Today wasn't going to be a good day. She stood in front of her mirror and examined the bruises on her neck. She was thankful that it was winter and that she would be wearing a turtleneck to school. That took care of one issue. The fact that it was nearly impossible for her to bend over was a bigger one. She would have just skipped school for a couple of days if there wasn't so much going on that she had to be ready for. There was a Cheerios competition in less than two week. Regionals for glee were right after that. She had a test today in Chem. II and Spanish and another one in Trig tomorrow. She couldn't afford to fall behind. She needed Cheerios. She needed her grades. She needed Glee.

She got into the shower hoping that it would relax some of her sore muscles. She looked down and examined her battered ribs and was disgusted with herself. How could she have been so stupid? She should have noticed that the car was in the garage. She should have noticed that the lights weren't on in the den. She should have been quiet going up the stairs. She let her mind slip because she had finally spent some time with her. She was just so caught up in actually spending time with her that she got careless. Careless and incredibly stupid.

She finished her shower and went on with her typical morning ritual. She checked the mirror one last time before she headed downstairs. She was relieved to see it showing exactly what she wanted the world to see. Beautiful. In control. Dangerous. Her armor was in place. The stairs quickly reminded her that it was an act but it was an act that she was very good at. A glass of water and a handful of ibuprofen and she was out the door.

She walked into McKinley with her bitch attitude turned up as high as she could get it. She needed to keep everyone as far away from her as possible. It was her best defense at hiding her stupidity. She should have realized that it wouldn't keep everyone away.

"Hey San."

She turned her head slowly and felt a small smile slide across her face.

"Morning B."

"Thanks again for helping me study for the Spanish test last night."

She felt the smile get a little bigger at that. She didn't feel quite as stupid all of a sudden.

"Not a problem. I needed to get some studying in anyway."

"I would have asked Artie but he takes French not Spanish."

Her heart drops at his name. Yep, she was really fucking stupid.

"Like I said, not a problem. Don't you need to meet Wheels somewhere?" She could feel the bite that was in the question but didn't really care. She really wanted to get away from her at the moment.

She saw the confusion enter her friend's eyes. She had hit a nerve and she new it. She knew that her friend had understood that she had been dismissed. She turned and left without so much as a goodbye. That was one less person to deal with at the moment. She really didn't want to upset her friend but she didn't want to think about her and Artie. She hated the thought of that.

The morning went by quickly. She knew that the "if looks could kill attitude" was working for her today. No one dared talk to her or get near her. She had Cheerios practice during lunch and that was going to be the next real challenge to her day. She took another four ibuprofen and headed out to the field. It wasn't her best practice. Coach Sylvester had threatened to buy some dogs and have them chase her back across the border if she didn't pick of the pace. The only positive of the practice was that she didn't hurt anyone else because of her mistakes. She managed to avoid Coach Sylvester after the disaster and realized that she really needed a breather. She decided to ditch English and go hide out in the choir room. She knew no one would look for her there.

She would deny it with every fiber of her being if someone asked but the truth was this was the only place in the world that she alive. The choir room was the only place that she felt like it was ok to breathe. Yes, she was still a bitch here but she also showed a little bit of the person that once existed. She spent the period in the dark just sitting and enjoying the quiet security that was the room. When the bell rang she knew she needed to go to her next class but her body wasn't being helpful. The throbbing in her side was pretty close to unbearable. Maybe just another period she thought to herself. History wasn't that important today and she just needed get her strength back.

She decided to spend the rest of the school day in the dark choir room. She just hurt too much to make herself leave. When the bell rang for school to end she knew she needed to get to her locker so that she could look like she was coming to glee instead of hiding out in the room. Determination alone got her to her locker and back to the choir room. She walked in and took her seat that was now slightly apart from the group. It was where she belonged. She needed to be apart. She needed them to keep seeing her as a bitch.

She sat and glared with her arms folded across her chest while Mr. Schuester discussed the set list for regionals. He loved his classic rock and he thought that "Under Pressure" would be a good choice for them to sing. It was a great song and he was going to let her take a large part in it and she really wanted to sing. Unfortunately when she started to stand up she knew her body wasn't going to let her do it easily. She had to turn the bitch on and decline it saying that she wasn't in the mood. She gave the room the death stare and it seemed to do the trick. No one said another word to her for the rest of rehearsal. She was lucky that they didn't have to dance.

Rehearsal ended and she knew that she needed to get out of there without drawing attention to herself. She looked around to gauge everyone's attention. Most of the club wasn't paying her any mind. They were more than a little pissed at her and she was ok with that. She noticed that only one was looking at her at all. They made eye contact quickly and the other girl turned away quickly but not quickly enough. She hated when Tina looked at her like that. She hated the look of knowing. She hated the look of pity.

She decided to wait out the club. She wasn't sure she could make it across the room without giving herself away. She just glared at them and waited. The group seemed to get the point because the never said anything to her and just left. Mr. Schue told her that he had to do a couple of things but that he would be back in a few and that she would have to leave. She gave him a "whatever" and waited for him to leave. She tried to get up but the pain forced her back down again. She grabbed the chair next to her and forced herself up. She just needed to get moving and then she would be ok. She took two steps and darkness greeted her.