Yay! happy to see the reviews and all, thanks sooo much. This chapter, I kind of time skipped, cause I'd rather not write a whole chapter on a mopey Emma and Will cause that's depressing :3 So instead of having a lot of conversations, I reflected on their feelings and stuff so it's not too um, vague? Something like that... but here it goes- read and enjoy ^^
-Cheena
Chapter 12: Never Too Late
The past week had been dreadful. Never before, had she felt so alone. The only thing she heard beside her own thoughts was the continuous ticking of the clock in her office. Emma rested her head in the palm of her hand, leaning on the desk, slowly watching the time pass. Normally at this time, she'd be in the teacher's lounge, eating lunch with Will, but no. Besides occasionally seeing him speed through the hallways, they hadn't talked all week. Not they were necessarily mad at each other, at least from her standpoint, but having to look at each other, like nothing was wrong, would be unbearable. It was kind of weird though, because now that she actually had the chance to be closer to him, she felt farther away than ever. It was alright though, to have some time alone, right? It sounded like a good idea at first, but now she just missed him. Maybe he felt the same way, but after the way he reacted she wasn't so sure.
The next period began, and the hallway had finally cleared. She rubbed her eyes, weary from staring out the glass windows all day. Finally, she got up from her now less comfortable chair, and took a walk outside in the hallway. Emma never really did that, but she needed some new air. Casually, she walked down the hall, with no destination. As she reached a corner, she heard someone else's footsteps besides her own. It was probably just another student. She kept walking, only to meet someone at the intersection who she didn't plan on running into for the first time.
"Will…" She muttered under her breath, waiting to see if he would approach her first. He slowed down his pace, and for a second, unsure whether or not he should engage conversation with her, did so anyway.
He took a deep breath, and forced a barely visible smile on his face. "Emma… hi."
"Hi." Emma said shyly, waiting to see where this meeting would go. He scratched the back of his head, anxiously.
"This is kind of awkward… I probably shouldn't have left you like that the other day." It was a habit for him, to apoligize. He was hurt, but felt really bad about not finishing the conversation, feeling like he didn't give her a real chance to explain herself.
Hesitantly, she shook her head, knowing that she should have been apoligizing, for how much she hurt him. "So um, don't you have a class now?"
Will let out a subtle laugh, and flagged a stack of papers he had in his hand, raising his eyebrows. "Yeah, I had someone cover it… had to copy some papers for glee club next period." He licked his lips, and paused, "Nationals are next weekend. A matter of fact we are leaving Friday at like 5am or something... not really my time of day." He sighed, and brought the papers back down to his side. Bringing that up, killed him inside. Emma folded her arms and looked the ground, not knowing what to say without pushing a button.
"I'm sure the kids… will do great, Will." That was all she could muster up, in the brief time. He nodded, although not as confident as he was a week ago.
"Yeah, thanks." He held his wrist up to look at his watch, quickly wrapping up the conversation. "See you around, I- I have to get this done and stuff."
Emma bit her lip, as he walked swiftly by her, towards the copy room. That was easier than she thought it would be, besides brining up nationals. Oh and the kids, they wanted her to come too. She felt really bad about letting them down, but even if she could explain the circumstances, they probably wouldn't understand either. As of recently, she was even a bit confused as to why not. Why shouldn't she pursue her happiness? Why should she let fear control her life? Hopefully, should would have some of epiphany, and grasp the concept real soon. She realized, she was standing in the middle of a hallway like an idiot, she quickly found the nearest way out of the building, and walked into the court yard. The weather was finally warmer and more welcoming, with a light breeze. She inhaled the fresh air and smiled, for the first time in a while.
The next week went by a little faster, because when Will and Emma saw each other, they actually managed to say hello to each other, and any other appropriate greeting they felt like letting out after Will had broken the ice. It was Thursday, and everyone was wild like usually because the week was ending, except for the glee kids. They were only filled with anxiety more than anything. Even the excitement of getting to go to the big apple couldn't get their spirits up. Will paced the choir room endlessly, trying to find a way to get to instill in them some confidence, but it was hard when he felt the same way. He was supposed to lead them, but he himself had his own problems he needed to overcome. They would be in New York this time tomorrow, and the reality was starting to set in.
"Alright guys, I know you are all nervous, but we'll be fine."
Quinn rolled her eyes. "Who are you kidding Mr Schue? You are probably stressing more than any of us." And she was kind of right.
Will scratched the back of his head, not having anything to come back with. "Well, um-…" He looked up at the group, who were not even paying attention to him. They were looking intently at the door way, some with smiles on their faces. Intrigued, he turned around too, pleasantly surprised.
"Hi guys." There was Emma, standing there, as if she was afraid to come in. Will's heart was warmed by that, and he smiled gently. Step by step, she came into the choir room, holding her hands together tightly. She went up next to Will, and kept her hand by her waist, and waved to the kids subtly.
He stood next to her awkwardly. "Em- Ms Pillsbury? Didn't expect you to be… stopping by."
She looked up to Will, and shushed him. "Yeah… I won't stay for long." He turned his head a little, and frowned. Emma smiled at the kids, and continued. "I came to um, wish you all good luck."
"We really wish you were coming Ms P." Mercedes said sincerely. Will smiled a tad bit, understanding exactly how they felt.
Emma shook her head, agreeing. "I know… but I figured I'd come in and do the next best thing. You guys are so-so talented." She looked up at Will and then back at the group. "And you don't need a good luck charm… just know me and a lot of other people believe in all of you. Most importantly, believe in yourself… anything is possible, especially in New York."
After she stopped talking, the kids clapped, in appreciation for her heart-felt words. Will placed a hand on her shoulder, and told her quietly, "Thank You." She nodded her head and took a deep breath, before breaking away. Will watched her leave the choir room, and held his hand in a fist. For moment he completely forgot where he was, and turned around to find a bunch of teenagers staring at him, with sorry looks on their faces.
Emma left the choir room, with a destination in mind. Every day after school the past week, she went into the courtyard, to just sit there, and feel at peace. This time, she went in there, a little less happy than before. The faces of the disappointed kids, as well as Will's, wouldn't get out of her mind. This day would be hard, and once today was over with; she would have a whole weekend to get though, wondering how the group was doing in New York. She could always call Will, but that wouldn't be the same as actually being there. She began to stride heavily down the little side walk towards the center on the grassy area. Quickly, she was brought out of her train of thought, when she tried to lift her shoe; it was brought back down, bye something elastic. It was gum. Emma gasped, slowly picking her foot up and looking underneath it. She started to hyperventilate as she frantically made her way to the nearest bench. She shook her head, in a panic. After examining her shoe, not knowing what to do, she looked up, and found herself staring into space.
"Will…"
"Hey Emma, I need your help-… is that gum?"
She remembered shaking her head nervously, as if it was a deadly situation. She remembered him sitting down next to her, and pulling out a card. He had her lift up her gum infest shoe, and he precisely began to scrape it off for her, like it was no problem. She wished she didn't have a problem with it, but at that moment, she actually had gotten to the chance to just have some time, with just him and her, just to chat. She began to ramble about how to get kids to join glee club, and never realized that she would have actually helped.
"There you go Cinderella."
That alone, made her the happiest person alive, even after a gum incident. She then proceeded to tell him that she had a problem, with the messy things. Looking back, she could only say to herself how 'weird' she must have sounded, but over time she came to find out he never was fazed by it. Emma grinned at the little memory that meant so much to her. Hesitantly, she looked back down at her shoe, and slowly began rubbing it back and forth on the concrete, hoping it would make a difference. She couldn't help to think, about how much, she wished her prince charming was there, to help her clean up the mess.
Emma came home to her lonely condo, feeling more depressed. Earlier than usual, she had got into her pajamas which consisted up long, warm pants, an extra-long night shirt, and slippers. As the sun went away, and it became darker, she knew it was getting late. She walked into her kitchen, which was less shiny than usually, and opened the freezer. After looking around in it, she pulled out a container of strawberry ice cream, her favorite. After placing it on the coffee table, she walked over to a shelf above the TV and pulled out a movie of great significance- 'The Jazz Singer.' She crouched down and turned on the DVD player, placing the disc carefully inside. When the screen popped up, she made her way back to the couch, and positioned herself in the corner of it, and propped her feet on the couch. She grabbed her ice cream, and leaned on her knees, as the movie started. She had no clue why she was watching it, but it probably wasn't a great idea.
After about an hour and half, the ice cream was basically a puddle. Easily, she decided to turn off the movie, tired of dealing with the melancholy of it. She went into the kitchen to put the container in the trash and wash off her spoon. The clock on the stove read '9:30'. She knew it would be impossible to sleep, with everything on her mind. In a hopefully attempt at getting some rest, she made herself and a warm glass of soy milk, and chugged it down effortlessly.
Emma took her slippers off and slipped under her blankets, in her dark room. Restless, she laid her head on her pillow, covered in plastic, and closed her eyes. Surprisingly, she found herself drifting into a sound sleep...
Her eyes opened at the eruption of noise around her, and she saw a great big curtain close. She looked around confused, and realized she was sitting in a giant theater. It wasn't a small one, like they used for the Rocky Horror Show. For a moment, she felt completely lost. There was a sea of people around her, who immediately rose to their feet in applause. Then, she felt someone or something brush her elbow on the arm rest. She looked up, feeling a sense of relief…
"Will…" She looked up at him, and he was clapping. He was clapping, but he wasn't happy. Nervously, she tugged on his arm, trying to grab his attention. He didn't budge though. "Will?" Frantically, she stood up trying to get him to look at her, but it was like she didn't even exist. She kept calling his name, but at the same time, couldn't even hear herself think. The couple minutes seemed endless, and her reaching out wasn't working. Then all of the sudden, room went black.
Emma's heart skipped a bit, as she closed her eyes, scared and confused. Quickly though, dim lights had filled the back of the theater, making it visible again. She looked to where Will should have been standing, but he wasn't there. It had only been a few seconds, right? But he was nowhere. "Will!" She called out his name, helplessly, knowing she wouldn't get a response. As the overwhelming amount of people began to draw near here, she went into panic. Then the room around her began to spin, and things went black…
She shot up from her laying position and placed a hand over her chest. "It was just a dream…" Heavily, she breathed in and out, shocked by her vision. It couldn't have been for nothing, and even someone who isn't a guidance counselor would realize that. That was her epiphany. She looked over at her clock, and blinked her yes a few times so she could see clearly. It read '2:59 AM'. Her mind went back to a time, when Will had told her that the group would be catching a flight at 5AM.
"It's not too late…" She slipped from under her blankets, and sat on the edge on her bed, pondering what she would have to do, to make it to the airport, and catch Will before she lost him for good.
Author's Note: Hope you liked the chapter, sorry if went to fast or anything, I wasn't sure if I would be able to entertain with all the stuff in the middle. Haha, and the dream xD i was really stumped about how to conjure up a dream for Emma to have in this chapter, um... i guess it was okay lol. Thanks for reading and don't forget to review :) and im pretty sure what happens next chapter is kind of obvious (this wouldn't be complete without an airport scene xD), but it'll be good lol
