Stella Skye Swift!

Tech Rehearsal and Explanations

As we drive, I wonder how Taylor is going to explain me to her family. I hope they won't get mad at her. I don't want to cause any trouble. "Hey, you okay?" asks Taylor looking a little concerned. "Yeah. I'm good. I was daydreaming," I say. "No, you weren't. The look on your face says that you have something on your mind," says Taylor. "You know me so well, and I've been your daughter for less than 24 hours," I say.

Taylor smiles, and I continue, "Are your parents and Austin going to be mad that you adopted me?" "Stella, they won't be mad. After the concert ended the night you were there, I just got changed, and I was going to the Rep Room when Mama Swift said, and I quote, "Taylor, I just met the sweetest girl. She said that meeting you is automatically the highlight of her life and that you mean the world to her. She is here alone. She's probably six or seven years old, maybe eight." My mom already loves you and doesn't even know that you're mine. My dad will be the same. When Austin called me yesterday, he had a hopeful tone in his voice when he asked if I adopted you. Everything is going to work out," says Taylor as she places a hand on my shoulder. "Thank you, Taylor," I say. "Anytime," says Taylor.

"Miss Swift, we're almost there," says the driver. "Thank you, Chris," says Taylor. "You're welcome," says Chris.

We arrive five minutes later, and some paparazzi are here waiting for us. Taylor's right. They are everywhere. They make me a bit nervous. But I suppose I'll have to get used to them. I hold Taylor's hand, and we walk into the building where her rehearsal is.

I see Austin, Mama Swift, and Papa Swift standing talking to each other. They hear Taylor's heels and turn around. I hide behind Taylor. "Stella, it's okay," whispers Taylor. I come out from behind her, and she puts her arm around me.

"Mom, Dad, Austin. I would like you to be the first to meet Stella Skye," says Taylor. She pauses for a second before adding, "Swift. I adopted Stella yesterday!" says Taylor.

Mama and Papa Swift look a little shocked. Austin, however, doesn't hesitate to kneel in front of me, so we're at eye level.

"Hi, Stella! Welcome to the family!" says Austin smiling. I smile back. "Thank you, Austin," I say a little shyly. "My pleasure! Stella, how old are you?" asks Austin. "I'm 7. I turn 8 in July," I say. "Stella, aren't you the sweet little girl I gave a Rep Room ticket to?" asks Mama Swift. "Yep! That's me! Thank you for that!" I say. "You're welcome! Taylor, can we talk to you for a moment alone?" says Mama Swift. Taylor looks at me, and I nod.

"Yeah, I guess. Austin, stay with Stella," says Taylor. "Roger that!" says Austin, and he salutes.

I laugh, and Taylor, Mama Swift, and Papa Swift walk away and go far out of earshot of Austin and me.

"They're talking about me, aren't they?" I say. "Probably. But Stella, they love you already, and they've known you as their granddaughter for like two minutes. I promise to be the best uncle ever!" says Austin. I smile, and he lifts me and spins with me in his arms. "Austin, I love you, and you're already the best uncle ever!" I say. He smiles and says, "Love you too, Stells!" I smile as he puts me down gently.

"So you met Taylor in the Rep Room, huh? Did she adopt you there, or if not, where?" says Austin. "Yeah, I met her in the Rep Room! After she signed my ticket and my copy of the Reputation album, I accidentally said, "I can't wait to hang this in my room at the orphanage." Taylor heard that and asked me to stay until everyone else leaves. Of course, I did that, and we talked for a little while. Then at about 1:00 AM, I said, "I should call Ms. Wilson to pick me up," Then Taylor offered for me to spend the night with her on her tour bus, and I accept, and long story short, Taylor ended up visiting me at my orphanage yesterday. She asked me if she could adopt me, and without hesitating, I said yes. And here we are," I say, trying to shorten the story while making sure that I don't leave important things out. "That's awesome!" says Austin.

I'll let Taylor tell him more about me and my past, especially since I don't particularly like talking about it. Austin does some small talk with me for a while before Taylor starts walking back to us.

I run to her, and she hugs me, and we hold hands as we walk back to Austin. Mama and Papa Swift are behind us. "Taylor, are they mad that you adopted me?" I ask. She stops walking, and so do I. She kneels and puts her hands on my shoulders, and she looks me in my eyes. "Stella, of course not! They just wanted to talk to me about you. All good things! They're so happy that I adopted you! They also wanted to know if you're going to all of the tour locations or just some of them. I said I'd pick and chose, but you'll probably be going to most of them. The ones that you don't go to, you'll stay with one of my friends. Probably Selena. There are a few tour-related things that I need to talk to you about, but for now, I have to do my rehearsal. Austin will be watching you," says Taylor.

"Sounds good! Did you tell them anything about my past?" I ask. "Yes, I briefed them on it, meaning I hit the major points of it and glazed over some of it," says Taylor. "Thank you. It's hard for me to talk about my past sometimes," I say. "I know, and I get it," says Taylor. "Taylor, I love you!" I say as I hug her. "I love you too, Stella," says Taylor.

Then she stands up, and I hug her again before running to Austin. He has his arms open wide for me, and I hug him when I get to him. He lifts me up and spins me around, then he puts me down.

"I'm glad you two are bonding, Austin, I want you to be Stella's godfather!" says Taylor. "Yes!!!" says Austin, as he jumps up and down like a kid. I laugh. He twirls me. It's official Austin is THE BEST UNCLE EVER! Then I turn around and hug Mama and Papa Swift. "Welcome to the family, Stella! I love you!" says Mama Swift. "I love you too, Mama Swift!" I say. "I love you, Papa Swift!" I say. "Love you too, Stella," says Papa Swift.

Now, this is what I call family.

I sit with Austin as we watch Taylor rehearse. After a few hours, Taylor says, "Stella, come here!" I hop off my chair and come up on stage with her. "Stella, we're going to do a run-through of what's going to happen when I announce that you're my daughter tomorrow night on stage," says Taylor. "Ok!" I say. Then, Taylor has me go off stage, and I stand backstage. "I'm sure all of you have seen pictures on the internet of a little girl and me. Well, let me explain those. Stella come up here!" says Taylor. I come up on stage again and stand next to her. She puts her arm around me and says, "Everyone, this is Stella Skye...Swift! I adopted her on Sunday. Stella, while you're up here. Let's kick this show off! My only question is, are you Ready For It?" says Taylor.

Then her band starts playing the opening beats of Ready For It, and I dance to it! The song ends, and Austin claps loudly. I bow and go off stage. "And scene!" says Austin. I hug him, and then Taylor gets down from her stage, and she hugs me and says, "That was perfect! Now, all we have to do is do it for real tomorrow!"