The road underneath was quiet but unnerving.
It seemed as though I could hear each bit of gravel as it was passed over by the limousine’s tires.
“So, do you know the Swifts?” The driver inquired. He was a sweet man, but simple and old. I was sure that he couldn’t read my inner dialogue underneath my calm expression. Not that he tried, of course. His eyes- half covered by his green, worn out visor- were fixed on the uneven road ahead.
“Yeah, kind of. I’m a fan of Taylor’s music. She knows me from the internet. I give her advice.” I responded. This small talk was a nice reprieve from the mostly silent ride from the airport. It gave my mind something to do besides mental rehearsals for the moment that I would meet Taylor again.
I decided to continue the conversation, in the hopes that I could get information. Plus, he was nice.
“I’m actually a friend of many of Taylor’s friends. We all go back…“ How long have I known them? I didn’t know. “I’ve known them for about eight or nine years. I think.”
“So all of this is done over the internet then?”
“Um, yeah. I’ve never actually met them.”
“Ah, Ok, Ok. I figured that you were a musician or something.” He continued. “It’s amazing that you’ve known her for so long but have never seen her. Things were a lot different back when I was young.”
I smiled. Boy, did he not know the half of it.
“Do you know Taylor?” I asked.
“Me? Noooo no no.” He laughed. “I just take people to her house. I’ve never seen her.” He paused. “People say she’s nice, though. A friend of mine owns a coffee shop in town. He says that her mom stops by every now and then.”
“She’s nice?”
“Oh yes, yes. Most people here are nice.” He said. “Famous or not. It doesn’t matter. I’ve been taking people to the mansions here for forty years. Never had much of a problem.”
Good. Maybe I worry too much.
We got up to the security gate. As the driver talked with security, I turned my attention inward.
The flight to New Hampshire wasn’t bad at all. I’d never flown by myself before, but it was easy, especially since Taylor’s company prearranged and paid for everything for me. My concerns were more about what was coming, and how I should handle meeting Taylor- and if I should try to integrate myself further into her life or not.
After weeks of thinking, I still didn’t know.
I sighed, and looked out of the window to take in the sights. Taylor’s neighborhood was really beautiful.
The most impressive thing was the endless green- the grass, the flowers and the trees. It was amazing. I’ve lived my whole life in cramped suburban neighborhoods with no space for such things. Here, each property was huge in every way. Each mansion seemed to have it’s own small prairie, and they all had beautiful, enormous trees. This was truly a world apart.
The driver stopped the limo after a short drive to the front door. I stepped out and looked around. The lush grass looked even brighter and more beautiful outside the car. This was so, so different from any neighborhood I had ever been in. Outside, the openness of the neighborhood was powerful.
The driver handed me my bags. I thanked him and fished a crinkled twenty out of my pocket for a tip. As usual, I had to visually separate the green bill from the bundle of kleenex I always carry with me. The foliage here is pretty, but potentially very dangerous to someone with allergy and asthma problems.
“Here.” I handed him the bill. “Thanks again for the ride.”
“Anytime! Just give me a ring when you need to leave.” He smiled and scurried back to his limo, leaving me alone with my bags and thoughts.
I looked up at the mansion. It was certainly big, but it was welcoming. It wasn’t like those imposing, hidden mansions in Lake Forest back home. This house actually looked like a place you could have fun in.
I started up the stairs to the door, and stopped at the doorbell.
I was sure that Taylor wouldn’t be angry about the mix up, but I was worried that she would simply take her phone back and then force me out. She clearly loves me, but I couldn’t forget how startled and icy she was when I first called her. But then again… maybe a physical separation would be for the best for us in the end. We shall see.
I touched the doorbell, running my finger over it. Then I pushed it in.
I heard a chime, and then the stomping of women’s shoes inside, coming towards the door. The girl was young and athletic… but it wasn’t Taylor. Taylor moves lighter than this. I wonder…
The door opened.
It was Ashley Greene.
“Hi Tom.” She chirped, clearly happy to see me.
I was surprised, but that quickly turned to warmth. I smiled. “Ashley! Hi! How are you?” I asked.
She smiled back. “Good! Come in!” She led the way. As she walked back into the house, I studied her. She was wearing shorts, and a green t-shirt with no bra. Her black hair was back in a ponytail. I watched her legs move as she walked.
She led me from the foyer to a huge and modern living room with green chairs and a massive TV. There were big windows surrounding us so I could clearly see the foliage outside, and off in the distance, the ocean. The view was beautiful.
We sat down facing each other in the chairs.
“Ash, wow, I didn’t expect to see you here.” I said.
“Yeah, Taylor didn’t think she could make it back in time to see you from the concert. That’s why she asked me to be here for you.” She reached down into her handbag and pulled out her phone. When she bent down, I caught a glimpse of her nipples through the neck of her shirt. She tapped the phone a few times. “Taylor’s mom just texted me before you got here. She says that Taylor should be here in, like, an hour.”
“Ok. Cool. Thanks Ash.” I opened up and took a risk. “You’re really cute.”
She laughed and smiled a little. “Thanks.” She studied me. “Taylor was right. Your hair really is fluffy and fine.”
“Thanks.” I wasn’t sure how to continue the conversation. Is this girl my friend? My wife? Someone I don’t know?
She seemed at a loss as well. “So…” she sighed and leaned back. “What do you think of Taylor’s home?” She asked.
“It’s nice. I like it. It’s a lot bigger than the homes I’m used to.”
“Yeah, it’s nice. This is the first time I’ve been here too. The view is beautiful.” She looked at the greenery outside the windows. She was right.
She turned to me. “Do you need anything? Are you hungry? I was just going to make a salad for lunch when you got here.”
“Sure! Sounds good. I’ll make one too.” I took another risk, and said these sentences without actively suppressing my lisps. It felt a little more natural.
She raised her eyebrows at me, but otherwise didn’t seem surprised. She smiled again. She was clearly more comfortable with that kind of stuff than the people back home. “The kitchen is this way.”
I followed her again while calculating how I could make the best of this situation. It would be really nice to talk to her, but how could I get the most information out of her? What if I wanted to see her again? Would that even be a good idea? And… I know she loves me. Should I seduce her? Would I be betraying Taylor if I did, even though I’m not with her? A million questions and only one girl. And I was sure that she was thinking similar things, even if she wasn’t discussing them.
We went into the kitchen and made up quick salads with what was in Taylor’s fridges. I made a Caesar per family tradition. My sister and I had made a secret pact, half serious, to choose Caesar salads over all other types when eating out. I guess it provided a sense of stability in uncertain environments. I also grabbed a bottle of water. Ashley just threw together some greens.
Ashley turned to me. “Let’s eat upstairs. The view is even better on the second floor.”
She led me up a flight of stairs into a guest bedroom. Again, it seemed very open, with large windows and nice light green paint on the walls. It was clean and upscale. Nothing cheap in here.
We sat down on the bed and started to eat. And talk.
“Wow. It’s really you.” She said.
“Yeah, I know. Weird, huh?”
“I guess. You seem very normal, actually. It’s amazing.”
“Thanks. So do you.”
“Taylor told me everything… you know. About how you met and what you did.”
“Ok.” I was stuffing my face. I was hungry.
“I don’t think that she should’ve done that at the concert. I hope that she apologized to you.”
I stopped eating. “Apologized? For having sex with me? What do you mean? I’m like… I don’t know… her husband, right? I’m sure you understand.”
“That’s not quite what I meant. I mean, she should be apologizing for everything. For mixing you up and forcing you to come here.”
“We couldn’t mail each other our phones, though. I kind of had to come.”
“Yeah, but… maybe you shouldn’t be here. Sorry.” Her voice got quiet and trailed off.
I ignored her. What is else did she want me to do?
Out of the corner of my eye, I noticed that the closet doors were open slightly. Was that?… It couldn’t be. I left my food and walked over. I opened the doors.
Yes! That was it! This was the dress that Taylor wore at the Easy A premiere!
“Um, you shouldn’t be going through Taylor’s stuff.” Ashley warned.
“I just had to see this. This is the prettiest dress I’ve ever seen.” I said. It still looked nice. I bet it hadn’t even been worn since then. If anything, the bright emerald dress looked even more striking in person.
“The moment I saw Taylor in this dress was the moment I knew I had to keep her. That was the turning point in our relationship. Without this, I wouldn’t be here right now.”
Ashley scowled at me. She walked over and closed the closet.
“Do you love me?” She retorted.
“What? Of course I do. Why wouldn’t you think so?”
“Oh, I don’t know. You haven’t said a word about us since you’ve been here.”
“I didn’t know what to say.” I stopped. “Besides, you have a boyfriend, right? So why the fuck do you care anyways?” Woah, I just snapped at her. Where did that come from?
“I love you.”
“I know. And I just said that, yes, I love you. Isn’t that what you wanted?”
“I guess.”
“You guess? So what did you really want me to say?”
She hesitated. “Just what you said. I just wanted to know if you loved me. That’s all.”
We both stopped. There was dead silence in the house. All I could hear was the far off singing of a distant bird.
She kissed me. Hard. On the lips. I slipped my hand under her shirt and squeezed hard on her nipples.
She took her lips away from me. “Ohhhhhh!!” She cried. She wanted me. Bad. Almost as much as I wanted her- she was an actress. A hot one. One that I needed.
“Take me, but do it quick.” She said. “We’re not supposed to be doing this.” Where had I heard that before? I couldn’t remember.
I fucked her as hard and as fast as I could. It was brutal yet beautiful. Her screams echoed throughout the empty house. Each thrust of mine caused an emotional explosion in her.
“OH YES!!!” She screamed. “This is AMAZING!!”
I couldn’t catch my breath long enough to respond.
Her nipples were super hard. They almost hurt as I glided over her. Her soft legs made thrusting so, so easy.
After a minute- or ten, I don’t know- I could feel myself ready to burst within her, and I could feel her ready to climax herself. We were both out of control.
But wait… somewhere, I could hear the constant ring of a doorbell. Was that… Taylor?
“Oh, FUCK.” I quickly silenced Ashley by covering her mouth with my hand.
Her surprised cloudy green eyes locked onto mine. When she orgasmed she unconsciously bit down on my palm.
“OWWW!! Stop it!!” I yelled. She released my hand and screamed loudly. Then I orgasmed too.
“UNFFF. AHH!!! FUCK! FUCK.”
Ashley knew Taylor was at the door. “Quick, get your fucking clothes on!” She thundered.
“Ow, my hand!”
“You could have just told me, you know!”
“Well, you didn’t have to be so fucking loud!”
“Get dressed! What are we going to tell Taylor?”
I didn’t know. God, why did it ALWAYS have to be like this for me? Maybe leaving this circus wouldn’t be so bad.
After I got my clothes on, my hand started to bleed. Rivulets of blood were staining Taylor’s pristine carpet.
“FUCK. Where’s the bathroom? Where are bandaids?”
“This way!” Ashley led me into the bathroom. I held my bloody hand over the sink and stopped the bleeding. Then I quickly cleaned the cut, disinfected it, and slapped a bandaid on it. Just like high school. It was over in an instant. When we both turned to leave we saw Taylor standing in the door, her mouth open.
“What…” she started. “What… is going on? What happened?”
Ashley and I just looked at each other. Her green shirt was splattered with blood.
“Ummmmm, hi Taylor. Ashley and I were eating when she accidentally cut me. So we’re just trying to get me fixed up.”
“Oh… .” She was still stunned. “I just heard a lot of screaming and shouting. Then when I got upstairs I noticed all the blood. Are you… OK?”
“Um yeah. I’m fine, thanks. Nice to see you!”
“Yeah… nice to see you too.” She said incredulously. “Thanks for coming.”
I gave her a thumbs up with my one useable hand.
“Wow… let me, um, get something to clean up all the blood.” She left.
Ashley and I looked at each other.
“Sorry.” She said.
“It’s OK. I guess we shouldn’t have done that.”
“Yeah, I guess not.” She replied. “Listen, Tom. Taylor loves you a lot and I know that you want Taylor. But I don’t think you should try.”
“Why not? You have a boyfriend. Why shouldn’t I get a girlfriend?”
“You should get a girlfriend. But… not her.” She frowned. “It wouldn’t be fair to her. I mean, she doesn’t want to have to deal with stuff like this for the rest of her life. I mean, what would happen if you were to meet your other girlfriends? You know, like Kristen or Emma?”
“Emma? Emma Stone?”
“No, Emma Watson.”
“Oh.” I didn’t ask which Kristen she was referring to. I think she meant Stewart. I had to admit, Ashley had a point. But maybe it wasn’t good enough.
“I think it would be fine with Taylor.” I snapped, to her surprise. “Taylor is smart enough to handle a real relationship with me. And I can handle things and keep my secrets.” I steeled myself. “I need a future. I wouldn’t want her so bad if life in general wasn’t so extremely fucked up right now.”
“Don’t do it.” She shook her head. “I want to protect you, too.”
I heard Taylor’s long legs clumping up the stairs in her heels. I mouthed “Thank you” to Ashley as we walked out of the bathroom.
After an hour of scrubbing and small talk the stains were gone, except from Ashley’s shirt and my pants. Ash just threw away her whole outfit and took what she wanted from one of Taylor’s closets. Amazing, I thought, how the 1% lives. They were good people, but still…
After changing her wardrobe, Ashley said that she had to leave. “My flight is in an hour. I need to get back.”
After saying her goodbyes to Taylor, she squeezed my good hand and smiled. “It was nice to meet you, Tom.”
I smiled back. “You too, Ashley. I’ll see you later.”
With that, she left.
I turned to look at Taylor. Her dress was wet from the cleaning solution. She still hadn’t removed her sunglasses from the top of her head. The big frames were a solid green plastic, which was her style these days. They looked like a green version of those Keds glasses she sold on her website.
“Well, that was exciting.” Taylor said. “You know Tom, for someone I’ve only met twice, you’ve sure caused a lot of drama.”
“Yeah… but that’s OK. We’ll get through it.” I hugged Taylor with my good hand. She smiled.
“Oh, before I forget, let me get you your phone.” She disappeared upstairs and returned with it.
I opened my bags and found Taylor’s phone.
As we switched phones, she reached into her back pocket and handed me a plane ticket. “Here. I called the limo service.”
That wasn’t what I wanted, and I’m sure that she saw that. “Tom…” She frowned. “What else am I supposed to do?”
“Think outside of the box, that’s what. You know the situation. If you let me stay here, I will be yours forever. If you force me out now, I will eventually leave you. Of course.”
“You just make this soooooooo hard. Wow. You just don’t stop, do you?”
“You… are my ticket to a better and happier life. Not this.” I held up the ticket she just gave me. “I deserve a better life than the one I’ve been given. Which you know.” I straightened myself. This trip had opened my eyes. Now that I knew how Taylor actually lived, and what other possibilities in life were available to me, there was no turning back. “I will find a better life for myself somehow. If it isn’t with you, it will be with someone else. It is your choice.” Deep inside, I could feel the green eyed monster stirring. I didn’t want to go back. Not to my too small bedroom in my cramped house. I deserved better.
“And…” I continued. “I love you. Very very much. Of course.”
Taylor took me by surprise. She quickly snatched the ticket from my hand and looked at it. I almost instinctively held onto it.
I looked at the ticket with her. Once again, the green highlights told the story. If I was to make the flight, I would need to leave right away.
She sighed.
“FINE!!!!!!” She yelled. “You want to stay here with me? FINE. But don’t you DARE fuck any more of my friends in my house!” She stopped. “I’m not stupid, Tom.” She looked down. “And you stole my naked pictures, didn’t you?”
“Yes. You are correct on both counts.” I replied. “But… if you were me, you would have done both. I mean, I thought you didn’t like me! You never talk to me or anything!”
“I would never steal anyone’s nude pictures! I’m so glad I switched phones with you. Now I know what kind of person you are.”
Hmmm? “What?”
“I did it on purpose. I just wanted to see…”
My mind quickly mapped everything out- the gallery that was perfectly suited to me, the way that Taylor expected me to fuck her that morning… and wait, didn’t Ashley say that Taylor had forced me to come here? I didn’t quite understand what she was referring to at the time. But now I did.
“You…” I grinned. “Are good.”
She glowered at me. “I have to be. I’m with you.” She continued. “I had those pictures ready in case I ever met you in person. So when I met you in the hallway, I knew that I had my chance. So…”
“You seduced me.”
“I was going to simply give you the pictures after we had sex, but then the opportunity came up to test you and… I did it.”
I looked into her eyes.
We kissed.
“I love you.”
“I love you, too.”
“I love you more.”
“No, I love you more!”
We giggled and hugged.
I kissed her. “I love you, Taylor. Smarty.”
“You’re smarter than I am, Mr. Wizard.” She stopped. “I know you love me, but are you really ready to live with me?”
I thought about what had just happened. I thought about Ashley. “No… no I’m not.”
She nodded. “Here.” She turned on my phone and seeded her name and number in my contacts. “When you’re ready… but only then.”
I understood. “What if I’m never ready?”
“Then that’s OK. We’ll just keep doing what we’ve done before.”
I nodded.
I hugged her and took the ticket, and then I opened the door… with my injured hand. It didn’t hurt anymore.
Outside, I could see the old limo driver standing by his car, waiting for me. All I could see is green. He was pulling down his visor to block out the bright sun.
“It’s bright out there… here, take these.” Taylor handed me her sunglasses.
I took them. They looked clunky. The thick green plastic made them look like a child’s toy- but they worked.
I put them on, grabbed my bags, and walked out.
I turned around. “Bye.” I said.
“Bye Tom.”
I descended the stairs and turned around again. The door to Taylor’s house was closed. I didn’t mind.
I handed my bags to the driver.
He laughed when he saw my ridiculous glasses. And the weird smile on my face. And my disheveled hair. And the blood on my clothes. And the huge bandage on my hand.
“What the hell happened in there?” He laughed again.
“Oh, nothing much. I just… cut myself a little. It’s OK.”
“Sure, sure. It happens.” He didn’t want to know, I guess. As I stepped into the vehicle, I took one last look at the immense greenery surrounding me. It really was amazing.
I then thought of how great it was that I had Taylor’s number. Something… was going to grow from this. I wasn’t sure what, though. Time will tell.
I stepped into the limo and closed the door.
“Where to?” The driver asked.
“Home.”