Sweeter than Fiction: A Taylor Swift Fic

Chapter 1 - Hit the Ground Running

There you stand, ten feet tall

I will say, I knew it all along

Your eyes are wider than distance

This life is sweeter than fiction

I danced wildly around my room, catching sight of my reflection in the full-length mirrors of my closet. A no-bad-moves-barred dance party had become a tradition at the end of our rehearsals at the dance studio in L.A., and since the single for the One Chance soundtrack had come out, my choreographer had swapped the new track in, and I had to admit it was a fun song to dance to. The sprung hardwood floor there was perfect for my getting-better-each-lesson pirouettes, but bare feet on my bedroom carpet? Not so much. As I spun I could feel my top bun fly loose, my hair spilling down around my shoulders. Shaking it out, I segued into a little Molly Ringwald kick, the Breakfast Club dance that Lena had hilariously pulled me into as Jack and I were listening to the just-finished rough cut of “Sweeter than Fiction” after recording it in her apartment. I faced the mirror and channeled Molly. If only I could somehow capture this moment and share it with Lena.

The song came to an end, and I flopped onto my bed, wishing for a moment that I was in L.A. with my dancers, rather than here in Nashville, in their company after an exhausting rehearsal. We were technically on break from the tour, but the break always made me, and a handful of others, nervous like that week before going back to grade school, when you worried that you’d somehow forget, like, simple addition and how to read and write and totally flunk out; only now, it was the fear of forgetting dance steps and transitions, and making sure you were well out of the way of the pyro. We still had weeks until the Red Tour picked up again, tons of time to smooth out any rough bits.

Today’s impromptu solo dance party, though, was my attempt to shake (and shimmy) away pre–CMA Awards nerves. No matter how many years I got to attend the show, no matter how many friends I was excited to see in the audience, no matter how many awards I was so thankful to have won, it still freaked me out that I was not only going but nominated for six awards. And performing “Red” with an all-star band, and receiving the Pinnacle Award? Total pinch-myself-because-this-must-be-a-dream moment.

I tried to hold on to the carefree feeling that I got from dancing as I stretched out on my bed, staring up at the ceiling, but a glance at the clock had me back on my feet. Even though my team and I had the art of getting All Dolled Up for the Cameras down to a science, it still took awhile to get ready and travel to Bridgestone Arena. My mom was already waiting in my living room, enjoying a coffee while looking out over Nashville — the calm before the storm. (The storm being me and my ball of nerves.)

With the lyrics of “Sweeter than Fiction” still swimming in my head as I pulled a hoodie on over my tour tee, I couldn’t help but think back to when I had yet to prove anyone wrong, or right!, about my place in this music world that had now embraced me. Back when I was first starting out in this business, to one of my very first experiences on a hallowed country music stage…

Choice A: Taylor thinks back to her ACMs performance of “Tim McGraw”

Choice B: Taylor thinks back to the performance at the Bluebird Café that led to her record deal

To help decide where the story goes next, comment below!