Behind the Mic (Liam Payne fanfic)

Chapter Eleven

Liam's driver from earlier drove us to the party. We made light conversation the whole way and laughed a lot. It was a short ride so I was surprised when the car pulled up to a big fancy mansion.

"Who's house is this?" I asked Liam as we got out of the car.

"Taylor Swift," he replied nonchalantly. I snorted. "What? Is there something wrong with that?"

"No, no. I'm not a fan or not not a fan, but she's so famous. I'm just... I don't know, you're so down to earth, I forget you're famous sometimes. And you know all these famous people, and it's so casual for you." He laughed at that and held my hand as we walked up the big staircase to the front door.

"It's a little shocking for me and the boys sometimes, too. Like when we get to meet classic artists or people from movies." I nodded as a response. I looked around us and felt way underdressed and honestly not clean or important enough to walk into this house—no, palace. It was massive and so well decorated and extremely well lit and there were so many well-groomed plants. It looked like it came right out of my younger self's dream. "You alright?" Liam asked me, squeezing my hand.

"Yeah, it's just beautiful. I'm in shock," I said laughing. "Who all is here?"

"Well, a lot of artists. It's her cat's birthday, or something, and she wanted to make a big deal out of it. The boys are all here already. I think a lot of her exs are here, which may start some unnecessary drama. Katy Perry, I think. But most importantly, you." I blushed and looked away.

"Stop it," I said, not meaning it. He kissed my head sweetly before ringing the doorbell. I could hear the bass thumping from inside the house. The door swung open, and in all her former country glory, Taylor Swift stood in front of me, holding the cutest damn cat I've ever seen.

"Liam! Hi, good to see you." She greeted him with a sideways hug.

"Hello, Taylor. Happy birthday to your cat," he greeted back kindly. "This is my date, Rose Smith. She works at the stadium we're performing at."

"Nice to meet you, Rose." She hugged me too. Too casually. I was at a loss of words. "How old are you?"

"Twenty-one," I replied.

"Excellent! The bartender is in the kitchen on the left. He's fantastic. Come on in!" She moved out of the way and Liam and I walked in.

"Want to grab a drink?" I turned and asked Liam. He shook his head.

"I'm only 19. In the UK I could drink but not here." I scrunched my eyebrows.

"You're only 19?"

"Louis' the oldest, he's 21 years old. Zayn, Niall and I are the same age, and Harry's the youngest."

"So you're not going to have a drink?"

"Rose," Liam laughed as we walked up to the bar. "I'm not going to risk it." I shrugged to say okay and ordered a glass of pinot grigio. White wine was the safest thing to drink at a party because you could sip it and not get too crazy too quickly.

"Let's look for some food," I told Liam, grabbing his hand with my empty one. "It's not safe to drink on an empty stomach."

"Make sure you're drinking water, too," He said to me as we walked further into the house. "I know how to drink responsibly, too." We smiled at each other. I was smitten by how caring he was. And smart. Not a lot of people pay attention to drinking responsibly anymore. I saw waiters lingering around in the giant living room with trays. It was so crowded, I didn't see anyone's face, just bodies moving like an ameba to the beat of the song. I think it was one of Taylor's new ones. I dropped Liam's hand to make my way over to a waiter. He stuck his tray out to me when I approached.