Am I the Only One Who Finds Taylor and Travis’s PDA Quite Sweet?

Well, it’s official: the world hates love. It’s something I’ve long suspected—not just because the modern dating scene feels so broken, but also because of the response whenever a happy, famous couple is photographed in public together. Typically, what follows is a set of memes, hyper-critical analysis, and tweets that will rip into the couple’s style and body language. And, of course, the severity of the reaction tends to be multiplied by 13,000 if Taylor Swift makes up one half of the duo in question.

In case you missed it, the musician spent Sunday afternoon at the US Open with her boyfriend, Travis Kelce. They were all over each other. I’m talking cuddles: his 6’5 athlete’s body looming behind hers, arms wrapped around her waist. I’m talking kisses: cute, giggly ones. And then there was the singing. Oh, and the dancing, and the air guitar-playing to The Darkness’s “I Believe in a Thing Called Love.” Cue a viral video that has sparked so much online derision and mockery you’d think they’d started having sex in their box before falling onto the tennis court completely naked. (They didn’t!)

Incredibly cringe,” wrote one person in response to the video. “Someone should tell her she doesnt have to over act so happy on camera and that it’s actually a sign of terribly deep and incureable sadness,” another (excellent speller!) chimed. Other keyboard warriors with too much time on their hands decided to label the relationship “nauseating,” with the word “showmance” thrown about with abandon.

You get the picture. All of this is a grave shame for many reasons. The first is that Swift and Kelce are obviously very in love—you can tell by the way they look at each other. If you can’t, perhaps you’ve never been looked at like that. It’s obvious that this is a real relationship, which is exactly why they’re able to be so deeply cringey with one another. It’s the antithesis of most celebrity couples, who take themselves far too seriously to ever be seen so much as holding hands in public, let alone being as goofy and giddy as these two.

Frankly, it’s refreshing, particularly when you consider that Swift is inarguably one of the most famous people on the planet right now. Not only that, but she has a long history of being subjected to a relentless campaign of online misogyny and slut-shaming with regards to her love life. Her dating choices have been scrutinised to the point of parody, something she’s addressed in her songwriting more than once. With all this in mind, few would blame Swift for wanting to hide her relationship with Kelce from the media. That’s certainly what she did with her ex-boyfriend Joe Alwyn. But now, here she is, proudly showing her love off to the world.

the world.

It’s also not the first time she’s been a bit cringe and in love. Remember those infamous 2016 photographs of Tom Hiddleston swimming in the sea with Swift while wearing an “I ♥ TS” tank? Hiddleston later clarified that he wore the top as a joke, but it wasn’t enough to stop a serious amount of aggression from building online as people labelled the display “pathetic.”

But aren’t we all a bit pathetic when we’re in love? And shouldn’t we just learn to embrace it, for all of our sakes? I still remember the vitriol that poured forth when Timothée Chalamet was photographed making out with his then-girlfriend Lily-Rose Depp on a yacht. “I went to bed that night thinking that was one of the best days of my life,” the actor later reflected in an interview with GQ. “I was on this boat all day with someone I really loved, and closing my eyes, I was like, indisputably, ‘That was great.’ And then waking up to all these pictures, and feeling embarrassed, and looking like a real nob? All pale? And then people are like: this is a PR stunt. A PR stunt?! Do you think I’d want to look like that in front of all of you?!”

Well, quite, Timothée. And I imagine Swift and Kelce are probably also a little embarrassed that their joint singalong was caught on camera. Frankly, they shouldn’t be. Because in a world where celebrities have become so overly manicured, their personal lives and relationships so performative, it’s incredibly reassuring to see them letting the façade drop momentarily, and just being sloppily and hopelessly in love. Sure, Swift might be cringe. But at least she’s free.