𝐁𝐄𝐆𝐈𝐍 𝐀𝐆𝐀𝐈𝐍 , 𝘵𝘢𝘺𝘭𝘰𝘳 𝘴𝘸𝘪𝘧𝘵

chapter one | home for christmas

            CHEERFUL CHRISTMAS MUSIC played throughout the apartment, and Y/n was decorating with whatever decorations she could find or afford. Normally, Taylor would be helping, but she's not home. She hasn't been for months. Taylor has been living in England with Joe Alwyn. She moved in with him just after Easter. Since then, Y/n has been living in the Cornelia Street apartment alone.

It's been a year since Y/n and Taylor broke up. It still hurts her to think about it.

She always thought they were soulmates, but the universe and their jobs thought differently. It may not have ended as they wanted, but they wouldn't change anything about their four years together. As of now, they decided to go back to being friends; they wanted to continue to be in each other's lives.

She always thought about the day everything ended. She always saw the hurt expression on Taylor's face.

Throughout the year, they've dated other people, but it didn't work out very well for Y/n. They weren't Taylor. She missed Taylor so much.

However, New York has been pretty great for the most part. She met her ex and now friend, Samantha Flynn. She started working in a music store as a private teacher, which is where she met Sidney Hunter. They became friends pretty quickly. Sidney's friend, Inez Hill, joined the group sometime after.

Of course, Elvis was around sometimes too.

"Are you doing okay with this Taylor thing?" Elvis asked curiously from the FaceTime call that's been going on for the past couple of hours. He watched as she put ornaments on the Christmas tree. She was going for a silver and blue theme this year. "You've celebrated with Taylor for four years, and now you're celebrating alone. I can come visit if you want."

"Don't worry about me; I'm fine." She spoke, trying to sound as convincing as possible. She wasn't sure who she was trying to convince anymore. Once the last ornament was put on the tree, she stepped back with a grin to admire her work. "I think I've outdone myself this year." She spoke proudly, wanting to change the subject.

"I assume the baking part is next?"

"You would be correct." She spoke happily, soon picking up her phone and moving it to the kitchen. She propped it up against the wall and then began collecting the ingredients she needed. Taylor might not be there, but she was going to make her chai sugar cookies. "I'm so excited for Christmas; I've already sent your gifts in the mail and gifts for your family."

"Wow, you've been busy." He spoke with a chuckle. Not long after, he saw a smile on her face as she started making the dough. "I'm sure they'll be happy to get it."

For the next couple of hours, she forgot about her breakup. She laughed, made jokes, and talked about anything that wasn't Taylor. Although it was just for a little while, she was happy.

The cookies were made, the apartment was decorated, and almost everything was ready, except for one thing. She sat in what once was her shared bedroom with Taylor, wrapping the gifts that had just been delivered half an hour ago. A few of these gifts were Taylor's. They may have broken up, but that never stopped her from giving her a gift or two every year.

They were best friends before girlfriends, after all.

She took a quick sip of her hot chocolate, which was now slightly cold, and soon went back to wrapping gifts. One of Taylor's had already been wrapped, waiting to be shipped to England. She finished the second, ready to wrap up the third, but there was a knock on the door.

Who could it be? She knew it wasn't her friends; she wasn't expecting them till later.

She stood up from the bed, quickly hiding the remaining unwrapped gifts. She walked through the living room, soon stopping in front of the front door. Once the door had opened, she stood there stunned; it was like she had seen a ghost. "Taylor?" She finally managed to say something.

Taylor stood there, staring at her best friend or ex-girlfriend with a sad grin on her face. "Hi, I'm home." She spoke; she was going to hug Y/n, but she was quick to step out of the way to let her in. She should have expected that to happen. "It smells and looks amazing in here." She then spotted the plate of cookies that she would make every year. She didn't do it this year. If she were there, she would have. "You made the cookies—"

"I thought you were in England, with Joe." Y/n pointed out, cutting Taylor off. She watched as Taylor's emotions shifted, which told her everything she needed to know. "I'm so sorry, Tay." She pulled her in for a hug, and that's when she broke down and cried.

She may be crying over someone else, but Y/n will always be there for her best friend.

"Good thing I haven't mailed your presents," Y/n spoke, causing the two to break out in laughter. This was something they missed a lot: having fun and laughing together.

She hoped Taylor would be okay.

That night, Taylor moved back into the room, and Y/n started moving her stuff into the guest room. Now, she was woken up by the smell of fresh pancakes and the sun that got in from the cracks in the blinds hitting her face. She got out of bed and then made her way toward the kitchen.

Taylor stood in front of the stove, flipping a pancake and humming a song to herself. It wasn't anything Y/n recognized. Maybe she was working on something new.

Once she entered the kitchen, she started the coffee machine before looking over at Taylor with a smile. She wanted to say something to her, but she knew it was going to be awkward. It reminded her of West Reading and the week they reconnected—the week she fell in love with Taylor. Honestly, she could remember it like it was yesterday.

"You don't have to act awkward around me, you know." Taylor was the first to break the silence. She put the pancake with the rest of the stack before turning off the heat. "We're not some strangers that see each other years after a breakup; we're best friends that went through a breakup." She then began to laugh, and Y/n joined in seconds later.

To Y/n, Taylor's laugh had always been contagious. When she started laughing, it was impossible to hold back your own.

The two took a second to stare at each other with smiles, soon breaking eye contact to clear their throats and get their food. "What happened with Joe? If you don't mind me asking, She questioned as she drizzled syrup on her pancakes.

"We just didn't work out."

"That makes sense. I mean, I know how you feel."

Taylor's smile faded once she heard her response; she thought she was entirely to blame. That was when she remembered that she never told Taylor about her failed relationships after they dated. Taylor asked about it many times, but Y/n never told her. "It's not because of you or anything, I promise." She was quick to reassure her.

Taylor nodded, and then an awkward silence settled in. It was almost like you could cut the tension in the air with a knife.

This friend thing will be awkward for a little bit. They just had to find their groove again.

It shouldn't be too difficult.

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brooke speaks!

that was chapter one!
i hope you all enjoyed
and i can't wait to write
more for this! hoping
there's no mistakes! 🤞