A/N: I'm back to writing Wemma again and it feels wonderful! Oh how I have missed these two! I cannot take credit for this idea though, it was Charlotte's idea and she let me write it and as such the last part of this chapter was written specifically because she wanted me to. As a good friend how could I not supply? I do hope you enjoy this!
Emma had never been so nervous in her life. Her fingers tapped nervously against the side of her leg and her heart was beating twice as fast. Her wide eyes scanned the darkness and the loud sound of chatter split her ears. Surrounding her were students rushing to and fro trying to get where they belong and do what they needed to do.
She could hear Rachel, Blaine, Mike and Santana doing some last minute vocal warm ups behind the stage door. She could hear the pit orchestra fine tuning their instruments. She could hear Artie directing the set crew where to put set pieces and props for the first act.
On the other side of the stage was Shannon giving some of the other cast members a last minute pep talk.
Emma wondered why, when she was the guidance counselor, she was just standing there like a frozen statue while everyone else did their jobs.
It wasn't even like she was the one performing out there. She'd be standing backstage with Shannon and Artie. But she did have her name on the playbill, she was partly responsible for the efficacy of the show the kids put on. The dress rehearsals went splendidly. With a cast that consisted mostly of the glee club she didn't expect anything less but opening night was...well, opening night. She knew Rachel and Blaine and Santana would be fine out there in their lead roles...performing in front of crowds was their specialty. But she could see the hesitancy in Mike, especially when he learned that the auditorium was nearly sold out.
She was just contemplating if she had enough time or not to give Mike a final few words of encouragement before the show started when she felt a pair of arms surrounded her.
She knew at once who they belonged to and she sunk willingly into his embrace. He tightened his hold around her and swiftly placed a small kiss to the back of her neck. "You're tense, Em."
"I'm nervous." She admitted quietly. "No, actually I'm terrified."
His arms loosened around her and she spun around to look into Will's eyes. His face showed his confusion.
"What for?"
She sighed heavily. "For the performance! Will, you've directed a musical before and you have the glee club! You know what its like."
He smiled warmly and she felt her insides start to melt. Eight months together and the simplest look from him made her feel so good about herself.
"Em," He slid his hands into hers and drew her closer to him, the darkness and their closeness providing a very intimate setting. "They're ready for this and so are you."
Emma swallowed nervously. "Will I-I've just been standing here...I don't know what to do with myself. Artie and Shannon both are doing directorly duties but I-"
He dropped one of her hands and brought his finger to her lips, his lips curled in a smile and her eyes widened sheepishly.
"You're nervous, Emma that's alright. It happens to everybody and this is technically your first time directing a musical. And its not easy, its very stressful, everyone is stressed out on opening night. They're excited and nervous and 'what if this goes wrong' 'what if the microphones don't work' 'what if they forget a line' 'what if they freeze' 'what if the set crew forget to bring out a piece', Emma!" He cut himself off when he noticed her eyes widen in panic and her chest starting to heave and he laughed pulling her against him in a hug.
"Everything will be fine." He assured gently, rubbing his knuckles gently across her back. "And if its not...you just have to tell yourself that this a high school performance, and yes they are a very talented bunch but they're all teenagers and Figgins wouldn't allow anymore money into the budget to correct the faulty sound system."
She scoffed a laugh and he chuckled, kissing her head before pulling away to once again look into her eyes.
"You have done a wonderful job with these kids, Em. During rehearsals, you would take charge like a natural, directing them in a gentle, authoratative manner. Shannon's a football coach, her ways of handling kids is to control, they needed you there to counteract, to guide."
Emma felt a soft blush coat her cheeks at the compliment and her lips formed a warm smile. He lifted his hand and tucked a stray piece of hair behind her ear, gazing lovingly into her eyes. "I know I'm the pot calling the kettle black here but...do try to relax. You've done so wonderfully with these kids, they're ready and if something happens, its not your fault. But no body says anything is going to happen and if it does...you're not alone, you've got two other people to help avert a potential crisis."
She nodded quietly and he pressed a lingering kiss to her forehead. "Go direct the hell out of this show, Miss Pillsbury."
She let a soft laugh pass her lips and a warm, true smile crossed her lips. Will squeezed her hand and then released it to head to his seat before the show started.
"Mr. Schuester!" Rachel appeared in the doorway to the backstage her hands on her hips, stopping Will in his tracks and causing Emma's heart to leap into her throat.
Her immediate thought was that something was wrong and Rachel turned to the first person she saw and the advisor she trusted the most.
"You are neither cast nor crew, you are an audience member for this evening and should not be back stage!"
Emma let out a sigh of relief and Will smirked, chuckling. "I was just leaving Rachel."
She nodded once and moved aside to let him pass but just as he was walking through she reached out to hug him quickly. He froze for a second and awkwardly patted her back as Emma watched on with a smile.
"I'm very glad you came Mr. Schue. It means a lot to me." She told him before she finally released him.
Will smiled at her. "I wouldn't miss it for the world, Rach." He cast one last look over his shoulder to Emma, shared a smile with her and then walked out the door.
She heard his call of 'break a leg' to the cast standing outside the doors and their appropriate array of 'Thank you's' and then he was gone.
The lack of his presence was immediately obvious to Emma and she could feel the weight begin to reappear on her shoulders. She let out a deep calming breath, twisted the ring around her finger and remembered his words.
If Will believed in her, she certainly could believe in herself. She nodded to herself and went off to find Mike to give those last encouraging words.
Emma was not ashamed to admit that she cried. Oh she teared up multiple times during rehearsals but to see it as the actual performance, those teenagers giving it all they've got and pulling it off wonderfully, reduced her to actual tears. She wiped at them quietly, trying to hide her tears from Artie, who sat next to her, and the other crew members standing around her. Though she could have sworn she heard sniffles coming from the student director. She always thought Artie had a sensitive heart.
She watched as they carried off Blaine's limp body and Rachel followed behind, drowning in her tears and sobbing quietly to herself.
Emma smiled to herself when she saw Blaine soon take Rachel into a friendly hug and comfort her while she unleashed her Maria. The lights dimmed on the stage and the last notes of the finale orchestration echoed in the theatre and the whole room burst into applause. Emma could tell just by the sound that they had been given a standing ovation.
Once the sound reached Rachel's ears she pulled out of Blaine's arms and with a broad grin and tear and make up stained face she ran towards the curtain to line up for curtain call.
Emma giggled to herself and grabbed the tissue box off one of the set tables and walked over to her. "You might want to clean your face, Rachel."
Rachel shook her head adamantly. "No thank you Miss Pillsbury, I would like to show the audience that I am fully committed to this role one hundred percent even after the curtain falls."
Emma smiled and squeezed Rachel's shoulder lightly and Rachel smiled up at her.
The curtain call ran without a hitch and the audience cheered even louder and once the curtain closed again, the students raced off to change out of their costumes and find their families and friends.
Emma stuck around backstage with Artie to help make sure everything was put back in its right space for the next nights performance and to run over anything they noticed about that performance.
The auditorium was almost empty by the time they were done, the only people remaining being the set crew and some of the cast until Shannon came back (she had been in the auditorium, monitoring the sound and lights) and dismissed them for the night.
After Shannon shared with them the very minor problems they had with the sound and lighting booth, and Emma and Artie shared with her things they noticed back stage, they decided to call it a night. Shannon offered to walk with Artie to where his parents waited for him outside and Emma offered to shut down the auditorium. She locked all the doors and made sure the lighting and sound systems were off and that all the microphones were safely put away and just as she turned to switch off the lights she spotted a figure standing in the doorway. She initially nearly jumped out of her skin but soon recognized the curly hair even in his darkened silhouette.
He stepped out from the shadows and the dim light enhanced his already handsome features and she felt herself swooning. She had just seen him a couple of hours ago, dressed in the same thing and looking exactly the same but perhaps it was the lighting, or the fact that they were alone in a huge auditorium...or maybe it was the fact that in between his fingers lay a single red rose.
They approached each other slowly, stopping just about a foot away from the other, locked onto each other's gaze and smiled. There was brief moment of silence and then Will lifted the rose and presented to her.
She smiled brightly and took it from him. "Thank you."
His smiled widened. "I told you nothing would go wrong. That was the most beautiful performance of anything I've ever seen ever."
"Oh stop it." She laughed, giving his chest a gentle shove.
"I'm serious! I cried and," He lifted his hand to her face, caressing just under her eyes with the back of his pointer finger, "Judging by the lack of your eyeliner which you were wearing earlier, you did too."
Emma blushed and bit down on her lip softly. "Rachel plays a very convincing Maria."
Will nodded in agreement. "That she does." He took a step closer and wound his arms around her pulling her in towards him, sending her heart into a frenzy. "And who is the one who helped her become that?"
"Well I'd imagine Shelby." She whispered breathlessly. "Given she's her mother. And one of her dads."
He smirked and kissed her nose sweetly. "Who's the wonderful director of this show?"
Emma's eyes twinkled innocently. "Shannon?"
She squeaked as he pressed a finger into her sides and she squirmed against his firm grasp. She grabbed his vest in her hands, giggling, "I am, I am!"
He chuckled and stopped his abuse and she leaned into his chest to catch her breath. Once her breathing returned to normal she completely relaxed against him, enjoying the feeling of his sturdy chest and his body heat.
He kissed the top of her head. "This show would have been nothing without you."
Her heart swelled in her chest at the tenderness and sincerity in his tone. She hooked her arms around his waist and ran her thumb against the small rock on her finger. She thanked God every day for the man currently in her arms but she thanked Him especially well on nights like these. Nights where she knew without a shadow of a doubt that she had chosen the right man to spend the rest of her life with.
"I love you, Will." She whispered against his chest.
He pulled away from her to lift his hand to tilt her chin upwards. With little to no encouragement their lips met in a sweet kiss. Emma relocated her arms to surround his neck, keeping them close together as they kissed in the dim light of the stage.
Emma shivered as she finally stepped into their warm apartment. A cold February night was not unheard of in Ohio but it was particularly colder that night and the longer she stayed out in the cold, the more she wanted to get home, take a nice hot shower and cuddle in bed with her fiance.
Will shuffled in behind her, looking just as cold as she but adorable with his cheeks turned just the slightest shade of pink. He closed the apartment door behind them quickly so no trace of the outside air would get into their nicely heated apartment.
Emma reluctantly shoved off her winter coat and handed it to Will who hung both his and hers in the closet. They shared a warm smile, Will rubbing his hands together to conjure up some warmth and heading towards the kitchen. "You want me to make us some hot tea, Em?"
Emma nodded with a smile. "Oh that would be lovely, Will. I'm going to take a shower first and I'll meet you in the kitchen."
"Sure thing." He quickly kissed the side of her face and disappeared into the kitchen as she headed off to the bathroom.
Just about fifteen minutes later (Emma had greatly reduced her showering time since she'd been dating Will) Emma padded back into the kitchen dressed in a warm, soft pink nightie and robe, her feet covered in clean white socks to keep warm. Her hair was still a bit damp, in her haste to get back to spending time with Will she only towel dried it, and pulled it back into a ponytail.
For six months he'd been living with Emma, for six months he woke up every day next to her, for six months they had dressed in front of each other (and more recently undressed).
But the one thing he'd never get used to is the sight of her dressed like that. No make up, no fancy hairstyle, no cardigans and pencil skirts, no Mary Janes. Just Emma.
Beautiful, wonderful, his Emma.
He was completely wrapped up in his thoughts about Emma, he failed to notice the woman herself approach him and take one of the steaming mugs out of his hands.
"Will?" She giggled, finally catching his attention and he met her eyes. "Are you alright?"
He smiled and raised his mug to her. "Never better."
She returned his smile and raised the mug to her lips, sighing in comfort as the hot liquid filled her body with warmth. She hadn't realized her eyes had closed until she opened them again and found Will smirking at her.
Her eyes narrowed playfully and she stuck out her tongue at him before walking towards the table. His eyes immediately caught the swing of her hips and he noticed at once that they swung more than usual. Her guilt was proven when she looked over her shoulder and gave him a small, sultry smile.
His throat was not the only thing that tightened and his fingers gripped hard against the ceramic mug. Suddenly it was no longer the hot tea that warmed them.
Still, Will stood where he was, pressed against the counter with the mug tightly in his hands. Emma had a long, stressful night and she was no doubt tired. He loved their new favorite activity but he loved just plain her more and he didn't want to force her into anything.
However his 3/4 full mug nearly went flying into the sink when Emma placed her own mug down on the table (on a coaster of course) and slowly walked towards the door. She paused near the doorway and craned her head to look at him and oh so subtly fluttered her eyelashes.
A fire arose in his belly and he chased her into the bedroom where he'd show her just how amazing he thought she was.