Dress (I Can See You)

"Taylor, you're needed in room 9," Tree said, while fumbling through her phone itinerary, "there's someone that wants to see you."

"But I need to change for the after party? Can't it wait?" Taylor rolled her eyes and sighed.

She'd had a few too many cocktails and needed to refresh a bit to make it through the rest of the night.

"It could, but uh... I don't know if you'd want it to."

Taylor stopped walking and turned to Tree, raising an eyebrow at her.

Tree shrugged, pointing to the door down the hallway, "there."

Taylor's security gently guided her down the hall, but she noticed there was already security (not affiliated with herself) guarding the door with a number "9" on a plaque outside.

"God, who do I have to suck up to now?"she thought, really not having the social energy to be "on" in her few minutes of recharge.

The man standing by the door nodded, "Good evening, Ms. Swift," as he opened the door to let her inside.

"I'll be right out here if you need anything," her own security reiterated as she made her way through the door.

As the door shut behind her, she noticed the figure that stood facing the opposite way. Tall, dark hair, familiar. Taylor's heart leapt into her throat.

Karlie turned around, hands in her pocket.

"Hi Taylor," she said with a small smile.

The suit she wore was quite aesthetically pleasing to Taylor's eye. She looked fierce, strong, but also soft and feminine. How she always managed to do all that at once was beyond Taylor.

"Karlie. What are you doing here?"

Karlie walked slowly toward Taylor.

"You see, I was busy tonight. But you know how it is with you at any event. You've been everywhere... all over my feed, all over everything."

Taylor sighed.

"Well, nothing I can really do about that, can I?"

Karlie grimaced and her voice lowered, "I didn't mean that as a bad thing. You... in that dress... " her eyes did a once over of Taylor, lingering at the cut line on her thigh, and then again on the one emphasizing her chest, "no, that could never be a bad thing."

Taylor flushed, and tucked some hair behind her ear. She cleared her throat, "What do you want, Karlie? Thought we had agreed it was best to keep our distance after the LA show," she said, disheartened by the decision they had made, as any last hope for them seemed to fizzle.

"I know, but I want... I needed to know who you wore that dress for," she said as she stepped closer, eyes downcast on Taylor's body.

"Karlie—"

"Who did you want to take this one off?"

"Karlie, that's not fair."

"Because I couldn't help looking at these clips of you and thinking, no one deserves that. No one deserves you."

Taylor's eyes flickered with a hint of contempt.

"Oh, so I'm just meant to end up alone then? Thanks, appreciate that," she rolled her eyes and turned to walk out but Karlie grabbed her by the arm.

"Taylor," she said, sternly, "please don't put words in my mouth."

Taylor turned back to her, letting out a breath, "I don't know what you want me to say."