" Taylor?" I asked, " Well this is a surprise."
Without even a hello he pulled me in for a hug. He held me tight, whispering "I love you" in my ear.
"Taylor donÕt."
"Can I come in, ItÕs kind of chilly out here."
"Yeah." I chuckled softly, it was snowing tonight. Although what else could you expect so three weeks from Christmas? Taylor walked in and took off his coat.
"Do you want anything to drink?" I asked from the kitchen.
"Yeah thatÕd be great." I grabbed a Dr. Pepper from the fridge. It had always been his favorite, and I imagined that it still was. I was pouring his Dr. Pepper when I felt two hands come around my waist.
" You remembered." He whispered in my ear
" How could I forget?" I whispered back.
"Do you need any help unpacking?" he asked, after taking a look at all the boxes still unpacked in my living room.
"That would be wonderful." I handed him a box to unpack and took one of my own.
" Enough CDÕs?" he asked after opening the box.
" I think so." I said giggling.
"WhereÕs your furniture?" he asked.
" Oh, it wonÕt be here until the end of the week, so until then I get to camp out."
"Fun."
"Oh yeah." We laughed. I missed all the time that we used to have like this.
" Where do you want me to put all of these?"
" You can put them on the CD rack. ItÕs over in the corner."
" ok."
" IÕll go make us some hot chocolate while you start the fire."
"Ok" We had unpacked everything that we could in the living room and dining room. We had decided to sit by the fire and catch up on eachother's lives. I really missed Taylor. We used to be a couple, but he kissed someone else. IÕd gotten over it enough to be friends with him again, but I couldnÕt be with him. It wouldnÕt work anyways. Not with his career, there was always distance between us, whether it was physical or invisible. It was always there.
" Here." I said, handing him his hot chocolate.
" Thanks. I hope you donÕt mind, I put on some music."
" No, thatÕs fine." For a few moments we sat in our own thoughts, just listening to ŌThe Christmas SongÕ playing softly in the background.
" So what have you been up to these past few months?" he asked, finally breaking the silence.
" I finished all my classes. I donÕt graduate until May though. ThatÕs ok though. IÕm content for right now. What about you?"
" Spending lots of time in the studio."
" I didnÕt even know that youÕd left Tulsa. When did you get back?"
" We never left. We bought that old house on Cherry Blossom and turned it into a studio. Isaac hates leaving Hayden and the twins; Zac hates leaving Molly, and I hate leaving, because everytime I do, it only pushes us even further apart."
" WeÕre just friends Taylor. ThatÕs all we are, and thatÕs all weÕll ever be."
" I want to be more than friends Izzy." My heart tightened, nobody had ever called me Izzy except him. He held me loosely in his arms and then kissed me softly.
"I think youÕd better go Taylor."
" I love you Izzy." He looked into my eyes the way he used to, where it seemed as though her was looking into my very soul.
" Taylor donÕt. DonÕt do this. I really think you should go now." He got up and went to the door with one last look he was out the door.
I went to sleep that night infront of the fire. I knew that I was still in love with Taylor, but this was only making things so much harder. All we could be was friends, he had to understand that. The next evening we went out to dinner and to a movie, just as friends. We ended up taking a walk in the park and then coming back to my house. We were talking when he kissed me. Just out of nowhere. One thing led to another and, I woke up the next morning in TaylorÕs arms.
"Morning"
" Taylor?"
" Yeah?"
" nothing" I knew we had made a mistake, but I couldnÕt bring myself to do anything about it. ŌJust FriendsÕ I kept reminding myself. I got up soon after that and made us breakfast, scrambled eggs, bacon, and Orange Juice, our favorite. He left at 11:00am to go to the studio and work. Around noon the doorbell rung, I answered it and had a dozen Lincoln red roses and babyÕs breath shoved in my face.
" Are you Miss Harlett?"
"yes"
"Sign here please." The deliveryman said while handing me a clipboard. I signed my name and then closed the door. I went over and sat on the floor. When I brought the roses to my nose to smell them I noticed a tiny white envelope. I opened it and read the small crisp, white card.
Love,
Taylor
"ugh...Taylor" I mumbled shaking my head. I brought them to my nose and smiled as I smelled them.
He was over later like he promised. My furniture had come that day so he helped me set it up.
" Taylor about last night, it was... but we canÕt..."
"I know, weÕre just friends."
Ō Just friendsÕ I reminded myself as he held me in his arms that night looking into my eyes the way he does. It felt so wonderful to be like that, to be in love. But we couldnÕt be, we just couldnÕt.
ŌJust FriendsÕ but if we really are, then how come weÕre so in love? As the night went on we sat by the fire drinking wine and talking. He was gonna take me to get a Christmas tree tomorrow. We started kissing. One thing led to another, and well.
~* Three Weeks Later *~
I had gone to the doctorÕs office the other day to confirm what I already knew was true. He invited me over to his house for Christmas morning. IÕd gone over there for every holiday and Birthday since my parents passed away four years ago, when we were 20. After everyone was done opening presents he took me out back to "our spot". It was the wooden swing hanging from the tree by their pond. He got down on one knee.
" Izzy I love you with all my heart, will you marry me?" He asked like I had always dreamed someone would. Simple and flat out, he knew that too.
" Yes" he slipped a small silver band onto my finger, on the band was a small 1/2-carat diamond. ItÕs not that he couldnÕt have gotten something bigger, but that I didnÕt want anything big and fancy. He knew that one too.
" Taylor" I said as he held me.
" Yeah." He said pulling back a bit and looking at me.
"WeÕre gonna have a baby."
"Seriously" He said with a huge smile on his face. I nodded. He picked me up and spun me around. Then he put me down and kissed me.
credit goes to Jewel for the song : Near You Always
