Alone Together

“Two vanillas, one chocolate, a strawberry, and…what did you want, Tay?” Andy asked, turning around to see her.

“Cookie dough,” she said quietly, trying to hold in laughter at a stunt Joe had just pulled.

“And a cookie dough. Thanks, dude,” Andy said, passing off everyone’s ice creams to them as they were presented. Taylor and Pete walked away from everyone else, sitting at a table away from the busyness of the ice cream parlor.

“It’s nice out today,” she said thoughtfully, licking her dessert. Pete shrugged, taking a bite of his own sweet treat. She looked at him and picked at her cone, ignoring the crumbs falling onto her lap.

“Are you okay, Peter?” she asked. “You’ve been awfully quiet the past week.” He looked up at her and half-smiled.

“Your birthday’s next week, right?” he asked. She smiled and poked him gently with her foot.

“You’re changing the subject. Tell me what’s wrong.”

He sighed and glared at his ice cream cone. “My friends don’t like my girlfriend,” he pouted. A fire seemed to light in Taylor’s chest, and it felt like a demon was crawling its way up her throat.

She swallowed. “What…what makes you think that?” she asked, avoiding looking at him.

“Oh c’mon, Tay! I know they all probably talk shit about her to you. It’s obvious they don’t like her! We were all hanging out at Joe’s the other day and they hardly said a word the whole time, but when you’re there they can party and get drunk and have male orgies!” He took a shaky breath and covered his face with his hand. “I don’t get why they don’t like her. She’s a good girl, there’s nothing wrong with—“

“Do you like her, Peter?”

He looked up at her and furrowed his eyebrows. “What?” he asked.

She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair, her long red locks falling into her face as she looked back at him. “It doesn’t matter if they don’t like her, Pete. They’re not the ones going home to her, sharing a bed with her—they’re not her boyfriends. Who cares if they like her? The only thing that matters? Is if you like her,” she said glumly. He tilted his head and observed her saddened expression.

“Well, yeah…yeah, I like her,” he mumbled.

“Then case closed. Ignore them, love her. It’s simple, Pete—you really should care less about what everything thinks,” she said, biting off a bit of her cone and standing up.

“I’m gonna go over there with the guys—I forgot I had to ask Patrick something about his yard.”

--

Her entire body felt like bugs were crawling over it, but she pushed the idea away, certain it was just her mind pulling tricks on her. She and Pete were laying side by side in Patrick’s back yard, staring up at the sky and admiring the stars. Patrick, Joe, and Andy had retired inside long ago, the latter complaining that ants were crawling in his beard. The three of them were debating on who would sleep in what room tonight, as they were all planning on watching movies and drinking long into the morning.

Taylor traced her nails through the grass, gripping the blades resting next to her hands. Her eyes studied the heavens carefully, darting back and forth between different clusters and imagining what they all really looked like. Pete felt uneasy; he continuously switched his gaze between the dark abyss above him and the petite woman lying next to him, her lips pursed and entire being relaxed. “What are you thinking about?” he asked quietly.

She shrugged. “I don’t know. Loads of stuff,” she muttered. He sat up, leaning on one arm and looking over at her.

“Want to talk about it?” Pete asked kindly.

She sighed and closed her eyes. “I’m thinking about my mom. She’s up there, hopefully, finally happy. She was never happy down here. I think that’s why she left my dad.” Her eyelids fluttered as she spoke. Pete kept his eyes fixed on her. “And then I’m thinking about my dad. Wondering what he’s been up to, how he’s doing. Maybe he got married again—what if he has other kids?”

She turned her head to face him and slowly opened her eyes, gazing into the hazel doors to his soul. “I haven’t talked to my dad since I was twelve,” she said quietly, turning her head back up and looking at the stars. “I miss him a lot,” he could hear her whisper.

He blew his bangs out of his face, lying back down next to her. They stayed quiet for a very long time, the silence suffocating them. Taylor closed her eyes again, imagining her father walking around his work. She could see his blurry image lifting pots, pointing out things to employees, and holding out his arms for his little girl to run in to. That little girl was her…right?

Something nudged her hand and she stiffened. She looked down at it and saw Pete’s palm enclosing over hers, entwining their fingers together. Her body relaxed and she looked up at his face, unsurprised to see his head turned to look at her as well. They stared at each other for minutes until Taylor softly smiled, giving his hand a squeeze and biting her lip.

“Thank you, Peter.”

Later on the two walked back inside, shivering slightly and heading into the family room. The other three were sprawled amongst the chairs and couches, passed out and the credits of a Disney sing-along scrolling down the T.V. screen. The two exchanged glances and smiled, stepping over their friends and further into the room. Taylor set about placing blankets over their bodies while Pete turned off the T.V. and lights, careful not to trample them while making his way back over to Taylor.

“Are you staying the night?” he whispered, slipping his hand into hers. She shrugged and smiled, squinting to make out his features in the dark.

“I don’t know. Maybe,” she whispered back, allowing him to lead her into the hallway. He smiled and turned to face her, leaning against the wall and taking her other hand.

“There’s plenty of room. You can sleep in Patrick’s room if you want,” he said.

She nodded and bit her lip. “It wouldn’t cause a problem?” she asked.

Noticing his expression she continued, “I just mean…well…it’s just that…Ashlee wouldn’t be mad, would she? If she knew I was sleeping in the same house you are? Not saying she should be mad, it’s just I know girls that would—“

Pete silenced her by placing a finger on her lips. “Ssh. Ash won’t mind—it’s not like we’re sharing a bed.” He turned her around and pushed lightly on her back, pushing her towards the stairs. She smiled and wished him a goodnight, tiptoeing up the stairs and offering him a small wave before she disappeared into Patrick’s room. Pete watched her with a small smile. Besides, he thought, who says she has to know you were here?

--

A few weeks later Pete groaned and sat down on his bed, rubbing his forehead and gingerly holding his phone to his ear.

“Why didn’t you tell me you were going to a party before I left? We could’ve gone together!”

Everything she was saying was related to this topic. Whose party was it? Why didn’t he tell her? Whose party was it? Who would be there? What kind of party was it? Whose party was it?!

“Ashlee, that would’ve been great, but you don’t really know Taylor. It’d just be weird, seeing as you two have never—“

“Wait, Taylor? Is this a boy or girl Taylor? How do you know this person?”

He sighed and rubbed his eyes, quickly glancing at his watch and frowning when he realized he was running late. “Ash, Taylor is my friend. Now I’ve really gotta go, I’m running la—“ Her blabbering interrupted him, and it wasn’t until five minutes later she had calmed down enough to let him go.

“Have fun babe—let me know how it was,” she grumbled.

He sighed, “All right, Ash. Love you.”

“Uh-huh.”

--

Taylor didn’t even know half the people there.

Of course, that didn’t stop all of them from walking up to her and hugging her like they’d known her forever. There were so many famous faces she was embarrassed to not recognize, and she kept close to Patrick through the entire beginning of the party. It was his house they were at, after all, and half his party too.

“Are the guys here yet?” she asked timidly, smiling politely as “William” walked away. Patrick shrugged and glanced around.

“I don’t see ‘em yet—wait, nope, there’s Andy. Joe must be nearby then, you don’t really see one without the other, do you?” She laughed and shook her head, cradling her Angry Orchard and looking around at all the smiling faces.

“You really didn’t have to do all this, Patrick—you’ve only known me for, well, not even two months…” she muttered. She wondered vaguely if it was unethical to become such close friends with a client, but with Patrick, she couldn’t help it. He was like a brother she had never had, and she couldn’t regret meeting such a great friend.

His eyes twinkled and he put an arm around her, pulling her into a brotherly hug. “Hush, now. This is your day. Now go, find your secret lover, and enjoy yourself,” he laughed, pecking her on the head and gently pushing her away. She blushed and swatted at his arm, but turned to look around for her sought after acquaintance.

When she felt warm breath on her neck and arms wrap around her waist she smiled as he nuzzled his face into her hair. “Happy birthday, Tay,” he smiled, holding up his present for her to take. She smiled and turned around in his arms, giving him a friendly hug.

“Pete, thank you. But you didn’t—“

“Would you just open the present?” he smiled, releasing her and giving her the gift. She stuck her tongue out at him and accepted the present, observing the bright wrapping paper before gently prying the tape away and staring at what it hid.

“Pete, what is this?” she asked quietly, staring at the phone in her palm.

He looked down at it and said, “In about five minutes, that phone is gonna ring. And I suggest you answer it, ‘cause I busted my ass finding the number of that person for you.” She looked up at him and lowered her eyebrows in confusion but smiled, enveloping him into another hug.

A few minutes later, the phone began to vibrate in her hand and she jumped, pulling away from the crowd and walking outside to answer it. Shakily pressing the talk button and holding the earpiece to her ear, she asked, “Hello?”

Tears spilled from her eyes and she choked back a sob, grinning madly as she ran her free hand through her hair.

“Oh my God, Daddy?”

Meanwhile, Pete and Patrick stood inside watching through the backdoor. Taylor was nearly skipping around the backyard as she spoke to her father, grinning madly and laughing every once in a while.

“I can’t imagine not talking to my dad for thirteen years. Especially if we were as close as Tay and her dad,” Patrick said, smiling at his friend’s joy. Pete smiled softly and nodded. Seeing Taylor so happy made his entire body fill with warmth, and his heart beat wildly. She would occasionally glance over at him and her entire face lit up as she mouthed her thanks and jumped back into conversation.

Patrick looked over at Pete. “That was a really nice thing you did, man,” he said. “Couldn’t have been easy finding his number in so short a time.”

Pete laughed and shook his head. “Sure wasn’t. But Taylor’s happy…that’s all that matters.” Patrick smiled at him and looked back out the door.

“It’s funny how we’ve only known her for a couple months or so, and she already is such a huge part of our lives, huh?” he asked. Pete nodded slowly. Patrick glanced over at him and smirked at his glazed look. Even funnier, he thought, that I’ve never seen Pete look that way at Ashlee.

--

The party had been over for nearly half an hour, but Taylor was still outside. The phone was glued to her ear, and she continued crying upon hearing her father’s voice. “I’m really proud of you, Katherine—it sounds like you’re really going places,” he said brightly.

“Thank you, Daddy,” she whispered, wiping her cheeks with her sleeve.

He was living in New York, and had been for the past five years. He still occasionally did a landscaping job, but he also owned a wedding floral business. His second wife had a job at Radio City as one of the set designers, and her son attended college at NYU. So, he did have another family, but not any little girls running into his arms. That blurry image was still her.

Pete cautiously walked out and smiled at Taylor when she noticed him. She grinned and motioned him closer. “Pete, I’ll be right there,” she whispered.

“Who’s that sweetie? Is that the Pete that arranged our conversation?” Gerald asked.

Her grin widened and she said, “Yes, did you want to talk to him?” His eyes widened and he shook his head, waving his hands as though proclaiming a field goal was no good. “Sure, here he is!” she laughed, holding out the phone. “Pete, he just wants to say hi,” she said calmly, taking his hand in hers and placing the cell into it.

He shakily brought the phone to his ear and choked, “H-hello?”

“Peter? Gerald Barrie, pleasure to some-what meet you. I just wanted to thank you for helping my daughter and I find each other again. You’ve no idea how much it means to me. Take care of Katherine for me, will you?” His accent was much thicker than Taylor’s and it made Pete’s heart fill with warmth with thoughts of brilliant green fields and beautiful music over the highlands, with a brief vision of Gone With The Wind fluttering through his mind.

Pete glanced over at Taylor. Their eyes locked and her lips parted slightly as he stepped closer to her, looking down at her through lowered lids. “Yeah, I’ll take care of her,” he nearly whispered. She gazed back up at him and could hardly focus on her farewell to her father, snapping the phone shut and holding it tightly in her hand.

“Thank you so much, Pete,” she whispered, her fingers running over the smooth covering on the phone. His lips formed into that drop-dead smile he was so well known for as he moved in even closer, looking down at her until their noses were nearly touching.

“Hey, it’s nothing, Tay. Anything to make you happy,” he whispered, reaching up to tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. She turned her head and nuzzled her face into his palm, embracing his caress and sighing contently.

“I don’t think I’ve been this happy since I was a little girl,” she replied honestly.

His lips parted as he observed her sweet face, admiring the gentle glow in her green eyes and the reflection from the stars above. Her face seemed to fit into his hand perfectly, her soft skin sending shivers down his spine as his thumb stroked her cheek. Swallowing the lump forming in his throat he opened his mouth to speak but stopped, his eyes widening as Taylor brought her hand up and placed it over his, her small fingers gently linking with his and pulling him away. Her other hand grasped his free hand and she held them in the small space between them.

“I better head home. It’s getting pretty late, and I have a new client I have to meet with tomorrow,” she sighed. He snapped his mouth shut and nodded, releasing her hands and awkwardly backing away.

“Y-yeah, right, me too,” he stammered, scratching the back of his neck. They stared at each other for a moment, unwilling and unable to part, until a small buzzing noise interrupted their silence. Taylor blinked and looked at Pete’s jean pocket as it began to move slightly from the vibrations erupting from it. He sheepishly removed the cell phone causing the disturbance and pulled it out, seeing he had received a new text message.

“Um, it’s Ashlee,” he mumbled, scratching his head and looking up at Taylor. She smiled sadly and nodded as she shivered slightly in the cool Chicago air.

“I’ll see you, then,” she muttered, turning to leave. Pete waved slightly and looked down at his phone, opening the text message and sighing.

Tell Patrick happy birthday for me. Love you, and see you next week ~Ash

Just as he was about to text back he grunted at a sudden pressure attacking his chest, with slight arms wrapped round his torso and a petite red head buried in his neck. “Thank you again for my present, Peter,” Taylor whispered, her voice muffled in his shirt. “I couldn’t have asked for anything better.”

He smiled softly and glanced at his phone once more before pocketing it, leaving his text unanswered as he tenderly wrapped his arms around Taylor, his hands stroking her hair and back.

“Any time at all, Tay,” he whispered before smirking and going into song, wiggling his hips in a dance. “Any time at all, all ya gotta do is call, and I’ll be there.” He could feel her smile as she held him tighter, burying her nose into his shirt and inhaling his scent.

“Thank you, Paul McCartney,” she giggled.