Work Text:
March 17, 20XX
A knock sounded from the door, and Jackie turned her head to see her publicist, Misty Quigley peering at her worriedly. It was the opening night of her biggest tour yet, it was sold out stadium after sold out stadium. Jackie was beyond proud of herself for making it this far, for pulling herself out of her small town and into stardom. Needless to say, her publicist looking concerned was not something she wanted to be seeing 30 minutes before she got on stage.
“Sorry to bother you, it’s just- I think you’d want to know,” Misty said apologetically. Jackie knew she wouldn’t be bothering her unless it was something truly important- they’d grown up in the same town and had found each other again when they were out of it. Also- Misty was Misty. If there was a problem, she would handle it. So her coming to Jackie was mildly concerning because it meant this was something out of her control.
Jackie motioned for her to continue as she stood up and paced around the room, trying to make sure she had everything down for tonight. She’d had her surprise songs planned out for the past month leading up to the tour, and she wanted to make sure she didn’t fuck up.
“Jackie,” Misty paused, taking a deep breath before proceeding, “Jackie could you look at me for a second?”
Jackie’s steps halted, and she did a full one eighty to look Misty in the eyes. The nerves building in her stomach were swelling and she could feel herself start to slip.
“I’m only telling you this because I think you’d want to know. Jack- Nat’s here.”
Jackie’s face dropped and it felt like the floor had fallen out beneath her. Nat? Her ex, Nat Scatorccio? Sure they’d ended amicably all those years ago when they’d broken up at the start of her career, but it didn’t mean her heart didn’t ache sometimes when she thought about Nat. Many of Jackie’s songs were about him, especially her most recent albums which were filled with her looking back at the past and reminiscing.
She felt as if her body was suspended in space, floating with nothing tethering her. It was only the feeling of Misty’s hand on her arm that made her snap out of it.
“Will you be okay?” Misty pressed, eyes searching her own. “Cause I mean- there’s thousands of people here tonight to see you and-”
“Yes, Misty, I’ll be fine,” Jackie cut her off. She shook her head, clearing her thoughts before continuing. “I can handle Nat being here, it’s just- his team didn’t reach out for the VIP tent earlier? They waited until 30 minutes before I go on?”
Misty shifted sheepishly at this: “Uh about that. No one actually reached out, and he isn’t in the VIP tent. He’s just here as a normal guest.”
Jackie paused once more, the conversation throwing her for loop after loop. “So- how do you even know he’s here?”
To which she received a raised eyebrow and nodded, feeling silly because really, she should know better by now than to question Misty.
“Jesus Christ- it’s fine, I can deal. But like- Nat’s famous in his own right now, didn’t his new album blow up? Isn’t he getting recognized?” She asked, worried about how their fans would take this information. Anyone with the internet could find out they grew up in the same town and start wondering why she didn’t invite him into the VIP tent, and then people would start making up all sorts of rumors. Her life was always under constant scrutiny and the last thing she wanted to do was get Nat mixed up into all of it, knowing that most people hated the attention. She loved her fans, she truly did, but they could be too much sometimes (read: most of the time).
Misty seemed to get past her previous nervousness, glancing at the clock. “Look- long story short is that he has this dumb ass disguise that's not fooling anyone and I’m going to have a shit ton of work to do tonight. But you’re on in T-minus 10 minutes so I’m going to go now, and you’re going to be ready by then. Got it?”
Jackie nodded slowly, taking it in. Her ex showing up to opening night, presumably getting tickets on his own. Jesus- how hard had he worked for that? “Wait- Misty. Just to let you know, I might change the surprise songs from what we discussed.”
Her words were a surprise to both of them, Jackie not expecting them to come out of her mouth. She could see Misty go to say something, but she gently pushed her publicist out of the door before shutting it behind her. She only had 8 minutes left, and she was going to use them.
She took a deep breath and thought for a couple minutes, confirming she had the lyrics and chords memorized, before shooting a text telling her crew to have her surprise song guitar tuned a different way.
-
God, Jackie would never get used to this. The exhilarating rush of performing in front of thousands of people was a feeling that could never be matched. She could hear the cheers even through her earbuds, and she knew she’d be riding this rush for days.
She was hitting mark after mark, no one would be able to tell that just a half hour before the show she was shaken to her core. Still though, she couldn’t help herself from scanning the crowd for that familiar face at times, especially during songs only she (and Shauna) knew were about Nat. Never once did she catch sight of him though, so either his disguise worked (doubtful) or he was far enough into the crowd that she couldn’t see him. Jackie kind of wished Misty would have told her where he was sitting (and lord knows that Misty knew where), but knew that it was for own good. Her fans would most definitely clock her and the rumors would start.
She ended her set, looking up and around the stadium at all of the glowing lights, each of which represented one of her fans. She felt on top of the world, like this. Quickly though, she got ready for her acoustic set.
Jackie introduced the set to her fans, mentioning that she thought it would become her favorite set by the end of tour simply because of the possibilities. She ended her little speech with a disclaimer: “I do want you to know a little secret though- shortly before coming onstage, I made a decision to change what I had planned for you all tonight. I hope you enjoy regardless.”
“The very first song I have for y’all on this tour will, as you can see, be on the guitar. This was on my first album-” She paused, grinning from ear to ear, waiting for the applause to die down, “and I thought it’d only be fitting to kick off the acoustic section of this tour with a song from my first album. Thank you all, I couldn’t have done it without you.”
Jackie began playing, strumming the opening notes to “I’m Only Me When I’m With You.” She went through the whole song peering into the crowd looking for Nat yet again. She wondered if he’d recognize it- she’d written it about him all those years ago and had played it for him shortly before they broke up.
The crowd went crazy, and she pushed her thoughts about Nat aside to soak in the fact that her fans were screaming every word back at her.
She ended the song with a flourish, swinging her guitar around slightly before taking it off and heading to sit at her piano. She smirked slightly, knowing Misty would kill her for this as soon as she stepped off stage, but leaned into the mic anyways.
“I’m sorry, every single song is about you.”
Once again the crowd went insane, screaming and jumping, wondering who she could be talking about. Jackie Taylor hadn’t dated anyone (as far as the public knew) since 5 years before, when she had a brief fling when she was hated by the world. Sure there was speculation- there were countless love songs on her albums that went unexplained and her fans were vying to know.
She pressed down on the keys softly, finding her rhythm slowly. She hadn’t played this song in a while- hadn’t practiced or really thought about it much. It always hurt to do so. But it was like riding a bike and she quickly got the hang of it. The lyrics to “peace” began spilling out of her mouth almost uncontrollably. She knew she was rushing somewhat, and tried to reign it back in but was struggling. The raw emotion in her voice, coupled with the various voice cracks she’d had when performing, would surely stew the flames more.
Her eyes were welled up with tears, though she refused to let them fall. She wiped them away when she jumped into the stage to get to her place to start the next, and thankfully final (she was exhausted), set.
Jackie finished the show strong and with still no sign of Nat, but even so she couldn’t help but be content. Tonight was the night she (and many others) had anticipated ever since she first announced this tour, and she’d made it through the whole show without problem (well, outwardly at least).
She was right in her assumption that Misty was going to kill her though, unfortunately. Jackie was scolded many times (though Misty’s words went in one ear and out the other because of how exhausted she was) before she was allowed to go to the hotel to rest.
And rest she did- she knocked out for a solid 9 hours before getting up the next day to do it all again.
-
On Twitter, live during the show
@tay4life
so hey is anybody gonna talk abt how nat scatorccio is here or… im not THAT well versed in him but i do know that he does come from the same little town the rest of them (jackie taylor and friends) do, srsly man how much talent can come from a single fucking town ???? in the middle of nowhere ???
@tay4life replying to @tay4life
also he’s in disguise (?) i think ??? idk who he’s tryna fool but im not even a fan and i can tell
@natt35 replying to @tay4life
HE’S THERE ?? mannn he’s like notorious for not keeping in contact w/ any of em, i wonder what thats abt kinda sus ngl
@stickscatorccio replying to @natt35
esp if he’s “in disguise”... would just love to know whats going on in their heads rn
-
@JackieTaylorUpdates
Below you will find the setlist until this point attached!
list.png
@jt103 replying to @JackieTaylorUpdates
holyyyy fuck bro the setlist is insaneee how tf can she perform that long n its not even over yet
@folkmorestan replying to @JackieTaylorUpdates
FOLKLORE EVERMORE STANS EVERYWHERE WE WON
-
@JackieTaylorUpdates
Jackie Taylor kicks off her surprise song set with “I’m Only Me When I’m With You” off of her debut album!
@taysfan replying to @JackieTaylorUpdates
holy shit !!! guys we so up rn, first iomwiwy sighting in YEARS
@jacktay07 replying to @taysfan
wait im new here, is there a reason jackie doesnt like playing it orrrr
@taysfan replying to @jacktay07
theres hella rumors, nothin confirmed by jackie herself though. but its abt an ex n we assume it ended bad so she doesnt like singing it
@jacktay07 replying to @taysfun
ohhh okay makes sense thxx
@JackieTaylorUpdates
The second surprise song is “peace” off of her 8th studio album “folklore.” This marks the first time she has ever played it live!
@folkwhore replying to @JackieTaylorUpdates
ohmygodohmygodohmygod
@delulujt33 replying to @JackieTaylorUpdates
yall do we think this has anythign to do w the nat scatorccio sighting be honest… all im sayin is she said she found smth out that changed her surprise song choices… could it be nat ??
@no1JTdefender replying to @delulujt33
cmon man not cool we shld know better than to speculate abt ts shit
@nsenjoyer09 replying to @no1JTdefender
i mean… they have a point??
-
Sure, he knew it perhaps wasn’t a very good idea. But Nat Scatorccio didn’t often take into consideration whether not something was a good idea or not, and he sure as hell wasn’t about to start now. Not when he’d been offered (surprisingly legit) tickets from a random ass seller that reached out to him. It was almost too perfect, but he’d learned long ago never to kick a gift horse in the mouth.
Nat hadn’t told anyone on his team that he was going to Jackie’s concert, though he was bound to be in deep shit with his team once they caught wind of his little excursion. He cursed himself for his stupid little disguise- people kept glancing sideways at him and he was sure they had him all figured out already. Perhaps it would’ve been better to just say fuck it and go without a disguise…
Nonetheless, he was already here and fuck if he wasn’t going to make the best of it. These goddamn tickets were coveted for a reason. Nat had a feeling of perpetual pride in his chest for Jackie, a feeling that he knew wasn’t going to disappear anytime soon- she’d made it out and she’d made it big. Her face was plastered on every popular magazine and her music played across the entire world.
Nat made his way to his seat- and for the price he paid for them, they weren’t that bad- he was on the floor, though far back (which he was thankful for, he wasn’t quite sure what he’d do if Jackie saw him). He glanced around- everyone seemed to be too focused on their own excitement to really notice him, which he was also grateful for.
The energy in the stadium was infectious- he could feel it building up within him, ready to burst. It’d been a while since Jackie had gone on tour, with everything going on, so he hadn’t seen her perform in years. A well kept secret of his was that he always, always found time to see her when she went on tour. Old habits and all that- he never really was able to resist her pull.
Nat was starstruck throughout the whole show- unable to pull his eyes away for even a second. God- her vocals had improved so much since her last tour, and now that he had his own experience with performing he could appreciate it so much more. Jackie Taylor never ceased to amaze him.
He grinned at the mention of her acoustic set- she’d had the tradition since forever and he was glad she was yet to be rid of it. His smile fell only a minute later at the mention of her little change up though- could she know? Impossible- even though his disguise was shitty there was no way anyone would know before she even went onstage about him.
But when he heard the song she played, Nat knew that she knew. It was their song- a song that Jackie was scared to show Nat at first, even though he immediately loved it. Loved her. Distantly, he realized he was crying. The tears felt cool against his face, which was red from exertion (after all, it was a Jackie Taylor concert- you dance at a Jackie Taylor concert, it was the rules).
Nat barely had anytime to recover before those words, which would prove to haunt him for the foreseeable future, were uttered into the universe.
“I’m sorry, every single song is about you.”
Whatthefuckwhatthefuckwhattheactualfuck-
Jackie Taylor’s power over him was a force that needed to be studied in a lab. The way she was able to flay him open with only her words, words not even directly spoken to him but instead to thousands of people. His guts were visible to the world, and she was tugging at them, ripping and pulling until they spilled out.
And damn- let a man breathe because the immediate jump into peace wasn’t kind in the slightest. Again, he recognized the song in mere moments. This time not because of the fact that it was played for him before it was released for the world though, something which made him a little upset before he reminded herself that he had no place in her world anymore. No, he recognized this song because he’d simply listened to it so many times that every melody was engraved into his soul.
Nat always had his suspicions that it was about him- for fucks sake the lyrics were just too specific sometimes, line after line referenced a moment in their relationship that he could clearly pick out. The confirmation was nice though.
And when she finished singing, his breath had still not found its way back into his lungs. Christ- it was unfair how much control she had over his very being- even years later, even without looking at him.
He nearly left the concert before it ended, feeling the need to breathe fresh air, but he couldn’t, not when it wasn’t over yet. Nat saw the concert through (barely though- the Vigilante Shit performance had left him winded and he nearly had to excuse himself for an entirely different reason), leaving only once the stadium was half empty.
Once back to his hotel, Nat collapsed into bed, not having the energy to do anything else. He felt disgusting and he knew he needed to shower, but he couldn’t bring himself to get up, not after whatever the fuck just happened. Jackie had- she’d acknowledged him, even if no one but them knew it. His brain hurt just from thinking about it, and without noticing, he’d drifted off into a deep sleep where he’d find himself dreaming about what life could’ve been if he’d just went with Jackie when she’d asked.
He woke up with a sense of loss, though he couldn’t quite place why.
-
June 8, 20XX
Nat Scatorccio was nervous- he was about to drop new music in an hour and even though this wasn’t even a full album, just the deluxe, all 7 songs were incredibly personal to him in ways he couldn’t explain. Not to mention, his fanbase had grown exponentially because of this album and he couldn’t bear to let his fans down.
He had his team over at his studio apartment for dinner and drinks (though his was notably non-alcoholic) in preparation for the drop, and the buzzing excitement could be felt permeating throughout the rooms. It didn’t stop the nervousness building within him though- he couldn’t help it. He was bearing his soul for anyone to see with these songs.
After the original album came 7 more songs, each of which he held close to his heart.
“Your Needs, My Needs” was him pouring his heart out to both his audience and himself, admitting the reasons why his loved ones always seemed to leave. It wasn’t about anybody in particular, though he knew people would speculate regardless of the truth. Everyone who was ever important to him had a permanent place deep in his heart, even if they didn’t have a permanent place in his life. He found it incredibly funny, the way the majority of his relationships, be it romantic or platonic, had ended not because of any fight but rather because they simply went separate ways.
Nat’d written “Dial Drunk” a few years ago, reminiscing about his past relationship with Lottie and Laura Lee. Sure, his fans would tell you that he wasn’t in contact with anyone from Wiskayok and that he hadn’t been in contact with any of them since they left, but that just wasn’t the complete truth. He’d reunited with them a couple years after Lottie first started putting out music, and Nat somehow found himself in a situationship between the two. They’d both wanted more, wanted him for real, but he just couldn’t. Not when he was still a raging alcoholic, not when he couldn’t give all of himself to them like they deserved. The relationship crashed and burned shortly after they reunited, with the whole affair only lasting six months.
By no means did he write it as a plea for them back- Nat knew he fucked up and he wouldn’t ever deny that. Still, he was proud of the track musically even if he wasn’t proud of the actions his lyrics depicted.
With “Paul Revere” Nat was bearing his soul naked for everyone to see, for anyone to dissect. Most (read: all) of his music was startlingly vulnerable, but with this song he was truly exposing himself. The song was about growing up in the middle of Bumfuck, Nowhere. It wasn’t just that though. Furthermore, it was essentially just him vomiting all of his feelings about Wiskayok in song form. After the Yellowjackets had graduated, everyone who was anyone to him immediately left. Not that he could fault them for it really, if he could’ve left then he would’ve. But not only were there financial obstacles for him, it was also like Wiskayok had set its claws into Nat and was refusing to ever let go of him. For fuck’s sake, he’d even returned back to his shitty trailer to songwrite this album.
The next song, he titled “No Complaints.” The song- even if it didn’t sound like it- was about his proudest achievement to date. Nat did it. Nat got sober. And God, was it hard sometimes. The pain at times was worse than anything he’d ever felt in his life, worse than when his father would beat him because at least then he’d had drugs to numb the pain. Granted, he still had drugs, though now what he took was prescription shit for his mental illnesses. Point was- he was proud of himself for getting sober, even if it hurt like hell and had him feeling like shit 50% of the time.
“Call Your Mom” was a song Nat wrote for someone he’d never thought he would have had to write it about. Even years later, he could hardly believe it. It was a very musically simple song- he didn’t want anything to take away from his message. He’d had the damn song written for years, since highschool- before he’d ever known he wanted to do music with his life. Nat could still remember that night like it was yesterday- he didn’t think he’d ever be able to forget it. He would never be able to get the smell of blood out of his mind, nor the look on Laura Lee’s mother’s face when she realized. He could still vividly remember the sheer panic and fear he’d felt while speeding all the way to the hospital, with Laura Lee bleeding out in his passenger seat.
No one had known Laura Lee was struggling- something they’d all beaten themselves up because of. Nat wrote “Call Your Mom” to tell anyone who heard it that they weren’t alone, that they were loved, and that it was going to get better, even if it seemed like it never would.
And then, as it was, for him everything really did come back to Jackie Taylor. Nat couldn’t deny that he wrote “You’re Gonna Go Far” thinking about one person in particular. Not to say that the song wasn’t about anybody else though, it was also about the rest of his Yellowjackets. But he’d written it with her in mind, and he’d never be able to listen to it without her at the forefront of it. Nat wasn’t angry about them leaving anymore, and he never truly was even if he’d been a little bitter in the beginning. Jackie Taylor had gone far and he couldn’t be prouder. Nat had always known she was destined for greatness.
The last song on the deluxe was technically already on the album, though this version was different. “The View Between Villages - Extended” came to him in a haze, after about a month of being back in Wiskayok for songwriting for “Stick Season.” Nat had so much fun producing it- and just making it in general. Being back in his hometown had sparked a feeling of longing that he didn’t know was possible to feel for it. He’d beyond hated it growing up, but it really had started to grow on him.
What Nat was most proud of though, was the sound clips he’d embedded into the song. He’d managed to get the sweet old lady who was always selling sweets to speak about the town for him, along with the old man living in the trailer park who’d always help Nat out when he saw him struggling. Nat didn’t think he could capture his feelings in a song more perfectly than he had in this one.
So come midnight, he was in shambles for the release. Nat was beyond nervous for how the album would be received- what if he put it out and everyone hated it, hated the music he’d poured himself into, hated him?
-
On Twitter, 30 minutes past midnight
@NatScatorccio09
Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever) Out Now On All Platforms!
@scatscatorccio replying to @NatScatorccio09
holy macaroni yall im speechless… the sheer talent this man has
@stickseason7xtaylor9_truther replying to @scatscatorccio
no cuz wtf were they feeding them in new jersey for that one tiny little town to produce that much talent…
@nattyyys13 replying to @NatScatorccio09
AHHHHHHHHHH
@natismine4ever replying to @NatScatorccio09
YALL. HELLO??? banger after banger after banger deluxe arhghgarhg
@natismine4ever replying to themself
no rlly tho… stream we’ll all be here forever yall i promise you will NOT be disappointed
@#1jackietaylor_stan replying to @NatScatorccio09
guys call your mom?? whyd nobody warn me wtf im bawling and its only 12:24 am
@maymidnightsss_ replying to @#1jackietaylor_stan
no fr cuz wtf man- every single song had me GASPING for air
@natt35 replying to @NatScatorccio09
guys can we talk about youre gonna go far rq cuz. its so clearly abt all his (ex)friends from wiskayok :((( I CANT.
@natt35 replying to themself
like he doesnt keep in contact w them (as far as we know) but you can just tell he misses them sm.
@ssscatorcciofan97 replying to @natt35
wait question who is “them”
@natt35 replying to @ssscatorcciofan97
im talking abt all the famous people in the music industry that all come from wiskayok, new jersey !!! they all graduated from the same high school within like 3 years of each other + from old posts we know that they all used to be friends, its a whole thing
-
Jackie always kept tabs on her fellow Yellowjackets, even more so when she wasn’t actually in contact with them because then how else would she stay updated with their lives? Even more so when it was Nat. So when he dropped his first album, she listened to it. She did the same with the second, and then the third as well. And when he dropped the deluxe of his third album, who was she to not listen to that as well?
Sure, maybe it was a bit deluded of her to be staying up late prepped for a listening party like she was an ordinary fan and not Jackie fucking Taylor, but she was in the privacy of her own home and she could do whatever she wanted.
And because she was in the privacy of her own home, there was no one around to judge her for the tears streaming down her face that lasted the entirety of her little listening party. She couldn’t help it- everything, from the lyrics, to the composition, to his voice, was perfect. Jackie was proud of him, even if they hadn’t spoken in years.
Which led her to doing something that Misty was definitely going to kill her for.
-
@JackieTaylor07
Guys go stream @NatScatorccio09’s “Stick Season (We’ll All Be Here Forever)” !!! Definitely a tear-jerker, but so so good. Proud of you, Natty :)
@stickseason7xtaylor9_truther replying to @JackieTaylor07
HOLY SHIT HOLY SHIT HOLY FUCK
@stickseason7xtaylor9_truther replying to themself
GUYS YOU DONT KNOW HOW LONG IVE WAITED. FOR THIS.
@stickseason7xtaylor9_truther replying to themself
life is good, life is great, i can die happy
@tay4life replying to @JackieTaylor07
yk its time to gts when you start hallucinating cuz i swear this is the OFFICIAL jackie taylor account talking abt nat scatorccio sigh i know this cant be real
@jackiejack99 replying to @JackieTaylor07
yes ma’am !
@JackieTaylorUpdates
Jackie Taylor confirms friendship (or something more?) with newly famous artist, Nat Scatorccio with a tweet encouraging fans to stream his new album.
@natt35 replying to @JackieTaylorUpdates
can yall shut uppp omg literally stop speculating ?? actually so insensitive
@natt35 replying to @JackieTaylor07
holy fuck maybe he IS in contact w the yjs ?? either way not mad abt it
@NatScatorccioUpdates
Stick Season streams have jumped 300% since Jackie Taylor’s tweet!
@natxjackie_believer
okay but can we just talk about their usernames for a second?? literally have never noticed bc ive never seen their users side by side but why are they lowkey matching ??
@stickseason7xtaylor9_truther replying to @natxjackie_believer
wait ur so right. omggg wait whats the significance of the numbers… ive got digging to do
@stickseason7xtaylor9_truther replying to themself
okay 30 minutes of digging later and i got something…
first things first, both of them have had their usernames dating back to as long as i can find so they’re not new developments
second, i found old pictures of the wiskayok soccer team and tell me why everyone we know is on it ?? not only are these ladies extremely musically talented but they can also play soccer… really well too, they won nationals in their senior year.
and last but CERTAINLY not least- nat’s jersey number was 7. jackie’s was 9. THEY HAVE EACH OTHER’S JERSEY NUMBERS IN THEIR USERS??? HELLO?? And Jackie’s like famously into the number 7… as in her fans draw 7’s on their left hands for her concerts. how tf did we not piece this shit together earlier.
@stickseason7xtaylor9_truther replying to themself
thank you for coming to my ted talk *bows*
-
Jackie fell asleep shortly after tweeting, knowing that when she woke up she’d have to deal with the shitstorm that she caused. Maybe she should’ve laid off the wine a little. She woke up groggy, to the sound of her phone buzzing a mile a minute.
She had her twitter notifications off, so it couldn’t be that. Jackie rolled over to check, knowing that there was hell to pay for last night her’s actions, and that avoiding Misty was just going to make things worse. Damn woman would probably just show up to her house- and she could not deal with that so early in the morning.
But when she opened her phone, it wasn’t the millions of texts and missed calls from Misty that she focused on. It was the singular notification at the bottom of her screen that drew her attention and caused her heart to stop in her chest. It was from an unknown number, but she would recognize it anywhere- she’d had it memorized since junior year in highschool. Jackie was surprised the number hadn’t changed since high school, she thought he’d changed it otherwise drunk her definitely would have at least texted him. The only thing was that her number had changed, so she didn’t know how in the fuck he got it.
822-993-1670
proud of you too, princess.