the stars in your eyes | t.s. one shots

the night-time sky's got nothing on you

Taylor giggles at Joe's silly little remark as they walk along the river in the dark, stealing a few minutes of alone time after Taylor's concert. It's well after midnight by now, but she's never been more awake. It's the adrenaline of performing a stadium show.

Nobody else is out at this time of the night. All of the fans have gone home, as have all of the paparazzi. It's one of the only times that Taylor and Joe can truly be alone, outside of the safety of their own home. They don't have a care in the world, just taking in the moon reflecting against the water and the stars twinkling in the sky.

"Thank you for coming on tour with me," Taylor says to Joe, their fingers intertwined. "It means the world to have you here."

"Of course I'd come with you," Joe says, his bright blue eyes sparkling in the moonlight. "There's nowhere else I'd rather be. You're my favorite person in the world."

"Why's that?" Taylor asks flirtatiously, swinging the arm that is holding Joe's hand and smirking at him.

"Everything about you. You know that by now."

"But if I didn't know... what would you say?" She flashes a coy smile at him, one that she knows will melt his heart.

"All of it... how you take every hotel room and make it into a home, just by being there. Because home is wherever you are. It's how you treat the fans like they're friends that you've known for your entire life. The way that you make your music sound like it's brand new, every single night. How the smell of your perfume always lingers in a room, even after you've left, reminding me that you're always with me."

As Joe speaks, Taylor can feel her heart beating in her chest. His deep voice and rich accent ring in her ears. She can feel her cheeks grow warm with a blush.

"Jooeee..." she whispers, with a small giggle.

"No, I'm not finished yet," he tells her, pressing his finger to her lips. "There's so much more."

He pauses for a moment, taking the time to search for the right words. As he thinks, the sound of the city swirls around the couple, with quiet murmur of cars on the distant road and the movement of the water beside them. The fireflies light up right before their eyes. Everything is so peaceful.

"I love the way that you always have some secret that you'll always share with me, but nobody else. But that the fans can see it in your eyes. They know when you're up to something, and you aren't afraid to let them know that with your adorable little smile. That smile that helps you to not only light up, but own every room that you walk into."

Joe notices a bench that is along the path and stops walking. "Shall we sit for a moment?"

Taylor nods and sits down on the bench, smoothing out her skirt on her lap. She rests her head on Joe's shoulder as he snakes his arm around her shoulders. He leans down and places a small kiss on the top of her head.

"You know what else I love about you?"

"There's more?" she asks him.

"Of course there's more. There's always going to be more."

Taylor giggles a little bit.

"I love how you are able to take every moment and make it feel like the most natural thing in the world. When things go wrong on stage, like what happened tonight..."

"I don't want to talk about it," Taylor says, her body tensing up as she pulls away from her boyfriend. "I came out on this walk to get my mind off of it, and I was doing just that..."

"T, you don't need to be upset about it. It was out of your control. Everyone understands that."

"But the fans that bought tickets by the B-stage were so upset."

"Hon, your lift broke and you couldn't safely get there. They all understand. They'd rather see you a little bit further away then not see you at all because you hurt yourself. They were still having so much fun."

"How do you know?"

"Because I was in the audience tonight, love. Just like I am every night. I saw them. They were out there laughing, screaming, singing, and dancing. They were having the best night of their life."

She sighs, knowing that she can only trust Joe. There really is nothing that she can do about what happened tonight. Her team is working to fix it to ensure that everything will be good for tomorrow.

"And the best part of it was the way that you just went with the flow of it all, that you still did everything you could to make it special for the fans. And because of that, it was special."

"I love you," Taylor whispers to her boyfriend, relaxing once again into him. Joe can feel the tension leave her body as he squeezes her into a cuddle.

"I love you too," Joe tells her. "More than you could ever know."

A sweet silence falls between the two as they stare out at the view before them. The city lights reflect off of the river in many colors: white, red, blue, green, purple, and more. The bridge in the distance has lights on it too. Cars drive across it, looking so small from far away. A light breeze blows, just enough to keep the warm summer night a pleasant temperature, not enough to be chilly.

"It really is a beautiful evening," Taylor remarks.

"It is," Joe nods, "but you know what?"

"What?"

"It's not nearly as beautiful as you are."

"Joe..."

"That's another thing that I love about you. You're just so gorgeous. I always pinch myself at how lucky I am to get to call you mine."

"You're too much."

"I mean it," Joe says. "The view is gorgeous, the stars are incredible... but the night-time sky's got nothing on you."