My Heart Belongs to You

There were times after Taylor lost her dad, when all she wanted to do was curl up in a ball and hide away in her bedroom until the emptiness she felt disappeared... but she never did. He always told her to have a little faith when things in life got bad, but faith was hard to find when your world was crumbling around you and everyday seemed to be a losing battle.

Making her way through the bustling school corridor with her head down, Taylor dumped the books she didn't need in her locker and headed out to the bleachers to meet her best friend for lunch.

"Hey Tay," Tammy said as Taylor sat down beside her with a smile, setting her backpack on the floor and retrieving her sketchpad, "What's the difference between a cheerleader and a hockey player?"

"I have no idea."

"A cheerleader handles more than one stick at a time," Tammy added, cackling maniacally and causing Taylor to roll her eyes.

"Nice to see that you're not bitter about missing out on a place on the squad," Taylor teased with a chuckle.

"They just didn't appreciate my spunkiness."

"Yeah, that's why you didn't get on the team," Taylor stated, looking up from the sketch she was working on, "It had absolutely nothing to do with the fact that you smacked Michelle in the eye with your trainer."

"That was not my fault," Tammy argued.

"I think everyone would have agreed with you, if you didn't fall on the floor and start shouting about how you couldn't breathe because you were laughing too much."

Hearing Tammy giggle beside her, Taylor shook her head in amusement and glanced down at the field as voices caught her attention. Watching the boys tossing a ball around, she failed to realize that Tammy was talking to her and shouted out in protest as an apple core bounced off the side of her head.

"Stop fantasizing over the gnomes playing catch and answer my question," Tammy demanded, "What are our plans for summer break?"

"I have no idea, but we'll come up with something..." Taylor replied, checking the time and packing away her things, "We always do."

Walking to class with Tammy's arm hooked through her own, Taylor pushed open the door and sat in her seat at the back of the room. It wasn't long before Michelle walked in with her gaggle of wannabe's, whispering something into the ear of the blonde girl at her side and laughing as they both glanced over in Taylor's direction.

Afternoon classes flew by and before she knew it, she was walking through the front door to find her house empty. Heading upstairs to her room, Taylor dropped her bag on the floor and turned on her music. Sitting on her bed a few hours later, she added a few minor details to her art homework and smiled down at the finished project.

Glancing up as Dylan's light went on in his room, Taylor watched as he threw his bag on the floor in anger and grabbed her white board from her desk.

Rough day? she wrote, holding it up and using a laser pen to get his attention.

Smiling slightly, Dylan reached down and retrieved his own board. Scribbling down a reply, he moved closer to the window and held up his response with a shrug.

Rough Week

Anything I can do to help?

Listen?

Come over Taylor wrote without hesitation, putting her board back in its place and heading downstairs to open the door.

Contrary to popular belief, Dylan had been friends with Taylor for a long time and although their friendship wasn't as strong as it once was... it was still there. He had been there for her during her grieving and had offered her a shoulder to cry on when things got too much, but nobody knew how close they had once been.

Stepping aside to allow Dylan to enter, Taylor closed the door and followed him into the kitchen. Getting them both a can of drink from the fridge, she handed it to him and leant against the counter opposite him.

"I had another argument with Michelle about wanting to play baseball next year," Dylan told her after a short silence, "Her response was that I'd no longer be the quarterback and that she doesn't know if she could date a baseball player."

"Playing baseball has always been your dream, you shouldn't let Michelle take that away from you just to protect her reputation..." Taylor mumbled, opening her can and glancing up to gauge Dylan's reaction, "I don't want to speak out of turn, but I know how much baseball means to you and your reputation wouldn't be hurt if you were to switch sports."