Dream A Little Dream
After Glee practice that day, seeing Tina and Mike dance together was too much for Artie.
He wheeled away from the auditorium as fast as his two wheels could take him, not looking back once.
When Tina saw him leave in a rush, she sighed, knowing that dancing with Mike was a bad idea. She had told Artie that the only person she wanted to do her routine with was him, but he still didn't listen.
In truth, Artie thought she deserved better that him and his wheelchair. At least, that's what he thought.
But Tina knew he was enough, and never wanted another guy. So she ran after his retreating wheelchair, trying to get his attention.
"Artie! Artie, don't go!"
Artie kept going, knowing that she was going to follow him. He went as fast as his arms would allow, but Tina ran faster.
"Artie, would you just stop?" she said.
When seeing that he would not slow down, Tina grabbed one of the handles of his wheelchair when she had caught up to him, jerking Artie to a stop.
"Hey! What was that for?" he asked gruffly, not really wanting to talk to her right that second.
Tina kept a hold on the handle, afraid that he would try to wheel away again.
"Why did you leave Glee rehearsals so suddenly?" she asked, almost already knowing the answer.
Artie avoided looking at her, which was easy to do since she was standing behind him. But he stared at the floor anyway.
"I… I have to use the bathroom," he quickly responded, crossing his arms. "Why'd you follow me? Do you want to come with me?" he snapped.
"No," she defended herself. "Artie…," she said softly, causing shivers to travel down the back of his neck, "I know the real reason you left Glee."
Artie didn't respond; he just merely stared even harder at the ground, not wanting to admit what he had been feeling.
"I knew that you'd have a problem with me dancing with Mike," Tina said, her face falling.
Artie turned his face to look at her, unable to stand bottling up his feelings any longer.
"I don't have a problem with it," he said, crossing his arms. "It's just that…." He still struggled to find the right words for his feelings, as much as he wanted to express them.
"That what?" Tina asked, slightly annoyed at him. "That… I danced with him, when you told me to dance with another guy?"
Artie didn't speak, knowing that she was right.
"I knew it," she said, shaking her head. "Artie… I had told you that the only person I wanted to dance to the song with was you, but still you argued-"
"Yes Tina," he said harshly, all of his emotions now coming out in floods. "I wanted you to dance with a guy who can actually dance, not me and my chair." He stopped, looking at her shocked and saddened expression.
"But… why?" she asked, now thoroughly confused. "I said I wanted to dance with you-"
"You can do so much better than me," he confessed. "I mean… watching you and Mike… I could never dance with you like he did. I could never take you out to dance, or-"
"Oh, Artie," Tina said, shaking her head. "Is that was this is all about? That you're not able to dance like Mike can?"
"And I never will…," Artie said sadly. "Those procedures won't be ready in our lifetimes, let's just face the facts. I'll never walk again. The point is… you should dance with another guy in Glee club… because I don't deserve you."
"What?" Tina asked, now moving towards the front of his wheelchair and letting go of the handle completely. "Artie… I would never trade you for a guy that can dance."
Artie looked up, mildly surprised. "Really? B-But-"
"No buts," she said. "Why would I trade you just for some guy that can dance? I like you, Artie," she reassured him with a smile. "I'd never exchange you, just for any guy that can walk."
Artie smiled, not believing her. "You really mean that?"
"Of course," Tina said, then added, "And no other guy can sing like you can. I'd rather listen to your voice… or sing with you, than dance with Mike."
He smiled sheepishly. "Nah, you're just saying that-"
"No… I'm not," she said, laughing. "Besides… you have a sexy deep singing voice," Tina added with a smile. "Why would I trade that for a dancer?"
A light blush swept across Artie's cheeks, then he said in a cool, mock deep voice, "Well then, baby… why don't we just… head on back to rehearsals?"
Tina laughed, smiling at him. Typical Artie… and she wouldn't have it any other way. She bent down a little bit and kissed Artie lightly on the lips.
After she pulled away, Artie smile so hard that his dimples seemed impossibly deep, she said, "Let's go now, Mr. Cool."
Tina sat down on his lap, set her hands down on the sides of his chair, and let him roll them slowly to the auditorium.
As they made their way there, both of them alone in the empty halls, suddenly, she added, "You know… you tend to have a low self-esteem sometimes. We have to work on that."
"Oh, believe me," he said, gladly rolling them back, "you've been helping me about that since I first met you."
Tina smiled and said something, just to make sure that Artie understood everything she had said about him. "You do know that I like you a lot, Artie... and I'd never like or settle for anyone else, right?"
"Yeah, I know that now," he said blissfully, knowing because of the sound of her voice that she was being completely honest. "I promise I won't be jealous of Mike and his dancing anymore… or any other guy, for that matter," he said in openness.
"Thank you," Tina sighed in relief. "You scared me for a second." She tenderly wrapped her arms around his neck and snuggled her face into the side of his collar.
"Oh, I won't be jealous of Mike anymore," he said, grinning even though her hair halfway obstructed his view of the empty hall, "because I have the one thing that he doesn't have."
Tina smiled, but added in defense, "Hey, I am not a possession, or a thing… I am an independent woman."
Artie grinned. "I know… you are independent and magnificent, Tina."
That was the moment that both of their hearts were mended and joined together. For they knew that they'd never be happy without each other or with anyone else.
Still not back at the auditorium, and realizing that they had wandered farther than he thought, Artie began to sing softly:
"Stars shining bright above you,
Night breezes seem to whisper, 'I love you.'
Birds singing in the sycamore trees,
'Dream a little dream of me.'"
Tina was humming along to the beat of the song, her murmurs filling the empty halls, making Artie's grin widen as he kept singing:
"Say nighty-night and kiss me,
Just hold me tight and tell me you'll miss me."
At the words 'hold me tight,' Tina tightened her grip on his neck smiling as she hummed, making Artie's stomach fill with butterflies.
And as they rolled down the vacant halls, the only thing that could be heard was Artie's singing.
"While I'm alone and blue as can be,
Dream a little dream of me."
Once he finished his verse, Tina added a comment, lifting her head.
"Now that voice is hot. Plus… I like you for you. Again I question why you would begin to think that I'd stop liking you cause of something as simple as dancing… I could never stop liking you."
Artie chuckled and blushed a little bit. Now, he knew he had nothing to worry about. He knew that even if he couldn't walk or dance or do any of the things he couldn't do… Tina would always be there.