covered in you | taylor swift oneshots

𐙚 | new news

𐙚 wren: age nine
𐙚 set: late summer of twenty-four

⋆𐙚₊˚⊹

The weather was warm, surprisingly so for early September. The heat of August had slipped away quickly, replaced by something cozier and cooler. Little feet padded against the hardwood floor quietly, socks softening the distribution of weight as she crept up to Taylor. They'd left London almost two weeks ago, enjoying the tail end of an American summer on the coast of Rhode Island, but even that had come to an end before Taylor was ready to say goodbye to beach days and s'mores. Travis had joined them a week ago, but unlike Taylor who, for the first time in weeks, had nothing of importance on her schedule, still had deadlines and obligations to balance in-between entertaining Wren and  spending time with Taylor. They'd made the most of the free minutes he had. Wren had dragged him out to the shorelines at least a hundred times, searching for turtles in ankle-deep water and seashells on damp sand. Taylor had spent hours laid softly against his chest, telling him random nothings and sweet everythings. There wasn't a minute that had been wasted, because in between the adventures out on the sand and the comfortable conversations that happened in large bedrooms, Wren had filled every possible second with questions about Travis's podcast. She was obsessed, naturally. Whenever he was away, Wren filled the void of his absence with episodes of New Heights. Taylor was almost positive that they'd seen every episode, but that did not mean that Wren understood football. In fact, Taylor wasn't even sure her girl knew what Travis's position meant, nor what it even was. She was, and would always remain, a weird kid, but she was a weird kid that was loved so deeply and genuinely.

Since she'd found out that he was going to be filming an episode when he came to visit, she'd been not so subtly inquiring about the New News segment of the podcast. Taylor found it heartwarmingly endearing, Travis found it almost painfully adorable. For days she and Travis had been yelling 'New News' together at the kitchen island. It didn't matter if mouths were full of pancakes or if throats were sore from exhaustion. If one of them started the two word slogan, the other finished it. Taylor had needed to enforce a 'New News' ban yesterday morning when Wren had choked on a mouthful of waffles, too excited to swallow what was in her mouth before she bellowed with a loudness nobody had known she was even capable of channeling. Everytime she indirectly asked if she could be the one to do it — she was still working up the courage to directly ask for things sometimes — Taylor and Travis softly redirected her. Her little face, always so full of youth and excitement, was plastered across media publication sites and social media platforms, there was a footprint of her existence whether Taylor wanted there to be or not, but she still had control of these quiet, private moments. She hadn't been willing to loosen the reins when Wren first showed interest in filling the position Wyatt loved to take on, but she knew that even if she wasn't ready, Wren wanted to step into the light. She understood the implications of what being on the podcast meant. She wasn't so little she didn't understand fame and the internet anymore, so who was Taylor to keep her from something so unserious. She'd decided the night before that if Travis was okay with it, Wren could be the opener of the segment, but there was no pressure for him to allow it to happen. Somehow, he was just as protective as Taylor despite his reach not even measuring up to hers even slightly. Taylor had needed to convince him that it was okay, that Wren was already out there for people to see and form opinions on, even if she remained by his side and insight for the remainder of the episode, they weren't sacrificing anything that wasn't already exposed. Travis agreed after she'd reassured him, but Wren was entirely unaware of the decision, or that they'd even talked about it at all.

Taylor sat across from Travis in one of the many offices in the Rhode Island shore house, her body curled up on one of the arm chairs that further accentuated the somewhat vintage aesthetic of the room. She wore cotton shorts and a tank top, her hair tied into a ponytail and away from her face. The flush of summer's kiss on her cheeks reminded Wren that they'd been playing in the water not even a week ago, but somehow the weather had plunged into fall drastically in a small collection of days. In an olive green corduroy skirtall with pleated ruffles that swung with every step, Wren climbed up into Taylor's lap, smiling brightly at Travis with a little wave of her fingers. He didn't wave back, his blue eyes only flickered to her for an inconspicuous moment, but when he scratched his nose with two blunt fingernails, Wren knew that was his reciprocated greeting; just like she knew Taylor was really waving at her everytime she waved to the crowd during Karma.

Neither Taylor nor Travis had alluded to anything different happening this episode, so when Travis held his pointer finger up to Jason before looking directly at her, she tilted her head in confusion. When she didn't move from Taylor's embrace, he laughed softly, opening his palms, inviting her into his lap the same way Taylor had done when she'd first entered. She inclined her head curiously, stealing only a quick glance at her mother before deciding it was safe to sneak away. Taylor's lips twitched with amusement as Wren shuffled into Travis, settling into his lap like a matching puzzle piece. Her hands held onto two of his fingers, her back flush against his chest as they faced Jason on the laptop screen.

"Hey, Girlie!" Jason Kelce was the kind of man that you didn't have to know to love, but when you did know him, it was impossible not to be infatuated with his charming charisma and heart. Wren matched his welcoming grin, the freckles that dusted her cheeks and nose crinkling as a result of the expression. "I see we're reppin green!" Sunlight reflected off of the satin bows in her chestnut hair, the smooth fabric the same hue of olive as her dress. Down her back were two perfect braids, nearly long enough to reach her waist if she tilted her head just slightly.

"Fly Eagles Fly!" She bellowed, shyness not even a minor blip on her radar. Taylor beamed from across the room, nodding her head encouragingly despite Wren not even glancing in her direction. She didn't know when her baby had gotten so big, but it seemed like it had happened overnight as she looked across the room at her now.

"Girlie has something she wants to say." Travis interrupted, not wanting her visible to the world for even a second longer than necessary. Taylor wanted to laugh at the edge of protectiveness in his prompting, but she contained herself with a hand splayed over her lips cautiously. Nobody needed to know that she was in the room with them. Wren was enough.

Wren's head snapped to Travis, an excited smile on her lips as she fought the urge to squirm with sprightly anticipation. Her nails still clung to the gel manicure she'd gotten with Taylor before heading to London, and as she raised her little palm to cover her lips, the camera caught the vibrant colors as sunlight reflected off of the glitter embedded in the polish. "I can say it?" Her breath was hot as it fanned against Travis's chin, her whisper picked up by the airpods he wore, but she didn't realize that. He nodded encouragingly, a wide smile on his lips as he pointed to the microphone in front of them. "New News!" She grinned with all of her might, green eyes sparkling before flickered expectantly to Travis, her tiny palms still holding onto two of his fingers on each hand." Now you have to say it."

"New News!" Travis filled the room with a booming echo, and Wren somehow grinned wider than she already was as his chest vibrated beneath her back, her eyes still on him as she sat within the moment with radiant joy. Her smile didn't falter for a single second, but soon Travis' lips found the side of her head, and quietly, so quietly, he directed her back to Taylor. "Go sit with Mom. I'll be done soon."

She waved to Jason, an addictive smile on her lips before she slipped off of Travis's lap. "Bye, J!"

"Bye, Girlie!" He called back, and that was all that needed to be said before Wren was racing back into Taylor's embrace, beaming brighter than the sun outside of the white painted winterpanes. Taylor knew in that moment that she would sacrifice their privacy to see Wren smile like this a million times over.