Disclaimer: I do not own the rights to Glee. Glee was created by Ian Brennan, Brad Fulchak, and Ryan Murphy. It is broadcasted on the Fox channel and all the characters and main plot belong to the creators and show.
Spoiler ALERT: There is a brief mention of some second episode details in this story. Read at your own risk.
Who Knew Love Could Be So Dirty?
"You think your little forbidden crush is hard? Try living with arthritis in every joint in your body. That's hard." Sue Sylvester shouted in Emma Pillsbury's ear.
Sue was lifting a weight in one hand and carrying a tape of the cheerleader's latest performance in her other hand as she did a few lunges by the table Emma was sitting at. The teachers lounge was Sue's favorite place to come and make fun of the pathetic lives of her fellow co-workers. Emma's eyes widened at her comment, but she brushed it off as if she didn't know what she was talking about.
"Oh don't play stupid Emma. I know all about your little fantasy with Schuester," said Sue.
"I don't know what you're talking about. Will is married. It would be inappropriate to have any romantic thoughts about him," replied Emma. Spoken like a true guidance counselor. Emma often found herself digging around in her head for her own advice; the kind that she would tell someone else if they were in her situation. Not that she had a situation to worry about now of course, but when she did, her own advice could come in handy.
"Your denial is delectable," smirked Sue. She power walked right out of the lounge leaving Emma with a confused expression on her face.
Unlatching her lunchbox, Emma slipped on a pair of rubber gloves and opened the single package of disinfecting wipes. She wiped off her own personal placemat that she brought from her apartment and then set her sandwich Tupperware out. She washed off her apple for the third time today; the first two meticulous washes had taken place at her apartment that morning while she packed up her lunch.
"Good Afternoon Emma," greeted Spanish teacher and director of the glee club, Will Schuester as he waltzed into the room.
"Hey Will," said Emma after she had swallowed a piece of her sandwich and set it back in its container. She cleaned her hands with another wipe as Will took a seat across from her and leaned his head in his hands. She could tell that something was up. "What's wrong Will?"
Will Schuester was not having a good day at all. It had been around two months since he had left Terri in their apartment and crashed on the couch of one of his close friend's houseage with Terri. He had tried counseling, but his trust for his wife had completely shattered and he wanted out of the marriage before he had the chance to be lied to anymore. To him it was unacceptable for Terri to have got his hopes up about a new addition to the family and then lied for several weeks after her doctor appointment. The fact that they were going through a bitter divorce was weighing on his mind all the time. The only thing that somehow made him smile during his day was the little red head guidance counselor with a phobia of germs.
"Today is just a depressing day with the gray skies and all the rain. You know how it is…" Will's voice trailed off.
"Yes, I have those days too. Well if you want to talk about it, I'm here," Emma told him. She smiled with her brown eyes and just then the lunch bell rang and Will had to get back to his room for his next class.
"Thank you Emma," he called out over his shoulder as he left the room.
---
It was the end of the day and all students had left the building. Emma had been sitting at her desk for the past couple of hours taking care of paperwork and daydreaming. She didn't know why she let her mind wander because it only brought her heart break and pain. When she felt the last little piece of her heart shatter along with all hope, she shouldered her purse and locked up her office. Her stiletto heels clacked down on the linoleum as she made her way to the exit closest to the staff parking lot.
As she pushed past the first doors and stopped in the lobby entrance to find her keys, she happened to glance outside and her warm brown eyes suddenly grew wide in horror. She had forgotten that it had been raining earlier in the morning and by the looks of it, the rain hadn't stopped for even a bit during the day. The streets were starting to overflow with water and the dirt ground was now a sticky mud. Flashbacks to the life changing incident she had gone through as a child flooded her mind and she began to strategize as to how she could avoid the bug and disease infected mud. Just looking at it made her want to run screaming in the opposite direction. She might have to camp out at the school tonight, because there was no way she could avoid stepping in the mud on the way to her car.
"Emma? Is everything alright?" A soft voice called out from behind her. She jumped a little and tensed up. What was it with today? Was it torture Emma day or perhaps a test to see how many obstacles she could overcome in a certain time period? First she's faced with having to deal with a muddy ground outside that could kill her with the amount of germs hiding in the brown muck and now Will's perfect voice, soothing as honey, was enveloping her and filling the entry way of the school.
"Oh hey Will, I'm okay," said Emma in a very unconvincing tone. He must have been staying late for Glee rehearsals or possibly planning his lessons for his Spanish class in the upcoming days. Either way, he was here now and she could do nothing but face him.
He knew that Emma was lying about being okay. He took one look at her literally shaking in her boots, staring out the glass doors at the rain. He didn't understand at first. She couldn't be afraid of rain, a fear of thunderstorms possibly, but it wasn't storming, just down pouring. Then it hit him once he saw the different shades of brown and muck covering the ground. Her phobia of germs and unclean settings was getting to her and she was afraid to get dirty walking to her car. He could help her with that, if she would let him.
"Emma, you can't fool me. It's the mud outside isn't it?" Will asked her gently.
"Yes," she answered with a sigh, giving up.
"Do you trust me Emma?" Will asked turning her away from the glass to look at him. He drank in her soft features. Her warm brown eyes pleaded for help and her top lip trembled slightly in fear. Every strand of her red hair sat neatly in place and glistened with the light that hung above them.
Emma watched as Will scrutinized her face. He was only a few inches away from her and she could almost hear his heart racing. Her thoughts disconnected from her brain and she stood there amazed. Being able to see him in the flesh was a lot better then trying to remember the exact shade of brown and gold of his eye color that was imprinted in her mind permanently. She wanted to run her fingers through his thick brown curls. Her eyes fell to the floor, ashamed of her heart's desires. Sue's earlier comment about denial flashed into Emma's mind and she was starting to think that Sue might be right for once. No matter how hard she willed herself to ignore her feelings for Will, they just wouldn't go away. She had even tried going on a date with Ken, the foot ball coach, but she couldn't get Will off her mind. Every time he walked by her, she wanted to reach out and pull him towards her. Will was the only person that genuinely cared about her enough to put up with her flaws. He only had nice things to say to her, he confided in her like a true friend, and he complimented her all the time. It seemed to Emma as though Will might have even liked spending time with her as much as she did with him.
"Yes, I trust you Will," said Emma truthfully. All at once, Will reached out and took her hand in his. The shock of his touch made her shiver and she wanted to rip her hand out of his because the feeling was so strong that she knew that when he let go her shattered heart would light on fire and burn, leaving an empty hollow cavity full of nothing but ashes behind. However, instead of removing her hand from his like she had planned to, she found herself grasping his fingers in hers tighter and tighter. With their hands entwined, Emma felt safe and secure. That's when Will opened the door and pulled her out into the pouring rain. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to stop twitching. She took in a deep breath and opened her eyes. Will was staring intensely at her, gauging her reaction.
"See its not so bad Emma. Trust me, I've rolled around in the mud before and I'm healthy as can be." Will reassured her patiently. The musky smell of rain calmed his nerves, but the scent of Emma's perfume rolling off her skin with the rain drops was driving him wild. There was something about her that intrigued him. She was so innocent and polite; a true lady. Emma nodded in response to his comment, but she kept quiet as her eyes didn't leave their interlocked hands. Will walked her slowly to her car, small steps at a time. She winced as her heels kicked up mud on the skin of her ankles and feet. Will just smiled at the way that she was handling this uncomfortable situation. She pointed out her car to him and they arrived at the light pole right in front of her car. Will took Emma's other hand in his and stepped closer to her.
"Well here we are, all safe and no harm done," Will lightly joked.
"Thank you Will," whispered Emma. A rain drop plopped down on her cheek just then and Will instinctively brought up his thumb to wipe the rain away. When his hand touched her skin, Emma closed her eyes reveling in the feeling. Will meant to just wipe the wetness from her face, but once his hand was on her cheek, he found himself not wanting to pull it away just yet. Emma started to back up when she could feel Will's heart beating rapidly. Her own had already leapt out of her chest the moment his thumb had touched her cheek. Emma meant to say goodbye and get in her car, but while stepping away, Will only took a giant stride towards her. With her back to the light pole behind her and one hand still in Will's, the other at her side, Emma was trapped.
Just when Emma thought her knees would give in, Will couldn't hold back any longer. He closed the gap and put his lips to Emma's in the most delicate of ways. Emma stiffened at the shock of Will's kiss. It was the last thing she had expected to happen today and her mind was in awe. This was it; the moment she had played out in her head so many times. The one she cried herself to sleep about every night because it would never happen, yet here she was. Emma left all her thoughts behind as she wrapped her arms around Will's neck. She loved the feeling of his soft lips against hers and how she felt right at home in his arms. So Emma kissed him back with everything that she had. It was months of pent up feelings that she couldn't show him. Will was relishing in the fact that Emma had returned his kiss. He pushed her back into the pole as his lips forced more of the passion she was showing him out of her. Emma was bursting with warmth equivalent of the sun's rays and both of them had momentarily forgotten about the rain. Suddenly Emma turned unresponsive to Will's display of affection. She tore herself away from him and breathing heavily she looked up at him with a hurt expression.
"This is wrong Will. You're still married." Emma told him. She wanted him to kiss her again. There wasn't a feeling in the world that could compare to his lips on hers. However, she knew that he was still a husband and didn't want to be involved in a scandalous affair. Will grinned at her worried expression and Emma didn't understand why he was smiling in such a twisted predicament as they were in. She turned to leave, but Will grabbed her arm and pulled her back to him.
"The divorce papers have been signed Emma and their almost done being processed now. Please don't leave me Emma, I need you and you need me." Will pleaded. He wanted Emma in his life, she was always there for him and he loved her. Emma knew what he was saying was true and as she thought about it, realized that she had been waiting years to hear those words come from his mouth. The least she could do for the man that was helping her get over her phobia was to give it a try and so a smile tugged up the corners of Emma's mouth as she grabbed a hold of the collar of Will's jacket and threw him lightly into the dirt encrusted hood of her car. Her hands were on both sides of Will's head and she stared right into his eyes.
"Um, Emma? You do know that there are thousands of germs all over the hood of your car right now? There are dead bugs and mud an-" Will started to tease her, but Emma didn't care. She cut him off with an urgent and overpowering kiss. Kissing Will was well worth the risk of getting sick from any unsanitary parasites. At least now she could die happy.