A Place In This World - Adopted By Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce

Chapter 14

The following morning, Travis and Taylor sat Avery down to explain everything that was happening. As they had expected, she didn't take the news well, not able to understand why she was having to face yet another challenge that most kids will never have to deal with. 

"How are you feeling about all of this, Aves?" Taylor asked gently.

"Are they gonna make me talk tomorrow?" she asked quietly.

"I'm not totally sure," Travis answered honestly, "We're going to meet with our lawyer this afternoon to come up with our plan, but he did mention that you might need to give a statement. But we can find out if you have to talk or if someone else can read something you write."

"Okay. Will he be there?" Avery asked.

"He will be. But you don't have to interact with him at all if you don't want to. We're going to talk to Steven and see if there's somewhere you can hang out when you aren't needed in the courtroom. Kylie and Jason offered to come with us so you'll have company," Travis explained. 

"Oh okay. Is it okay if I'm still scared?" Avery asked.

"Of course that's okay, sweetheart. But we're both here to help you through this and we're going to do everything we can to make this as easy as possible for you," Taylor promised. 

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Later that evening, after meeting with their lawyers, Taylor sat down with Avery to help her write her statement. They had found out it would be up to Avery if she wanted to speak in the courtroom, but either way, she would need a written statement that could be submitted to the court. They spent nearly an hour deciding exactly what Avery wanted to say and tweaking things slightly. 

By the time they had finished, Avery was exhausted. Taylor got her settled into bed, reading a few chapters of her book to try to help her relax. 

"Hey Mom uhh I mean Taylor?" Avery asked, her cheeks flushing.

"What's up, sweetie?" Taylor replied, trying to hide her excitement at hearing Avery call her Mom for the first time.

"No matter what happens tomorrow, I'm really glad you and Travis let me come live here," Avery said quietly, "I really like it here."

"Oh Avery. You've changed our lives in the best possible way and we can never thank you enough for how patient you've been with us while we figure out this whole family dynamic. We both love you so very much," Taylor responded, tears brimming in her eyes. 

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The next day, Avery sat nervously in a small conference room with Kylie and Jason. There was a dog curled up at her feet, which someone had explained was supposed to help comfort her. Clearly they missed the memo that she prefers cats. Avery could feel her hands starting to shake again when Jason broke her from her thoughts.

"So I hear you've gotten pretty good at Mario Kart, kiddo. Think you're good enough to beat me?" he asked.

"Definitely!" Avery answered excitedly, pulling her new Switch out of the bag Travis had packed for her, "Dad and I play almost every night before bedtime!"

Jason couldn't hide his smile as he thought about his brother suddenly becoming such an amazing parent to this incredible little girl. All he had ever wanted as an older brother was to see his little brother find true happiness in life, and it was abundantly clear that having Taylor and Avery in his life had done exactly that. His heart ached at the thought that all of that could be ripped away from him today, sending a silent prayer into the universe that everything would go smoothly. 

About twenty minutes later, Avery was brought into the courtroom to read her statement. She nervously smoothed her dress as she was led to the stand. After she was sworn in, she began to read what she had written the night before, pausing to look across the room where Taylor and Travis were smiling proudly at her.

Hello. My name is Avery and I'm ten years old. I'm here today to tell you why I want to live with my cousin Taylor and her fiance Travis, and not my biological father, Eric. When I was born, it was just me and my mom. I found out when I was older that Eric left before I was even born, and he never even wanted to meet me. I love my mom and she took such great care of me and helped me become the person I am today, all without any help from my father. But six months ago, she died in a bad car accident. My whole world came crumbling down around me, but luckily I didn't have to put it back together alone. My amazing cousin, Taylor, and her fiance Travis were willing to let me come and live with them. We had a lot of ups and downs at first while we learned how to be a family, but they've taken such good care of me and given me experiences I never could have imagined. I spent my summer traveling around Europe and making memories that will last a lifetime. But more importantly, I finally know what it's like to have a dad. Travis has been more of a dad to me in the last six months than my father has for the last decade. Travis was the one at my bedside when my blood sugar was really low and I ended up in the hospital. He's the one who bandaged my knee up when I fell off my scooter in London this summer. He's the one who plays Mario Kart with me every night before bed and almost always lets me win. He's the one who let me help him plan a proposal, making sure I was okay with more change when my life was already in chaos. So please, don't take that away from me.