No Need to Say Goodbye - a kaylor fanfic

prologue

She didn't realised everyone was gone until lunchtime.

It was November 2, and Taylor Swift had finally gotten around to cleaning up her Rhode Island kitchen after the Hallowe'en festivities of two nights before. There was a lone, half-eaten chicken drumstick lying on the dinner table and a large stack of plates next to the sink, on the verge of toppling. Moving purposefully around the kitchen, she dealt with the mess methodically, concentrating on nothing but the task at hand.

"I'd ask if you needed help, but you seem to have in under control," an amused voice noted. Taylor looked up from her army-precision plate stacking to see Karlie Kloss walk into the kitchen and flash her a big smile. She immediately ducked her head down again when she realised her friend was dressed in boxer shorts and a loose singlet.
"Yeah... Should have cleaned all this yesterday," she said, not meeting Karlie's eyes in an attempt to hide her blush.

Taylor had been attracted to girls as well as guys for as long as she could remember. It wasn't something she had ever told anyone, but a secret she had kept well hidden so as to not cause a fuss or alienate herself from any of her fans. It was hard at the best of times, but now she had inconveniently fallen in love with her best friend, and there was nothing she could do except hope she got over it. Those shorts were not helping the cause.

Karlie slid onto a stool and manoeuvred her long legs onto the bench, right next to where Taylor was cleaning. Taylor gritted her teeth.

"It's a beautiful day, Taylor. The sun is shining. The sky is clear and blue. And you are inside stacking dishes."

"That is correct, Karlie. I am indeed stacking plates," Taylor said drily. "What would you have me do instead?"

Karlie grabbed the plate Taylor was trying to dry and held it out of Taylor's reach. "Everyone seems to have disappeared to town except us. I propose we take a leisurely stroll down by the deep blue sea," she said cheekily.

Taylor tried to reach over the bench for the plate. "Give it back! That's mean."
"I am mean, Taylor. I'll give it back if you come down to the beach and have lots of fun with me."
Taylor pouted. Was Karlie flirting with her, or was she imagining things? "Fine. I'll come, but let me get changed first."

The weather was as beautiful as Karlie had promised. A light, hopeful sea breeze lifted the girls' hair as they climbed over the fence of Taylor's house and made their way along the path that led to the beach. The sea was visible, and even as it was obscured by clouds the sun still sent specks of light travelling across the tops of the waves that broke on the shore. Sand as bright as fairy lights had been kicked around and messed up by zealous beachgoers in their haste to reach the water. It was good to be outdoors, and Taylor stopped for a minute to take in the scene before turning to Karlie.

"You know what? If we go down there, we'll be mobbed by tourists, and that isn't my idea of fun. Let's find somewhere else, somewhere quiet," she told Karlie, who grinned. Taylor's stomach did a triple backflip. On impulse, filled with adrenaline, she grabbed Karlie's hand. "Come on!"

The pair ran full kilter along the path, their feet scrabbling in the sand and the sound of their laughter being ripped from their mouths. It felt like freedom, something Taylor didn't often feel. She didn't really know where they were going but she ran anyway, too caught up by the pressure of Karlie's hand and the sea breeze to consider anything else.
Abruptly, they skidded to a halt in front of a fork in the path. Taylor had followed this path before and knew that the right fork led to the town centre. Instinct told her to turn left, and she did, slowing to a walk with Karlie just behind her. This feeling of the unknown, of possibility, was exhilarating. Before long the path opened onto a tiny, empty beach. The wind was a lot stronger here, and the waves whipped and crashed erratically against each other, creating white foam. The sun still shone stubbornly overhead, warming the top of Karlie and Taylor's blonde heads. The whole scene looked like a 19th century landscape painting, every grey cloud a delicate brushstroke.