the cheater & the snake ✩ jdb & tas

41« long chapter

Justin sat quietly in Taylor's living room. She had baked some delicious cookies just for him, and he was just too into them to talk now.

He watched Olivia playing on the floor, chasing after Meredith's tale, which was just sitting there on a carpet and being her annoyed self as always.

"She really does hate everyone doesn't she?"

He smirked, pointing at the white and brown cat.

Taylor laughed.

"Yeah. Except for Martha.. She has a soft spot for her. I'm kind of jealous tho."

Justin smiled, not moving his eyes from the kittens. They were just too adorable, and they looked pretty soft, too...

"You wanna hold them?"

Taylor asked, noticing how Justin's eyes sparkled while looking at Olivia. He immediatly nodded, probably even getting too excited, and Taylor laughed again. She stood up and picked the white cat up, then sat on the couch next to Justin, handing him Olivia.

"Oh my God, she's so soft."

He said, but he wasn't surprised, actually. Taylor nodded, petting her cat who was now comfortably laying on Justin's lap.

"I'm glad you liked my present."

Justin then said, nodding his head towards the flowers on the table behind them. Taylor smiled. Many of them were now dead and rotting, but she had loved that gift too much to just throw them away.

"They're beautiful.. But you shouldn't have, tho."

"Why not? I just wanted to surprise my favorite girl."

They were now silent, but neither of them felt uncomfortable. It felt nice, just sitting there in that vintage-looking New York apartment, surrounded by cats and cookies.

That was not the kind of life Justin was used to, but he really did enjoy that moment.

And while he was playing with the tiny cat in his arms, he couldn't help but notice one thing: the best thing about that moment, was not Olivia's soft fur, it was Taylor, sitting next to him, their arms almost touching.

So he accidentally caressed her hand when both of them played with Liv. He could tell she was now shivering, but she didn't pull away, still.

He lifted his gaze, looking at the blonde girl at his side. She ignored him, tho, only giving her attention to her cat.

"Do you know what Scooter told me after being told I'd been hanging out with you again?"

Taylor looked up at him, but soon looked away, unable to keep eye contact with him.

"What?"

"He told me to be good to you. Because you're great. Even too great for me."

Taylor gulped, hoping not to be noticed. But, he did notice...

"What is that supposed to mean, Justin?"

"It means I couldn't be more grateful to have you in my life."

She smiled awkwardly, her cheeks burning red. Now Olivia wasn't getting any more attention, since both Justin and Taylor were just too busy talking, so she jumped off Justin's lap and went back to bother poor Meredith.

"I love you, Taylor."

Breathe, she kept telling herself. But how was she supposed to?

"I love you too. And I'm just as grateful to have you in my life as you are and.."

"No, no, you don't get it."

Justin interrupted her, shaking his head. Now he felt like he couldn't breathe either.

He took a deep breath, taking hold of Taylor's hands in his so he could maintain calm. But he wasn't calm at all, now.

"I've been thinking about it for so long now and I think.. I think you should know."

He felt Taylor's hands shaking, just like his own.

"I love you, Taylor. Like, I really do. More than just like.. Friends. And this has nothing to do with the fact that I've had a crush on you since I was fourteen. I'm just, shit, I'm just so in love with you, Tay."

She didn't talk. Not a single word escaping her lips, just pure shock written across her face. She just looked at him, trying to find a hint in his eyes, something to tell her he was lying.
He must be lying, she thought, but... He looked so purely sincere.

Justin kept waiting for something. Anything. A word, maybe a tear or a laugh, anything, or maybe.. Just maybe, an "I love you too".

"J-just, say something, please?"

He begged, still wearing a weak fake smile. Why was she so silent? Did she even hear him?

"I-I... Justin, I.. Damn it."

She shook her hear, trying to make her own mind up. There were too many questions in her head.
What was going on? Was he serious? Did she misunderstand?

"You love me."

That was everything she said. She herself didn't even know if that was a question or a sentence.

"I.. Yeah. I think I only realized that after telling you to leave me alone."

He laughed bitterly, remembering how dumb it was from him to treat her like that.

"Justin.. I.. I don't even know what to say.."

Taylor gulped, again, feeling her throat drier than ever.

"Then don't say anything."

His voice was now low, really low. That was enough to give Taylor goosebumps.
The two were silent for a bit, just looking at each other wide-eyed, their hearts racing fast. That's when Justin made his move.

He slowly motioned towards her, looking at her red lips just a few inches from his, now getting closer and closer... Until they touched.

The kiss was soft, pure, none of them daring to move while their lips were against each other's.

They pulled away a few seconds later. Justin smiled weakly, looking in Taylor's eyes for a sign to go futher. She remained still, just a breath away from him. So he took hold of her delicate face and kissed her again.

Taylor could feel her heart pounding against her chest so hard it almost hurt. Justin's fingers caressed her cheeks gently, making sure she was a hundred percent comfortable. And she was. She really was.

With her eyes closed, she kissed him back, her hands falling on his chest to keep him as close as possible.

Then suddenly, she pulled away, gasping. She stood up and, damn, all Justin could feel was panick.

And Taylor, well.. She knew how bad she had messed up this time...

"Tom and I got back together two days ago."