"Here he is! The man, the myth, the legend... Kelce The Muffin Muncher!!" I cringe at the nickname but I don't let it show and like every other emotion I bury it down deep.
I take the beer that Brian Is offering then sit in between two blonds I vaguely recognise from school and take my guitar from the case and begin strumming and tuning.
Tuesday night is rehearsal night usually but as the semester has gone on every night has turned into 'rehersal' night which then turned into lets get wasted and fuck random girls nights. My grades are a mess but it's too close to graduation to worry about that shit so I down my beer, adjust my shades and begin playing.
"Britney couldn't make it tonight, something about needing time to recover from last night" Connor and Bri hi-5 at my drunken antics but again I feel my insides tighten with shame.
What would my mom say if she were here to see this?
I clentch my teeth at the thought, shame pouring over me like scalding water but again I brush it off and signal I need another drink
"Can we work on that new song I was talking about yesterday?" I ask but Connor's bringing out the tequila already, it's funny how quickly priorities change, once upon a time 'Perfectly Wrong' was three guys with a love for music now it's just 3 guys getting wasted.
Strumming the chord progression I had stumbled upon and loved last night I begin humming as I feel a hand running up my neck and into my hair. I pull my head away and glare at the blond responsible. Maybe after a gallon more alcohol I will be able to tolerate that shit but not now, not when I'm sober, not when every touch makes me want to rip her fingers off.
"So what's the deal with Swift? Are you looking to deflower the little do gooder?" Connor hands me a shot which I down but I don't know what burns more, the alcohol dripping down my throat or my gut at the sound of Taylors name leaving Connors lips.
"Oh Taylor's not as innocent as she makes out" giggles one of the blonds and without my permission my head snaps in her direction "I happen to know for a fact that both Max and Jake got to third base with her" the blond looks so smug I want to hit the look right off her face but as bad as I might be I will never hit a female, Mary is proof of that.
"Max? Max Mulvey?" I spit out and then signal for more tequila "That guy's a dick of the highest order"
"Yeah well apparently she likes dick" the other blond giggles and I down my new shot and then jump to my feet unsure as to why every nerve in my body is urging me to move, to do something. Taylors voice is in my head only this time instead of her infuriating giggle it's the noises I imagine she would make as a guy put his hands and mouth on her and that's provoking me in the worst fuckin way.
Clicking on to Instagram I type in her name and am so fuckin pleased to find her account is public. I try to ignore image after image of the blond but stop when I find one of her in just a bikini, I screen shot It, crop it and then tag her in the post but not before typing...
If you don't want your dick to drop off avoid this girl at all costs unfortunately Max Mulvey and Jake Riviera didn't take the warning. May their dicks rest in peace.
I don't even give it a second thought before hitting the post button then cracking open another beer and sitting back waiting for the comments to start rolling in
****************
"Tag you're It!" Screams Austin as I chase her around our yard. School finished a couple of hours ago and apart from the time I took to change clothes this is the way I have spent my evening and I have to admit it's pretty perfect. The cool breeze against my skin has helped to despel any lingering emotions I had about what had happened at school with Travis today. My brother is 8 and right now his happiness is all that matters to me.
"Taylor you're so slow!!!" He giggles "it's because you're old like a grandma" I immediately speed up, grabbing him by the waist and beginning to tickle. She screams and squirms but the smile on her face proves that she's enjoying this just as much as I am.
Looking up at the porch I see my mom and dad with their arms wrapped around each other gazing at us, a look of sheer happiness on each of their faces. I was their first born, the daughter my mother always dreamt of and then 6 years on God gave us Austin and the smiles on their faces say everything you will ever need to know about the power of 'The American Dream'.
Sadly the moment of family bliss is interuppted by MJ and Eva rushing into the yard, their faces as serious as I have ever seen them, both clutching their phones and signalling for me to join them. Letting go of Austin I kiss his forehead and promise I will be back before jogging over to my friends, apprehension wrapping it's self around my heart and squeezing it tight.
*******************
Sitting in the passenger seat of MJ's car I can't control my sobs. My friend strokes my back and my hair promising it will be okay, promising no one will take any notice of it but I know it won't be okay, this will be all around the school by now, when I go in tomorrow everyone will be pointing and laughing and calling me names.
Since I was 5 years old I have loved school and school has loved me and in one day Travis Kelce had obliterated everything and now I was sat in the wreckage of my perfect life.
"Why's he doing this to me?" I sob resting my head on MJ's shoulder
"I don't know Taylor"
"I have never done anything to him, never! I hadn't even spoken to him before today"
"Babe he's a bully, he gets off on hurting people" soothes Eva whilst wiping away the tears that are streaming down my face
"What if my mum sees what he wrote? My dad!!! Oh my God he's ruining my life" I collapse down onto the centre console and sob loudly.
What did I do?
What did I do to anyone to deserve this??
And then the answer hits me right between my eyes and I jolt upright. I didn't do anything, not to him, not to his friends, I'm innocent of whatever he's accusing me of and I won't let him get away with this.
"Where does he live?" I demand and my friends look between themselves, panic in their eyes
"Taylor..."
"Where the fuck does that asshole live?!" I scream wiping the tears from my face, determined not to let him see me weak
"Ashboune" Eva says never looking up at me but it doesn't matter, I'm out of the car, my feet pounding the sidewalk towards his house and only fury propelling me forward not an ounce of anxiety or fear.
