dress - a tayvis story

Chapter 1

9.00am | Taylor's House
TAYLORS POV

"Morning Mom." I smiled as her face popped up on my iPad screen, placing her on my counter as I poured myself a coffee.

"Morning sweetheart!" She smiled, settling back as she realised we had connected. "How's it going up there?"

"Good, good." I responded as I fiddled with the settings of my coffee machine, "But this damn coffee machine is testing me."

My mom chuckled, leaning closer to the screen with a slightly different expression on her face. "Sounds like it's going well. And how are you feeling?"

I recognised the tone of her voice instantly, turning to face her with a small smile. "I'm doing okay. I'm going to go to a women's rights charity event later. Get my mind off Joe."

"That's good." Mom looked at me sympathetically and said, "Take care of yourself, sweetheart, okay?"

"Thank you, Mom." I blew her a kiss, seeing her look at me fondly. "And how's Dad?"

"He's good," She chuckled, running a hand through her hair, before turning around at a faint background noise. "I think I can hear him calling my name, so I gotta go, but text me if you need me."

"Alright, mom," I waved. "I love you; take care."

I sighed slightly as I pressed the red "end call" button, sipping on my hot coffee in my "Eagles" mug.

As I headed upstairs in my plaid pyjama bottoms and burgundy crewneck, I felt my phone buzz in my pocket. Pulling it out, I saw a selfie of my mom and dad outside in our family home's garden. I smiled as I pressed the like button before slipping it back into my pocket.

I chose a small black skirt and cream wool sweater for my outfit for the event—something casual yet elegant. I chose my black Mary Jane's to go with the outfit, taking a quick picture in my full-length mirror in my room.

As I searched in my camera roll to find the folder where I kept my outfit checks, I came across an old photo of Joe and me beaming at the camera in our Halloween costumes from a previous year.

I felt my eyes begin to water slightly as my finger hovered over the delete button, hesitantly deleting it, before scrolling through my entire camera roll and deleting any trace of Joe and my old life.

I mean, I had come here for new beginnings, right?

I clicked off my phone, picking up a last-year Versace handbag and placing my phone, wallet, and perfume into it. As I lightly jogged down the stairs with my hand on the bannister, I grabbed my car keys to my Mercedes-Benz, locking the car behind me as I left.

I hummed Katy Perry's "Last Friday Night" as I drove, tapping my hand on my steering wheel as I navigated through busy streets. I stopped to let a small family cross: two parents and an adorable little boy who beamed up at his mother, who smiled at him fondly before ushering him along the road.

Moments like this reminded me of what could have been between Joe and me, but I always knew it was best to remember how he had left me for some girl he knew for barely a week.

As I sat there at the traffic lights, engrossed in thoughts of the past, I felt my stomach rumble. Placing a hand on it over my sweater, I realised I hadn't eaten anything today except for half a mug of coffee, which definitely wasn't substantial.

Making a rushed decision on Dunkin Donuts, I reached over to grab my phone out of my bag, holding the steering wheel slightly unsteadily as I did so.

With a second to spare before the traffic lights flicked to green, I quickly inserted the postcode to the nearest Dunkin Donuts, which was 5 minutes in the right direction, before jumping back into position with my arms and legs ready to drive.

At Dunkin Donuts

I pulled up to Dunkin slowly, brushing hair out of my face as I reversed into a narrow parking space right next to the entrance. I swung open my car door, almost forgetting my phone, but after realising this, I briskly walked inside with my phone in one hand and keys in the other.

Upon entering, the cool air of the AC hit me, making me sigh in relief from the 30 degree Kansas City temperatures. Heading over to the worker, who only looked about 16, I ordered a caramel latte and a box of 12 glazed donuts. It could be useful to make friends around here, I thought.

I tapped my card and left a hefty tip for the worker, as she seemed exhausted. The moment she saw the cash in my hand, her eyes lit up, and she thanked me profusely, as if she'd just won the lottery.

"You're welcome." I smiled at her, my heart lighting up at the thought of her pure joy. I headed over to the waiting area, leaning on a wooden pole as I scrolled through my phone, waiting for my name to be called.

I would occasionally glance up, checking that I hadn't misheard my name, until one time I caught sight of a broad man who I faintly recognised but couldn't quite put my finger on who it was. His hair looked short, but with a slightly overgrown sense, giving me the unusual urge to run my hands through it. He wore a crisp white shirt and black pants, cleanly shaving. I almost wanted to go over and smell him; he looked so refreshing.

His hazel eyes met mine, and they paused almost as if they were analysing me. This tiny gesture sent shivers down my spine, which came as a shock to me, making me jump slightly. He saw this, and his face creased slightly in a humorous way, almost as if he were about to chuckle at me.

It was bugging me gently that I couldn't remember his name, and as I wracked my brain for it, a barista called out his order.

"Travis Kelce, caramel latte?" The worker called out hurriedly, placing it in his hands before rushing off to grab more people's orders.
Travis thanked her, taking a sip of the coffee and nodding approvingly. He headed over towards me, and I thought he was going to say something to me, but he just walked past me and grabbed a napkin before nodding at me and walking past me towards the exit.

After he left, I recalled the name Travis Kelce as being an NFL star, currently at the peak of his career. The thought of his clean, shaven hair came back into my mind, and I almost regretted not saying something to him.

The Charity Event

As I walked into the building of the event with a large box of donuts and coffee, I felt a few eyes on me. The room was decorated in red and gold, which unsurprisingly were the Chief's football team colours, as I later realised they were sponsoring this event. There were tables scattered around the room with games, drinks nd places to donate.

One of those looking at me stood out to me—a young-ish blonde girl who seemed to be organising everything. She came over to me, smiling, and beckoned over someone who seemed to be her partner.

"Hi!" She grinned, pulling me into a hug. "You must be Taylor, right? Thank you so much for coming; we honestly needed the volunteers."

"Of course!" I chuckled, any anxiety melting away instantly as we chatted. "I just moved here and just needed something to do today, honestly."

"Oh really? Where abouts?" She tilted her head slightly. The way she did this made it seem she was interested in everything I had to say, which was a warm welcome.

"Literally on the edge of the city," I explained, moving the box of donuts into my other hand to maintain balance. "How about you?"

"Ah." She said as the man she beckoned approached, "Me and my partner Patrick here live in the city. In the centre of all the drama."

Noticing the box of donuts, Patrick's eyes widened with a glint of mischievousness in them.
"Hi Taylor, nice to meet you." He began, "Need a hand with those?"
His hand reached forward, but not before Brittany slapped it away, giving him a look that read, "Hands off!"

I giggled at their interaction, trying to ignore the ache in my heart that still lay under the act of not missing being in love. "Actually, it would be great to put these down somewhere; I expect there's quite a few of us volunteering and could use the donuts."

"Well..." Brittany started, her face tinted with a suspicious expression. "There's kind of... four of us running this whole thing."

"Oh." I blinked, the realisation that this was going to be hard work rushing to me. Another realisation was that I didn't know who the fourth person was.

As if I had asked out loud, Brittany answered my internal question by clapping her hands and pointing to an approaching male. "Taylor, this is our fourth volunteer! Meet Travis."