Quiet | Kaylor

III

They'd planned a family outing but Taylor had a slight emergency at the label and had to run. (It was nothing major, but one of the musicians had her first major breakup and there was no way Taylor wasn't helping her write at least one hit out of that one). So it ended up being just Karlie and Josie, which was fine with everyone. They needed to create time for her to be able to bond with her parents one on one.

Karlie drove to a diner chain for a rather late breakfast and she let her daughter order anything she wanted. When they arrived, Josie couldn't take her eyes off the menu, skimming all of the food options.

"Indecisive huh?" Karlie smiled, "You're like me. Taylor is the type of person who orders the same thing every time, but I like to mix it up."

"Hmmm," Josie replied, still reading the menu. Karlie could tell she was starting to get a little overwhelmed by the options.

"Want me to help you choose something?" Josie nodded. "Okay, do you want something sweet or savory?"

"Sweet," Josie promptly replied.

"Okay," Karlie said, "How about pancakes? Or waffles?"

"Waffles," Josie said, a smile spreading across her face. "And I'm not like you."

"Huh?" Karlie asked, her earlier comment having already been forgotten.

"I like getting the same thing every time."

"Oh," Karlie replied, "Okay. That's fine too."

After breakfast, they walked around town window shopping and Josie began telling Karlie about some of her favorite things. "Yeah, so I like math the most in school because it's easier and makes more sense. There's alway one right answer. With English and History it's not as logical and so it's more confusing."

"I know what you mean," Karlie agreed, "I like math and science too for the same reason. But what about things like art and music?"

Josie shrugged. "We didn't really have art or music classes at my old school. But I've always wanted to learn a bunch of instruments. Like the piano, and the saxophone, and the bass, and...and everything!" She beamed, bouncing up and down.

Karlie chuckled, "Well, that's more of Taylor's department than mine, to be honest. I'm pretty much tone deaf, and it drives her crazy." She tried to keep up a lighthearted tone, but while she was talking, she noticed Josie abruptly stop bouncing. Her hands were stiff at her sides, clenched into fists, and Karlie was sure that she was trying to act "normal." It broke her heart, just a little.

"What kind of music do you like?" she asked, in an attempt to change the subject.

"Oh, um, I don't really know. I didn't used to listen to much. But sometimes, I went on a field trip to the library at school and I would go on the computer and listen to music. I think Matilda is my favorite, because it's my favorite book."

"Oh, is that a musical?" Karlie asked. She'd never seen it, but she was pretty sure she'd heard of the book being turned into a Broadway musical a few years back.

Josie nodded. "Yes. Also, I don't like loud music with lots of drums very much because it hurts my ears. And I like guitar. It sounds pretty, especially when Taylor plays it. And piano."

Karlie smiled, "Yeah, you're definitely Taylor's daughter."

"I thought I was both of your daughters?" Josie said, furrowing her brow in confusion.

"It's just an expression," Karlie informed her quickly, "It means that you're very similar to Taylor, so it makes sense that you're her kid."

"Oh, okay," Josie replied. The two of them continued walking through town, eventually stopping in a toy store and walking out with 20 different colors of play-doh because Karlie couldn't resist the smile that spread across Josie's face when she saw it.

They were heading back to the car when Karlie got a car from Taylor. "Hey, babe!" she said, "Are you guys back home already?"

"Nope," Karlie replied, "We were just about to leave though."

"Well, if you two are interested, Chelsea and I are in the studio right now. We're gonna try to lay down a track today. I thought you could bring Josie around to show her all the equipment and stuff."

"Okay!" Karlie replied, "Let me just ask her." She pulled the phone away from her ear. "Hey, Josie? How would you like to see the recording studio where Taylor works sometimes? It's where the music gets made, so there's lots of cool stuff there."

Josie nodded, "Okay."

"We're on our way," Karlie relayed to Taylor.

Karlie led Josie into the familiar building. "They're down the hall, third door to the right," someone lugging an amp informed them with a smile. Karlie couldn't remember his name for the life of her, but they'd definitely met before. He'd done some work with the first person Taylor signed, and he was always at the annual 13 Records barbeque.

She opened the door cautiously, just in case they were recording. "Hi babe," Taylor said, getting up to give her a quick kiss. "Hi Josie! Did you have a good breakfast?" Josie nodded, too preoccupied with taking everything in to reply. "This is Chelsea," Taylor gestured to a pink-haired woman sitting on the floor with a guitar and a sheet of paper in front of her, "And that's Stef." She pointed to another woman sitting in a swivel chair by the mixing table.

"Hi Josie," both women said. "Do you want to hear what we've been working on today?" Stef added.

"Okay!" she said, flopping onto the beige couch in the control room. Stef hit play on the computer, and a rough version of the track began to play on the speakers. It was just the guitar part and main vocal, but with a few sessions, Karlie knew it would turn into a radio-worthy single. Josie sat perfectly still through the whole thing, and clapped loudly when it finished. "Do you like it?" Chelsea asked, smiling.

"Yes!" she replied enthusiastically.

"So, what music do you like?" she asked, walking over and taking a seat next to Josie, while Taylor and Stef began writing a list of what they needed to get done production-wise.

Josie shrugged. "I don't know. I like Matilda," she said, echoing what she told Karlie that morning.

"Ooh! I used to be into that!" Chelsea said, running over to the keyboard. "Do you know 'Naughty'?"

"Yeah!" Josie said, joining her on the piano bench. Chelsea started playing the chords from memory, after taking a couple tries to remember them, and Josie came in right on time without a cue. Taylor looked over with raised eyebrows as she sang the song surprisingly well. She stayed in key the entire time, and, for a six year old, her voice wasn't even bad. Not to mention, she knew all of the lyrics from memory. Chelsea joined her in singing, when she knew the words, but Josie pretty much held her own throughout the song.

"Looks like you've got another pop star on your hands," Stef nudged Taylor.

Taylor shook her head and said, only half-jokingly, "Not on my watch. No way. Karlie and I promised each other that we would not allow our kids to be subjected to any of that nonsense. Honestly, I'm praying to God that she'll want to be something totally boring, like a plumber."

Stef chuckled, but then turned to Taylor with raised eyebrows, "So you're thinking that this might turn into a long term thing?"

Taylor shrugged, but a smile crept onto her face unbidden. "Yeah, don't tell Josie yet but we're seriously considering adoption."

"I can tell that there's something special about her," Stef grinned, "You've never brought any of the other kids you fostered to the studio before. And you've been talking about her 24/7."

"It's weird but there's just some instinctual feeling that the both of us have that this is our child. Not that we didn't love any of the others, but they just didn't click the way she does."

"She's a special kid," Stef agreed, "And I think the two of you are gonna end up needing her just as much as she needs you."

"We already do," Taylor said, smiling as she watched Chelsea explain basic song structure to Josie. "We already do."