A/N: *updates 10 years later* sorry for udpating so late!! I was procrastinating HARD and trying to study at the same time hahaha

Here's Part 37 anyway, and I'll be posting part 38 tomorrow morning I'm sure!!

Thank you guys!!

Maddie :) 

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Taylor

            I adjusted my black and grey plaid scarf so that it sat further up my neck and kept walking. It was a rather cold October morning for New York City, but I was enjoying the tingling sensation that the cool breeze had given me against my bare cheeks. At least it allowed me to feel something for once. I thought. Nearly two months had passed since the day I stood alone in the airport, waiting for Karlie to come back from Colorado. When I found out the she hadn’t even gotten on the plane, it broke me. I stayed in bed for weeks, disconnected from the world. Numb was a constant feeling for me, until something reminded me of Karlie. I hadn’t slept for days on end and I was sure that the bags under my eyes had become permanent. In fact, the only reason that I forced myself to get out of bed this morning was because I received an urgent call from the post office. Apparently, they had been trying to contact me all week about the delivery of a parcel, and after today’s final notice, they informed me that they would be sending the package back to the return address if it weren’t picked up. The employee on the phone didn’t mention who the package was from, but I presumed that it was from Karlie. I knew that a few of my clothes were still at her apartment, so it was more than likely that she was just returning them. I sighed at the thought of her mailing back my things; I guess it was really over between us. After the incident at the airport I tried to contact her, but every time I made an effort I felt as though I had nothing to say. I would sit in front of my computer staring at a blank email document; there was nothing that I could articulate that would make her come back, and anything that I could put into words certainly wouldn’t be effective via email.

            I turned the corner of the busy street, setting my sights on the small brown building that had a “U.S. Post” Sign above the door. Once the pedestrian light flashed the white “walk” signal, I crossed the street and sped up my pace. Stepping into the store, I stood in front of the counter and politely asked the clerk for my parcel. When she returned a few moments later, I thanked her for her help and turned to leave. Glancing down at the box I read the label, which stated my name and address, of course. My eyes then focused on the return address, which told me that it was from Karlie. I took a deep breath and clutched the package tightly, wanting to hurry up and get home so that I could open it. I knew that it was just a few of my own things, but I couldn’t help hoping that they had captured the homey smell of her apartment.

            It took me less than fifteen minutes to get back to my place, and I tossed my keys on the coffee table as I walked in the door. Fetching a small knife from the kitchen, I got to work on opening up the tape-covered box. Quickly slicing through the material, I placed the knife down on the table and opened up the cardboard flaps. To my surprise, the box was filled with Styrofoam packing popcorn, and it had a light blue envelope with my name written in curly black ink. Seeing my name in her handwriting made me think twice about emptying the rest of the contents.

“What the hell?” I groaned loudly. I tried to think of an occasion that would bring about Karlie sending me a card, but nothing came to mind. Twirling the envelope in my hands, I stuck my thumbnail underneath the flap and tore it open. I pulled out the blank sheet of paper that rested inside of it and paused for a moment. My heartbeat grew loud enough to the point where I could feel it in my eardrums, and my hands started to shake. My curiosity getting the better of me, I flipped the folded page open and carefully read the black ink on the page:

“Taylor,

When I was in Colorado it occurred to me that it would be the perfect time to purchase a gift for when we would finally get to celebrate our six-month anniversary. I bought it early, my enthusiasm getting the better of me, and now I regret it. I wanted to return it but apparently you can’t get a refund on something that has a ‘personal touch’. Anyway, I don’t need this, and I certainly don’t need a reminder of what you put me through. I wanted to get it off my hands, and I thought that maybe—just maybe, every time you look at this you’d get a reminder of what we had, and what you lost.

—Karlie”

            My lip quivered and my eyes stung with tears before I had even finished the first line. She was so harsh about it, and it dug at me. The emptiness in my heart hollowed even more, which I didn’t think was possible. Any last flickers of hope of trying to get Karlie back diminished in me as if they were never there at all. Not only was Karlie hurting, but it seemed as though she was trying to get back at me. Of course, it was only fair, but I thought I had suffered enough from losing her; I didn’t need a reminder of what was long gone.

            Before I realized it, my hands were already reaching in the box to find out what the ‘anniversary’ gift had been. Digging it out of the packing popcorn, I was shocked to have laid my eyes on a small Tiffany & Co. box wrapped in a white ribbon.

“No, she didn’t,” I whispered quietly to myself. I wiped my eyes with my hand before giving the box a closer inspection; there was another envelope, this time with my name written in huge cursive, surrounded by drawn on hearts and stars. I didn’t hesitate to tear it off of the box—I knew that this was supposed to go with the gift. It would be the card that said, “Thank you for a great half-a-year! I love you!”

            I sniffled my nose and pulled the note out of the envelope. The paper was a rosy pink shade with watermarked hearts on the corners of it. I was nervous to read this one, but my eyes wandered across the words anyway:

“Taylor!

            Can you believe it? The past six months have flown by. I’m so thankful to have you in my life; you’re always here for me, and I promise that I’ll always be here for you. Waking up next to you is something that I’ll never get tired of, and going to bed with your arms around me is the only way I want to fall asleep. I love you so much, and I’m so happy that we found each other. It may only be our six-month anniversary, but I’m already anticipating the many more to come. I love you, you inspiring, beautiful, and kind girl. I’m so grateful that you’re mine.

—Love, love, love always,

            Karlie xx

P.S. I may or may not have written this card when I bought your present two months ago, I was just too excited! Oops!”

            I rolled my eyes and held the note close to my chest. I wasn’t sure how much more I could take. Karlie might as well have been burying me alive with guilt and regret, and she hadn’t let me come up for air. Placing the second note to my side, I let my fingers trace over the details of the box. The white ribbon topped it off, and I could only imagine the beauty of whatever was inside. With a slight twist of my hand, the bow came untied and I lifted the lid off of the box. My eyes nearly fell out of my head because of how wide they went, and an obnoxious gasp escaped my lips. It was one of the most beautiful necklaces I had ever seen. It was white gold, and the pendant was made of two hearts that connected together to symbolize an infinity sign. There were ten beautiful diamonds that trailed along the front, each shining luxuriously even with the lack of light. I ran my thumb over it gently, admiring the gift. I felt small bumps across the pad of my forefinger, and turned the necklace over to see what was on the back.

            Even though I had to squint my eyes to make out the engraving, I broke down into sobs as soon I had realized what it said. The phrase, ‘To forever’ had been etched in lovely flowing script, and I couldn’t stop my mind from remembering the night we had said those words to each other. Clutching the pendant in the palm of my hand, I slowly started cleaning up the mess of packaging material. I tucked any loose pieces of tape and cardboard inside the now empty box, closing the flaps over the top of it. I sat with my elbows propped up on my knees for a few moments, trying to process the blur of events. This was Karlie’s goodbye to me, but I couldn’t bear it. After all this time, I just wanted to apologize. Our chance at a relationship was long gone, but the least I could do was attempt to have her remember me fondly. I wrapped my fingertips on the cardboard box, trying to think of something that I could do. My eyes fell to the label that was in surprisingly good shape. Scanning it mindlessly, I had read over it a few times before I recognized what was printed on the return address: It read, “Karlie Kloss, Saint Louis, Missouri” along with her address and zip code.

“Are you kidding me?” I asked myself aloud. How could I have been so blind? Of course she went back to Missouri; her family still lived there in her childhood home. I ran into the kitchen and grabbed a tissue then wiped the makeup running from my face. Picking up the necklace, I draped it over my neck and clasped it behind my head. Then, I ran back into the living room, picked up my purse, and ran out the door.

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