Everything comes back to you -J.MARIANO

[1.39]

ꪻaryn had decided that she wanted to make the trip to New York without her parents. They had something important coming up and, though enthused that they would cancel it without hesitation, she simply would not let them. Instead, Taryn and Tas took the trip to New York together and she was rather glad of it. She loved her Dads entirely but they were not the best stressful situations like these. Tas understood her on a level that no one else ever had and she needed that right now.

They followed directions given by the man in their hotel's lobby, walking down the streets of New York with purpose. Tas had a garment bag over his shoulder, after he had refused to let her carry it, and Taryn nervously wrung her hands as they got closer to the building. She couldn't lie to herself and pretend that she hadn't once looked for him within a crowd of passing people. And even though something within her told her that he was no longer in New York, she couldn't let go of the hope. She didn't even think she wanted to see him that badly, given how they ended things, but the lurching of her heart whenever she saw someone that even slightest resembled him told a completely different story. Not that she would ever tell Tas that, though she sensed he already knew it.

Taryn stopped at the bottom of the steps to the building and stared at the sign ( like the poster) draped down one of the huge windows. Her heart began to pound for an entirely different reason. "You've got this," Tas began, already sensing the shift in her emotion just based on the simple furrowing of her brow.

"Do I?"

Moving closer to her so she was more likely to hear, as it was insanely loud in the city, he continued,  "You're going to be amazing. If you just breathe."

"There's bound to be someone who's better than me though," she frowned, watching as an incredibly well dressed candidate walked into the building, a matching garment bag hung over their shoulder.

He scoffed, as if the idea was completely out of pocket and entirely unimaginable. "I doubt it, have you seen the pieces in this bag?"

She turned towards him and sighed softly, "Tas I literally worked on those for days straight, I think I know them better than my own reflection at this point. "

"So you know they're good, brilliant even. Undoubtedly some of your best work, baring that jacket you made me in high school," he added, hoping it would ease her nerves and even possibly cause laughter. He got his wish, on both occasions, and as her laughter ceased she took the garment bag from him. Taryn  attempted to shake the nerves from her shoulders, though it had no effect.  ^Good luck.^

She smiled as she let out a final calming breath, then turned, walking up the stairs and towards the interview that could change her current planned path entirely.

-

Taryn walked out of the building she had entered not two hours ago with a pip in her step. She walked down the stairs happily, a garment bag over her shoulder, and headed directly for Tas. He leaned against the side of a bench on the other side of the road, coffee in hand. As she approached, he took the bag off her shoulder and replaced it with the coffee that was still hot. "How'd it go?" he asked instantly, not wanting to read too much into her expression in case it painted the wrong picture.

"I think really really well," she paused to take a sip of the coffee and smiled to herself when the vanilla syrup she so loved overtook the usual taste of coffee. She could only get such a drink when they went into Hartford as Luke would ever stock anything even resembling a syrup. "She knew sign."

"Damn," Tas responded with a raised brow as they began to walk back into the direction of the hotel as it was the only place they knew. "Did she like your work?"

Taryn grinned, "She said I and I quote, 'perfectly captured the whimsy of my sketches.'"

"Is that a good thing?" he asked jokingly, knowing that they had collectively spent hours going over her ideas and choosing the best ones. Whilst he didn't get too involved, he knew that she would need someone to back her up through all of this. After such a hit to her self belief in her ability as a designer, he knew it would take alot to revert back to how confident she had been in everything before.  When Taryn nodded, he grinned and added, "I've got a good feeling about this, you know."

"I don't want to get my hopes up," she shrugged and felt the fabric of her sweater graze against the skin of her neck. She shuddered and moved her hand to pull the sweater away, internally wishing it was made of a softer material. "God I need to change."

"Then we're going shopping, right?"

"Awh are you trying to pick up something for your girlfriend," she joked but Tas turned beat red and looked away from her as he cleared his throat. "Oh you so are. What did you need to get?"

He sighed and finally realized that his pla to hide the purchase from her would not work at all. Plus he, deep down, wanted her opinion and help through the entire process. "Don't laugh."

"I won't," she promised instantly, brow raised in intrigue.

He sighed and mumbled,  "A promise ring."

"A what?" she asked, having been completely unable to hear him.

^Promise ring.^

She turned her attention away from his hands and looked up, her eyes wide with surprise. "Oh really?"

"I just- I really do think that she's it for me, Taryn ... Like I've never had this feeling before and I don't want her to get the wrong idea by us being so far apart for college," he paused as they moved out of the way for a group of hustling people in suits.  "I just... thought it was right."

"Do you know her ring size?" she asked softly as she returned to his side yet again, the shock slowly falling from her expression.

"I stole one of her rings before we left," he replied whilst pulling said gold ring from his pocket.

Taryn smiled as she glanced at the ring and instantly jumped on board, despite any thoughts of negatively she may have had. She knew that deep down those feelings were just a manifestation of her current disbelief that love even existed in that sense in their generation. "We will find the perfect ring for your future bride. Oo oo! Bagsy being your best man!"

He just laughed, "Are you even allowed to be? Traditionally?"

"Screw tradition, plus who else do you like enough to let them be it?"

"True," he nodded as they walked into the doors of their hotel. Thankfully her Dads had helped them book one that was a very short distance away from the interview location, knowing that she wouldn't want to walk very far in the shoes she had picked out for the interview.  "Will you design my suit?"

She cocked a brow, as if appalled he would ever think otherwise, "I thought that was always the plan? I do make half your clothes.