delicate (tayvis one shots)

the alchemy pt. 1

The Nashville skyline glittered like broken glass beneath a velvet sky. Taylor Swift leaned against the cold metal railing of a hidden rooftop bar, her breath creating soft clouds in the cool night air. The music from inside was muffled now, the vibrations of bass barely detectable under her fingers as she tapped them absently against the railing.

She wasn't supposed to be here. But then again, wasn't that the theme of her life? Always chasing moments she wasn't supposed to have, letting the weight of everything else fall away, if only for a little while. Tonight, it was just her, the stars, and a half-finished glass of bourbon.

And then there was him.

She hadn't planned on seeing Travis Kelce again—let alone here, at a place she considered her refuge from the chaos. Yet, life had this funny way of pulling her toward the unexpected, like the way their paths seemed to tangle and untangle over the years.

It had been over a decade since they'd first crossed paths. She'd been barely twenty-two, standing at a charity gala in Kansas City, glittering in gold, unsure of her place in the room full of high-profile athletes. Travis had approached her then, young, cocky, and just as out of place. They'd laughed at their mutual discomfort, exchanged numbers, and drifted apart without anything real happening.

But something had always lingered between them. Like an unfinished melody she couldn't quite place.

"Didn't expect to see you here," his voice broke the silence, the deep timbre of it so familiar, it sent a shiver down her spine.

Taylor turned slowly, taking him in. He stood just a few feet away, hands shoved into his pockets, his signature grin more subdued tonight. His broad frame looked somehow more settled in the low light. There was a softness in his eyes she hadn't noticed before.

"Funny, I could say the same about you," she replied, a smile tugging at her lips. "I thought this place was supposed to be a secret."

"Guess I have good taste," he said, stepping closer. "Or maybe it's fate."

Taylor chuckled under her breath. "Fate? You're getting philosophical on me, Kelce. What happened to the guy who only talked about football and winning?"

Travis's grin widened, but there was something reflective in his gaze. "People change, Taylor. Even athletes." He shrugged. "You get older, and you start realizing that not everything's about chasing the next big thing. Sometimes it's about holding on to what's real."

Her heart skipped a beat at his words, the weight of them unexpected. She couldn't remember the last time someone had spoken to her like that—like they were searching for something deeper. She'd spent so much of her life performing, playing roles, crafting stories for the world to see. But standing here with Travis, she didn't feel the need to be anyone other than herself.

"What are you holding on to these days?" she asked softly, her eyes meeting his in the dim light.

Travis paused for a moment, his gaze flickering over her face, as if searching for something too. "I've been thinking a lot about balance," he said, his voice quieter now. "The whole idea of alchemy—you know, turning something ordinary into something extraordinary. I've been trying to figure out how to do that with my life."

Taylor raised an eyebrow. "Alchemy, huh? I didn't take you for the poetic type."

He laughed, the sound rich and genuine. "You'd be surprised. Football might be my job, but I've got layers. And right now, I'm trying to turn whatever this is into something that feels real."

His words hung between them, heavy and unspoken for far too long. Taylor felt a stirring in her chest, a quiet realization that maybe they had been circling each other all these years for a reason.

"Real is hard to find," she murmured, turning to look back at the city lights, her voice barely above a whisper.

Travis moved closer, his presence warm despite the cool air. "I've found it's harder to hold on to," he said, his voice low. "But I think we both know a little about that."

Taylor's gaze softened, memories of relationships she'd built up and watched fall apart flashing through her mind. It wasn't that she didn't believe in love anymore, it was just that the reality of it had become more complicated with each passing year. Fame had a way of twisting even the purest connections into something fragile.

She felt his hand brush against hers, and the contact sent a spark through her. It was subtle, gentle, like a reminder that maybe not everything had to be so complicated. Maybe some things were just... meant to be.

"You've been thinking about this a lot, haven't you?" she asked, tilting her head toward him, searching his eyes for the answer.

Travis hesitated, his fingers lightly tracing the back of her hand before pulling back. "Yeah. I have."

They stood in silence for a while, the city a quiet hum beneath their feet, the world seeming to shrink to just the two of them. Taylor didn't feel the need to fill the silence. She liked that about him—how comfortable it was to simply be in his presence.

"I've been running for a long time," Taylor admitted after a beat. "From one thing to the next. I don't even know if I'd recognize real if it stared me in the face."

Travis's voice was soft when he responded, but there was an unmistakable conviction behind it. "Maybe you've just been waiting for the right kind of real."

Taylor turned to face him fully now, her heart quickening in her chest. She wasn't sure what she was expecting, but there was something in his eyes—an openness, a warmth—that made her feel like she was exactly where she was supposed to be.

"I don't know if I'm ready for that," she said quietly, her vulnerability surprising even herself. She was Taylor Swift, after all—always poised, always in control. But here, with Travis, she felt like the girl from Pennsylvania again, unsure of everything but still wanting more.

Travis smiled, a slow, steady curve of his lips. "That's okay. I'm not asking for anything you're not ready to give. But if you're looking for something real, Taylor, I'm standing right here."

The words hit her like a tidal wave, washing over her with a force she hadn't expected. She hadn't realized how much she needed to hear something like that—something simple and honest.

She looked at him, really looked at him, and saw more than just the football star or the charming guy at the charity events. She saw someone who, like her, had spent his life trying to find balance between the dream and the reality, between the applause and the quiet moments when the crowd wasn't watching.

"Maybe that's what alchemy is," Taylor said, her voice barely above a whisper. "Not turning something into gold... but finding the gold in what's already there."

Travis's gaze softened as he reached out, gently tucking a stray strand of her hair behind her ear. "Maybe it is."

For a moment, everything else fell away—the city, the noise, the years of near-misses and what-ifs. In that quiet space between them, it was just Taylor and Travis, standing on the edge of something new, something unspoken but undeniably real.

"I'm scared," Taylor admitted, the words coming out before she could stop them.

Travis's hand slid down to hers, their fingers intertwining. "Me too."

And maybe that was enough. For now, at least. The alchemy was already at work, turning what had once been a possibility into something real, something worth holding onto.