It's no secret that Taylor Swift has dated — with disappointing, sometimes heartbreaking results — a string of A-list men: Jake Gyllenhaal, Joe Jonas, Taylor Lautner, John Mayer and Cory Monteith. (Her most recent ex wasn't a Hollywood star, but Conor Kennedy is part of America's most legendary political family.)
"When she gets in these public relationships with other big names, the magnifying glass is there," a source reveals in the new Us Weekly, out now. But what most fans of the 22-year-old singer-songwriter don't know is that Swift quietly dated a completely un-famous Nashville college student a couple years ago.
Unfortunately, the relationship quickly soured, thanks to her beau's fame-obsessed pals. "A couple of his friends started texting her and trying to hang out. It got weird," the source explains.
So Swift — who split with Kennedy, 18, last month — ended things. "I don't know how to have a normal relationship," she admitted to Katie Couric recently.
Still, says another friend, "all Taylor wants is to be loved."
For much more on all of Swift's quest for The One — and new details on her past relationships with Kennedy, Gyllenhaal and much more — pick up the new Us Weekly, out now!