Chapter Text
Taylor had apologized for the third time on her first two-day trip to Kansas City before Travis thought to suggest a drive.
They’d stuck to the house since she’d arrived as it was the easiest way to ensure no one knew she was there. They wanted to get to know each other first before letting the entire world into their relationship. In New York, they could sneak around in members-only clubs and private parks and her house. But she hadn’t wanted to make him do all the work when it was because of her they couldn’t just go out to dinner, so she’d come to KC. Now that she was there, she wasn’t so sure it had been a good idea. Nowhere was really free from prying eyes, and he hadn’t told his teammates yet so they couldn’t even visit a friend to get out of the house.
She hated being a burden. She wanted to know him, the real him. And that included this city and what it meant to him. When she apologized again, it was because she felt she might never be able to do that.
“Hey,” Travis said, grabbing her hand. “We can literally watch paint dry for all I care, as long as we’re together. But I have an idea, let’s go for a drive.”
He’d led her out to the garage and when she saw the bright purple of the convertible, she’d laughed. “So much for under the radar.”
“Ah, but she has a secret,” he said, knocking on one of the very dark and probably not street-legal tinted windows. “No one will ever know.”
And so, they had driven all over Kansas City that day, past his first apartment where he would sneak in the back to avoid his landlord. Then, the bar where he had gotten into his last-ever bar fight at 24 before deciding it was time to grow up. Past the architecture he loved and the fountain he thought was the ugliest. They drove the route he'd take every day to work as a rookie—the one that made him fall in love with this city. She loved watching him talk about this place and the people in it, how much they had taken him in and made him their own.
Eventually, he’d kept going out of the city limits and onto wider, less traveled roads. It was the perfect August day and once they’d hit a stretch of road with no stops or traffic, he’d opened the top and lowered the windows.
“Now, then,” he said with a big grin. “Let me show you how she goes.”
They’d drove for miles. When a good song came on, they’d both reach for the dial to turn it up and usually ended up singing along. On those backcountry roads, Taylor discovered that Travis liked fast things, had the same taste in music as her (nearly everything), and looked incredibly hot shifting a vintage convertible into high gear. She learned the thing he was most afraid of (deep, open water), that he somehow could hit a higher note than her singing “I will always love you,” and that maybe someday soon, he’d love for her to come to a game and see him play.
He’d paused at that confession. Glancing quickly at her before putting his eyes back on the road. “I know you usually keep a bit more low profile. And I am not trying to rush you anytime soon. I just wanted you to know that is an option and that I’d love it. But I’m happy with whatever you’re comfortable with, Tay.”
She looked away towards the passing fields for a moment, then closed her eyes. Let the wind rush across her face, feeling the hair that had escaped her ponytail brush her cheek. She needed a moment to think. When was the last time she felt this alive? It startled her to realize that it had been years. Sure she’d made inroads the past few months. But ever since Travis had slipped his way into her life, she’d been saying yes more and more to things she’d thought she’d put away for good.
She felt the tears at the corners of her eyes. Why had she done that to herself?
She wiped at her eyes and hoped he thought it was from the wind before turning to look at him. The hopeful look on his face caused her to smile widely.
“You’re not rushing me,” she answered, reaching over to squeeze the hand that still rested on the gearshift. “I’d love to come to a game. I want to see you in your element, it’s only fair since you saw me in mine.”
“Hmmm, I wonder which one is a little more lit,” he joked, raising his eyebrows as she just rolled her eyes at him.
“I’m working on this whole being a person in the world thing,” she confessed. “But I want you to know, that I’m not interested in hiding this forever, Travis. I did that and convinced myself it was what I wanted when really it wasn’t. I gave up too much to do that.”
She looked down, wanting to ease the seriousness of her words and not ruin their carefree afternoon. “Besides, you’re a giant, where would I hide you?”
He threw back his head and laughed. Taylor loved his laugh. She wished he wasn’t wearing sunglasses because his whole face lit up when he laughed, and she wanted to take it all in.
“Yeah, you picked the wrong one for that. But, for real,” he said, turning serious. “I want what you want. I’m not afraid of all of this, I know it’s going to be a shit show sometimes but I think it’s worth it. I think you and me are going to be worth it.”
He grabbed her hand from her lap and brought it up to kiss. “You and me, baby. We can figure it out together.”
She squeezed tight to his hand. "I think so too."
More than that, Taylor was starting to believe that maybe all the things she’d written about for years could be found right here in the middle of Kansas City.
She leaned back in her seat and arched an eyebrow at him. "Now…can I drive?”
****
Pulling away from the stadium weeks later on a warm September day with all eyes on them, she wonders if when they look back on this first summer, it will be with the soundtrack of the endless back roads of Kansas City playing—the sounds of loud singing, of the wind whistling over their heads, of him patiently teaching her to drive stick shift. If someday years from now when they are older and slower and maybe lived a quieter life (ha), they’d take the Chevelle out for old time's sake and still feel the thrill of not only the speeding car but their speeding hearts as they first fell in love.