FOREVER WINTER | taylor swift

3

~~~

"yeah!" alec yells, prepped in his eras tour outfit, turning up cruel summer on the speaker in the kitchen.

drew, one of his older brothers, grumbles from the couch, "shut the hell up, loser!"

alec rolls his eyes and grins at juniper, who is adding more friendship bracelets to her wrist. juniper's outfit consists of a reddish brown, checkered coat and braided hair, as she wanted to represent evermore while alec goes as folklore.

"hey!" alec's mom, kylie, scolds her other son, "don't make fun of your brother."

"he doesn't have to be so loud," drew complains.

juniper stops listening and looks around the room. despite being here plenty of times before, she's always surprised by how much lighter it is compared to her house. it's full of life, chaotic but peaceful. it feels breathable, like she doesn't have to hold her breath in every room, awaiting bruises.

"you need to calm down, you're being too loud," alec quotes and puts a hand on juniper's shoulder gently. juniper flinches and brings her attention back to her friend. he raises an eyebrow at her and mouths, "you good?"

she nods quietly. he doesn't look convinced but he knows when to drop the topic.

kylie turns to the two kids in the kitchen and starts talking to them. "so, i'll drive you guys into the city and drop you off at the stadium. the hotel room is already booked and two blocks away, so i'll be waiting in there and you'll be okay walking after the show?"

"si, mamá," alec answers politely.

juniper tacks on a quick, "thank you, mrs. garcía."

"it's no worries, sweetie," kylie talks softly and smiles reassuringly.

she goes to the lounge room to her other kids, just as alec's dad, alejandro, walks in through the door. he hangs his jacket up with a smile.

juniper tenses instinctively and steps closer to alec. he notices and whispers to her, "it's okay, you know he's not like that."

the man enters the kitchen and waves gently at the two teens. "hola, hijo. hola, juniper," he greets with a distinct spanish accent.

"hola, papá," alec replies casually.

"hola, mr. garcía," juniper awkwardly speaks after alec taps her.

"so taylor swift today, ey?" alejandro grins at the dressed-up kids. juniper recognises that alec grins the exact same way and relaxes slightly, nodding.

"yep," alec smirks, "we've been making friendship bracelets since last night."

alejandro pours some tea for himself. "do you need any money for the merch stand?" he offers.

juniper's eyes widen in surprise and she looks to alec for an answer.

"well, it's expensive," alec explains to his dad with a frown.

his dad chuckles and grabs his wallet. "it's worth it for the experience. two hundred dollars?"

the girl shakes her head nervously. "that's..." she struggles to fathom, "more than i could ever pay back."

"oh, don't worry about paying it back," he dismisses and hands his son four fifty dollar bills.

"gracias!" alec smiles without guilt. juniper stares at the money and fidgets with the bracelets on her wrist.

"thank you," she mumbles quietly, full of guilt.

kylie stands up and calls out, "it's time to go, swifties."

alec immediately cackles and sings, "and you know, when it's time to go!"

he drags juniper outside and waits for his mom to unlock the door. she grabs his hand anxiously, and he squeezes her's in return.

~~~

author's note

maya hawke's new song came out today so go stream it

and guts deluxe comes out in a few days!!! 🥳🥳 and a mv for obsessed releases tomorrow and i'm excited because obsessed might be my favourite song on the album

30 days until ttpd comes out 🤍

bye bye