Finally Got it Right: Collection of One Shots

your favourite song was playing

Warning: minor smut, very very minor. Talk of children, appearances of children. Some cat propaganda.

"Do you think you want kids?" Taylor heard herself ask and then took a deep breath to settle her nerves. Maybe she shouldn't be asking this question quite yet. 

She and Travis had only been talking for a month, text and FaceTime mainly. They had met in person once for a blissful dinner date when he'd just happened to be in New York and free the same couple days as her. A serendipitous coincidence he'd told her but Taylor had an inkling he had planned it. They were still very much getting to know each other and Taylor remained anxious about it. 

So, it's dumb of her to ask if he wants to have children in the future. Asking a deep question like that had the potential to strengthen the emotional bond that was forming between them, one that wasn't sure if she should resist yet. But they're on FaceTime together and Travis has Jason's daughter, the youngest one, laying on his chest. Her infant face tucked into the nape of his neck and Travis has his hand protectively placed over her back. Travis had called her to show her the sleeping child; "She just fell asleep while I was singing to her. Isn't she cute, Tay?" he had gushed.

The sight of the two of them melted her heart. Taylor hadn't met Jason, Kylie, and the girls yet, but she'd heard so many stories over the past month that she felt like she knew them. Travis was extremely fond of all of them, looked up to Jason in admiration and respected Kylie like his own mother. Then there was the girls, his three nieces who he adored to pieces. Despite the photos she'd seen of the girls and the few clips of Travis and them, she hadn't yet seen Uncle Travis in action so the FaceTime view had elicited some imagery she wished had stayed dormant. At least for now while she figured out how she wanted to approach this relationship.

"Yeah," Travis nodded without a moment of hesitation. "I can't wait."

The three words "I can't wait" filled Taylor with a joyous warmth. A dangerous joyous warmth. The sensation that typically warned of a deepening connection between two potential lovers.

"What about you?" He asked.

"Same. More than anything."

Taylor was honest with him because it was true, she wants to have children. The idea of kids had been crossing her mind more and more frequently as she'd aged. Taylor always knew she wanted kids at some point. In her teens she and Abigail had  curated a list of potential named for their future children and she'd pictured their kids as best friends just the way they were. Her 20s these dreams had faded our, she'd been focussed on building her career, on saving it, on rebuilding herself, and on saving her mom. During the pandemic she could've seen herself and Joe trying to conceive but there was so much uncertainty for the future and they were falling apart. The idea of a child bonding them had crossed her mind but she knew that was dumb. A baby would only further divide them. So in hindsight, she was so glad she'd never pushed him to have a baby with her but she knew she still wanted kids. 

"I don't think there's anything quite like having a kid" Travis stated, tucking his chin and turning his head so he could press a kiss to the baby's forehead. "I see Pat and Jason playing with their kids and the look on their faces is just pure joy. I swear, Pat lights up for his two in a way that no one can get him too. Not even Brittany."

Taylor knew exactly what he meant. She had seen the way her friends interacted with their children. The way all her cousin, who had just had a baby last fall, would simply pick up her screaming baby and it would quiet and snuggle into her immediately. Parents and caregivers just have a bond with their children; an attachment that only the two individuals sharing it can understand.

"It's magical." 

"I think about it sometimes. It's embarrassing, maybe, but like me playing with my kids on the field. I'm throwing them around and yo- their mom is taking pictures and laughing. Yelling like 'be careful' or whatever. It's so specific, but yeah." Travis was almost blushing as she spoke.