delicate (tayvis one shots)

spaces between us (part.2)

The rain continued its relentless tap against the window, a quiet but constant reminder of everything that had just happened. Taylor stood frozen in the doorway, staring at the place where Travis had stood only moments ago. The silence he left behind was suffocating, heavy with all the things they hadn't said, the words she hadn't been able to give him.

She sank onto the couch, burying her face in her hands as the weight of it all hit her. He was gone. This time, maybe for good. The realization settled into her bones like a cold she couldn't shake, and for the first time in a long while, she felt truly, painfully alone.

She had always been able to escape into her stories before, losing herself in the lives of characters who spoke the words she couldn't bring herself to say. But tonight, the stories were useless. The characters had no more to offer her. They couldn't fix what she had broken.

She stood, walking over to the window and watching the rain blur the city outside. It was funny, she thought, how the world just went on like nothing had changed, when everything inside her had shifted. She had always been terrified of this—of taking a chance and losing everything. But maybe she had already lost it.

Her phone buzzed on the table behind her, pulling her from her thoughts. She picked it up, hoping, against her better judgment, that it might be Travis. But it wasn't. It was an email from her publisher, asking about the next draft of her book.

She sighed. The draft she hadn't touched in weeks.

(...)

Days passed in a blur, the rain eventually giving way to pale sunlight, though Taylor hardly noticed. She poured herself into work, into interviews and meetings, trying to forget about the empty space Travis had left behind. But no matter how many words she wrote or hours she filled, he was always there, hovering in the back of her mind.

Her thoughts constantly returned to the last time she saw him, to the way his eyes had softened when she finally admitted the truth she'd been too afraid to say. *I've been waiting to hear you say that for years*, he had said. But what had she done? Let him walk away.

One evening, as she sat in her writing room staring at the unfinished manuscript, something inside her shifted. The fear that had gripped her for so long—fear of losing him, fear of the unknown—began to feel hollow. She had already lost him, hadn't she?

And suddenly, the words were there. Words that had been locked away, waiting for her to face the truth.

Her fingers moved swiftly across the keys, pouring out everything she had been holding in, not just for weeks but for years. This wasn't fiction anymore. It wasn't a story she could hide behind. It was real.

(...)

A few days later, Taylor found herself standing outside Travis' apartment. The early evening air was crisp, her breath visible as she exhaled nervously. She had rehearsed what she wanted to say a thousand times, but now that she was here, her mind felt blank. The letter she had written him—filled with all the things she couldn't say in person—was crumpled in her hand.

Taking a deep breath, she raised her fist and knocked. A few moments passed, and then the door opened, revealing Travis, who looked surprised but not unkind.

"Taylor," he said, his voice softer than she expected.

"Hi," she whispered, her nerves fraying. She glanced down at the letter in her hand, then back up at him. "I... I wrote this for you. But I think I'd rather say it."

Travis stepped aside to let her in. The warmth of his apartment, the familiar comfort of his presence, hit her all at once. She couldn't lose him again. Not like this.

"I messed up," she started, her voice trembling slightly. "I should've said it sooner. I should've been braver, but I wasn't."

Travis leaned against the wall, his arms crossed, watching her with that same quiet intensity she had always loved—and feared.

"I've been writing about you for years," Taylor admitted, her throat tightening. "All those characters, all those stories—they were about you, about us. And I was so scared, Travis. Scared of what it would mean to stop hiding behind the words and just... tell you."

She paused, her eyes searching his. "I love you. I always have. And I'm sorry it took me so long to say it."

The silence between them felt fragile, as if the wrong word could break it all. But then, Travis stepped forward, his expression softening.

"I've loved you too, Taylor," he said quietly. "But I wasn't sure if you'd ever be ready to let me in."

"I am now," she whispered, tears brimming in her eyes. "If you still want me."

Travis reached out, pulling her into his arms, holding her as if he was afraid she might disappear. She felt the warmth of him seep into her, the steady beat of his heart against hers. For the first time in a long time, the space between them felt full—not with silence, but with everything they had been too scared to say.

"You're not losing me, Tay," he murmured, his breath warm against her hair. "Not now. Not ever."

She smiled through her tears, relief flooding her. Maybe she had been wrong before—maybe it wasn't too late. They stood there, wrapped in each other's arms, the weight of all their unspoken words finally lifted.

And in that moment, Taylor knew that this was the real story—the one she had been waiting her whole life to write about.

—-

hope you liked it <3