false god

chapter 17

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Despite Taylor's continual best efforts to avoid any contact between her mother and her college, somehow Andrea still managed to get her hands on the news that her daughter had made the Dean's High Honors list as the semester wrapped up in May. Taylor, who hadn't even heard herself before her mother was calling her and barraging her about her achievements, wouldn't have had any desire to tell her mother if she'd known. She would have gone as far as to systematically ban the college from contacting any home address at all, alas, but she just hadn't realized. She had thought that all-important documents were forwarded to her apartment here or to her grandmother, who on average was a much more reasonable person.

She wasn't sure if it was a stray email, a wayward letter postmarked to her childhood home, her mother's journalism digging skills, but somehow Andrea had figured it out.

It wasn't like it was news that Taylor had flunked out after her sophomore year, though perhaps that would have been better. Daughters disappointing Andrea was all the norm. A daughter getting on to a very exclusive list, however? Well, time to call the presses.

Literally.

Taylor found out because Austin sent a clipping from the Local Register overnighted. It came from the front page and proclaimed proudly for the entire town to see that Taylor Swift was a smart cookie, more or less.

Taylor supposed when you owned the newspaper, you could afford to do such ridiculous things.

This was only stage one of the nightmares, however.

Travis found it unreasonably hilarious. It had been a mistake showing it to him, Taylor decided. Travis wasn't an idiot. He'd gotten on the Dean's List too. Not high honors, but still on the list. She doubted her mother would care. As it was, Travis snorted and snickered as he read over the little feature on her, glancing at Taylor like he couldn't quite believe it.

The next day, he'd posted it on their fridge with a bunch of magnets surrounding it for all to see.

Taylor threw it out.

The next day, a photocopy of it was back.

When Taylor burned that one, Travis responded by printing it out to the size of the entire fridge and (and spent $2.56 at the local library printer, he informed her) and duct-taped it.

Taylor ripped it to shreds.

It was gone from the fridge the next morning, and she breathed a sigh of relief until it started showing up tucked between the pages of her books. And in her backpack. And blocking her shampoo bottle. And rolled up in her boots.

This was the trouble of living with your boyfriend.

But this was only the second annoying outcome of this.

Taylor should have known that bad things come in threes.

The third was a call from her mother. One which Taylor ignored until her mom repeatedly called her eight times. Finally, Travis- frustrated because the vibrating was interrupting their viewing of American Psycho - answered for her and handed it to her.

"Taylor! Finally. One would think you're dead," Andrea squawked over the other end, "Or ignoring me."

"Me? Never..." Taylor said, drawing the word out with a roll of her eyes.

"Have you seen that you made the Dean's High Honor list?"

"Uhm, yeah. In a few places," Taylor said, fishing out a wrinkled copy from between the cushions of the couch as she spoke.