"Okay, are we recording?" August asked, looking up from the piano.

Jack nodded from across the booth and gave her two thumbs up.

August took in a shaky breath and adjusted the headphones over her ears.

"Whenever you're ready," he said.

Closing her eyes, August began playing the small melody she had written that merged into the intro of Ryne's Song.

And then she started playing the song, completely raw. She got through the whole take before finally looking up.

"Okay, and this is where it transitions into Moral of the Story," she finally said, finding Jack and Jon, perched over the equipment before them. To her surprise, she also found Taylor's eyes in the back of the room, folding her coat over her arm. "Oh... hey!"

"Hi! That sounded amazing! You wrote the bridge?" Taylor asked, smiling widely and August nodded.

"Yeah, we just did, actually," August explained. "What are you doing here?"

"I thought we had plans," Taylor replied, her lips quirking up amusedly.

"Yeah, at like eight," August answered with a small chuckle.

"It's seven—thirty," Jon said through his mic.

"Well, shit," August chuckled, grinning sheepishly at Taylor who let out a soft laugh.

"We still have some recording to do, right?"

Jack shrugged his shoulders and folded his arms over his chest, leaning back in his swivel chair. "Nope. I think we're good actually. This take was perfect. I can work with it."

"I thought my voice was kind of wavering at first," August said, getting up from the piano.

Jack shrugged again. "It's more real," he told her. "It was raw, August. I think that's the take we should go with, with a bit of editing and some backing instrumentals. But it's up to you."

"I agree," Jon said, nodding his chin in Jack's direction.

August looked up at Taylor expectantly. The blonde looked slightly taken aback. "What do you think, Tay?" August asked.

Taylor hesitated a little, brushing her bangs behind her ears. "I... well, I loved it. I have to agree with Jack. I think it sounded pretty intense. Like you're laying your heart bare on the record. But I don't know, I might be biased."

August trusted all their opinions. The song was never going to be perfect to her, anyway. It was always going to be just a bit too painful. She drew in a heavy breath and nodded, cracking her fingers.

"Alright, we'll get back to it on Monday, then," August finally decided and sent the team a small smile before heading out to them.

Taylor was the first to meet her right outside the recording booth, her arms open wide. August couldn't help but grin as she walked right into Taylor's embrace. She tipped her head back and pressed a kiss on Taylor's cheek before pulling away.

"Hey, great session today," Jack said, pushing his glasses up over his head. "We're making history."

"You think so?" August asked, her heart fluttering excitedly, and it had absolutely nothing to do with Taylor's arm snaking around her waist and pulling August into her side. Definitely not.

"I know so," he exclaimed, clapping his hands together. Then, he pointed at Taylor, eyebrows raised. "What'd I tell you when we made Folklore?"

"History!" Taylor answered with a little bubbly laugh in her words.

"And what did we make?"

"History," August laughed softly, her smile widening when Taylor's fingers dug comfortingly into her waist. Folklore had reached number 1 so fast, just like all of Taylor's other albums, and so soon after Lover, August knew for sure that she had indeed made history.

She trusted Jack.

"I know a good record when I hear it, August," he told her. "And you, my friend, have made a great record. In a few weeks, you're gonna have the whole world on its feet, listening to you."

August's cheek felt red hot but her eyes suddenly widened as she remembered something she had been meaning to talk her team about all week. Ever since she had first sat at that piano at three in the morning.

"About that," she started. "I was thinking maybe we could actually release it in December. Preferably around the holidays."

She chewed on her bottom lip while watching everyone's faces, trying to read their expressions.

"Aw, for my birthday?" Taylor teased and August rolled her eyes, jabbing her finger into her side. Taylor squirmed away, laughing under her breath.

"No," she answered, letting out a small sigh. "Christmas was Ryne's favourite time of the year, especially since he was born on Christmas Eve. He always got two presents from my parents, so... it's a whole thing. I just think that maybe this could be the best gift I could ever give him."

Taylor was smiling at her brightly. "That's so sweet, Auggie. So, he was like a christmas miracle?"

August chuckled. "Yeah, that's what my parents always said."

"I don't see why it could be a problem," Jack said. "We'll talk to the rest of the team and figure it out. Have a good weekend, you guys."

They each went their separate ways, with August and Taylor jumping into the back of her black SUV.

"You know, I could've made it back on the subway, right?" August started once the car started.

Taylor shrugged, reaching between them to grab her hand. "I wanted to pick you up. Besides, if I hadn't shown up, you probably would've been holed up in there for hours more."

August felt a blush creeping up her ears and she smiled sheepishly at Taylor. "I'm just excited. This is all super exciting!"

"I know," Taylor laughed softly, locking their fingers together. "But you gotta relax, babe. Everything's going great. You don't need to work yourself so hard."

"I do, though. I mean, it's my first record. I need to prove myself."

"I know," Taylor said softly, holding August's chin with her free hand. She leaned in closer and smiled lightly. "And you're going to. The music world won't know what hit it."

August beamed and closed the gap between them, kissing Taylor fully. "You're very good at the whole 'making me feel better' thing."

"Mhm, it's my job," Taylor murmured back, pecking August's lips once more before returning to her seat. "Can I ask you something?"

"Sure," August hummed, looking at the window as the busy streets of New York buzzed all around them.

"Did you wanna postpone the release date for more than just, you know, your brother?"

August waited until they had driven past a few buildings before turning to meet her gaze. "And I'm kinda nervous about it coming out so close. I'm not... emotionally prepared."

Taylor gave her hand a squeeze and caressed the back of it with her thumb. "I get that. It'll be great, though. I promise. When are you announcing the album?"

"Next week, I think," August answered. "Maybe not if we're changing the release date."

"That shouldn't matter," Taylor told her. "I'll post about it, too."

"You would do that?" August chuckled disbelievingly. Taylor rarely tended to use her social media platforms for such things.

"Hell, yeah! I'm on the record, if you remember correctly! And the first song, too!"

August laughed softly, pulling Taylor's hand into her lap and fiddling with her fingers. "Yeah, I remember. I'm pretty sure that's the only reason the album's gonna get any kind of recognition."

"Because my name's on the record?" Taylor asked and August nodded solemnly. "I don't think so."

"Taylor, you're like world famous. Everyone knows who you are. The only people who know me are like my few thousand followers, most of whom only followed me because of you, by the way. They'll only check the album out because your name's on there," August rambled.

Surprisingly, Taylor was watching her with an amused quirk in her expression. "Okay, I'll make you a bet then."

Intrigued, August raised an eyebrow, leaning her back against the car's door to look at Taylor fully. "What kind of bet?"

"We'll use a pseudonym. No one will know it's really me," she said, her smirk widening.

"A pseudonym? Taylor, people will still recognise your voice. It's like, iconic," August chuckled, shaking her head at the ridiculous idea.

"Sure, they'll take a guess. But we won't confirm it until... well, until you want to. It's up to you. So, they'll have to listen to the song first, with no knowledge of me being on it whatsoever."

August had to admit. The bet seemed too tempting to pass up. And August was nothing if not a person who took risks. She could never pass up the opportunity of a good bet like this. But then again, having Taylor's name meant instant success. She could make use of that opportunity, sure.

But also...

"Alright. Nils, was it?"

Taylor laughed excitedly, clapping her hands. "Nah, fans already know who Nils Sjoberg is. We'll have to choose something else."

"Janice."

"Like Janice from friends?"

"How many other Janices do you know?" August huffed and Taylor laughed loudly again.

"One too many, actually," she replied, leaning her elbow against the window as she thought for a moment. "Dorothea Grey."

"Huh, that's quite nice actually," August nodded as she thought of the name again. "I like that."

"Alright, so I'm no longer officially singing on your album. Say hello to Dorothea."

August laughed softly and waved at Taylor. "Hello, Dorothea. Tell me though, you chose Grey 'cause of Grey's Anatomy—"

"Grey's anatomy," Taylor confirmed at the same time. "Yes."

"Right," August chuckled softly, shaking her head at Taylor.

"Trust me, you're gonna be a fucking amazing, babe," Taylor said, pressing a kiss to her cheek and then opened the door as the car came to a stop.

They climbed up the stairs to the building and took the elevator to the top floor where they made their way into the Manhattan apartment.

"So, how was your day, Dorothea?" August asked while kicking her sneakers off by the door. Taylor followed suit, leaving her boots neatly in the corner.

"Pretty good. Had a short interview on zoom. Then, I signed a few thousand copies of the album. No biggie. Just the usual," Taylor answered with a small smile, hanging her coat up.

"How's your hand?" August asked with a little chuckle, crouching down as Phoebe came rushing to her side. She flopped down on her ass as the dog jumped in her lap, laughing softly while petting her and accepting the dog's kisses all over her face.

"You know? It has been feeling a little bit sore for the past few hours..." Taylor said, waving her wrist around in August's general direction.

"Yeah? Maybe I could do something about it," August offered, though she had no idea what she actually meant by that. What could she do about a sore hand?

Still, it brought a smirk to Taylor's face. "Come on. We're gonna be late!"

"You still haven't told me where we're going!" August complained, accepting Taylor's hand to pull her up to her feet again.

"You'll find out when we get there!"

"Ugh!" August groaned, trudging up the stairs with Phoebe right behind her. She passed by the bathroom first to freshen up before going to her room to pick an outfit. Except, she had no idea what she was supposed to wear.

"Tay, how fancy is the place?"

"It's our first official date. How fancy do you think I'm gonna go?" She responded, poking her blonde head of hair into the room.

August pouted. "Come on! Can you stop with all these ominous, cryptic answers and give me a straight one for once?"

"Honey, there is absolutely nothing straight about whatever is going on here right now!" Taylor exclaimed and ducked just in time as a sock came hurtling right at her head while laughing hysterically.

"Stop being cute and give me an answer, damn it!" August exclaimed though she couldn't stop the laughter that bubbled out of her.

"Sorry, it's in my DNA," Taylor responded, going back to her own room.

"I'm just gonna wear sweatpants!"

"That's totally fine!" Taylor answered which infuriated August even more. There was no way they were going to go to a place that was sweatpants-appropriate, right? Unless, technically every place was a sweatpants-appropriate place for the likes of Taylor Swift.

"Taylor Allison Swift, do not test me!"

Taylor gasped loudly all the way from her room. "You middle-named me!"

"Girl, I can do a lot more than middle-name you!"

Taylor poked her head in again, this time with a black sweater hanging around her neck instead of the plaid shirt she had been wearing earlier. August narrowed her eyes. That was a pretty dressy sweater... she thought so, at least. It was hard to tell with something so plain and simple.

"Like what?" Taylor asked, raising her eyebrows while shoving her arms through the sweater's armholes.

August had sort of forgotten where she was going with this as her eyes had accidentally spent one second too long watching the toned muscles of Taylor's abdomen constrict while she adjusted the top to fall over her torso in a tight fit. She just had to wear a crop-top, didn't she?

She cleared her throat and smirked at Taylor defiantly. "You'll find out soon enough," she shot back.

"Oh! Okay, I see you've learned to play the game. That's totally fine. I deserve it," Taylor chuckled, brushing her hair back behind her ears. "So, are you gonna wear sweatpants? Just so that I can know if I should go fancy skirt or like jeans or something."

She was playing mind tricks now? Trying to throw her off?

This was definitely a trick. August would just end up feeling underdressed if she even decided to go with a pair of slacks. She was sure of it now.

"I guess you'll have to wait and see," August decided and closed the door in Taylor's face. She could hear the blonde's adorable laughter fade away as she walked back down the hall. August was beaming as she rummaged through her closet until she pulled out a bunch of options. But she still couldn't choose anything. So, naturally, she asked twitter for advice, and when one of her old college friends had the funny idea to suggest pyjamas as an option, Taylor had the audacity to respond, saying that it would be a good option.

Shouldn't she have been getting dressed?

At least, her sister came through and had a pretty decent and helpful answer. The red dress August had borrowed last year for a wedding she had and had never returned it to Zoë. It was pretty fancy, and she didn't like to sound arrogant but she always looked really hot in it.

When she was done getting dressed and fixing her hair, she grabbed a matching red coat in one hand and her heels in the other before heading outside. Taylor's bedroom door was still closed so she headed downstairs first, sitting on the small armchair by the foyer. She had no idea why it was there, but it came in handy when she was wearing a dress and couldn't plop down on the ground to wear her shoes.

She was just buckling the second heel when Taylor came down the stairs, clasping her clutch closed.

"Hey! That's artisanal! It's only meant to be decorative!" Taylor cried out. August looked up to find that she had slipped on a short black skirt and a matching pair of black heels. She was walking down the stairs in those stilettos effortlessly and frankly, August envied that balance of hers.

Her breathing hitched at Taylor's beauty. She truly was angelic. August's lips slowly slid up in an easy smile and she pulled herself up and off the chair.

"Sorry, I just had to put my shoes on," she said, pulling her dress down to adjust it.

"Dude... you really dressed up," Taylor said, a small hitch in her voice. She cleared her throat and took a step toward August, her eyes shining in the dimly lit foyer. "You look beautiful."

"Did you just call me dude?" August breathed out a laugh. "We're supposed to be all fancy and shit today."

Taylor scrunched her nose and slid her arm around August's waist. She could suddenly smell the blonde's soft perfume, with sweet floral and citrusy hints that drove her insane.

"Screw fancy," Taylor murmured and pressed her mouth over August's in a hot kiss. August smirked, kissing her back for a moment, but she wasn't going to let Taylor have all the fun she wanted now. She pulled away just enough to tease the older singer.

"So, we're not going to a fancy place?" August asked, just to be sure she understood Taylor correctly.

Instead of answering, Taylor linked her arm through August's and pulled her toward the large wooden doors. They stepped out into the hallway and locked the doors before heading to the elevators. In the small vicinity as they rode down to the underground parking, Taylor pressed feather-like kisses down August's jawline.

"You smell nice," August mumbled, closing her eyes for a moment to enjoy it. She felt Taylor's breath against her skin as she exhaled a small chuckle and nuzzled her cheek.

"So do you," Taylor hummed in response. "Is that vanilla?"

"Mhm, I think so," August responded, lacing her fingers through Taylor's when the doors opened. "At least, that's what the label read on that tub of lotion."

Taylor waited until she had unlocked her car and August had let go to get to the passenger side until she answered. "Anyway, it's intoxicating."

She had said it so casually, with the slightest of growls in her voice, it took August a second to collect herself and climb into the front seat of the car. That was... well, there was no other way to describe it. It was fucking sexy as hell.

August was not going to survive the night at that rate.

"Where's Greg?" August asked, surprised that for once, they were alone in the car and Taylor was driving herself. The blonde chuckled and pointed at an SUV parked nearby.

"He'll be following us," she explained and drove out of the parking space.

For the most part, she remained quiet during the car ride, humming occasionally to the songs that had started playing when Taylor's phone had connected to the car's bluetooth. The playlist was pretty calming, with a bunch of quiet indie folk songs playing, many of which August turned out to be familiar with.

It was only twenty minutes later, despite the typical Saturday night New York traffic that Taylor had come to a stop, signalling for the cars behind her that she was going to be parking in the empty spot ahead. August was confused as she looked out the window. There was a hotel across the street and what looked like a pretty fancy rooftop dining area a little down the street. Surely, Taylor would have given the car to a valet service. Or perhaps she wanted to show off her parking skills. Either way, she left August very confused.

"We're here?" August asked and Taylor grinned, turning the engine off.

"Yup," she responded, popping the 'p'. She grabbed her face-mask which had a bunch of kittens on it and slid it over her mouth and nose before pulling the keys out of the ignition and grabbing her purse from the backseat.

August did the same, having absolutely no clue what was coming next. She followed Taylor down the sidewalk, worming their way between people who may or may not have recognised them. It was easier to blend in at night, August had come to realise, but probably not when they were both dressed so well.