Jenna

"Wait, Rachel, don't go!" I say, stopping her as she flounces down the hallway, carefree as if visits from a parallel universe are just another day in the life. I, on the other hand, am feeling quite burdened. She turns and fixes me with a quizzical expression.

"Did you need anything else?"

"I…" It's hard to know where to begin, but I do have one lead and he's probably wheeling around the hallway at top speed right now, fuming over his encounter with Mike. "I need to tell Artie!" I blurt.

Her eyes narrow as she presses her lips together tightly. "I didn't think about that," she says. "Artie's been to your world so it wouldn't come as a complete shock, now would it? Though I'd really prefer if you could stay completely anonymous. I'm not so sure I trust Artie as much as I did before. He's not the same kid from season one, you know?"

Kevin and I have had this very discussion many, many times. "Yeah, why do you think that is?"

"Love does strange things to people," Rachel replies, matter-of-factly. "If you think we can risk it, if you really believe we can trust Artie now… then fine. I'll allow it."

I was going to tell him with or without her permission but I silently figure that this way is easier. After giving me her blessing, Rachel shoots me a thumbs-up and disappears again. As her footsteps grow softer and softer, I can hear another sound. The clicking in the distance can only be one thing. I take off in the direction of the noise, not knowing where I'm going. McKinley High School looks nothing like the set, which is all pieced together to look like a school. Instead, it's an actual school, large and maze-like. I'd surely be lost if I were left to navigate it on my own. But luckily, I find what I'm looking for quickly.

"Artie!" He pretends not to hear me at first, and I figure that if I'm going to come clean, it's now or never. I don't know where Mike's gone, but I can't worry about him right now. I cup my hand around my mouth and call out, "It's… it's Jenna!"

That gets his attention. He pulls back on his wheels and pivots quickly, his jaw dropping as he stares at me. "Jenna?" I swallow hard and nod. "I'd almost… forgotten…" he says, softly as though talking to himself. He's rolling towards me now, slowly and looking like he's seeing a ghost. I tug at the sleeve of Tina's gothic black lace dress self-consciously and play with a strand of my hair as he pierces me with those bright blue eyes.

"You could forget a thing like that?"

He's shaking his head as though he's trying to make sense of it, too. "Until I heard your name…" he says, eerily. "It was like it didn't happen. And now I remember everything! Going to that award show… meeting Lea and Mark…"

"What award show?" There have been a lot of those. After awhile, they start to run together, and so do the interviews and the photo shoots. But I'm curious to know when Artie paid us a visit.

He squints like he's still trying to remember. "There was something… something weird. Oh, wait, I remember! We passed out pizza. To the audience. It was kind of corny, I had to announce it…"

I snap my fingers. "Peoples' Choice!" That was shortly before the Golden Globes, which were a much bigger deal. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary about Kevin's behavior at the Peoples' Choice Awards. "You… you sure acted a lot like Kevin," I tell him.

"Lea sort of coached me," he admits. "She's got this connection to Rachel, I think. Kind of like the one I had with Kevin. It was only temporary, but for a little while, I could hear his thoughts. I think it helped him to understand me better. Hey, can you –?"

"No, I can't hear Tina's thoughts," I tell him.

He looks disappointed. "Well, I couldn't hear Kevin right away either," he says, still hopeful it seems. "Let me know if you hear from her. I want to know what she thinks of your world. I want to know if she's slow dancing with Kevin right now, pretending it's me…"

Oh, wow. My heart drops to my knees when he says this. He acts casual about it, but I can hear the longing in his voice. Brittany may have been a nice distraction from his pain, but he still wants Tina back.

"Sorry she dumped you," I say, putting a hand on his shoulder and kneeling next to his chair so that I can look into his eyes. As I let my hand drop, he catches it in his. Kneeling there, holding his hand, I'm reminded of the final scene between Tina and Artie during 'Dream On,' the scene right before our performance of 'Dream a Little Dream.'

"It's kind of my fault." He smiles, sadly. "What do you think, Jenna? Is Tina supposed to be with Mike or… or me?"

I don't answer right away. I think about Mike and Tina's duet, the undeniable joy that filled the room when the pair sang. When Harry and I filmed it, I thought I saw something like real jealousy in Kevin's face. That, or he's just an excellent actor…

Artie nods slightly as I hesitate. "Makes sense that you'd be confused," he says. "Tina seems confused, too. She seemed confused when she asked me to be her duet partner. I admit that I was feeling really bitter when she asked, plus I was kind of smug about Brittany asking me to be her partner. I was probably meaner than I should've been."

"Y'think?"

"Well, she shouldn't have thrown Mike and his abs in my face!" Artie scowls resolutely.

"I don't think she did that on purpose," I argue, unable to resist sticking up for Tina. There's a small part of Tina that's based on me. Consequently, I feel sort of protective of her. And if she's criticized for something that happens on the show, I've always got to defend her.

Artie falls silent at this and so do I. Strangely, I feel as though I've wronged him, even though I'm not Tina. I'm not responsible for her actions; I merely depict them on a show.

"So, what are you missing while you're here?" Artie wants to know. "Does Tina get to walk down any red carpets while she's away?"

I struggle to remember. Our schedule has been crazy busy, like always, filming in between photo shoots and various talk shows and appearances. Kevin's lined up for an appearance on the Tonight Show. I don't have any major gigs for myself coming up, which is a shame since I'm sure Tina would enjoy something like that.

"Just… filming episode nine."

"What happens?" Artie asks me, hesitantly, as if he's a bit fearful of knowing. I don't blame him. If someone were able to tell me what was going to happen to me in the near future, I'd be a bit wary of their answer too.

"Artie sees Tina and Mike racing wheelchairs and kissing in the hall and gets jealous," I reply, frankly.

"Check," he replies, with a look of trepidation. He nods expectantly, silently urging me to continue. I consider, but shake my head.

"I'm not sure how much more I can tell you." He looks disappointed so I pat his leg reassuringly before I remember that he's not Kevin, he's Artie. He can't feel that. "Because it's just a script, it isn't set in stone until we film it. And even then, parts get edited out after everything's been filmed."

Artie grows more and more anxious, visibly evident by the way he's been wringing his hands ever since he asked me to tell him what I knew of the show's future, his future.

"I want her back," he says. "I want Tina. I tried to convince myself that maybe I could be with another girl, that maybe I wanted Brittany. But instead, it just solidified the fact that there's only one girl for me."

I sigh and squeeze his hands, still kneeling beside his chair. "If you'd told her that, Artie…"

"Help me get her back, Jenna."

More silence. I can't promise him anything because I don't really know if I can do that to Mike. He's been a really great boyfriend. He's cute and funny and so what if he likes chicken feet in salad? He and Tina have undeniable chemistry, too.

"I thought you said you were sorry she dumped me!"

"I'm sorry for how it happened," I correct myself. "I'm sorry you got hurt in the process. But I don't think I can help you, Artie. I think the two of you are supposed to work this out yourselves."

He scoffs, crossing his arms in front of his body insolently. "And how am I supposed to do that when she's in your world and you're in mine?"

Oops. Good question.