a day ago
Taylor Swift is right – this is the hottest thing a guy can do when you're in your 30s
Maturing is realising that you don't need to fix him, actually.
A certain level of confidence is required to make a friendship bracelet for your crush – even more to publicly shoot your shot. But that's exactly what Travis Kelce did two years ago, after failing to get backstage to meet Taylor Swift following her concert at Arrowhead, the stadium where his NFL team, the Kansas City Chiefs, play.
"I was a little [hurt] that I didn't get to hand her one of the bracelets I made for her," he told his brother Jason on their New Heights podcast at the time, before disclosing one of his beaded creations included his jersey number, 87.
And yet, it was this bold move that caught Swift's attention – and was ultimately the reason they got together in the first place. As she told Time magazine that same year, she thought it was simultaneously "adorable" and "metal as hell."
Fast-forward to present day and things have come full circle, with the singer announcing the release of her twelfth studio album, The Life of a Showgirl, on that very same podcast. She also used the episode (which, admittedly, was a little indulgent, with a run-time of more than two hours), as a rare opportunity to shower her boyfriend with praise.
'A human exclamation point'
In the new clip, which aired on Wednesday, 13 August (her favourite number – besides Kelce's, of course), she said: "This felt more like I was in an 80s John Hughes movie [the filmmaker known for movies including The Breakfast Club] and he was just standing outside of my window with a boombox being like, 'I want to date you! Do you want to go on a date with me? I made you a friendship bracelet'… I was like, if this guy isn't crazy – which is a big if – this is sort of what I've been writing songs about wanting to happen to me since I was a teenager."
She then went on to describe Kelce as a "human exclamation point", commenting on how he's a "vibe booster in everyone's life."
It was at this point I fully understood why she's so drawn to him – and became a fully-fledged Swelce stan.
I Can Fix Him (No Really I Can)
You see, contrary to what pop culture would have us believe, sometimes love can be easy. Sometimes it can be straightforward, without conditions and complications. And sometimes, the sexiest thing of all is to know exactly where you stand and to feel secure and good about your relationship. Imagine!
As a thirtysomething millennial, I still recall the first time I watched the Twilight movies as a teen (and no, I'm not bringing this up because Swift used to date Taylor Lautner).
Despite Jacob's buoyant personality, incredible pecs and general lack of blood-sucking enemies (besides Edward), it was that glittery vampire that was teed up as "the one" for Bella. Why? Because he looked pained every time he saw her. He was withdrawn, withholding and gave absolutely nothing – therefore presenting himself as a challenge, feeding into the "I can fix him" trope (which Swift herself knows all too well).
Even by today's standards, very little has changed, with an entire cohort of fully grown women rallying for a romantic relationship between Conrad Fisher and Belly Conklin in The Summer I Turned Pretty. Don't get me wrong, I am also Team Conrad, but it speaks a lot to how some women and girls view these types of boys and men in heterosexual situations – and how we glorify these apparently "complex" individuals.
But are they really that deep? Or are we simply projecting this narrative because what we are actually craving is meaningful connection – a love story for the ages and someone willing to make grand gestures because they see us for who we really are and risk it all to let it be known?
'I think I am finally clean'
It's a realisation I, too, have come to recently, having spent the past year dealing with a particularly avoidant individual who, to be honest with you, could give the 'smallest man who ever lived' a run for his money.
While I have long fawned over emotionally unavailable men, I have gotten to the point where I am so over the whole brooding, tortured type, and more than ready for someone who knows exactly what they want, and how to communicate that – just like Travis.
Look, I'm not saying that everyone should go on a podcast and publicly profess their love. Nor am I saying that this sort of grand gesture should become commonplace – if it did, it wouldn't be authentic or sincere and it would most certainly lose its sparkle.
But when there's been such a dramatic shift towards individualism and placing our own needs ahead of everyone else's in recent years, I find this approach seriously refreshing – and no doubt Swift also did.
Of course, boundaries are largely a good thing. We shouldn't do something we really don't want to do and we should respect others'. But showing up for someone? Making them feel like the world revolves around them? Surely that's got to be worth it if the outcome is love, happiness and unbridled joy?
Sometimes, in a world full of question marks and ellipses, we could all do with a human exclamation point. And perhaps, maturing is realising that you don't need to fix him, actually – and the best thing is to finally get clean.
Read more about Taylor Swift:
Everything we know about Taylor Swift's album The Life of a Showgirl (Yahoo Entertainment UK, 4-min read)
Taylor Swift and Travis Kelce share 3 rare insights into private relationship (Yahoo Entertainment UK, 5-min read)
Biggest Super Bowl moments as Taylor Swift is booed and Kendrick Lamar performs Drake diss track (Yahoo Entertainment UK, 5-min read)
