GOLDEN REBEL HEART

Chapter 28

Author's Notes: I know this is incredibly late, and I know that this is slightly shorter than the others, but I hope you will enjoy this anyway. We're about to reach another important part of this story, and we're also approaching the end. As always, tell me what you think and don't forget to leave a star. Thank you all so much for waiting for me and for still reading this, I appreciate all of you so much.

Enjoy!

-

Utkarsh and the surrounding outposts explode with celebration the night that follows the emancipation. Taylor has never seen so much happiness, so much excitement run around the streets, as if it were a contagious disease. The pathways of the small town, now free from dead corpses and the Royal Army's oppression, are now filled with dancing and cheerful civilians, the elderly people singing and playing folk music. The kids — ranging from five to twelve years olds — chase each other and kill the night with the sound of their joyful screams.

It is all a spectacular view, Taylor thinks. The Golden Path had won yet another important battle of this ongoing war, and the American couldn't feel more proud than in this moment.

"You've made all of this possible, you know,"

When Taylor turns around, she smiles when her eyes rest upon the sight of her girlfriend. Karlie comes to stand beside her, and wraps an arm around her shoulders, bringing her closer. The leader kisses her temple and breathes in her scent. "I wasn't the only one fighting out there."

"Yeah, but the idea came from you. You're a better leader than I am," the rebel chuckles. Taylor faces her and watches a strand of stray hair fall on Karlie's face. She reaches out and tucks it behind her ear, her hand never leaving her face as she cups her left cheek.

"I just had a great idea at the right time. You are the leader of this movement. The Golden Path may thing that I'm their hope, but you are the one they look up to, not me."

Karlie observes her for a moment before turning her face and kissing her palm. The feeling of her lips against her skin spreads a tingling electricity along Taylor's spine, and the moment of silence that follows is one of realization; after weeks spent apart, they were finally together. They were touching each other, looking into each other's eyes, and once again they were surrounded by happiness and not gloom. The leader's grip around her hips seems to tighten, and the American's breath hitches in her throat.

"I missed you, Taylor," Karlie whispers, nuzzling their noses together. Taylor grins and glances down at their lips. She grazes her fingertips up and down her cheekbone, spending more time on the faint line of a past scar that was right below her left eye.

"I missed you, too," the American replies, breathless. Karlie looks down at their feet, before reaching up and grasping Taylor's wrist.

They seem to want it at the same time, the sounds of screaming children and folk music vanishing as the only noise they could hear was their synchronized heartbeats. Karlie is the first to make a move, separating their bodies and grabbing Taylor's hand. There is a dazed look on both of their faces, as the leader drags her towards her shack. Nobody seems to pay them any mind, and as soon as the door closes and leaves the rest of the world outside of their own, Karlie pushes Taylor against the nearest wall. She fiercely attacks her plump lips with her thin ones, and the sound of them colliding fills the empty shack as Taylor's hands blindly reach out go cup Karlie's cheeks. The leader holds onto her thighs as she easily lifts her up in the air. The American harshly breathes into their next open mouthed kiss, and she wraps her arms around the other woman's neck in order to bring her closer. Her ankles cross behind Karlie's back, and the leader finally detaches them from the wall as she brings them to her bed. They collapse on the hard mattress, and Taylor grunts at the familiar feeling of Karlie's body on top of hers.