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Chapter 172: Verses And Vulnerability
🕑 Added 2025-06-07 15:08:30 +0000 UTCLin Yi wasn’t new to The Ellen DeGeneres Show.
The host, Ellen DeGeneres, was a sharp-tongued, short-haired woman known for her signature suits and iconic deadpan humor. Her show had been airing on NBC TV since 2003 and was one of the most-watched talk shows in the country—part celebrity gossip, part music, part tearjerker, always entertaining.
This time, Lin Yi was invited for a short 15-minute segment. The producers loved his signature sarcastic, brutally honest flavor of talk—and hoped he’d deliver more of that on air.
Also on the guest list today? None other than Taylor Swift.
Taylor and Ellen were close friends, and since Taylor had recently gone through yet another breakup with actor Taylor Lautner, it was obvious Ellen was planning to bring it up on the show. Classic Ellen. Lin Yi wouldn’t be sharing the stage with Swift—she was the second guest of the episode—but they crossed paths backstage.
And that’s when Lin Yi saw the real-life Taylor Swift for the first time.
She was sitting on a couch in the green room, legs crossed, casually scribbling lyrics into a notebook. She looked relaxed, humming to herself, tapping her foot, totally in her element. Lin Yi had no idea if she was working on a song dissing another ex, but knowing her track record, it wouldn’t be surprising.
In his past life, netizens used to joke that dating Swift was like signing up to be immortalized in a heartbreak ballad. Honestly, being her boyfriend was probably more dangerous than guarding LeBron in the paint.
Lin Yi wasn’t fazed. Sure, Swift had those famous long legs and a charming aura, but… he’d seen his fair share of beautiful women during his NBA games. Besides, he wasn’t a poodle in heat.
While waiting for his segment, Lin Yi absentmindedly started humming one of his favorite tunes. The melody came out soft and natural, something he’d heard so many times it was practically muscle memory.
He didn’t even realize it until—
“Wait,” Taylor’s voice broke in. “That melody—did you write that?”
Lin Yi blinked. Huh?
He glanced over and saw Taylor looking at him with genuine curiosity, just intrigued.
Oh crap. What did I just hum?
Because the melody he just hummed was her song.
A future song. From his past life.
It was Taylor Swift’s Look What You Made Me Do, released in 2017. A defiant track calling out everyone who’d wronged her—critics, shady exes, the media circus. And it was a banger.
He unconsciously hummed the tune after seeing her.
Swift, though, looked serious. “Did you write the whole thing? Are there lyrics too?”
Lin Yi cleared his throat, brain scrambling. He figured, screw it—this song hadn’t been written yet. Technically, it was still up for grabs, plus it was hers. So, tweaking the original lyrics a bit, he scribbled down a rough version and handed it over.
“Here,” he said. “Just something I’ve been playing around with.”
Taylor’s eyes lit up. “Can you sing it?”
Lin Yi gave her a quick smile and shrugged:
“I don’t like your little games…
Don’t like your tilted stage~…”
The moment he finished, Taylor looked like someone had handed her a diamond made of sound waves.
“This is incredible,” she said. “Seriously—this is fire. Where did you come up with this?!”
Lin Yi scratched the back of his head. “It just… came to me.”
Online forums would’ve exploded if they saw this moment. The new star of New York accidentally leaked a future Taylor Swift hit, right in front of her, and she loved it.
Somewhere in the multiverse, copyright lawyers were already waking up in a cold sweat.
Swift stared at Lin Yi like she couldn’t believe what she was seeing. She knew he was a basketball star, but a songwriter too. Hmm, the more you know.
“That was nice,” she said, throwing her hands up. “Although you don't look it, you have a nice voice.”
Lin Yi chuckled, at the compliment.
"Might be due to all the karaoke back home"
Both laughed hard.
“Trust me, Lin,” she said, wiping a tear from all the laughter. “I know you're busy with basketball and don't have time, but if you finish this song and have someone sing it, it’ll blow up. It’s that good.”
She tilted her head, a little curious now. “So, what inspired it? ‘Cause the vibe of the song is... intense.”
Lin Yi hesitated for half a second, then pulled out the oldest trick in the book.
“I have this... female friend in the entertainment world. Just got dumped. It’s kind of messy, so—yeah, inspired by her story. Wrote in my spare time. ”
Swift didn’t question it. After all, some of the stuff described in that song hadn’t even happened to her yet. To her, it made sense.
When Lin Yi finished explaining the story, Swift went quiet. Her expression softened. And then, suddenly, her eyes welled up.
A single tear slipped down her cheek.
Lin Yi blinked, surprised. “You okay?”
Swift gave him a wobbly smile. “Yeah, yeah. It’s just... not every breakup’s a disaster, you know? Like, with Lautner... that one’s on me. He’s a great guy. I was just... too busy, too distracted. We weren’t meant to be more than friends.”
She sniffled. Lin Yi handed her a tissue without a word.
“Thanks.” She dabbed her eyes and looked up at him seriously. “Promise me you won’t waste this song. It’s too good.”
Lin Yi gave her a reassuring nod. “Deal.”
Then, out of nowhere: “Hey, can I get your number?”
He hesitated—just a beat—and then smiled. “Sure.”
It didn’t hurt to make another friend. As long as he didn’t fall for her. That was dangerous territory. The girl had a habit of turning exes into hit singles.
They kept chatting in the green room. Eventually, Swift launched into a story about one of her past disasters.
“So one of my exes,” she began, leaning in like she was sharing a scandalous secret, “literally invited two Mexican girls over while I was out. In my bedroom. And the worst part? When I came home, he asked if I wanted to join them!”
Lin Yi nearly choked. “You’re kidding.”
“I wish. I should’ve kicked him where it counts, but nope—like an idiot, I just walked out.”
She wasn’t done.
“And get this—he cried and begged me not to break up with him. Like full-on sobbing. I said a big NO. I know my value.”
Lin Yi stared at her.
Hollywood was a mess.
He never saw himself as some noble gentleman, but... this was next-level chaos. These people needed therapy and a reality check.
Swift ranted a bit more, clearly getting things off her chest. Lin Yi just listened. At this rate, she’d have enough material for three new albums.
Just then, a stagehand poked in through the curtain.
“Lin, you're up in five!”
Swift perked up. “Go get ’em!”
She gave him a playful punch on the arm. If she’d just thought of Lin Yi as a cool new celeb before, now she was treating him like a friend. That was just who she was—open-hearted, a little impulsive, always diving in headfirst.
No wonder she kept getting hurt.
Still, for Lin Yi, today’s taping of The Ellen DeGeneres Show turned out better than expected.
He came in for an interview and left with a new friend.
Not bad at all.
