Chapter 36

HAPPY BIRTHDAY LOVER!! funny how the last chapter of lover ended on lover’s birthday, but next we’re going into folklore and evermore, be prepare for toothrotting fluffs and domestic fluffs

and some long awaited actions are happening this chapter 😉

also happy 53k words omg! i think i could officially add slow burn as a tag

~ kathy

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Things between them got better, but there was still one conversation Cameron wasn’t quite ready to have. She just got Taylor back, she was in no mood to lose her best friend because of some silly feelings. Although debatably if their friendship had survived this long, it would probably survive a one sided love confession, not that Cameron was too eager to test that theory.

They started their weekly movie night on Friday once more, and Cameron learned that the blonde had managed to get herself another cat in the short time that they weren’t talking.

“You’re going to become a cat lady before you turn forty,” Cameron cooed at the small kitten, holding out a hand for the cat to sniff as Olivia slept on her crossed legs and Meredith was wandering somewhere in the New York apartment. Taylor was snuggled comfortably on the couch, a bowl of popcorn in her lap and the remote in her left hand as she flipped through the channels.

“I don’t know why you phrased that like it’s a bad thing,” Taylor grumbled, and Cameron smiled brightly when Benji carefully placed one paw at her legs. “I’m thinking by forty I would be making music at home with at least five cats, and by fifty I probably won’t do world tours and I’ll just go back to the little ones.”

“Any kids in your future? And where am I in all of this while you become the crazy cat lady we all read about in the books,” Cameron asked absentmindedly as Benji ran away when Olivia woke up and hissed at her baby brother. Cameron sighed and took Olivia off of her lap so she could stand up and join her best friend on the couch.

“Well, I would like to have two kids, I think. And you should know I am amazing at multitasking so I can have two kids and be a crazy cat lady.” Cameron reached the couch and fell into Taylor’s open arms. The blonde wrapped her in the fluffy blanket and Cameron sighed happily. “I’m hoping you’ll be by my side through all of this.”

“Two is a good amount,” Cameron snuggled into Taylor’s arms, who made noise of protest as Cameron dug her elbow into her stomach. “Sorry, but anyways, five cats is an insane amount.”

“Stop harassing me, Cammy, I’m not above kicking you off the couch,” Taylor grumbled before Cameron finally found a position where her ass was finally on the couch and her head was nestled on top of Taylor’s breast. Taylor wrapped her arms around Cameron and the brunette finally stopped moving and relaxed her body, the popcorn bowl long forgotten on the ground. “And five is not enough cats. My house is big enough for ten.”

Cameron rolled her eyes and hummed in response. “I’ll tell that to your future partner. After I threaten to throw them into the sun. Do you think JA would believe me if I tell him I wanna throw him into the sun?”

“I think you scared him a lot, even when we were dating,” Taylor pinched Cameron’s side and she gasped. “Anyways, remember that documentary I was filming?”

Cameron vividly remembers confessing her love for the blonde on camera, and the producer that would not stop grilling her. “What about it?”

“Well, I’m almost done with filming, I was wondering if you will be okay being featured in it, your face won’t be shown if you don’t want to though,” Taylor played with the hem of Cameron’s shirt absentmindedly, and Cameron felt like she was about ready to combust.

“Is Abigail going to be in it?”

Taylor laughed. “Is everything between the two of you always some sort of competition? And yes, she’s in an early part of the segment, but I want to feature you in London, and I’ll say a few good things about you, and we can maybe slap that interview you did behind the scenes during the rep tour-”

“I like every part of that except for the interview. Cut that interview, I refuse to have the general public see that mess of an interview,” Cameron linked their fingers together under the blanket and closed her eyes.

“I didn’t think it was that embarrassing, and Abigail didn’t get an interview. Just you.”

Cameron paused. “You can keep the part you hear in person, and cut the other part, which should already be cut if that camera man knows better.”

“Did you slip and fall sometime between me getting dressed and coming back?” Taylor teased, and Cameron grumbled.

“Something like that.”

Of course there was no way she was going to mention the part where she basically confessed her love, because that would be a fucking disaster.

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Anderson

I think you are a fucking coward.

Elsher

it’s literally seven am, why are you on my ass already 😭

Anderson

alkjfalkjfd;kldjfa

Anderson

😡

Anderson

Hello??? The photo you posted on your spam??

Anderson

Which Taylor also reposted??

Anderson

You two are both cowards.

Elsher

girl we look cute so i had to post it

Elsher

and wdym we’re both cowards??

Elsher

what are you not telling me 👀

Elsher

Abbyyyy

Elsher

tell meeee

Anderson

Stop being a coward and then maybe you’ll find out

Elsher

Elsher

she also wants to know why you’re calling her a coward

Elsher

because we are strong people 💪

Elsher

😤

Anderson

Are you in bed with her right now????

Elsher

it’s our sleepover day!

Anderson

I thought sleepover is only for friday

Elsher

i meant its wednesday, it’s our mid week sleepover

Anderson

you are more useless than i thought you were

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Anderson created a new chat.

Anderson added Taylor and you.

Anderson named the chat ‘The sane and 2 cowards’

Anderson

Cowards.

Elsher

i really don’t understand why you feel like it’s necessary to attack me at 7 in the morning

Taylor

“damn, it’s seven am”

Elsher

lakjfdjlkdfs;adsjk;

Elsher

why are you quoting yourself

Taylor

i wrote a song for this occasion, so i should use it

Anderson

Anyways, are we hosting the Miss Americana watch party back at Nashville?

Anderson

Mama Swift wanna know how many people are coming and diets and stuff

Taylor

Yeah, it’s at nashville

Taylor

why is my mom texting you and not me??

Anderson

She actually knocked on my front door and then we hung out for a day

Taylor

what??

Anderson

Yeah, your mom and I are super close

Anderson

We hang out all the time. Us Nashville-er has to stick together

Taylor

that is so not a word…

Taylor

and it’s just gonna be you, me, cameron, my parents, austin

Taylor

i wanna keep it small for the first watch since it isn’t official, and if there’s anything we need to change i can request it

Taylor

also, i will have you know i was anything but a coward in that documentary

Taylor

so your title is completely wrong

Anderson

Sure… I’ll believe it when I see it

Taylor

ugh, maybe i’ll show it to cameron only first

Taylor

yep, that’s what i’m doing

Elsher

does this mean ive officially won the best friend war, tay tay??

Taylor

NO! YOU LITERALLY JUST THREW MEREDITH ONTO THE BED AND RAN AWAY LAUGHING?

Taylor

WHY ARE YOU SO MEAN IN THE MORNING?

Elsher

i made you breakfast, stop complaining and join me :((

Elsher

i have to leave for work in ten minutes

Anderson

Get a room you two

Anderson

This is too domestic for me

Anderson

Taylor, just let me know the time and dates, i’ll leave you two to it

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They ended up watching Miss Americana on their Friday movie night, but Cameron felt like the blonde was hiding something from her, or there must be something really horrible in the documentary because she had been pulling on her shirt as she struggled to connect the film from her computer to the large television screen.

Cameron left Taylor to it, as she started cussing halfway through, and she decided that getting snacks would be a much safer activity to do at the moment. She came back to the living room after Taylor’s triumph yells with popcorn and chips and settled into the couch comfortably while Taylor started the documentary.

“Okay, I will take constructive criticism at any point in the documentary and we can talk about it and then I can send that note back to the editors. It’s not going to be released until January anyways,” Taylor bit her lower lips before she pressed play on the film.

The film started with Taylor at her Nashville house, on the piano, with Olivia absolutely wracking hectics and Cameron laughed. She was cute, and obviously she doesn’t pick favorites but if she were to choose, Olivia would be her favorite daughter. Not that anyone needed to know that.

Then Taylor started introducing her journals, and Cameron turned to the blonde who smiled at her.

“This is the first one that I started when I was 13. And it says, “My life, my career, my… my dream……my reality.” For a while, I wrote with quill and ink. That was a phase I went through. Like, I had a glass quill with, like, an ink jet.”

“Aww, I remember that, baby Taylor was unhinged and adorable,” Cameron grinned and Taylor blushed, hiding her face behind blankets.

“Just keep watching,” she pointed to the television, and Cameron turned back.

“You know, my entire moral code, as a kid and now, is a need to be thought of as good. That’s dangerous. That’s not…That’s dangerous for you. It was all I wrote about. It was all I wanted. It was the complete and total… belief system that I subscribed to as a kid. Do the right thing. Do the good thing. And obviously, I’m not a perfect person by any stretch, but overall, the main thing that I always tried to be was…um…like, just…like, a good girl.”

Cameron kept quiet as the flashback started, and she felt like she herself was thrown back in time at the home videos Taylor put in the documentary, as it was also part of her past. It continued, and then it came up on Taylor during the Grammy nomination day for Reputation. She knew what was coming, Rep didn’t get nominated, which to this point Cameron still thought was a crime because that album was literally blood, sweat, and tears.

Then it was a flashback to her careers throughout the years through news articles and televisions, and Cameron found herself smiling. Until the Kanye West part, then she was gripping the cousin because if she was the one on that stage, she would’ve punched his face so fast that a whole new scandal would’ve started.

“I would’ve bitch slapped the bitch,” Cameron muttered under her breath, and Taylor choked on her laughter. Cameron turned to the blonde, who was still holding the blanket close to her face. “Well, I probably would’ve use the trophy to wreck his face, but then I might be arrested and start a whole new scandal, which is why I can’t be a public figure. Book signing is the extent of my public spotlight.”

“Yeah, I think if you had slapped him what happened in twenty fifteen would have happened way earlier.”

“People in twenty fifteen are just stupid and annoying,” Cameron shrugged, before Taylor pointed back to the documentary again.

It goes on to show Taylor winning Album of the Year for the second time, and Cameron smiled as Taylor went on stage and gave a speech, before it cut to Taylor backstage, with a voice over.

“Well, I didn’t really have a partner I climbed it with, and there really isn’t anyone that could relate to what I was… you know.. I mean I have my mom… and there is someone, who has been on my back and call for years and I remember calling her when I got off the stage, and sometimes I could still hear her voice in my ears. She was my cheerleader… quite literally actually… and she still is to this day.”

Cameron looked over at Taylor, who had a faint blush on her cheeks. Then the documentary went on to highlight Mama Swift, and it was a conversation on the plane.

“Kitty is so cute,” Cameron turned to Taylor, who shook her head in disagreement. “Come on, you have to admit it’s a cute dog.”

“Nope, that dog is the bane of my existence, this is why I have cats.”

Abigail showed up a few scenes later, and Cameron made faces at the screen while Taylor laughed, although there was definitely still part of Cameron that think the blonde was hiding something big with this documentary. Maybe it was a part she was uncertain whether or not she wanted to keep, or something else, because she hadn’t stopped pulling at her hair once.

Then the dreaded twenty-fifteen happened, and Cameron reached over the couch to wrap her best friend in a tight hug.

“I’m better now, you know?”

“Yeah, but I still always want to give you a hug,” Cameron muttered into Taylor’s neck, and the blonde finally pulled the blanket around Cameron so the two of them were snuggled comfortably on the couch. “And you are so beautiful, and so pretty, and literally the prettiest girl I’ve ever met and who cares what other people say.”

“I know that now,” Taylor pressed a quick kiss to Cameron’s head, and she pulled herself deeper into the blonde’s embrace as the documentary continued.

“Nobody physically saw me for a year, and I thought that was what they wanted.”

“Hey, I took that video!” Cameron perked up as a video of Call It What You Want popped up, filmed at the London apartment. Taylor was quiet.

“I had to deconstruct an entire belief system for the sake of my own personal sanity. I also was falling in love with someone who understood me on a level I had never expected someone to know me at.”

“Why are you keeping the Joe part?” Cameron muttered half heartedly as she continued watching, looking up at the blonde to see her shake her head. “Not Joe? I mean who else did you fell in love with–”

“I mean we’ve been through so much together, but I don’t think I realized I was in love until then, in our little escape house out of the country, and I woke up one day and realized, this is the person I want to spend the rest of my life with.”

The videos taken were mostly on Taylor’s phone, but some of them Cameron realized were from her own camera rolls, but all of the commodity is that it was in their London apartment, nights where it was just the two of them yet like Taylor promised, Cameron was never shown directly on camera.

She reached across Taylor’s lap for the remote and paused the documentary midway through as she tried to process the words. “Are you saying what I think you’re saying?”

“I mean there really isn’t any other way to say it and I’m tired of Abigail calling me a coward,” Taylor finally turned to meet Cameron’s eyes. “What do you think I’m saying?”

Cameron watched with wild eyes, as her brain struggled to accept the fact that maybe her long time crush wasn’t one sided afterall. “Wait, but what about Joe?”

“I didn’t want to ruin anything, and what we had was something good, and I don’t want you to think that you’re obligated to be with me just because of some feelings, and being with him was easy. I think I thought that I could love him, and for sometimes I do think that what I felt was genuine, but then you stormed out and I realized what was actually in front of me all along, and it was not him. Please say something.”

Cameron gaped, and she took Taylor’s hand in her own. “I am in love with you. Head over heels, will wait a thousand years in love with you. I mean I had a crush on you in high school, massive, you could ask Abigail all about it.”

“Yeah? How embarrassing for you to be crushing on the weird nerd girl,” Taylor teased, but Cameron shook her head.

“Never embarrassing.”

“Well, I wrote over a hundred songs about you, since we’re telling the truths anyways,” Taylor looked away with a blush, but Cameron reached forward and cup her cheeks.

“Oh really? How embarrassing for you to write albums worth of songs for me.” Cameron brushed a strand of hair away from Taylor’s face. “Although I do wonder where all of those songs went because I don’t think I’ve ever heard them.”

Taylor blinked. “Well, internalized homophobia was definitely something I dealt with for a while, and honestly, I still don’t know if I’m quite ready to come out to the world but I am unapologetically in love with you.”

“Well, you know I’m selfish enough to want you all to myself, so it’s okay,” Cameron searched Taylor’s face for something, and her gaze flickered down to her lips.

“I don’t think I’ll ever be ready for an official coming out, but I’m never hiding you, we can hint at it and see if fans could figure it out,” there were sparkles in Taylor’s eyes, and Cameron feared that if she let the blonde spiral, they would be here for a long time. She really was a mastermind.

“Before you go into planning your life years in advance, can I kiss you?”

“You better,” Taylor pouted, and tangled her hand into Cameron’s hair, pulling the brunette down.

If home has a taste, it tasted of strawberry lipsticks, and smelt of lavender shampoo. 

END OF PART VII