Back again :-) enjoy!

It wasn't as if people had forgotten where she originally came from – even if they dared to, that smirk and that splash of red and white always reminded them, as did her sarcastic tone. People didn't dare be intolerant towards that tone. It was unquestionable now that she had now regained near to all of her popularity… he guessed that was a good thing. The mere hallways of McKinley had become her red carpet, a few people now tearing away from the sides like they used to just to ask her how her day has been, a few others clinging to their lockers even more out of fear. But she wasn't to be feared anymore. He often indulged in counting the number of positive expressions in comparison to the frowns whenever she and he walked around, and the latter was seemingly suppressed these days. Of course, things hadn't completely turned back to normal: a few still sniggered and stared them down (that was to be expected, and it was hardly a surprise that she wasn't the most popular girl in school), but nothing that would give her too much bad press. Bad press. It sounded like he was dating a celebrity. Come to think of it, he kind of was.

Valentine's Day had drawn attention away from the turmoil for moments, though, so it was a surprise on Monday morning when he had forgotten what it was like not to be around her. Recently her lunch hours had been swaying more towards the Glee Club, and at least he was happy about that; however, it didn't change how he missed her whenever she would sashay in the opposite direction. The brunette had returned to her countless apologies, and he had returned to accepting them in turn. She would always "try to make up for it on Friday", but in the amateur, 'new to monogamy' way that she always did (excluding Valentine's Day), with things like watching a superhero movie whilst cuddled up on the couch with her steady breathing ghosting his neck or chest, looking up at him like he was the most important thing in the world as he thought the same about her. The thing was: he was feeling more and more like those feelings that he had weren't reserved – everyone at McKinley saw her that way too. He felt more like a fanboy than a boyfriend. Even when they were walking in the hallways together, a friend would always approach her and invite her to some party – another reason for her absences. Their relationship began to balance more on phone-calls after school than any real, physical contact.

But he still loved her, because that was what the promise ring stood for: they would stay strong and fight together, even when things got hard. Even when popularity got in the way.

She wore that promise ring every day, only taking it off for Cheerios rehearsals (where jewellery was strictly prohibited), and the necklace still on weekends and Friday dates. He admired her for that. It was like a symbolic way of telling him that she was still keeping that promise, without having to say anything – besides, at this rate, they couldn't waste any time they had together talking about it. He still saw her fairly regularly: in school, in a few classes, on dates, in Glee Club. But their relationship seemed to require more effort than it used to. He could see by the slight lines on her forehead and the way she twisted the promise ring around on her finger that she had recognised it too. Currently, they were just basking in that aroma of minor uneasiness together – again, without having to say anything.

The pair had made their way to Glee Club on one occurrence, having not been in contact with each other for the duration of the day so far. He had arrived first out of the two, giddily taking a seat in his usual spot as he relaxed. He couldn't wait to see her. When the brunette cheerleader eventually strolled in with a leisurely spring in her step, her thumbs wound between her backpack and her body like they always were, her face instantly beamed in excitement as she caught sight of him; every muscle in her body was whinging with longing as she resisted the intense urge to sit on his lap (she'd been told off by Mr Schue for doing that before), instead taking a seat next to him as her ponytail swung from side to side. "Hey, you." She spoke teasingly before she sat down, tearing a hand away from a strap from her backpack and running it through his hair, shaking it slightly to mess up his locks.

"Hi." He grinned giddily as he watched her discard her bag to the side, perching on the end of a seat and grabbing hold of his chin, edging it towards her as their lips connected fervently, if only for a few seconds – she had a habit of doing that, but he had never even considered objecting to it.

With that, she lounged further back into her seat, crossing one leg over her thigh as she looked back at him observantly. "You look cute today." She smirked, biting her lip.

He blushed, adorably enough. He wasn't like her – he was far worse at taking a compliment without bursting into an exasperated fluster. He grinned almost comically wider before leaning forward slightly. "You look cute every day." He kissed the top of her ear, noting how she groaned at the contact.

"Relax with the cheese, Four Eyes. I'm on a low-dairy diet." She scolded jestingly, watching how he drew away sheepishly. As he leaned back in his seat, she wound an arm over to his side, stroking one of his thighs up and down as the brunette herself giggled, looking at him in a mesmerised state.

Inevitably, something – or, rather, someone – interrupted them. This time, it was their motivational teacher, smoothing his hands over each other a few times as he strode into the room, clad in a typical grey waistcoat under a white shirt, with the sleeves scrunched and rolled up casually. "Right! Everyone, it's time to get our groove on for the next big event: Regionals. I have some great ideas stored up, so… let's get started!"

"Wait, we're gonna start preparing now?" Marley questioned satirically. "I thought this club's style was waiting until the week before it actually happens and just… gambling it on chance with kick-ass harmonies. What, do you actually understand the concept of time now?" She raised an eyebrow, urging him on with a sneer.

Mr Schue pressed his lips together for a moment, before replying. "Marley, I just have ideas that might take a bit more time to perfect, that's all. The stakes are higher than ever this year, and if we want to have a shot at that Nationals trophy again, we need to kick the game up a notch. Now…" His slightly annoyed expression transformed into one of his usual happiness. "Would anyone care to hear my planned set list?"

Surprisingly – and on the contrary to what Ryder had often described – Mr Schuester's set list… wasn't bad. Obviously his idea of 'chart' hits was marginally outdated to how it was currently – he had chosen the ballad as 'Say Something' by A Great Big World, with Blaine and Tina carrying that duet – but it wasn't completely cliché and off. The brunette believed that if she could get her fingers on the reigns of the choreography, they might actually win. Besides, she had missed manoeuvring the group around recently. It might be a nice way to blow off steam around current events. The set list was varied. Everyone was going to star, and upon revealing the three songs, people seemed content with everything.

And so, it was confusing to say the least when Mr Schue asked to tear Sam and the cheerleader herself away from the abuzz group for a moment or two. There couldn't have possibly been another thing to tell them apart from giving them the choreography nod she had hoped for, but that was sort of a given - she did choreograph Sectionals. Once in the hallways, the brunette eased herself into a halt on the linoleum floor, her weight balancing on her slouched left hip and her feet apart in a confident stance as Sam strode out casually. She placed that smirk on her face, raised two expectant eyebrows and crossed her arms, bawling in agonising impatience on the inside. Eventually, Mr Schue acted on a thoughtful pivot to turn to the pair, casting his eyes over the taller blonde before wetting his lips and glancing at the menacing Cheerio. He pondered on his words for a while as the teenagers' expectant gazes grew only further, before all curiosities were dealt with as the teacher opened his mouth. "Competition in show choir gets tougher every year, and I know we have a strong set list which will keep us on our feet for Regionals, but we're going against the Dalton Academy Warblers, and they've been our toughest opponent since the New Directions began." He sucked in a breath – a nervous one, it seemed – before casting a grave look over the two once more, his eyes ricocheting between them and diluting in hope. "We can't just have good singers – we need good dancers, too. And that's often how Dalton's beaten us in the past, but now we can match them. But… only with the right balance, in the right places." The curly haired man paused – he was half expecting the sapphire-gazed brunette to let out an impatient vituperation, but she didn't; she appeared hooked on whatever he was about to announce. "I want to change the game up a bit this year. We're gonna make the boys' song less of a dance number, and instead, we're going to add a lot of physical movement to the ballad."

"So… wait…" Sam scrunched his face up in confusion momentarily. "We're doing the ballad?"

"Kind of, yeah, I suppose." Mr Schue glossed over, nudging the high-schoolers before him even further into confusion. He sighed, before finally reaching his proposition; that destination he had sought after. "Tina and Blaine will be singing, but you two will be dancing for them. Acting out – if you'd like – an emotional movement so that the audience can really connect with the song. The song's a bit past its sell-by date, I know, but with two singers and two dancers on the stage, it'll give the crowd something different. Food for thought." He pondered over that phrase for moments, before his eyes widened again, and in a subtler tone, he hushed out an invitation: "Are you interested?"

"So… like… expressive dance? Abstract stuff?" Marley cocked a perfectly shaped eyebrow up, letting the other droop as she obtained a look of doubt and curiosity.

Mr Schue shrugged. "It'll still be dance. It won't be too abstract, or too expressive… just to let the audience feel angst and to add to the song. Not too much of an acting thing, really, but still a dance." He repeated, and Marley's look of dubiousness softened slightly, but it was still noticeable.

Sam was the first to speak. "I'm in. It seems cool, I think we could do it. Marley, what do you think?"

After a while, the cerulean girl had seen all of the positives and negatives and came to her conclusion, answering the teacher and the blonde boy first with a mischievous grin. "I don't see why not."

Mr Schue appeared physically relieved, before getting to the technicalities of everything. "You probably won't be able to dance in your full show choir attire, so I'll speak with Tina to organise separate costumes which'll give you more freedom. The ballad is our opening number, so Sam, you'll do the song and then get changed during the guys' number. Sorry, I couldn't think of another way that would work out." He winced, but Sam was reassuring and wasn't fazed by it much at all. "So you'll both change during the boys' group number, and you'll be back on in your normal outfits for the ending group number. You'll have to change quickly. Is that okay?" The two nodded in agreement. "Good. Now, to get this dance to absolute perfection, it might be a lot of rehearsals after school, during lunch period, maybe even you two meeting together on weekends… are you committed for that? Because if we're going to do this, we're either going to give it our all or we'll have to drop it entirely… so… is that going to be a problem?" Again, both were obedient and shook their heads. "Right. Shall we have a first session… uh… after school on Friday? Is that good for you, Sam?"

"Yeah, seems fine." He shrugged, before the two turned to Marley. She, similarly, brushed over the matter and told them that she'd be there.

Mr Schue couldn't have looked more satisfied. "Great." He cracked a toothy grin, before sidestepping past the two and striding once more into the choir room, leaving the two no other option but to follow suit.

Upon sitting back down, the brunette too appeared pleased. She heard footsteps bending to meet her, and looked up from her giddy expression to see her boyfriend. He was looking at her inquisitively from above. "What are you so happy about, Rose?"

She chuckled past his formal question as he sat down next to her, lounging back in her seat smugly. "Mr Schue wants me and Sam to do this dance number alongside 'Say Something'. Sounds cool."

Ryder grinned. "That sounds awesome." He admitted, leaning forward to capture her cheek in a kiss for a moment, before drawing back. "He was talking to you guys for a while, we were kind of confused what took so long."

A giggle was offered in response. "He was just incorporating a lot of dramatic pauses into things, I don't know. And he was explaining all the technicalities behind it… and about being committed, or whatever." The bespectacled boy's beam stayed put on his face as the bell echoed in their ears, scooping up his bag soon after and depositing it on his back as Marley did the same, weaving her dainty fingers in between his upon settling the bag behind her. She huffed. "But yeah, it seems cool. Rehearsals start Friday after school."

At that point, Ryder froze and became slightly tense. She had forgotten. Or… had she? Was she telling him this as an introduction to another excuse? He decided to ask a question that would complete the puzzle all at once. "I… I-I thought we had a date on Friday?"

Marley seemed extremely bedazzled for moments on end, before she winced as if she had just experienced a thousand scolding burns on her body, and used her spare hand to dig her fingers into her hairline. "Crap. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, I'm really sorry." She shook her head, knowing how much that date meant to the both of them, seeing as they saw little of each other recently.

Ryder felt a pang of guilt slide through him for triggering her apologies – typical of him, of course – and instantly squeezed her hand. He chuckled; a poor façade. "Hey, don't worry. We can rearrange."

"Sorry, I just… um… I'm free Sunday?" She pondered, raising an eyebrow in anticipation for an answer.

He bit his lower lip instinctively, then exhaled through his nose upon caving and allowing a tight-lipped smile to seep through. "Sure."

There had only been a mere two occasions when the two had missed a Friday date night. It was a tradition, of sorts. A tradition that the boy hated to see broken. Her forgetfulness had triggered the alarms of a thousand more thoughts of fear and paranoia in his brain, and he could only hope she would make up for it. He may have been selfish, but he thought that it was what he deserved.

There was one sentence that clanged through his eardrum, violated his insides, and plagued him with sadness lately; one sentence which seemed to echo off the walls of McKinley, ricocheting back into their conversations consistently: "Mind if I take a rain check?"

Ryder spun round on the ball of his foot to walk in front of her as they progressed down the hallway, scanning her as if looking at her would give him an answer for her excuse. He noticed – as she inevitably winced at him – that there was something deeper behind her eyes. Some kind of regret, or sorrow… that look of mystery that usually found its way into her orbs was compromised almost entirely. He huffed, not even bothering to sugar-coat his response. It had been the sixth time already. "What is it this time?"

She bit her lip, looking up at him for a moment, before gathering her shoulders up in preparation for his disapproval. "It's my friend Mary-Anne's birthday party…" Ryder sucked in a breath and turned his head to the side, and in turn, the brunette frantically tried to explain the matter to him as her tone increased in urgency. "It's her eighteenth, and she wanted me to do her makeup and hair and she told me that if I couldn't make it, she'd rearrange the whole thing, and…" She looked down. "She's allowing plus ones… maybe you could come, too..."

"No." Ryder spoke in an instant, his tone as firm as he could muster up in front of her. "I wouldn't want to ruin Mary-Anne's eighteenth; you know I don't belong at parties." He bit his lower lip once more as he turned instead to his locker, twisting in the combination and focusing on that rather than her.

Marley sighed. "But you belong with me, okay?" She attempted to break through his concentration on other things by leaning her back against the locker beside his and looking him in the eyes. His eyes wavered towards her. "I mean, I'm trying my best to refrain from singing the song." She joked, but her humorous afterthought had sent his attention away again. She looked down at her feet and paid notice to the noise of other conversations in the hallway, before looking back up at him. "Listen, I know you. I know this is hurting you, the way I keep blowing you off for rehearsals and parties. And I know that you don't want to be that guy who doesn't let his girlfriend do things without him, or doesn't allow her cancelling dates to do other things. You're a good guy, Ryder. And I know you hate that right now, too. And I know you also dislike how popular I've gotten because you think it means that I don't have time or feelings reserved for you anymore, but babe, that's where you're wrong…" She tried her best to convince him, taking time to swallow down her guilt best she could as he leaned a large hand against the frame of his locker. "Every time I have to cancel a date, every time I don't sit with you at lunch, my feelings only grow stronger for you. And that makes our dates even more special." She tried a small smile, as he finally turned to her with a sheepish expression on his face.

"I guess you know me better than I thought you did these days." He admitted.

Marley's small smile became even more filled with pity as she moved her hand to ease up and down his chest instead. "I can tell Mary-Anne I can't go, if you want. I mean, this girl is willing to rearrange her party just for me." She giggled, raising an eyebrow.

And like always, Ryder caved. He couldn't imagine the disappointment that this other Cheerio girl could act on if he made Marley refuse the party invitation. The blue-eyed girl was right – he never wanted to be the guy that handcuffed his girlfriend to him at all times. "No, you don't have to do that. There's always another day, right?"

Marley seemed uneasy, but gently hooked her moving hand up to his neck nonetheless and rose up to her tiptoes, capturing him in a soft kiss for moments on end, pulling away and brushing their noses together impulsively. "I love you, okay?"

That added 'okay' was obviously another mark of reassurance. He praised her for her attempts and yet loathed them at the same time because he could feel the pity leaching through her tone. He looked between her two pupils, surrounded by that intoxicating shade of blue, wetting his lips and pressing them together before reciprocating. "I love you too."

That moment lasted seconds before another distraction posed a threat to the pair, as Sam walked up to the two. "Uh, hey Ryder."

The blonde's greeting caused the boy in question to turn towards him, as did the brunette girl. "H-Hi." He grinned politely, but grief founds its way into his bloodstream again as Marley's attention was, once again, wavered.

Sam nodded at the boy once, before turning his attention to Marley with a smirk that Ryder could have sworn was flirtatious. "You ready, Marley?"

"You bet." She reciprocated his look, before turning back to Ryder. The boy – although trying his best to disguise it – was trying his best not to throw up. Something like that had weirdly made him more nervous. She bestowed a short but ardent kiss on his cheek, looking into his eyes as if she was searching for something. "I'll see you later, babe?" He nodded in response, and with that, Marley and Sam began traipsing away from that density, greeting each other properly with smiles and laughs as they progressed further down the halls of McKinley.

Ryder huffed as he watched them go out of earshot and into their own world, talking. "I wouldn't promise anything."

Thanks for reading, and don't forget to review with your thoughts about this chapter/story/where this might be going for Ryley/general ponderings about life (or, you know, MELISSA AND BLAKE AT THE INDEPENDENT SPIRIT AWARDS, OMG I CAN'T BREATHE). I'd love you forever ;)

Also: I started watching The Flash. I watched the whole series as it stands now in less than a week or so. I need help. This show has hella impacted me. It is all I think about now. Omg. If you're into it, seriously hit me up!

Sorry I didn't get this chapter up as soon as I would have hoped – although I'm on half term (although it's the last day, sniff sniff), I recently got a new puppy and she's adorable, but she's a piece of work :P our other dog's not sure about her yet, but I'm sure they'll be BFFs in a few weeks, lol.

Until next time…

-Beth :-)