so!!! here's the first official chapter :) i hope you guys enjoy it!!
EDIT: Hey guys!! First off, I wanna say thank you for reading! It rly means the world! Second of all, I've been seeing a lot of comments from ppl complaining about spoilers. Thank you for reading the story and then choosing to read it again and leave comments like you don't even know how much that means to me and how happy it makes me
buuuut we do have a lot of new readers here as well, so if we can avoid commenting anything that might hint to whatever happens later on in the story, that would be great.
I can't go through the 2 books and check for every spoiler so please just be mindful
And of course, it goes without saying, don't comment anything rude/mean/racist/sexist/homophobic/transphobic/anything mean or at the expense of anyone else, no bullying, etc. Be nice! Thank you !
Love you guys<3
And welcome to the cult of Taia (as Lex would have it) <3
———
May 2nd, 2016
10:30 a.m.
Kaia held her phone facing the mirror. She was grinning nervously at her reflection, taking in deep breaths.
"Are you sure you wanna do this?" Her best friend, Mica asked in a slight French accent.
"Oui," Kaia said, the jitters clear as day in her voice. She grabbed the clippers from the bathroom counter in her New York apartment and handed her phone over to her older sister, Layla.
"You could wait a day or two, you know," Layla suggested, nervously running her hand over her freshly buzzed scalp.
"Think about this," Kaia said, adjusting the settings on the hair clippers. "British actress Kaia Browne shaves her head off after The Met Gala, OR, British actress Kaia Browne opts for the ultimate edgy look in accordance with the theme for the Gala!"
"The second headline does sound better," Mica agreed, running his fingers through his soft blonde curls. They were going to go next. "The first one just makes it sound like you had a meltdown."
"Exactly," Kaia breathed out, turning on the clippers. The buzzing sound made her heart flip. This was it.
"You're doing it for cancer, though," Layla made sure to remind her younger sister, as though she could ever forget the reason.
"And I'll make sure everyone knows it," she said softly. Her sister's hand fell to her shoulder and Kaia squeezed it three times. Layla smiled softly at her and without a second thought, she ran the hair clippers over her brown hair.
"Well, there's no going back now," Mica sighed and offered to take over.
Layla documented the whole process as Mica trimmed Kaia's hair until it was completely buzzed off.
Surprisingly, it looked... hot.
Kaia let out a nervous laugh, taking her phone back from her sister. She flipped the camera into a selfie view and let out a low whistle, running her free hand over her head.
"Putain," she swore in French, grinning widely. "This is going to be iconic."
"Dude, you're going to be the whole event," Mica told her, giving her shoulders heavy pats.
"Pretty sure that's going to be the hosts," she laughed in response. Kaia finally ended the video and got up, brushing loose strands of hair off. "Your turn!"
"Nour is going to be so shocked," Mica said as he sat in Kaia's previous seat, referring to the girls' mother.
Kaia shared a look with her sister, smiling softly before turning on the clippers again and running it over Mica's beautiful blond locks before he could even say goodbye to them.
"EH, TU FAIS QUOI, PUTAIN? I WASN'T FUCKING READY!" He cried out, cursing his friend rudely while holding the strands of hair that fell into his lap. [Hey, what the fuck are you doing?]
The Browne sisters burst out laughing, Kaia grinning at her childhood best friend unapologetically.
"Tu t'fous de ma gueule, quoi? Putain d'merde!"
"Sorry, babe," Kaia laughed and continued to buzz a now pissed-off Mica's hair.
05:00 p.m.
"What the fuck did you do?"
Kaia grinned sheepishly as she opened the door to her publicist, who needed to make sure everything was going to run smoothly at the big event ahead of time.
The older woman's gaze jumped from Kaia to the older Browne sister standing in the hallway with a make-up brush in hand, to Mica, sitting on the floor, playing with Katara, her rescue Scottish fold.
"You— why?" Emma sighed, closing the front door behind her. Kaia returned to her bedroom, sitting on the small chair in front of her mirror so that Layla could go back to fixing her make-up before the big event.
Kaia just shrugged, closing her eyes as her sister-slash-professional make-up artist powdered her face with something. She had no idea what Layla was doing but she trusted her.
"Mum," she answered briefly. Emma's face immediately softened in understanding.
"I'm sure she'll appreciate it," she said, already typing something on her phone. Probably figuring out a way to manage the headlines that were surely going to blow up as soon as the actress was going to step into public.
"It's a good thing it matches the whole outfit you're going for," Emma added, pointing at the silver dress resting on her bed.
"Yeah," Kaia chuckled softly, blinking her eyes open when she felt Layla step away for a moment.
"She's gonna look hot as fuck, t'en fais pas," Layla reassured the publicist, telling her not to worry.
"Yeah, don't fuck it up," Emma sighed, walking out to wait in the main room with Mica. "I'm already tired from that thing you pulled with this idiot last month in Prague," she called out from the other room, referring to the blond photographer.
"Gee, thanks, Emily," Mica responded, using the wrong name on purpose.
Kaia chuckled at their antics and parted her lips as Layla started painting them with some black lipstick.
08:00 p.m.
The bright camera flashes were blinding. As expected, everyone was staring at Kaia in shock.
At the Met Gala, you always expected the most extravagant and ridiculous outfits. Nothing was considered too shocking or too much.
And still, the cameras never seemed to get enough of Kaia Browne. They loved her. Everyone wanted to know what made her actually chop off all of her hair.
She remained quiet, smiling and waving at the crowds, with Mica walking just a few feet behind in a dapper black tuxedo until she had stepped to the more secluded area where she would be interviewed.
She was asked about her outfit first and she gave the basic details, describing the long and bright silver dress, exposing most of her abdomen in an X pattern and the matching studded heels. She even made sure to promote her sister as the amazing artist who took care of her make-up.
"And wow!" The interviewer exclaimed. "We've seen many celebrities buzz their hair recently, and you look so amazing, by the way!"
"Aw, thank you! Thank you so much for saying that," Kaia said softly, smiling at the shorter man. Her heels were quite tall, and she wasn't exactly short, to begin with. "Yeah, you know, I wasn't sure how it was going to look at first, but I'm really glad with how it turned out!"
"Wait, so this was a last-minute thing?"
Kaia made a little face and shook her head. "Not really. It's been a plan for a few weeks now."
"Oh? What prompted this decision, if you don't mind me asking? I mean, either way, I know we're all so happy with the end result!"
Kaia let out a small laugh, smiling at the camera. "Yeah, thank you, again. Uhm, my sister and I, and my best mate, my brother, Mica, who's my hot date tonight, by the way, shaved our hair in support of my mum. She's going through chemo and..." Kaia shrugged as she noticed the sympathetic look that immediately crossed the interviewer's eyes. She really wasn't in the mood for pity.
"We're just supporting her. Love you, mama!" Kaia blew a quick kiss to the camera, knowing her mother was watching back at home.
In the far corner of the venue, Kaia spotted her good friend and fellow actress, Anna Jones. Once the interview ended, she immediately walked over there, happy to find a familiar face.
The twenty-two-year-old actress embraced her friend immediately. They hadn't seen each other since they had wrapped up their last movie together earlier that year.
"Your hair!" That was the first thing the Irish woman said and Kaia laughed softly.
"I know! It looks great though, doesn't it?"
"It really does! I love it! And Mica... lovely to see you again, mate. You too?" Anna asked, her voice pitchy with excitement. "How's your mum doing?"
Kaia's smile faltered a little. "Okay, for the most part. It's been hard but, she's going to get better."
"She will! She's a strong woman," Mica said with a nod, wrapping his arm around Kaia and she could only agree. Nour Khouri Browne was the strongest woman Kaia had ever met.
"Yeah. How's Andrew doing?" Kaia asked, changing the subject before she would start tearing up.
"He's good, he's good, working on new stuff," Anna teased, knowing Kaia was a big fan of her boyfriend's music.
"Oh, you've got to 'accidentally' call me whenever he's recording," Kaia joked and the blonde bumped their shoulders before linking elbows together. "Where are we supposed to go, now?"
"Home?" Anna said playfully, making Kaia roll her eyes. "That's Taylor Swift, isn't it? Let's just follow her. She probably knows."
Kaia turned to look at where her friend was subtly pointing at. Indeed, there stood the famous American singer, posing for the cameras.
"She's bleached her hair," Mica pointed out.
"Kaia! Anna! Can we get a picture, please?" A photographer had called out and the girls turned to smile for him.
"She looks good," Kaia admitted making her friend chuckle.
"Yeah," Anna mumbled, dragging Kaia away. "Fucked up, though, with the rumours and everythin', right?"
Kaia was familiar with the rumours Anna was talking about. She wasn't exactly sure she understood what was going on there, but she knew the media was split trying to defend the famous rapper, Kanye, or Taylor.
Frankly, Kaia had been too busy dealing with her life to follow any celebrity gossip, but truth be told, she never really liked the rapper anyway.
"Are you seriously planning on following her around?" Kaia asked, knowing Anna would do it, with no hesitation.
"No, of course not! She intimidates me!" Anna admitted, and Kaia laughed at her friend.
"Seriously?" She asked, still giggling. "She gives off sunflowers and butterflies vibes."
"Not with that outfit she doesn't," Mica huffed and well, Kaia couldn't deny it.
She looked pretty badass.
11:30 p.m.
"Fucking hell, I am absolutely fucking wasted!" Anna exclaimed, leaning her head on Emilia's shoulder, another one of their friends from their days in Drama school.
"Maybe you should ease off the champagne," Emilia laughed, trying to remove the flute glass out of the blonde's grip. "And stop smoking that spliff!"
"Yeah, and give it here," Mica laughed, his gaze bleary and his smile lazy.
Oh, they were sooooo high.
Kaia smiled amusedly at her friends. "I'm going to go hunt for some bottles of water," she announced and got up to search for a waiter or someone who could help.
The room was packed and Kaia was so hot. She ran her hand up, trying to tie her hair only to remember there was nothing to tie. She hoped no one had noticed that embarrassing moment.
She managed to worm her way around the dancing celebrities and drunk rich people until she made her way to the bar. She smiled at the tired young woman who was pouring a cocktail to some snobby, drunk old man, and waited patiently to get her full attention.
Sure, Kaia had indulged herself with a few glasses of champagne and a shot or two of vodka, but she thought she might have been the only one in that room still aware of her surroundings.
"Four waters, please," she smiled politely at the bartender when she had finally come by.
The young woman passed the bottles of water with a small smile back. "Love the hair, by the way."
Kaia's smile turned into a smirk and she winked subtly at the girl before grabbing the four bottles.
She might have normally been shy, but three-drinks-Kaia was very flirty. She wasn't exactly out to the public but a bit of flirting never hurt anyone. Plus, the college girl looked very pretty with her curly hair tied back and her brown eyes shining brightly in the dimly lit room.
"Merci, chérie," she said, emphasising her French accent.
With the plastic bottles of water in her hands, Kaia made her way back toward her friends. But for some reason, it was much harder this time trying to find their table. There seemed to be a larger crowd around, everyone screaming louder at whoever was causing the commotion.
With a little sigh, Kaia glanced down to make sure she didn't accidentally stab someone's foot with her heels. It was a big mistake.
She bumped straight into someone's back, her nose crashing with the back of their head and getting a mouthful of their hair. She stepped back, spluttering unflatteringly at the painful contact.
"Bloody hell," she mumbled, using the back of her hand to rub her nose that had started aching. "I'm so sorry, I wasn't looking."
"Oh, no! That was totally my fault. I should not have tried to walk backwards," the woman giggled, her words slightly slurred. Kaia had no doubt she was one of the many incredibly inebriated people around. "I think I've had one too many shots. Are you okay?"
Kaia finally focused on the face in front of her, her blue eyes widening when she recognised the familiar face, her eyes glazed over with the amount of alcohol consumed.
Taylor Swift was grinning sheepishly, brushing her fingers back through her bleached hair.
"Oh, hey! I saw your movie on the plane a while back. It was so funny!" Taylor exclaimed, which both surprised and confused Kaia because:
1- Taylor Swift had seen one of her movies on a plane, which meant it was an older one, which meant it was pretty embarrassing
2- Kaia had never starred in a comedy.
"Uhm... thank you?" She responded, the confusion obvious in her tone and expression.
The singer snapped her finger trying to remember the movie.
"What was it called? The Show Goes On?"
Oh.
"The Show Must Go on," Kaia recalled, letting out a small chuckle. "I'm pretty sure you were supposed to cry at the end of that movie."
Her character did die in the end.
"Oh, sure! I was sobbing!" The singer replied like she hadn't just called the movie hilarious. "But the whole poshness of it all was pretty funny."
Kaia did not get it, but she let it slide. Who was she to question the likes of Taylor Swift?
"Right... well, be careful— wait, is that Tom Hiddleston?"
"I— yeah," Taylor responded, glancing back at the older man who was dancing his arse off.
"Oi! Hiddles!" Kaia called out and upon hearing his name the actor turned around and grinned when he saw Kaia.
"Kaia Browne, as I live and breathe!" He hugged her quickly before letting her go, beaming widely. "How are you?"
"I've been better, but we move on! And you? It's been a while. How's Bess?"
Tom grimaced and shook his head.
The pair had met while performing in the same play on the West End and though they didn't have many scenes together, Tom was always so nice and they'd become pretty good work friends.
"In the past. Do you wanna dance with us?" He asked, holding his hand out in the direction of the blonde singer.
Kaia raised her eyebrows in surprise. Well, that was an odd pairing.
"Thanks, but I've got three mates pissed as all hell waiting for me to drag their arses back home," Kaia laughed, holding out the bottles of water. "And by the looks of it, you two should probably lay off the free champers. Here, you need this more than I do."
She handed Taylor one of the cold waters, smiling softly at her. The blonde took it hesitantly, regarding the younger actress with interest.
"Thank you," she chuckled softly, already unscrewing the cap.
"Yeah, no worries. Take care! And Hiddles, do not be stranger!" Kaia called out over the loud music, pointing an accusing finger at the older man.
"Sure thing!"
She turned around to walk away, flopping down in her seat once she had finally found it and handed each of her friends a bottle of water.
"You will never believe who the fuck I just ran into!" Kaia exclaimed, running her hand over her head. She glanced down at her hand, feeling a little odd when she didn't find any hair to fix. She was going to need a long time to get used to this haircut.
"Oh my god, is it Selena Gomez?" Mica asked, looking around the room excitedly.
"No— is she even here?" Kaia furrowed her eyebrows. "Drink up. I don't need you all bloody complaining in the morning."
With a little roll of her eyes, Anna attempted to open her bottle only for her hand to slip over and over again.
Kaia grabbed it from her and untwisted the cap, earning herself a wide, crooked grin from her friend. "Thanks, mommy."
"You're the fucking worst," Kaia snapped but she couldn't stop herself from laughing while Emilia and Mica were giggling horribly. "How have they not kicked us out yet?"
"Is that Taylor Swift?" Millie suddenly asked, leaning over the table with her eyes wide.
"Yeah, that's what I was saying—" Kaia started when Mica interrupted.
"Am I tripping or is she making her way over here?" Mica interrupted, squishing himself against Kaia to get a better look at the famous singer who was indeed walking over toward them.
Kaia watched wide-eyed as Taylor stood behind Emilia and Anna, looking straight at Kaia.
"Hey!" She called out over the loud music and Kaia raised her eyebrows in surprise at the singer. Maybe she had dropped something?
She reached up to check her earrings, but they were all still in place.
"The buzzcut looks hot as fuck!" Taylor continued with a little smirk.
Kaia was taken aback but she grinned brightly anyway, feeling her cheeks heat up just slightly.
"Thank you," she laughed in disbelief, running her hand over her head again. It still felt weird as fuck but she felt good about it now.
"Hi, you're Taylor Swift!" The blond next to Kaia extended his hand, grinning widely. Taylor giggled, shaking his hand politely.
"Yes, I am!"
"You're a bleached version of Taylor Swift," Mica said again which made the singer raise her eyebrows and let out a light laugh.
"I am, yeah."
"They're very high, please ignore them," Kaia confessed, hoping to excuse her friends' awkward behaviour.
"Oh, every other person in here is," Taylor laughed wholeheartedly. "I for one am a wizard right now."
"Are you really?" Kaia asked in amusement, grabbing Mica's water to drink the rest of it.
"Mhm, yeah, I can do magic," Taylor nodded, leaning forward on the table.
"Oh! A magic trick! Yes!" Anna clapped her hands excitedly. "Do a magic trick!"
Drunk Taylor Swift beamed at the attention the group was giving her.
"I'm going to cartwheel out of here."
"Oh, no, that's a horrible idea," Kaia exclaimed, fearing the worst already. No sober person should ever cartwheel in a room as crowded as this one was, let alone a drunk person in a tight dress and heels, in a room full of other intoxicated people.
It was a call for disaster.
"It's a great idea!" Taylor retorted, lifting her arms up in the air. "I'm going to cartwheel."
"Okay, but a cartwheel is not a magic trick," Kaia said, hoping to dissuade the singer from potentially harming herself.
"Yes, it definitely is!" The blonde insisted, nodding her head with determination.
"How so?" Kaia challenged her, already up on her feet because she didn't want to have a fatally injured international celebrity on her hands.
"See, I've never done a cartwheel before, so, if I do it, it'd be magic!"
"Oh, you're definitely taking a break," Kaia burst out laughing, grabbing the singer by the arm and leading her back toward her own table.
"Noooo, your friends want to see the magic trick!" The 'wizard' exclaimed but Kaia bit back a grin and shook her head.
"Maybe another time? When you're less drunk?"
Taylor stopped for a second and then nodded. "You're probably right."
"Yup," Kaia chuckled, finally finding her way back to where she had bumped into Taylor earlier.
"Oh, there you are!" A redheaded woman exclaimed.
"Tree!" Taylor cried out excitedly. "I can do a cartwheel!"
"She's in safe hands, right?" Kaia asked the woman who looked dead tired but she did send Kaia a smile and a nod.
"Yep, thanks," she sighed deeply. "Kaia Browne, aren't you?"
"Yes, I am!" Kaia smiled politely, still not used to getting recognised in public.
"Loved your show!
"Thank you—" Kaia started to say when the blonde interrupted her.
"Did I do a cartwheel?"
Kaia laughed, shaking her head at the singer as she started to walk away. "Goodnight, Taylor. It was very... interesting meeting you!"
"Oh, you too!" She responded enthusiastically, waving her off.
09:30 a.m.
Kaia woke up to her alarm blaring with a killer headache. Great.
———
aaaaaaaaaa what did you guys think of this small intro?