HAVE I TOLD YOU LATELY THAT I LOVE YOU?
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN GLEE. IT SOLELY BELONGS TO RYAN MURPHY. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT WAS EVER INTENDED IN THE PROCESS OF WRITING THIS FANFIC.
I WAS BROUGHT UP AND TAUGHT TO SPEAK AND WRITE IN BRITISH ENGLISH, SO EVEN THOUGH GLEE IS AMERICAN, YOU WILL FIND THAT THE Z'S ARE OFTEN REPLACED BY S'S AS IN "STABILISE" ETC, AND THERE IS A U NEXT TO AN O IN SOME WORDS, LIKE "HUMOUR". IF THIS IRKS YOU, PLEASE, EITHER DO NOT READ OR JUST IGNORE THE BRITISH SPELLING FOR THE SAKE OF ENJOYING THE STORY.
IF YOU ARE OFFENDED BY OR SIMPLY DO NOT APPROVE OF GAY OR LESBIAN ROMANCE, I SUGGEST YOU FIND SOMETHING ELSE TO READ, YOU HOMOPHOBE.
IF YOU ARE A BIG FAN OF HEVANS, THEN THIS IS FOR YOU. PS THIS STORY ALSO CONTAINS MILD BRITTANA, KLAINE, SEBLAINE AND KURTOFSKY, BUT IT IS ESSENTIALLY A HEVANS ROMANCE.
WARNING: This is not a complete story; it is currently in the making, although I cannot tell when the first chapter will be available. All I have here is the background of the story, which covers the socio-political history of Lebanon, the country in which my A/U is set, the significance of the title as well as the reasons behind the creation of this story. Much of Lebanon's history revolves around the religious diversity of the country, especially the Civil War of 1975-1990, so please try not to misunderstand the content of my story as pertaining to some sort of bias and most importantly, read with an open mind.
A Brief Synopsis
The year is 1972, when political strife is ending Lebanon's Golden Age. It is also the year when eighteen-year old Karim starts college and falls dangerously in love with another boy, a forbidden passion that can lead to terrible consequences. When civil war breaks out, Karim's life takes a sinister turn as his idyllic world goes disastrously awry, and multiple tragedies unfold.
Background of story
When I was in my teens, I once stumbled upon an article in one of my mother's countless women's magazines. It was about celebrity couples who were separated lovers from the past, reunited in the next life. Of course, back then I was old enough to know that the contents of the said article were not all true, but the concept of reincarnation was really gripping. Since then, I always wondered if the people I knew were actually altogether different kettles of fish in their "past lives".
Concept of reincarnation aside, my obsession with Middle Eastern culture and socio-political issues is another driving force behind the writing of this story. It so happened that when I began my university life in 2009, I came across a book, Pity the Nation – Lebanon at War by multiple award-winning British journalist and foreign war correspondent for The Independent paper, Robert Fisk. It was a detailed account of the bitter Lebanese Civil War that ravaged the beautiful Mediterranean country for fifteen long years. Although I was already pretty familiar with the political history of Lebanon by then, it was Fisk's book that created in me a deep interest towards the war. It made me unearth many an untold tragedy that occurred in that sad little country during those fifteen troubled years. I was highly in awe of the Lebanese people's resilience in facing foreign invasions as well as the multiple betrayals and retaliations of their own kind towards one another in those fifteen harrowing years. The Lebanese Civil War was a conflict that erupted as a result of suppressed ethno-religious tensions that stretch way back to the days of the Ottoman Empire. The Christians, who used to constitute more than half of the population, were against the proposal for change in the political system, where the President of Lebanon was always a Maronite Catholic, while his Prime Minister was always a Sunni Muslim, because of the sudden influx of Palestinian refugees, who were mainly Muslim, from neighbouring Jordan, which resulted in a dramatic shift in religious demographics in the early 1970's, thus compelling the Muslim community to call for the aforementioned changes. This, coupled with foreign interventions from various parties, from Syria to Israel to the United States, only served to lengthen the war as various local armed factions fought for a slice of their own homeland as well the interests of the respective communities they represented. The capital city, Beirut, where my story is set, was divided during the civil war by a "Green Line", separating the predominantly Muslim districts of the West from the prosperous districts of the East, where Christians formed the majority. Both sides were severely damaged by gunfire, shelling and street clashes during the war.
Lebanon, once dubbed as the Switzerland of the Middle East, soon became a living nightmare in its own right. Anyone caught in the wrong side of town was in danger of being murdered by armed members of the religious faction that ruled the area. If a Muslim found himself in a Phalangist-controlled (Christian militant) district, he must fight tooth and nail to find his way into the nearest Muslim stronghold, where his safety was guaranteed. Repeated attacks and sporadic battles have left much of Lebanon's cities in ruins. Even the iconic Martyrs' Square in Beirut, Lebanon's symbol of patriotism and communal harmony, was riddled with bullet holes during the civil war. It was a time when the only motto for many a distraught Lebanese was simply to survive.
When I watched Glee for the first time in 2010, I was rather amazed at how America resembled Paradise compared to other less fortunate countries, where life is all about running for cover from violence whenever it comes knocking at your door while you wonder when will it ever end. Although I have seen many American TV shows prior to Glee, the revelation that I experienced while watching Glee occurred only then, strangely enough. The students of McKinley High did not have to worry about having to cross the "wrong" side of town just to get to school, heavy street fighting or worse, air raids and unending shelling. This, to an extent, was what many Lebanese people experienced during the 15-year civil war. School was no longer a part of daily life for many students; in the refugee camps, Palestinian boys as young as ten were already taught to carry firearms and patrol their territories instead of going to school like other children, while civilians were so paranoid about their safety to the point of bringing rifles with them, even on simple errands like buying groceries. I am not saying that all Americans lead an easy life without any hardships of their own, but what I am trying to stress here is the level of how much has been robbed from these people's childhoods and subsequently, their futures. What happened on 9/11 was a terrible blow that would leave a deep scar in the hearts of many Americans for years to come, but still, it was only for a day. In other parts of the world, like Lebanon, such atrocities carry on longer than a single day. Some even take decades. Recovery is sometimes out of the question, too. This is an ugly side of the world outside America that many people, save those who served in peacekeeping missions, know only by watching from their TV screens or the Internet and other sources of media. I must say I am like many Americans, in that sense. We have not experienced what these people went through first-hand. Growing up in Malaysia, a country as multicultural as America, I never knew what it was like to experience life in a war-torn country. Although I am thankful that Malaysia was never plagued by nationwide violence like what happened in Lebanon, a part of me feels that I am somewhat ignorant and insensitive towards the hardships that those living in war-torn countries have to face on a daily basis.
Basically, I came up with the idea of this story from two questions: What if Glee was set in a war-torn country? Would this alteration directly change the lives of the characters in it? It was then that the concept of reincarnation came back to me. What if the characters in Glee lived in another part of the world in their past lives? With regards to this statement, it also made me wonder about portraying issues like teenage premarital pregnancy, homosexuality in a different country. In Lebanon, for example, divorce is still a hot-button issue especially in the Christian community, because the Church seldom allows it. Interreligious marriages are also very rare, and homosexuality is still a criminal offence, although enforcement of the law is rather lax. Lebanon provided the perfect setting for my Alternate Universe, as its conservative and religious society is worlds apart from that of American society. The Lebanese are considered to be among the most cosmopolitan people in the Middle East; many are fluent in French and increasingly in English. The Lebanese may adopt Western fashions and a few Western customs as well, like pre-dinner drinks, but their culture tells an altogether different story; regardless of their religion, the Lebanese speak Arabic and take pride in their acquisition of the language as well as the Arab culture (music, fine arts, literature, food and drink), although many prefer not to identify themselves as Arabs.
Of course, creating an Alternate Universe was not easy. The characters, for example, had to assume a Lebanese identity before becoming part of my story. It took me a while to give them Lebanese names that sounded closely like their original ones. Some characters, like Finn (Philippe), Brittany (Brigitte) and Emma Pillsbury (Emilie) were given Western names to portray the penchant among Lebanese Christians to give their children French and occasionally other European names, notably English, Italian and Greek. Several major changes were applied to the plot as well. For example, in the series, Quinn carried her baby to full term and gave birth to Beth, but in my Alternate Universe, she has to abort it for fear of her father's wrath. Also, since the story is set in a war-torn country, some of the characters had to be killed off to show the impact of the Lebanese Civil War in the story. This was one of the hardest parts for me, because all the characters from Glee are so lovable, it was painful to axe them off the storyline.
As for the story's title, I chose to name it Have I Told You Lately that I Love You for several reasons. First of all, it is because this story deals a lot with unrequited love. Kurt is in love with Sam, who is oblivious towards his feelings, and Kurt himself is unaware that Blaine is in love with him, too. At the end of the story, Kurt dies unloved. During the civil war, Quinn has to divorce Sam because of his involvement with a Christian militant group that committed atrocities towards civilians, but even after Quinn has emigrated for good, Sam still loves her deeply. Artie is embittered because Brittany has left him for Santana, while Puck has to cope with Lauren's untimely death during the civil war. Additionally, the title also demonstrates the many sacrifices some of the characters have to make just to be with each other, for their love is considered forbidden. In this story, Rachel, a Muslim, is love with Finn, a Christian. The same is said for Matt, a Christian, who loves Sunshine, a Muslim. As stated previously, interreligious marriages are very rare and often discouraged in Lebanese society partly because of mutual sectarian disaffection. At the same time, we also have Tina and Mike, whose relationship is forbidden because they belong to different denominations of the Church, while Sam's love for Quinn is opposed because they do not belong to the same rung of the social ladder, although both are Christians from the same denomination. On top of that, the love quadrangle involving Kurt, Sam, Blaine and Dave is something that most Lebanese would never imagine would have ever taken place among their own kind on their own soil. Although Lebanon does not condone homosexuality to this day, there are many LGBT's who lead double lives to avoid discrimination. Hence, the plight of the underground LGBT community in Lebanon was also the reason behind the title of this story.
As of now, all I have is the background of this story as well as a list of the characters in it. I have no plans to develop it into a proper full story as I have many other commitments to cater to at the moment, such as my Bachelor of Arts degree. When I am less occupied, God willing, this will eventually become a complete story!
So, I have basically said it all. Do review and send in your comments, darling readers. If you have any questions regarding the context of my A/U, please do not hesitate to ask them. I will gladly answer them for you!