isn't it? [taylor swift]

chapter 66

September 2022

Jimmy grinned from across the desk, his pen tapping once against the cards in his hand.

"Okay, so," he said, leaning forward slightly, "last time you were here, you kinda dropped a lot on us."

Leia laughed, tipping her head back slightly. "Did I?"

"Oh yeah," he said, eyes wide with mock betrayal. "You just casually told me that your album was actually about someone you'd been dating in private. Like, boom. You just said that."

Leia grinned, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear. "I did say that."

The crowd let out a collective ooooh, sensing where this was going.

Jimmy raised his brows dramatically. "So... now that it's been a few months, and your fans have been very calm and chill about it..."

Laughter from the audience. Leia gave the camera a look that said he's lying.

"...are you ready to give us more information?" Jimmy pressed. "Like, just a little bit more? Come on. This is a safe space."

Leia paused, her smile stretching a little wider, eyes dancing with mischief. 

"We're getting there."

The crowd roared again, and Jimmy clutched his chest like she'd just wounded him personally.

"We're getting there? That's all I get?"

Leia shrugged, looking entirely too pleased with herself. "What can I say? I like a slow burn."

He groaned playfully, and the interview moved on - to life updates, the music video she'd co-directed, and a behind-the-scenes story from her latest shoot involving Tate getting into the craft services table and devouring six slices of turkey before anyone noticed. The energy stayed light and warm, but that small moment - we're getting there - lingered in the air, like static. Like potential.

Later, the greenroom felt blissfully dim in contrast.

Leia sat in front of the mirror, still in her suit, a water bottle resting on the table in front of her and her phone beside it, screen lit with a stream of unread texts - Georgie, Riven (who was supposed to be here but had caught the flu and taken out Azul with him in the process), a selfie from Taylor captioned that suit looks criminally good, followed by I'm proud of you. She hadn't opened that one yet. She was saving it.

She had just started to unfasten her cufflink when the knock came - soft, two short raps.

"Come in," she called, voice half-lost in the quiet hum of the dressing room lights.

Jimmy stepped in with his usual warmth, still in his blazer, a bit of his cue cards peeking out of his back pocket. He smiled like he was walking into a friend's apartment, not a post-show greenroom. 

"Hey."

Leia straightened slightly. "Hey. Thanks again for tonight."

"No, thank you," he said, stepping closer and resting one hand on the back of the empty chair beside her. "You're one of my favorite guests. Always make my job easy."

She smiled, loosening the second cufflink now. "You say that to everyone."

"Only the ones who are secretly dating my other favourite guests," he teased, then held up a hand as she gave him a look. "Kidding. Mostly."

Leia rolled her eyes, but her smile didn't falter. Jimmy had known her for years - back when she was barely holding together interviews, too fragile to smile for real and too raw to fake it. He'd always handled her gently. With grace. Never pushed. Just nudged.