Disclaimer: This is a work of fiction. It is not real. It did not/will not ever happen in real life and should not be mistaken or confused as such.
*****
Chapter One: Taylor Swift
Codes: MF, Cons, Oral, Virgin
2018
Cole stirred as his phone buzzed, the screen illuminating the darkness of his room. He groaned and rolled over, blinking blearily as he looked to see who would be calling him at this hour. Her name was emblazoned across the screen. Becky. He reached over and clumsily groped for his phone with unresponsive reflexes. He swiped, answering the phone just in time.
"Hello..." He asked groggily into the darkness.
"Cole? Did I wake you? Shit, what time is it there?"
"Do you mean here in New York, where you allegedly live? It's 3:30 AM."
"You were asleep."
"Yes, I was Swift."
"Shit, I'm sorry! I always mess up the time difference."
There was a slight slur to her words that made him think she might have been drinking.
"It's alright Swift." He said as an enormous yawn overtook him. "I always have time for you. I'm glad you called."
He rolled onto his back, sinking deeper into the sheets, eyelids feeling heavy. The thoughts of their last conversation suddenly weighed heavily on his mind. It had been a while since they had spoken and they hadn't left things in a great place.
"Yea...I was just doing some thinking...but you know. It's nothing, just stupid stuff. Reminiscing is all. I didn't mean to wake you."
"Nonsense, I'm very much awake now. You might as well spit it out."
"You remember when we met, right?" She asked hesitantly.
"Of course, two middle school misfits thrown into the vicious Pennsylvania school system."
"Do you ever...do you ever wonder if things had been different?" She asked.
"Like how? Like if the other kids had never been such dicks, we would have never met?"
"No... like the later stuff."
"Gotta be more specific Swift. I lied earlier about being 100% awake."
"I meant like us being together. You know, the first time?"
That caused him to perk up a bit. Was this just another booty call? Over the years there had been many. It usually happened in-between shitty boyfriends and high-pressure album releases. Sometimes he wished it had been more than that. Still, there was no way he would ever forget their first time together. It had been over a decade ago and he could still picture it as clear as day.
"Yes Taylor. I remember it." He said quietly.
"Do you ever wish we had maybe done things differently?" She asked just as quietly.
"You know that I have, but I never once regretted it. I care about you too much."
There was a long pause. Cole didn't break it and neither did Taylor.
"Let's just talk in the morning. Sorry to have woken you!" She said a little breathlessly.
"Swift! Wait!" He said quickly, but she ended the call.
He thought about calling her back. He thought about telling her what he had often thought about over the years, long before she had been famous. Then he thought about when he had told her those things before and where it had sent them. So instead, he put his phone back on his nightstand and settled back into bed, now very much awake.
"Our first time. Now that was really something." He said out loud to himself. No one else was in his apartment to hear him.
2007
My phone vibrated, buzzing on my desk. I glanced over to see the number. A wide grin broke out over my face. I grabbed it, flipped it open and pressed the answer button.
"Swift!" I exclaimed excitedly. "You got my message? How was the latest gig? I haven't seen you in ages! How have you been?"
"Cole!" She squealed into the phone. "I know. I know. It's been a year of this and I still can't believe it."
"I never doubted you for one second."
"Liar." She said with mirth in her voice.
"So, what's up?" I asked. "Will you be home the weekend I am coming down?"
"Yes, I am! I'll be home for a few days next week. I was hoping we could hang out, just the two of us."
"Ah, well no worries on that front. I'm staying on campus with my cousin for the weekend while he gives me the real tour of Vanderbilt. I can easily slip away for a while."
"Excellent! How's everything else going?" She asked.
"Well, Stephanie dumped me a couple of days ago." I admitted. It still stung a bit, but it actually felt good to say it out loud. "So, high school has been more terrible than usual lately."
"Oh, Cole. I'm so sorry."
"Hey, don't sweat it. It's not your fault."
"I do wonder what high school would have been like together if I had never moved away."
"Taylor. Never apologize for wanting to pursue your dream. All those other dickheads couldn't see that. My time will come, eventually. I'm good really. I have missed you though."
"Damn. My manager is calling me to talk to me about something. I can't get five minutes to myself. I'll IM you the details. Sound good?"
"Sounds good. Bye Swift."
"Goodbye!"
She hung up the phone. It would be good to see her. She had been away for some time, working on various promotions and shows for her debut album. She was actually starting work on her second album. It was nearly Christmas time when I flew down to Vanderbilt to meet up with my cousin. Taylor's 18th birthday had only been a few days before and so I brought a present with me, some custom designed guitar picks. The trip was promising to be an exciting one, even though senior year of high school was proving to be a stressful one. It felt like I was wading through a never-ending sea of college applications. It was frustrating doing all these essays when I only ever wanted to go to Vanderbilt in Nashville, Tennessee.
It was hard to explain my friendship with Taylor Swift. We had met in middle school and gotten close. That had been a rough time for both of us, but then she moved away to pursue her musical career in Nashville and I was stuck back in Pennsylvania. High school proved better for both of us, but it did seem like we both missed each other's company. In many ways we were very different people, but something about her drew me like a moth to a flame. We still kept in touch frequently and I supported her whenever I could make it to one of her shows.
As the weekend arrived, I flew in met up with cousin and told I was meeting a friend for a while. He was pretty busy with finals so he didn't mind at all. My excitement as seeing Taylor again had reached its peak. She came over the campus and picked me up. She ran up to greet me, throwing her arms around and I was treated to a face full of that curly blonde hair. She looked beautiful even wearing jeans and a t-shirt. I presented the guitar picks for her. She exclaimed over them and gave me another great big hug. We totted around the campus for a while, catching up and reminiscing. Finally, she suggested that we continue hanging out at her place. I heartily agreed and she drove us home, blasting the radio and singing at the top of our lungs all the way there. When we arrived, I was surprised to find that her brother and parents were out. In fact, she told me that her parents wouldn't be back until tomorrow and her brother was crashing at a friend's house. We walked inside and we settled on the couch, laughing and continuing to catch up. As night descended upon the house our conversations turned from the superficial to the serious. Eventually she broached the topic of my recent ex-girlfriend.
"I don't really know what happened. I thought we were clicking, emotionally and physically." I said.
"Physically?" Taylor asked, sipping her beer.
"Yea...you know...like..." I stammered, suddenly bashful and feeling myself blush furiously.
"Actually, I don't know." Taylor said. "I'm still a virgin."
I choked on my beer, spluttering as I struggled to maintain my composure. I found her sitting very still, those electric blue eyes watching me very carefully.
"No...I...um...didn't know that Swift."
"Surprised?"
"Well...yes...I mean no." I stammered out stupidly.
"I know what you're thinking. Most of my songs are about boys. Right? The truth is that most of those were flings or silly schoolgirl crushes. I think part of the reason is because of the physical stuff. I've been called a prude by more than one of them."
"A prude? That's seems harsh."
"Well, you know I'm a good girl with proper moral values." She said as she sipped her underage beer.
"Sure you are Swift." I said chuckling.
"I've just never been that confident around boys. Especially ones that I think are cute."
"Ouch. You wound me." I said mockingly.
Taylor looked at me intensely and laid her hand on top of mine. "Expect for you."
"Ok. Very funny Swift." I said, waiting for the punch line to drop.
"The truth is Cole, that there isn't a boy in this whole world I trust as much as you. Let me tell you, getting into this industry...there just aren't a lot of trustworthy people. And the truth is that I've wanted to do this for a while a now. I just haven't found a trustworthy enough person to do it with. I thought...I thought..."
She paused here and took a deep breath as though steeling herself to say something. Then she looked me square in the eyes and spoke.
"I thought that my first time could be with you."
I sat there on her living room couch thunderstruck. Over the years, I had occasionally toyed with the idea of romantic notions with Taylor, but never anything serious. Now here she was propositioning me.