Disclaimer: Nope, nothing, nada. Sigh.

Chapter One: Air

'Ugh! I told you, this is too confusing, too fast, too much!'

'Tina, please sit down, the pacing is making me dizzy.'

'Hmph.'

'Thank you. Now, we've been through this. How many times do I have to say it, I am with you because I want to be.'

'You've already told me this.'

'So why do you still have this whole questioning vibe goin' on?'

'Because I need to know why. Why we're here, in this place.'

'Well, we're here in this place because it's our last day of freedom. And a beautiful one at that.'

'That's not what I meant, and you know it. And wait, what? We're in a leafless, sunburned-grass park in the middle of Lima, Ohio, on a day that is so freakishly hot that I'm actually looking forward to going back to school if only so that I can take advantage of the air conditioning!'

'That's as may be, but my view is pretty good.'

'You're looking at me.'

'My point.'

'Oh for heaven's sake. If it wasn't so hot, I'd walk away right now.'

'I bet I could catch you.'

'In this heat? Never. Despite the obvious advantages you have.'

'Like my manly physique?'

'Among other things.'

The air was still, dead. For a moment, nothing more was said.

'Just ask me, Tina. It's clear that you want to, so don't bother fighting it. I promised that I would tell you the truth, and that's what I've been trying to do for the last week. So enough games.'

'Hey, you started it.'

'You went along with it.'

'So?'

'So, what's so huge that you'd rather take the weak, rather obvious misinterpretation of a question and go with it instead of asking what you so desperately want to know the answer to?'

'Because it's too freakin' big, you jerk! And it's stupid.'

'There is no such thing as a stupid question. I read it somewhere.'

'Don't go all preachy on me you - '

'What is it, Tina. I know I haven't always been serious in the past, but something is worrying you. And that worries me. So just - '

'See! That, that right there. That is why I can't ask! When did you get so calm? So confident in your feelings? I mean really confident, not that fake air of nonchalance that you seem to like to hide behind. And don't tell me that it's what happened between us. Because I believe many things, but that would be just way too crazy to believe.'

'Girl, this is me!'

'Like hell!'

'No, it is. Look, things have changed, and yet things have also stayed the same. These last few months have changed all of us, and yet we're all still the same people. Everything that happened over the summer simply helped to give us all a fresh start, and new perspectives on old dramas. Things, emotions, thoughts, they were all bound to shift, Tine. The fact that they did doesn't make what was felt before any less real. Life is change, after all.'

'Lord, poetic much?'

'Hey, I have layers.'

'Clearly. And what did I say about calling me Tine?'

'That I should do it?'

'Ha. Nice try. That look doesn't work on me, buster.'

'It did over the summer.'

'That was then. This is now.'

'So?'

'So now is all messed up!'

'How? How is now all messed up? Nothing has changed! We're still the same people! What happened between us over the summer was somewhat unexpected, sure, but that doesn't mean that it was bad.'

'I know, I know, it's just . . . it seems like everything has happened so fast. One minute all of us were just messing around, having a few laughs . . . next thing I know, it's three months later and we're . . . this. Whatever this is. And it's confusing. I'm confused. With you. And it.'

'Well, I'm not. And you're not either. You just don't want to admit it to yourself, let alone to me. Despite what some people may say, us guys do occasionally have insight. Not often, it's true, but occasionally. This just happens to be one of those times.'

'Oh please, really? How can you be sure of anything? How can anyone? We're teenagers, for heaven's sake!How can you know that what we have between us is what you truly want, that I'm not just someone who happened to be there? How can you possibly know that I am the forever that you want?'

'Tine - '

'Tina, dammit!'

'Fine, Tina! God! I can't believe it, you haven't been listening to anything!'

'I have so!'

'Great argument for maturity there, Tina, really.'

'That's my point! We're not mature enough! We're nowhere near it! We live in a world of slushies, football games and letterman jackets, and that's OK, because these are the years when we're supposed to be acting like this! We shouldn't have had to deal with blackmail, with accidental pregnancies, nothing! But we did. So now some of us have this overblown sense of maturity, when really we have no idea what we're doing. And it scares me when you act like this, it makes me think that you could be this person who was saying these things and actually meaning them, but then I think about everything that went on before this summer, before Glee, and I know you said last time that what happened has helped all of us to mature somewhat but we haven't really, at least not completely, we still want to cling to that idea of happily ever after, of youthful innocence, of not having to deal with anything, but when you say these things I - '

'Tina! Take a breath before you pass out!'

' . . . Thanks.'

'You were about to fall off the bench. What was I supposed to do, let you fall?'

For a moment, all that could be heard was the sound of two people breathing, one somewhat rapidly, one calmly yet with an undertone of frustration and pleading. For a moment, there was a quiet stillness about the place. Then it became expectant. Almost like the air knew something that the boy and the girl themselves didn't.

The boy took a deep breath, and spoke.

'Look. Everything that has happened this summer, from the good to the bad, from the group moments with our friends to the small, quieter moments we shared together, all of them have brought us here, to this place. Things may have been messed up before, there's no denying that. Hell, before this summer, the thought of us working out only crossed my mind as a brief daydream. I never thought for one moment that anything remotely interesting could happen in a Lima summer, so I couldn't possibly hope of anything happening between us. Now that it has, there is nothing I regret. Nothing. Do you understand?'

'I'm trying to, really, but the fact of the matter is I don't know what I feel. Things are simply too confused. Until I sort my head out, I think I'm always going to feel like we were thrown together by proximity rather than - '

'Fate?'

'I was going to say luck, but fate works too. It's just . . . If this summer had never happened, would you still want to be with me? Despite everything that happened that led us up to it?'

'Absolutely. Somehow, we would have found a way.'

'But how? And why? That's what I need to know. Why. Why would you - '

'You want to know why? Fine, here it is.'

This, this was the moment that this place had been waiting for. There were emotions swirling through the air – passion, excitement, frustration. The boy took the girl by the shoulders, and looking deep into her eyes he laid bare the soul that he kept from so many, that was only really brought forth by music.

Until now. Until this.

'Because when I'm around you, I have air again. I've always felt this pressure, this inability to draw a breath, this constant need to try and simply inhale. It's like my whole life I've been struggling, and then suddenly I'm around you, and I can relax. I don't feel like everyone is looking at me, judging me on what they see, on what they think they know about me. With you, nothing and no one can touch me. The taunts, the looks, the assumptions, the preconceptions . . . none of it can touch this, this bubble that surrounds us when we're together. You make me feel like I can take on the world, no matter what, and for you I would. For you, I would slay dragons, spar with ogres, go up against beasts of all shapes and persuasions. Not because you need the protection, no way. You are a smokin' hot, ass-kickin' young woman who in no way needs to have her affairs handled by anyone, let alone a dude. I would do those things simply because the thought of anything or anyone harming you gives me the chills.

And so I act all caveman. Remember the incident at the cabin? Or at the lake? I knew that you didn't need any help, that you could take care of yourself. But I saw what was happening and I . . . well. Nothing, nothing, was going to get in my way. Of course when I eventually rocked up, there was nothing left for me to do. You took care of those hombres in ways I'm sure they won't be forgetting any time soon. But the point still stands. I'm not with you because you're there, Tine. You are this amazing, thrilling, uniquely fascinating person, and I'm with you because I want to be. Because I need to be.

Because with you, I can breathe.'

A/N: My first Glee fic! Exciting! : ) *hears noise* What was that? My other fic? Ah. Yes. Well . . . OK, OK, I know, I'm supposed to be working on Mirror, Mirror. But this freakin' plot bunny of DOOM ambushed me a few days ago, and this is what happens. Seriously. It's ridiculous. It was meant to be a one-shot, and I suppose it can still be if y'all aren't that interested in it, or think it's just plain bad, but there is more if you care for it. And for those who are reading Mirror, Mirror, I promise that as soon as my writer's block goes away and my Muse decides to actually spend some time with me, the next chapter will be up. Swear. *crosses heart* Til then, amigos, please tell me what you think of this piece. One-shot, or more? Do tell! And remember, reviews equal cookies!

Emrisah