almost | taylor swift au

chapter 2

The next day, the band and everyone associated with them travels to New York. They don't have a show that night, meaning that everyone gets to take some time for some much-needed rest before the shows at Irving Plaza.

But Jett has other plans.

"Come on," he says to her as they're on the tour bus, her head resting on his shoulder and his arm around her. "You just turned 21 a few weeks ago. You haven't properly been out to the club yet. Let me take you."

"I've been out at bars," she shrugs. "I wouldn't mind staying in and taking the night to rest."

"No," Jett tells her, shaking his head. "I won't hear of that. Sure, you've been to bars, but you haven't been out in New York yet, which means that you haven't been out properly. Come on, we'll have some fun. I'll buy you a few drinks, loosen you up a little bit. What do you say?"

Taylor looks up at him and his big dark eyes meet her ocean blue eyes. She swallows, feeling butterflies in her stomach. She likes the idea of going out somewhere with Jett, like a real date instead of sneaking around in the hotel like they've been doing. She likes the idea of having fun with him, laughing and dancing the night away in one of the most magical cities in the world. She knows that she'll never be 21 again, on tour with a band and going out in New York with the front man. Or at least, it's not guaranteed. So, she decides to take the moment and run with it while she can.

"Sure," she smiles up at him, "let's do it."

"Alright," Jett cheers, squeezing her arm with the hand that is wrapped around her. He turns around to the other guys in the band. "Hey, did you hear that? I'm taking Taylor out for drinks tonight."

The others let out a rally of cheers, causing Taylor to feel blood rushing into her cheeks, forming a deep blush. She knows that the guys in the band know about her and Jett, but it's still something that she doesn't always broadcast to the world. Even if she does want Jett's help in the music industry, she doesn't want people thinking that it's the reason she's with him. She's smarter than that. She really does like Jett- as scary as it is, she thinks that it isn't impossible that she's even falling in love with him.

Love. There's a lot of weight that comes with that one little word. She's never been in love before. She's dated before, but she's never felt so enamored by someone in the way that she is by Jett. It's exciting, like she's mystified by his every move. She likes the way that he views the world, through the lens of a true storyteller. Like every nook and cranny has something new to explore, something new to learn. Those parts of the world that he's already explored and become an expert on, he is eager to share with her. To help her find inspiration in the ways that he's been inspired there in the past. To her, it shows that, though they may be in different spots in their lives, they can still come together and create a beautiful relationship.

So, as she thinks about that, she realizes that going out with Jett really will be great. "It'll be our first real date," she whispers up to him.

"And you're going to remember it for the rest of your life," he tells her with a wink.

She leans up and places a kiss on his cheek. "I can't wait."

It isn't long before the bus makes it to New York and Taylor finds herself in yet another dingy hotel, in a room on the 16th floor overlooking the city. She's got a few hours to herself before it's time to head out with Jett, so she sits down on the bed and starts to flick through channels on TV. She soon realizes that there's nothing good on- there never is, not during the day. She can usually entertain herself at night with hours upon hours of Modern Family reruns, but those won't start up for a little bit longer- not until right around when it's time for her to leave. So she turns the TV off and her eyes fall upon her guitar case.