In Taylor Swift’s “august” storyline, James leaves the narrator and returns to Betty.
“august” is told from the viewpoint of an unnamed girl involved in a brief summer romance with James. She develops strong feelings, but James is already connected to Betty and eventually reconciles with her. The narrator is left remembering a relationship that was never fully hers.
The story continues across three Folklore songs. “cardigan” presents Betty’s perspective, “betty” presents James’s perspective, and “august” presents the perspective of the other girl. Swift described the songs as a fictional teenage love triangle rather than a direct account of her personal life.
Listeners sometimes call the narrator Augustine, but that name does not appear in the song’s lyrics. Swift said she privately referred to the character as Augustine or Augusta, while the boy’s name is explicitly James in the connected storyline.