlie asks, as she places the glassware into Taylor's dishwasher.

With a unified and disappointed "Awwww" from the twins, Taylor asks, "Wait, what?"

"I'm bringing your dad out to lunch instead of him just hiding in a bedroom while your doing your thing here today," Karlie answers.

"So this morning I've missed you getting to a first name basis with my dad, making lunch plans with him, and your sisters becoming best friends forever with him?" Taylor asks, raising her hands up in disbelief.

"Pretty much," Karlie says with a smile, kicking the dishwasher closed when she starts putting all different food items back into the refrigerator and respective cabinets.

"What even is this morning?" Taylor asks, still looking at Karlie completely stunned when the twins and her father get up to ready themselves to leave.

Karlie smiles and kisses the top of Taylor's head before sitting down beside her. "Are you ready for today?" Karlie asks.

Taylor nods her head but says, "I'm really nervous."

"Don't be," Karlie assures her.

Taylor bites her lip to keep from smiling. "Is 85% of your life now spent telling me not to worry?"

"Yes," Karlie replies seriously.

Taylor can't help but laugh at that. "Okay, and what about your day. Are you ready for today?" Taylor asks.

"I'm more nervous about lunch with your dad than I am about meeting with Josh," Karlie answer easily.

"You're such a liar," Taylor says. "A stubborn liar."

Karlie shrugs her shoulders with a smile.

"You said you'd talk to me from now on," Taylor says lightly.

"I will! But there's nothing to talk about," Karlie replies.

"Mhm," Taylor hums, eyeing Karlie as she takes away Taylor's dirty dishes.

Far sooner than Taylor would like, the twins and her father have returned to the kitchen. With big and tight hugs given to Kimby and Kariann, and assurances that Karlie's birthday will be an incredibly fun couple of days, Taylor says goodbye to them. She gives her dad a quick hug, knowing she will be seeing him soon enough. She tries not to blush when her and Karlie very quickly kiss on the lips in front of their families saying goodbye for the day. They all wish her luck with her interview, and when security give them the go ahead to leave the building, Taylor closes her door behind them, sighing to herself when she realizes she has nothing to do for the rest of the morning except feel anxious for her interview.

As if on cue, Taylor receives a text message from Karlie with the words "I love you." They hadn't said it to each other in front of their families, but Taylor hadn't even noticed it was something she needed to hear again until staring at the text on her screen with a small smile on her face.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Taylor stood quietly, nearer to her security, than to the Rolling Stone journalist as they wait in her apartment building's lobby for the go ahead to safely leave to Central Park. She does her best to swallow the large lump in her throat that has become bigger and bigger she dug herself a deeper and deeper hole throughout the entire interview in her apartment. She second guessed and doubted everything that she said to the mild mannered reporter, making her own thoughts to be the true danger involved in this choreographed interview.

Does he know these pastries are the ones Karlie brought home to me after work? Did I seem strange when I told him about the desserts?

Does he know I only have sparkling water in my fridge because it's the only thing Karlie will drink pretty much because of her diet?

I know Tree didn't mark that picture of me and Karlie on the wall, but looking at it now, maybe I should have taken it down. How can he not tell that is not a picture of two friends?

He definitely doesn't believe me when I say I'm single. I'm a horrible liar, he knows. I can tell by the way he's looking at me.

Does he know I just accidentally walked into the doorway because I was looking at another picture that I wish I had taken down of us, even though Tree didn't mark it.

He's such a great journalist, he definitely knows how tricky the word 'boy centric' is when I say it. He knows I'm being evasive.

This is going horrible. He sees right through me. How do I distract him? I can't sit on the couch with him and just talk, I'm not ready. I am the worst liar. If I bring him upstairs the tour will be longer.

What the fuck was I thinking? Tree didn't mark any of the photographs on the wall up here, there are too many of me and Karlie. This was so freaking stupid. Why am I showing him the guest bedrooms? I can't skip Karlie's now. Why can't I just shut up and stop talking?

Does he notice how hard I'm trying to talk about anyone but Karlie when I stand in this room. He must realize how desperately I'm trying to talk about Lena, it doesn't even make any sense to talk about Lena right now, what am I doing? I'm just rambling now. He's got to know something is up.

I'll bring him to the roof deck, the view is so nice, maybe some sort of miracle will happen and he will completely forget about that bedroom.

Why did I bring him up here? I'm going to fall flat on my face, I never walk around here wearing heels. This is so stupid. I can't talk about those flowers, am I blushing? Does he realize that I was always jealous of Karlie's apartment with her mini flower garden, so she helped me set up my own as soon as she could after reading my Wall Street Journal article?

Why the fuck did he just mention that I said I wanted to be friends with Karlie two years ago in a Vogue interview? How did he know that? Did he research us? Why would he research us? Does he know? I don't even remember saying that, how does he know? He knows, he has to know, I'm a horrible liar.

WHY DID I JUST MENTION AN NDA? WHY DID I JUST SAY THERE ARE REALLY BIG THINGS IN MY LIFE THAT NO ONE KNOWS ABOUT?

I ruined it. I ruined everything in a single day. It's over.

The rest of the interview goes by in a blur. She doesn't even notice the paparazzi who so often cause her stress, she feels numb to the swarms of people who surround her as she walks. It's easy to act unfazed, since her mind is so far from here in the first place. Her palms sweat as she clutches her iPhone, playing the journalist her finished fifth album.

He's listening to 'Welcome to New York.' What is he going to think about that line that Tree wanted me to take out? She was right, what the fuck was I thinking leaving that line in?

'How You Get the Girl.' Great idea, Taylor, really. So fucking stupid.

'I Know Places.' How obvious could I be?

She can't even say that she's quitting while she's ahead by not playing the bonus tracks to the man beside her, since she know she is already so far, far behind. The icing on the cake had to be when Karlie texted her, an iMessage notification popping up on the screen when both she and the journalist are staring at her phone. Taylor grits her teeth, knowing that it's over. There is no way her secret could be kept after how much she blew it today. Her life would never be the same after today, and neither would Karlie's. The media shit storm she faced for years would be nothing compared to what she's about to face, and she's just going to drag Karlie down with her.

When she says goodbye to the journalist, he must surely notice the raspy and defeated whisper her voice has become.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Well, I'm glad you had a good time, then," Josh says with a reserved smile when Karlie has finished telling him all about what the hotel and the environment was like. She tried explaining every detail that she could in the most vivid of ways, without mentioning Taylor's presence once.

Karlie nods with a tight lipped smile, before lifting her coffee cup to her mouth. They sit in awkward silence for a moment, Karlie feeling as though the purse that sits on her lap weighs about a hundred pounds heavier than it actually does, the NDA she carries with her burning a hole in her mind.

"So," Josh says awkwardly, running his fingers through his messy hair as he lightly pushes away his empty coffee cup.

He's going to leave. There's no reason for us to be here together anymore.

"Um...Josh," Karlie hesitates.

"Yeah?" Josh replies, raising his eyebrows a bit.

"I, um... You know that thing that you figured out last time I saw you?" Karlie says quietly, not being able to speak the words out loud.

"Oh, yeah," Josh says with a small smile that doesn't meet his eyes.

"There's, like, this thing that you have to sign," Karlie mumbles, looking down to her purse as she pulls out the contract Tree had printed for Taylor to give to her.

"A thing I have to sign?" Josh repeats, sounding darkly amused as he says it.

"It just says you won't tell anybody," Karlie replies, hoping that this experience will be as uncomplicated as it ended up being with her sisters.

"A non-disclosure agreement? Like the ones I saw at your place," Josh answers.

"Yeah," Karlie mutters, handing over the contract without being able to meet his eyes.

"I promised you I wouldn't tell anyone, and I won't," Josh replies.

That's good enough for me. "That's not enough," Karlie answers.

"I'm not going to sign anything without my lawyers looking it over. You must realize that," Josh says, but he turns the first page of the stapled stack over all the same.

Karlie doesn't reply, as she was hoping this would be a far more casual affair than Josh would like it to be. She's quiet as she watches him read through the NDA, giving it a much more thorough look through than her sisters did, and even herself.

"Karlie...wait..." Josh trails off. He often speaks mostly to himself, and even after over a year of dating, Karlie had never figured out when she was to respond to him at times. "Karlie, did you have a lawyer look this over when you signed yours?"

"Why?" Karlie asks, not particularly liking the tone of his voice.

"Because no half decent lawyer would have allowed you to sign this," Josh says with a forced laugh.

When's the last time I heard him genuinely laugh? "What do you mean?" Karlie asks.

"I didn't see yours, obviously, but do you realize mine is conjoined with yours?" Josh asks, looking slightly surprised.

"Oh, yeah, I think her publicist sort of mentioned that," Karlie replies, thinking about how she had been originally outraged at the idea of having to sign an NDA herself. Tree had said if she didn't sign hers, the others would be void.

"Do you realize you can be held accountable for my actions if I sign this?" Josh asks. "If I go to TMZ and tell them everything I know, just as much as they could file a lawsuit against me, they could file a lawsuit against you. And that goes for anyone who you have sign this. You signed away yourself into having limitless liabilities. You can be one hundred percent at fault for other people's actions."

Karlie stares at Josh completely stunned, with her mouth slightly agape.

"Karlie, that's bad. You should never sign anything without a lawyer, that's like business 101," Josh adds. "You need to have this terminated and have one re-written. Everyone should be given the same NDA. Obviously the ones she's giving her friends must be different, because you couldn't be held liable for people she's telling. So she must be aware of this."

"I..." I signed it for Taylor, she was stressed out.

"And the last thing I want to do is get myself tied up in this legally. Secrets are a bad thing, they never are completely hidden for very long," Josh replies. "I just really don't want to sign this."

"But..." Karlie trails off. What did Taylor let me sign? "I'm so confused," Karlie says flatly. All composure she had planned on having when speaking to Josh about this has been lost since Josh explained an important detail she has been unaware of.

"You're out of your league," Josh says quietly, scratching his chin as he looks back down at the NDA. "I mean, this thing is written perfectly. And not in your favor. You need to have this fixed. You should be responsible for your own actions, in the same way that your friends are responsible for their own actions. Her friends are definitely responsible for their own actions, since Taylor wouldn't sue herself if they had a loud mouth."

"What do I...what do I do?" Karlie asks, surprised to find herself asking Josh for advice on legal matters. This couldn't have gone any differently than I thought.

Josh sighs with a sad smile. "She's a CEO as much as I am. Except when you date her you're dating the company too."

"No I'm not," Karlie replies, her voice hard.

Josh quickly raises his hands in a motion of surrender, before looking back down at the stack of paper in front of him, running a nervous hand through his hair.

Karlie sighs. "Josh, just please sign it. Please. You have no idea how much easier my life will be if you sign it. You'd be doing me such a huge favor, can you please do it for me?" Karlie asks quietly. Immediately when she phrases her request in this way, prickles of guilt flood her system. She knew Josh was still in love with her, and she knew he was more than ready to take Karlie back if the situation presented itself. He made it clear to her, nearly a month ago now, that he would wait for her. And with all that knowledge, she knew Josh wouldn't say no to her when asking for something like this. She was manipulating him.

Josh looks up at Karlie and softly groans, pulling at the roots of his hair. "I...shit," he says under his breath. "Okay, you call this lady right here," Josh says, pushing the contract back to Karlie and pointing to Tree's contact information. "And you tell her that I will sign it if changes are made, and that I can meet today if it's all that much of a rush."

"What changes?" Karlie asks slowly.

"Your contract needs to be more fair. I'm not signing anything until you're treated fairly," Josh replies.

"Don't worry about me," Karlie replies.

"Somebody has to," Josh answers quietly.

Karlie purses her lips as she stares at Josh. It wasn't a shot at her, or at Taylor, but for some reason it fires up a bit of anger inside her, or perhaps something else. Karlie's always-expressive green eyes obviously give this way.

"Karlie, I'm doing you a favor," Josh adds firmly.

Karlie shakes her head as she relents and takes out of her phone. She dials the number listed, and Tree's surprise at Karlie calling her quickly abates, at the mention of Josh wishing to meet and negotiate terms. What Karlie thought would be a complicated phone call becomes a very simple one when Tree easily makes arrangements for all of them to meet at Taylor's apartment in a few hours. It was as though Tree had been expecting Josh to do this.

"I guess I'll see you later," Josh says when the plans have made, standing up from the small coffee shop table.

Karlie nods and they say their temporary goodbyes. She plans on enjoying a bit of free time in the coffee ship alone, always being one to enjoy the smell of coffee roast and pastries. She's particularly surprised when she sees that Taylor is calling her, earlier than she had expected to hear from her.

"Hey, baby, how'd the interview go?" Karlie answers.

"Karlie, it was so bad. It was so horrible. We're so screwed, I ruined everything, I just know I did. I'm so sorry if you're not ready for this," Taylor answers, and Karlie is shocked to so unexpectedly hear Taylor sob into the phone.

"Okay, shh, I'm sure it was fine," Karlie replies, feeling incredibly caught off guard and utterly useless so far away from her crying girlfriend.

"Everything is going to be so bad," Taylor cries. "People are going to make fun of me, they're going to make fun of you, make fun of us, we're not going to be able to leave our houses without people yelling things at us. Everything's going to start all over again."

Karlie doesn't need a more detailed explanation to know just what Taylor is fearfully crying about in this moment. Her blood runs cold when she recalls the astoundingly cruel and false comments she had read in that dated article about Taylor. To hear Taylor still in fear of that type of ridicule could very well be considered PTSD of sorts, and she clenches her hands into a fist as frustration floods through her.

"Baby, we're going to be fine. Everything's going to be fine," Karlie replies, her teeth gritted. She tries to make her voice sound gentle and soothing but all she feels is horror and outrage to hear someone who is just so perfect be in such pain. "I'm not going to ever let you feel like shit because of some assholes with a computer. What happened, baby, tell me what went wrong?"

"I just need to call Tree, I need to know what she will do now," Taylor replies, her voice a teary hiccup. "I need to go, Karlie, I can't do this right now I just wanted to warn you first."

"Wait, Taylor, I love—" suddenly the line goes dead. Taylor has hung up.

Karlie slams her iPhone down onto the table, and she knows the noise causes more than a few customers glance over in her direction, curious about the disruption. Taylor is surely crying on the phone with Tree right now as she sits here, useless and multiple city blocks away from Taylor. Taylor needed to know what Tree would tell her to do.

What would Tree do?

The answer suddenly becomes so obvious to her, and the answer has just left her presence only about two minutes before. Karlie quickly stands up and runs out of the small shop, every eye on her as she does it. She pushes the door open so quickly that it hits the side of the building with a bang, and she takes a sharp left and runs down the sidewalk, thankful she was wearing running sneakers. Many people give her dirty looks as she dodges and weaves in and out between many people.

When Karlie spots a familiar mess of brown hair, nearing the subway station, she calls out, "Josh! Wait!"

Josh stops and turns around, looking completely confused by Karlie running towards him.

"Are you okay?" Josh asks worriedly when Karlie lands to a stop right in front of him and doubles over, her body having trouble adjusting to so quickly sprinting.

Karlie straightens up and is surprised to feel tears in her eyes. Hearing Taylor in such an emotional state pained her more than anything else could. Taylor's pain was her pain. Knowing of the risks that Taylor feared, the actual abuse that she could very well face if their secret were to be found out, angered Karlie to no end. She hated feeling helpless, she hated feeling as though she couldn't solve all of Taylor's problems. So, for now, the guilt she will surely feel after asking Josh for one more favor is nowhere on her mind. She must protect Taylor.

"No," Karlie answers, with a hollow laugh, quickly wiping at tears beneath her eyes. "No, I'm not."

"Karlie, what's the matter?" Josh asks, gripping Karlie's forearm.

"Can you post a picture of us on Instagram?" Karlie asks, her voice cracking as she does it, perhaps from being winded, or perhaps just from the magnitude of the question she is asking.

Josh stares at her, looking completely shocked, maybe even disgusted. "You can't be implying that I...that I do what I think you want me to do."

"Please, Josh. Please," Karlie replies, grabbing a hold of his hand tightly. When's the last time I held his hand? She would feel guilty for this later. Josh quickly looks down at their linked hands before looking back to Karlie. "Please do it for me, it's so important to me. Please, I think something went wrong," Karlie adds, her voice turning into a small cry. As she knew earlier, Josh couldn't say no to her. Not when she asked like this, not when he had the love he had for her, not when their hands were together after so long apart.

Josh groans and shakes his head in disbelief, disappointment, and disgust. Karlie doesn't even have enough dignity to look away. She wants him to see her green eyes, to see how badly she is in need of that. The look of defeat on Josh's face is yet another agonizing image that will surely make her feel guilty for who knows how long. When he takes out his iPhone from his back pocket, Karlie knows he is doing what she needs for him to do.

When he looks at the screen silently, tapping it every now and then, and then puts it away in his pocket once more, Josh then says, "It's done. I posted a picture." He slowly turns around and walks down the stairs to the subway stop, looking like a zombie as he does it, without even saying goodbye to Karlie.

Karlie stares down the stairs at the flood of people coming and going, long after Josh is out of sight. Just like that, in an instant, her and Josh's entire relationship has been altered forever.