a sound she hadn't heard before

sixteen.

"Ayla, I have to talk to you about something," Taylor says, sitting down on the sofa with her daughter the next evening, after she has gotten back from the city. "I want to ask you a question, and I want you to be really really honest with me. Do you promise?"

"I promise, Mommy," Ayla says, looking back at her mom with big eyes. "What is it?"

"I want to know how you'd feel about me going out for dinner with a boy on Friday night. Would that be okay with you?"

"Yeah," she shrugs.

Taylor pauses, unsure if her daughter comprehends what she's asking. "And what would you think if I kissed that boy?"

"Okay. But that's yucky."

"Ayla, sweetheart," Taylor says, trying to hold back a laugh, "that wouldn't concern you at all? You don't have any questions for me?"

"Nope. Can I watch Paw Patrol?"

Taylor laughs. "Of course you can, sweetheart." Taylor picks up the remote and turns on the TV. At first, she is surprised that her daughter reacted the way that she did to what Taylor had to ask. However, the more that Taylor thinks about it, she realizes that of course Ayla isn't concerned. It's not like she would feel as though Taylor was trying to replace her father. Her father has never been in her life. He's never going to be in her life, and she understands that- though she doesn't know what exactly it was he did. Taylor hopes that that conversation is going to be a long way away. Maybe even never. Maybe she doesn't need to know. Taylor certainly doesn't want to talk about it.

But with Ayla's stamp of approval, and within a few hours, confirmation from Dani that she can stay for a few extra hours on Friday evening, Taylor is able to text Joe that they're on. Joe responds shortly, telling Taylor that he got reservations for a private room at a restaurant in Hell's Kitchen, which sounds perfect to Taylor.

With the prospect of going out with Joe on Friday, the week manages to fly by. That is, until Friday morning, when time seems to stop as Taylor moves about her day with anticipation. She's excited, but also terrified. As she packs a spare outfit and her makeup bag in the morning before heading to rehearsal, she can't help but feel butterflies in her stomach. She's pretty sure that even Ayla notices that she is off, as the little girl is even sweeter than usual in the morning before school. When Taylor forgets to put her orange juice on the table, something that will sometimes cause a scene from the little girl, there's just a little reminder of, "Mommy, can I please have my juice?"

Soon, everything is loaded into the car for the day, and Taylor drops Ayla off at school before heading into the city. She tries to tell herself that it's just a normal day, and the only difference is that after rehearsal in the evening, she's going to change her clothes and grab food with a friend. There's nothing scary about that.

But the feeling in the pit of her stomach proves that she is more than a little bit nervous.

She isn't sure what's scaring her more: the fact that Joe likes her, or the fact that she likes Joe. The second one is what's harder to admit to herself, that's for sure. But the fact that he likes her as well means that they feel this magnetic force pulling them together, calling them to see what they could become.

Taylor finds herself at rehearsal, though, throwing herself into the day's work. In the morning, she's doing work with the four little girls on their solo song, and in the early afternoon, she's going to be working with the adult ensemble on some harmonies that they've been struggling with during choreography rehearsals. She'll then take her break before the entire company will come together to work on running scenes and stringing them together. With every passing day, they are beginning to have what looks more and more like a cohesive show, instead of just a bunch of scenes. It's so exciting to see it come together in the way that it is.

The hours drag by as Taylor anticipates her evening plans. She does all of the work that she has to do, takes her break, and then comes back into the city for the evening rehearsals. Moving through the motions and taking the day one step at a time. Taylor and Joe allow their eyes to meet a few times over the course of the day, which usually ends in both of them instantly breaking the eye contact and staring at the floor. Taylor doesn't really want the company to find out about what is going on between them, almost as much as she doesn't want the media to know. She has no idea what the others would think of it- her dating a person in the cast. She can only guess that it might not go over too well.

The group rehearsal goes very well, and before Taylor knows it, Levi is giving notes to wrap up the day. He goes over what the cast should spend time working on over the weekend, then announces the schedule for Monday.

"I've been hesitant to share this news until I knew that we were in a good place," Levi says, "but I'm feeling confident that we will have our show looking quite good soon, which is good because our producers and financial backers are going to be coming in, beginning a month from today, to determine the path that this show is going to take. As I've explained, the hope is to take it straight to Broadway, but that isn't guaranteed. If they think we are going to need an out-of-town tryout, then we will have to do that. It will probably add at least another year to our process of bringing this show, eventually, to Broadway. I won't be upset with anybody if that happens, but I want everybody to bring their absolute A-game to our week-long series of performances that will determine the next steps. We'll be ready." As Levi explains his announcement, excitement hangs in the air. Nobody knew this, short of Ben and Levi. It's news to even Taylor and Elle. They have another month to get this show completely off the ground. That's insane.

After that announcement, Levi dismisses the company. People begin to trickle out of the room as Taylor shoves her binder into her bag and gather up her things from the day. Joe walks over to her and smiles. "Let me know when you're ready to get out of here."

"I was going to head to the restroom and freshen up a bit before heading out, if that's alright," Taylor replies. "Meet you downstairs?"

"Sounds perfect," Joe replies. "I was going to do the same, so I'll see you in a few minutes."

Taylor slips away into the restroom, where she changes out of her casual rehearsal clothes into a much nicer outfit so that she can look presentable at the restaurant.

A few minutes later, with some new clothes, makeup, and her hair pulled out of its ponytail, Taylor is all ready for her evening with Joe. Of course, she has to cover up her new with a big coat until they get to the restaurant so that nobody sees her. After securing her disguises, Taylor heads down to the lobby of the studios to meet up with Joe, who is waiting for her.

"You ready?" he asks.

"I think I am," Taylor says.

"May I?" Joe asks, protectively taking her arm. Taylor nods, feeling a feeling that she hasn't felt in a long time as the two emerge onto the street. She feels special.

He leads her down the block and eventually, to a restaurant. They don't have any issues with paparazzi, which Taylor is eternally grateful for.

"Well," he says, opening the door, "after you."

As Taylor takes a deep breath as she walks through the door. This might be the first moment of a new chapter in her life.