Title::..Dance in the Dark
Spoilers::..Journey
Rating::..PG for adult themes
Genre::..Drama
Characters::..Ensemble, but mainly focused on Rachel
Pairing::..Finchel
Author's Note::..Originally my idea for this fic was to have an ensemble fic where I tracked almost every member of the Glee club at this party and their experiences within. But then it came time to write it and I felt over-whelmed, it felt too big. So I settled for just writing it from Rachel's POV, but peppering it with the other members of the club, so it isn't completely focused on her. This made it much shorter than I planned. It's based directly after Journey, kind of like the after-party to the conclusion of season one. This is my second attempt at writing from Rachel's POV and it's a little mocking to begin with, painting her as over-dramatic and highly-sentimental.
Also, I wrote this before I had even heard of the episode called Blame It on the Alcohol, I just thought it was only natural for the club to get drunk together because to me it seems that getting drunk is pretty much all teenagers think about…well, that and sex. And I wrote this before I saw The Sue Sylvester Shuffle, so I was only hoping Quinn and Finn would hook up again, and it turns out the writers of the show had the same idea as me – YAY!
The title comes from the Lady Gaga song of the same name. It's one of my favourite Gaga songs, I love the lyrics and basically because it's Gaga I can't not enjoy it.
Summary::..Baby loves to dance in the dark, the New Directions celebrate the continuation of their club with a party at Mercedes' house, but the night ends in disaster for Rachel.
Rachel thought Mr Schuester would be very proud of his New Directions if he could see them right now. It was after school hours and despite not being in their natural habitat of the choir room they were all socializing. She doubted he would approve of the under-age alcohol consumption. But she thought a tear might be brought to his eye if he saw the way they were all getting along so well. Santana was talking to Tina, and Mike was helping Kurt improve his dancing skills. The groups were disappearing. The labels were being washed away; there were no longer cheerleaders and misfits, now they were all one – Glee. They may not have even placed at Regionals (a shame Rachel would carry to her grave) but they still had plenty to celebrate.
After Mr Schuester's announcement that Glee would continue into the next year the room had erupted in cheers, they had been unable to believe their luck. They felt invincible; despite Vocal Adrenaline's best efforts they could not be beaten. New Directions fighting spirit was re-instated. The club meeting had ended and Mercedes had quickly spread the word of a party at her house that night to properly commemorate what they had achieved in the past year.
Thankfully her parents were out of town, allowing the teenagers to go as crazy as they wished. As this was Rachel's first party she didn't know what she was supposed to do. She sat on the couch, watching everyone hanging out so comfortably. She could hardly believe she was at a party. This time last year the only reason she would be invited to a party would have been a joke. She soaked up the atmosphere, observing what everyone was doing.
This was a completely different world to everything she had ever known. She had only seen things like this in movies or on The O.C. As she nursed her cup of cranberry juice she wondered how long it would take for her to join in and become an asset to the party's survival. She wasn't a veteran on this scene the way Puck was. She couldn't relax. She supposed it hadn't yet hit her that she was among friends and nothing bad was going to happen. Her rightful spot was on stage. She could perform in front of them any day of the week and not feel the slightest hint of inhibitions. It was socializing with them that made her nervous. She worried they still harboured a grudge against her after she had defied them to be with Jesse, allowing him to learn all of their secrets. She supposed if in their positions she wouldn't be in any mood for forgiveness after their loss.
Mike was the one who grabbed her hand and pulled her out of her solitude before she could fall into a full state of wallowing. The alcohol had made him friendlier than ever and he commanded for everyone to be on the dance floor. When he saw how uncertain Rachel appeared he took her hand and began to spin her. He danced with her like an affectionate brother and this was what she needed to loosen up.
All around her there were smiling faces. Puck had dropped his macho, bad-boy façade to enjoy a dance to Lady Gaga. Kurt's face was pinker than usual as he sipped a vodka mixer. Santana and Brittany were dancing as if they never intended to stop. Matt had his arm around Mercedes' shoulders. It was perfect in Mercedes' dimly-lit living room. Rachel's heart swelled with joy. She could feel her life changing for the better. She was finally with people just like herself, a part of something.
It didn't take long for laughter to turn into drunken slurring. Rachel was surprised by how rapidly dancing became falling over. They were transformed from partying teenagers into babies without motor skills. The empty alcohol bottles next to the bin were piling up, climbing higher to the roof in a seemingly never-ending wave. The music was turned up louder and to compete with this everyone had to raise their voices.
These were not the same people she sat in Glee club with. Quinn was the worst. Rachel had not seen the usually fierce cheerleader sans a bottle in her hand for the entire night. She had never seen Quinn in such a terrible state. Her hair was tangled, every word she said slipped into the next making her speech near impossible to understand and the alcohol had robbed her of her grace. It was like seeing the queen without all of her jewels, wearing ripped jeans. Rachel could hardly recognize the former queen of McKinley High. Quinn kept disappearing in-and-out of the room, seeming disorientated with the whole situation.
There was still laughter around Rachel, but it was decreasing. Mike's dance moves were changing from fluid to quite clumsy. Kurt was what Puck called a 'light-weight' and after vomiting he had curled up to fall asleep on Mercedes' couch. Brittany had taken to staring at a wall. Rachel supposed this was what people meant when they described a party as 'winding down'.
Beside her Santana and Matt were having an argument about the moon. It was now she felt more out of place than ever. While everyone had grown very lethargic she was still wide-awake, sipping her third glass of cranberry juice. It was dawned on her how little Finn had contributed to the party. She moved from her spot on the couch to search for him. She felt like a bad girlfriend, they had only been dating for one evening and she had already lost track of him.
Checking over the crowd she saw Quinn was also missing in action. She didn't think the two disappearances were connected at first. She walked through the house with no real idea of where she was going. She opened every door she met, never knowing what she would find. She ventured up the stairs, for the bedrooms. She didn't think Mercedes would mind her being up here.
The sound of the music carried up to the second floor. When she first heard the noises she thought it to be a part of the sound. There was a low groaning and as she walked along, closer to the end of the hall, it grew louder. Once she recognized it as a sound independent from the music she walked toward it, thinking it to be a wounded person. Her mind registered it as a girl. It had to be a Quinn. Perhaps she was throwing up. Rachel thought she should prove herself to be a good teammate by offering to hold Quinn's famous blonde locks back.
When she opened the door she found herself witnessing a situation she had no business to see. She was standing in the archway of a bedroom, so scarcely lit she had to narrow her eyes to see properly. There was someone lying on their stomach, moving around on the mattress. It took her only a moment to recognize the naked torso belonged to Finn. His name began on her lips, but then dropped down to her stomach when she saw a feminine hand rake across his back. It was Quinn's groans Rachel had heard, but she had mistaken the cause, sorely mistaken.
"Finn!" Rachel snapped. She was surprised by how powerful her voice was considering the broken and very small girl she felt herself to be.
He turned back and upon seeing her exclaimed unhappily. He and Quinn sat up in the bed together, covering as much of their shame as the bed sheets would allow. Rachel could hear her own voice, tearing strips off of him. Her voice was very far away and she felt she had no control over what she was saying. She was yelling quite loud and so it didn't take long for the crowd to come for a look. They all stood back until finally Rachel could yell no more. She stormed out, tears burning trails down her cheeks.
Quinn had made her the laughing-stock again. It would all be the same when school returned after summer. In the world of high school nothing ever changed.
The End.