"Quick! Hurry up!"
As soon as class ended, Little Taylor and her three close buddies bolted out of school like wild little maniacs, racing toward the nearest music store.
Today was the big day—the official release of the first single by famous director Dunn Walker and his girlfriend, the newly crowned Oscar-winning actress Natalie Portman!
With Taylor's connections, buying a record was the least of her worries. She could probably get Dunn to sing it live for her if she asked. But at twelve or thirteen, this lively girl loved the thrill of chasing stars with her friends.
"Ugh, we're too late!"
A pretty girl named Emily panted as she ran.
The line at the music store stretched right out the door.
Another friend, Sarah, grumbled, "That stupid math teacher! If it weren't for him, we wouldn't be late!"
Taylor felt a little deflated too. When they reached the store, there were at least 30 people ahead of them. "Let's just wait. It'll probably only take… like, 10 minutes."
Just then, their school rivals—Laura and her clique—came rushing over, out of breath.
Seeing them trailing behind, Taylor couldn't resist a smug jab. "Hmph! Short legs really slow you down, huh?"
"Say that again, country bumpkin, and I'll teach you a lesson!" Laura shot her a nasty glare.
Taylor had grown up in the countryside. When she first transferred to L.A., she'd made a few embarrassing blunders, but that was ancient history. Still, the "country bumpkin" nickname stuck.
"Teach me? Look at your ugly face—no wonder Johnny doesn't like you! Hmph, he chased me, and I didn't even give him the time of day!" Taylor smirked, tossing Laura a disdainful glance.
And just like that, the two groups of girls started bickering like a flock of noisy sparrows.
But they kept it civil—no fists, just words.
Little girls and their schoolyard drama—it's just how it goes.
Soon enough, the line moved along.
Watching others walk away with their records, clutching them happily, the girls' eyes sparkled with longing.
Taylor was at the front of her crew. She dug a crumpled $1 bill from her pocket, handed it over, and said quickly, "Keep the change as a tip."
The cashier, a woman in her forties, glanced at the dollar and frowned. "Sweetie, this record is $1 plus 49 cents!"
"What?" Taylor froze.
Behind her, her rivals started chirping again. Laura didn't hold back. "Typical country bumpkin—no clue! A $1 single? That's for washed-up nobodies. This is Dunn Walker and Natalie Portman we're talking about—Madonna-level stuff, you big dummy!"
The cashier chuckled. "She's right."
Taylor shot them an angry glare, then put her hands on her hips. "There's something wrong with this store! Are you ripping us off because we're middle schoolers?"
"What did you say?" The cashier's expression shifted.
Laura laughed harder. "Country bumpkin, are you buying or not? If not, get lost—don't hold up the line!"
Emily, one of Taylor's besties, leaned in and whispered, "Not enough cash? I've got some."
"No, that's not it!"
Taylor spun around, glaring at the cashier. "You're lying! You're making dirty money! This record's supposed to be 99 cents nationwide. Dunn… Director Walker said himself he's not trying to profit off it—it's a thank-you gift for his movie and music fans. But you're charging 50 cents more!"
The cashier blinked, caught off guard.
She was just an employee, not the owner. She didn't know the ins and outs of the pricing.
But this kid seemed so sure of herself—maybe she wasn't bluffing?
Taylor pressed on. "Dunn's a millionaire—a super millionaire! He could buy all of L.A. if he wanted! He doesn't need to make money off records. He released this single because he loves music, and it's for my…"
She stopped mid-sentence.
At school, she never talked about her family—or anything tied to Dunn.
Emily tilted her head. "Did you read that in the paper? Is it really 99 cents?"
"Yeah, yeah, in the paper! Nationwide price—99 cents!" Taylor jumped on the excuse.
Laura, smirking from behind, chimed in with a mocking tone. "She's lying! She's stuttering like crazy—she's totally making it up. 99 cents? No way it's that cheap. She's just too broke to afford it!"
"I'm not lying! It is 99 cents!"
Taylor was fuming, stuck between anger and frustration. She knew she was right but couldn't prove it.
Laura sneered. "Liar! Hmph, if you can't afford it, don't buy it. Go download a pirated copy online. Are you buying or not? Move it—people are waiting!"
The cashier softened her tone. "Yeah, sweetie, it's $1.49. That's what we've always sold it for. Maybe… you got it mixed up?"
"I didn't mix it up—he told me himself!" Taylor shouted.
"He?"
The word hung in the air, and the girls pounced on it. "Who? I thought you said you didn't have a boyfriend! Liar, total liar!"
Taylor was so mad she could cry. She glared at Laura, then spun back to the cashier. "You're the liars—big fat liars!"
With that, she flicked her sleeve, stormed off, and ditched the idea of buying the record altogether.
Emily and her other two friends exchanged a look and hurried after her.
Outside the store, Taylor was still huffing, but seeing her three pals stick by her warmed her heart. She sniffled. "You guys aren't buying either?"
Emily smiled. "We trust you. If you say it's 99 cents, then it's 99 cents!"
Sarah nodded. "Exactly! A 99-cent record for $1.49? That's a scam."
Kayla added, "Let's hit a different store after school. We'll get a fair deal."
Taylor's eyes softened. "Thanks for believing me."
"No biggie—we're besties, right?"
"Yeah, let Laura and her little crew get suckered instead!"
"Haha, we're the smart ones!"
Taylor bit her lip, stomped her foot, and gritted her teeth. "Come on, let's go to that phone booth over there. I'm making a call!"
"A call? For what?"
"Just trust me!"
At the booth, Taylor dialed a number. A familiar voice answered—it was Dunn!
"Who's this?"
"It's me—Taylor! Taylor Swift!"
"Huh? Why're you calling now?"
Taylor huffed and spilled the whole story in a rush.
Dunn paused, then said in a serious tone, "Got it. I'll have someone look into it—this is a breach of contract. You did the right thing, kiddo!"
Taylor beamed like a blooming flower. "Hehe, I knew it! But… we didn't get the record. Me or my friends."
"How many of you?"
"Four, including me."
"You at school?"
"Yup."
"Alright, wait by the school gate. I'll send someone over with them."
Taylor squealed with excitement. "Woohoo!"
At the school gate, the girls waited anxiously.
"Taylor, who'd you call?"
"It's a secret."
"Someone's really bringing us records?"
"You bet!"
Taylor grinned, swaying side to side, clearly proud of herself.
Just then, Laura and her posse strolled back, all smug and carefree. Each held a shiny record and an ice cream cone, chattering excitedly.
"Jerks!" Taylor muttered under her breath.
Laura's crew sauntered over, waving their records in Taylor's face, gloating. "Clueless country bumpkin!"
Taylor clenched her jaw. "You're the clueless ones!"
"Exactly!" Emily jumped in, standing by Taylor. "Our records are on the way—Taylor's friend is bringing them."
"Taylor's friend? Bringing records?" Laura and her gang exchanged looks, then burst into uncontrollable laughter, doubling over. "She's a total liar, and you're all suckers for believing her!"
But Taylor wasn't paying attention to their cackling anymore. Her eyes locked onto a white Porsche speeding toward them. She darted to the curb, waving like crazy.
Emily, Laura, and the others froze, staring at her in shock.
What was happening?
A sports car?
Wasn't she just a country girl? Since when did she have friends with Porsches?
A blonde woman stepped out, smiling as she walked toward Taylor.
"Hey, Ella! Didn't expect you to come yourself!" Taylor dropped her earlier feisty vibe, waving gracefully like a little lady.
Ella Fisher glanced at the group behind Taylor, gave them a warm smile, then grabbed a few records from the passenger seat and handed them over. "You've got a lot of friends here—hope there's enough to go around!"
Taylor took them, grinning ear to ear. "No worries—plenty of friends, and a few… not-friends, haha!" She turned and waved at Emily and the gang. "Come on, guys! The records are here—signed editions!"
"Signed editions?"
Emily and the others raced over, snatching the records from Taylor. They tore open the cases and—sure enough—there they were: two bold, swooping signatures side by side—Dunn Walker and Natalie Portman.
"Whoa, they're really signed!"
Emily jumped up and down.
Sarah hugged Taylor, practically bouncing. "Taylor, you're amazing!"
Kayla squealed, "My first signed record ever—this is so cool!"
Off in the distance, Laura and her crew stood slack-jawed, staring in disbelief, jealousy souring their moods.