MidReal Story
American Melody: A Star's Ultimatum
Scenario: Taylor Swift: If TikTok Is Banned, I Will Leave the U.S.
Create my version of this story
I can do it!”
I was sitting in a press conference when I heard that voice coming from the back of the room.
It was a female journalist with long, wavy hair, who stood up and shouted, “Miss Swift, what are your thoughts on TikTok potentially being banned in the U.S.?”
The question stunned me.
It was the first time I’d heard of such news, and before I could even respond, that woman’s colleague beside her quickly pulled her back down to her seat.
I laughed as I answered, “Then I might as well leave the U.S. too.”
My response was meant to be a joke, but it was quickly blown out of proportion.
Within hours, the hashtag #SwiftLeavesUS started trending on Twitter.
On Weibo, a famous Chinese social media platform, the hashtag had reached over a million views in just fifteen minutes.
As soon as the recording of my response was released online, countless media outlets all made it their headline.
The New York Times: “Taylor Swift Threatens to Leave the U.S.
If TikTok Is Banned.”
The Guardian: “Taylor Swift May Leave the U.S.
The Washington Post: “Taylor Swift: ‘If TikTok Is Gone, So Am I.’”
As one of America’s most prominent pop stars, my threat to leave the country over TikTok’s potential ban had ignited a heated debate online.
Many people were saying that they would rather keep me than TikTok, while others stated that they would be sad to see me go but that it was ultimately up to me to decide.
And then there were those who couldn’t believe that such an incredible singer like me would actually leave the U.S.
“Haha, is Miss Swift joking?”
“Taylor Swift is a symbol of American music and culture.
TikTok has nothing to do with her leaving the country.”
“I think Miss Swift is probably just saying it for fun.
I doubt she’ll actually leave the U.S.”
Honestly speaking, even I didn’t think that much about my response at that time.
I was just giving an off-the-cuff answer and didn’t expect it to cause such a big fuss afterwards.
So when all these speculations started circulating on social media and news outlets, I didn’t think much about it.
After the press conference, Selena Gomez quickly called me to ask what was going on.
She said excitedly, “Tay, I saw the news and I was so shocked! Are you really going to leave the U.S.?”
“Hahaha, of course not, Selena,” I answered with a laugh.
“I was just joking around with the journalists at that time.That wavy-haired woman suddenly stood up and shouted the question at me, so I just thought of giving her a fun answer.”
She was my best friend and she immediately understood what was going on after I explained it to her.
But little did we know that my casual joke would soon turn into reality and that it would be directly related to the two of us.
That night, after having dinner with Ed Sheeran, he brought up the topic of TikTok again.
“Tay, do you really want to leave the U.S.with TikTok?”
“Hahaha, of course not,” I said as I took a sip of my drink, “I won’t leave the U.S.without saying goodbye to you!”
As we were joking around, my phone suddenly started buzzing non-stop on the table.
When I took a look at it, I saw the same message popping up repeatedly: “Taylor, you’re on the front page of the news again!”
That wavy-haired woman turned out to be a reporter from the New York Times, and after twisting my words and adding her own interpretation, the headline of her article read: “Taylor Swift Threatens to Leave the U.S.If TikTok Is Banned.”
Her article went viral, bringing my off-the-cuff joke back into the spotlight.
And then many other media outlets started reporting on this news as well, and that was when Selena called me again.
This time, I could sense how worried she was just by looking at her message: “Tay, are you really leaving the U.S.?”
The moment I saw that message, I immediately burst into laughter.
I replied, “Nope, I’m not going anywhere.”
“Really?”
she asked suspiciously before sending another message a few seconds later: “I was so worried just now!
If you’re not going anywhere, can I come over to your place?I miss you so much!”
“Hahaha, of course you can,” I said as I quickly typed out a message to her, “I’m still at my mom’s place in Nashville.Why don’t you fly over here?I miss you too!”
“Okay!”
she replied excitedly before sending another message a few seconds later: “I’ll book a ticket now!”
I didn’t think much about it at that time and just assumed that Selena would come over to Nashville to visit me like she always did whenever we were apart for a long time.
But little did I know that this invitation would soon change both of our fates forever.
I called Selena on my way back home that night and we chatted about many things on the phone.
After catching up for a while, I told her about the situation with TikTok and said that I had no intention of leaving the U.S.for now.
“I’m just at my mom’s house in Nashville,” I explained to her, “I don’t have any other plans for the time being.”
“Mm-hmm,” she responded softly, “but… if you ever want to go somewhere, just tell me and I’ll come over right away!”
“Wow, are you planning on being my personal bodyguard from now on?”
I teased her with a laugh.
“That’s right!”
she said seriously before adding with a smile, “Tay, I’ll protect you no matter where you are!”
I chuckled as I said to her warmly, “Thank you so much, Selena.I really appreciate it!”
She was my best friend and she had always been there for me no matter what happened.
While I was still on the phone with Selena, I remembered something and couldn’t help but laugh out loud.
“Hahaha, I remember this one time when we went to Ed Sheeran’s party and we both drank so much!”
I said to her with a laugh, “And then we ended up throwing up in his bathroom!Ed was so mad later on because he had to clean up after us!”
In truth, Ed was actually quite laidback about such things.
But I had just wanted to tease Selena and make her laugh.
“We were so foolish back then,” she said with a chuckle, her voice tinged with nostalgia, “we always did things like that whenever we went to parties.”
I could still remember how young and innocent we had both been at that time.
We used to be so carefree and impulsive, doing whatever we wanted without any worries.
But now, even when I thought about those moments from my youth, they felt like they had happened a lifetime ago.
They seemed so distant and far away from who I was at present.
“Selena, do you remember the time when we went to the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards and everyone was so mean to me?”
I said to her as I thought of another incident from our past.
“Yes, of course!”
she said with a nod.
“That was such a difficult period for me,” I reminisced as I thought of the many struggles and challenges that I had faced at that time, “I’m really glad that you were there with me.”
“It was my pleasure,” she said with a smile.
“You know what I remember most from that day?”
I asked with a laugh as I thought of a particular memory from that event.
“What is it?”
She asked curiously.
“I remember how you and I were sitting together and talking about the food that they served at the award ceremony,” I said as I chuckled softly at the memory.
“Hahaha, oh yes!”
She said with a laugh, “They only served some cold sandwiches that day, didn’t they?It was terrible!”
“We were both starving,” I said with a grin before adding in a thoughtful tone, “but even though the food was bad that day, I still had a great time with you!”
“I felt the same way,” she replied sincerely.
I could still remember how close Selena and I had been to each other during our youth.
We had always been there for each other whenever we needed someone to rely on.
So when she told me that she wanted to come over to see me again this time, I was very happy too.
“By the way, guess who else is coming over together with you?”
I asked her with a smile.
“Who is it?”
She asked curiously.
“Ed Sheeran!”
I replied happily before adding with a chuckle, “It’s been so long since the three of us hung out together… I’m really looking forward to it!”
“Yes, I can’t wait either!”
Selena said excitedly before she paused for a moment and added in a concerned tone, “But isn’t Ed really busy lately?Will he have time to come over with me?”
“It’s okay,” I said confidently, “I’ll just give him a call later on and ask him to make some time for us!I’m sure he’ll be happy to see you too!”
“Okay,” she said emphatically before adding sincerely, “I always feel like I’m seeing my family whenever I meet up with you guys!
