An authors note...While I am so honored to have such wonderful and loyal readers out there, I feel I must apologize for any confusion. The storyline we are in now is a slow moving arc that enhances the plot, and for those of you who are having trouble following, the plot is Artie and Quinn's relationship...always has been, always will be. Showing their interactions with one another as well as those around them, in many different situations ...ie. school life, home life, the Abrams, Artie's extended family, the Farays , the Puckermans, Caroline...are all very vital pieces to the story as a whole. I am no where near done with this and will be taking it up to graduation and possibly beyond. I hope that all of you stick with me through the rest, but understand if you choose not to. A long, very involved story is not everyone's cup of tea and I respect that...I just ask that you give me the same respect in return.
Disclaimer-Glee is the property of FOX, the creators and the writers.
Beauty and the Geek
"Hi Andy."
Before he even lifted his head, he recognized who the owner of that familiar flowing voice was. "Oh hey Quinn," Andy returned casually and flashed a grin at the group of Cheerios, lead by their captain, as they passed by the small cluster of junior varsity football players he was standing with.
"Dude...you know her?" a stocky tackle named Vince asked.
"Yeah, she's his br..."
"She's like my sister," Andy blurted, cutting Harry off before he could finish his sentence. Then after quickly shooting his best friend a warning glare, he added, "She lives with my family."
"Lucky," one of the other boys muttered under his breath.
It was followed by a skeptical "No way" from one of the other . To which Andy responded with a simple nod and boastful smirk.
"Yeah, totally lucky," Vince gasped incredulously, "she's only like the hottest girl at this school."
"And a Senior." All eyes drifted toward the smallest guy in the huddle, second string kicker if Andy remembered correctly, boldly pointing that out.
"Wait, doesn't she have a kid?," Lucky boy threw out questioningly.
"What does that have to do with being hot?," Vince countered in askance.
The smaller boy shrugged then sheepishly lowered his head, "Just saying."
"My sister said she was dating that guy in the wheelchair, I think he's a senior like her," number three blurted out, "I wonder if he's the father."
Vince looked over at his friend like he had grown a third eye, or possibly morphed into some gossipy chick. "Seriously Dude? Guys like that can't have kids," he rasped incredulously. "My neighbor has this uncle who was a cop and got put in a wheelchair after getting shot and they had to adopt their kids. I don't think guys like that can even get it up."
Andy did his best to stop the heat of embarrassment that was creeping up his neck, from reaching his face. "Noah Puckerman's the father."
At the utterance of that name, the three boys Andy and Harry were talking to, froze.
"And I suppose you're gonna tell us you know him to," Vince challenged, smirking.
"Yeah, we're pretty tight," Andy returned with an arrogant indifference, then boldly took a step closer to Vince and held his gaze. "Spent most of the weekend with him, watching college ball at my place...Sunday we just ran some plays."
"You're full of shit."
"Wanna bet?" Speak of the devil. Andy's smirk widened...dispelling that assumption wasn't going to be as hard as he thought. "Puckerman," he greeted casually, nodding his head in the direction of the approaching idol, and secretly praying he'd get some sort of positive response. Noah Puckerman wasn't exactly known for being polite.
Noah grinned back and nodded similarly. "W'sup Abrams." Andy's gaze shifted to catch the reactions of the others, but before he could revel in their slack jaws and bulging eyes, Puck's voice rang out again. "We can go over those moves I showed you the other day, later after practice...It's Wednesday, I'm your ride home, right?
Andy played down his enthusiasm with an indifferent shrug and small nod. "Yeah...cool."
"Cool," Puck parroted as he glided past, leaving the majority gaping in his wake.
"Dude...seriously?" 'lucky' gasped in awe at Andy. "That was thee Noah Puckerman."
'Number three' nodded in agreement. "Maybe we can come over and hang out with you guys sometime?" he suggested, glancing between Andy and Harry.
"In your dreams," Andy scoffed back dismissively, even though he couldn't help the feeling of satisfaction that came along with the idea of possibly hanging out with the most popular guys on his team, outside of school...just definitely not at his house.
The bell rang, announcing the start of the school day. Students began dispersing in all directions. Andy gave a parting nod to the three Sophomores, before turning to walk in the opposite direction with Harry. "Man, did you see the look on their faces?" he asked, chuckling.
"Yeah," he answered distractedly, and a beat later asked the question that was playing on his mind. "So um...your brother can't have kids?"
Andy's good mood immediately soured. "What? How the fuck should I know?," he ground out under his breath and quickly scanned the hall to make sure nobody had heard the exchange.
"Jeeze And, I was just wondering," Harry returned defensively. He never really understood Andy's incredibly short fuse when it came to his brother...Harry thought Artie was actually a pretty awesome guy. "You know, if your Mom heard you talk like that..."
"Well she wont, will she?" Andy cut in warningly, "Not unless someone tells her."
It was clear to Harry that his best friend was becoming annoyed with where their conversation was heading, so he let his curiosity slide.
No, Andy Abrams did not want to talk about home or his family...not when he could picture his quick climb up the McKinley high social ladder. Soon he would be the most popular Freshman at the school.
Life couldn't get much better than that.
...
Luckily, it appeared the Wednesday Glee club rehearsal wasn't going to suffer the same fate as Monday's practice, sans Cheerios.
Quinn was happy to find Artie alone at his locker after school. It wasn't that she didn't absolutely love their mutual friends, it was just that their time together was always so limited, and alone time was nearly non existent.
"Just the man I was looking for," Quinn intoned playfully as she came up from behind Artie and wrapped her arms around his shoulders.
"Because no woman can resist the opportunity to get all up on this," he returned with that quick witted, forever playful, slightly ghetto, banter he was finally comfortable enough to use around her.
"Well actually, I was just looking for someone to carry my duffel bag," she countered teasingly, her eyes sparkling with delight, lips pressed firmly against his cheek. They shared a smile and another kiss before the Three Musketeers, as Quinn so affectionately called them, walked over.
"Awwww," Tina drawled out exaggeratedly. "Aren't they so cute."
Mercedes grin widened. "Yeah, like two little bunnies in the spring time."
Kurt followed suit with a smirk of his own. "And you know what they say about bunnies."
Both Artie and Quinn blushed an interesting shade of red at Kurt's lively quip...the not so subtle innuendo, not lost on them either. Rolling her eyes playfully and thanking God the hall was nearly empty, Quinn moved to fall in step with the others when she felt a gentle tug holding her back. It was Artie. "Gimme your bag," he said expectantly.
"Artie, I was joking," she returned, giving his shoulder a slightly dismissive nudge.
"I wasn't," he replied, pulling to a stop and beaming up at her.
Quinn could tell that he was completely serious, but still felt a little reluctant to make him do something that started out as a joke. In the end though, that sweet sincere smile and imploring blue eyes won out and she slipped the strap from her shoulder. Artie pulled the bag onto his lap, bringing Quinn down with it. She instinctively reached out for his shoulders to steady herself, their faces mere inches apart...exactly where he wanted her.
"Thanks," Quinn whispered, sliding her right hand up around the back of his neck, her fingers twining with his hair.
"Any time," he muttered back, just before pressing his soft lips to hers.
"See," Kurt called out pointedly to Mercedes and Tina as he glanced over his shoulder, "Bunnies."
...
"Okay guys, I know we still have a little time, but with our performances at Homecoming and Invitationals right around the corner, I think it would be a good idea to get started on the finale number for Sectionals," Mr. Schuester announced as he walked into the classroom, carrying a stack of papers. "Especially since we really need to focus on our dancing if we're going to beat the strong collective voices of our competition."
Will began passing out the sheet music for the piece to the number he had prepared last night but stopped just short of everyone. Quinn glanced over at Artie with a confused expression on her face and was just about to raise her hand, when Mr. Schuester returned with a packet just for him. "Artie, I'm going to need you on guitar for this one."
Nodding dutifully, Artie took the proffered papers and began looking them over. Quinn's frown deepened, and this time, she did raise her hand. "But Mr. Schue, Artie's my dance partner."
"Not for this number Quinn," Will replied as he turned to face her. "I need him on bass."
Quinn glanced from her teacher, to her boyfriend, and back to the sheet music again. "Can't you just get Martin from the jazz band to play this? He's usually the one to accompany us anyway."
Will shook his head, but lowered his eyes to avoid hers. "No, this piece is a little tricky in some parts, Martin hasn't been playing as long as Artie..."
"But if he's given enough time to practice..."
"He still won't be as good as Artie is," Mr. Schue was quick to cut in.
It was obvious from the deep scowl she was wearing that Quinn was not pleased. She turned her head to face Artie at the same time he brought his hand up to pat her arm. "It's okay," he reassured her. But it wasn't.
"No," Quinn mumbled as she rose from her seat and stalked over to the piano.
"Mr. Schuester, I don't think this is fair."
At the barely audible whisper behind him, Will lifted his head from the attendance sheet he was marking on, and let out a slightly frustrated sigh. "Quinn, we've already been over this...I need Artie to play..."
"No, you need to find something for Artie to do while we're dancing," she interjected softly, and by the brief flicker of guilt that crossed Mr. Schue's features, knew she wasn't that far off from the truth. "You have thirteen members now, which means there can only be six pairs...Artie's the weakest link...well not if you take into consideration Finn's lack of dancing skills and Mike's inability to carry a note..."
Her words died in the air when she realized nothing she was going to say would make him change his mind. Will flashed her an apologetic grimace, "I'm sorry Quinn."
Quinn simply shook her head dismissively and swallowed down the emotion building in her throat before walking back to her seat where Artie was waiting with a concerned look on face. He was just about to ask her if she was okay, when Mr. Schuester announced that it was time to pair up.
"...and the pair that wins the duet competition will get the chance to sing lead at Regionals."
"Mr. Schuester," Rachel called out, smug grin pulled against her lips, "I'm afraid that Finn and I have the unfair advantage in this type of competition..."
"Which is why I've already picked the partners," Will finished for her.
Rachel turned a ghastly shade of green, like she was about to be sick. "Bu...but..."
"Okay, our first pair is Puck and Mercedes." The diva rolled her eyes playfully while the jock waggled his brow. "Finn and Tina." Curious glances exchanged, followed by satisfactory smiles...from everyone but Rachel. "Mike and Santana." An indifferent shrug from her, a fearful look from him. "Kurt and Brittany." Matching puzzled expressions. "Sam and Quinn." He gave a celebratory fist pump, she defiantly crossed her arms over her chest, while Artie's stomach churned nervously. "That just leaves..."
"Mr. Schuester...as much as I like Matt, I really don't think our voices will compliment..."
"Rachel," he cut her off politely and plastered on a smile. "That is exactly why I chose these pairs. What's the fun of a competition if it's not challenging?"
And just she was just about to give her answer to that rhetorical question, Will stepped out of earshot. "Hey Artie, I know it's almost time for you to leave...which is why I decided to do this today...," he stated, pausing only momentarily when he noticed the boy was already packing up his things. "We're probably just going to block positions and run through some of the choreography with the piano. If you can be ready for next time, I think we could incorporate the bass with some of the vocals."
Artie ginned up at him and gave a little nod, "Sure thing Mr. Schue."
Will flashed him a smile before turning back to the group. "Okay guys, let's start."
"Wait, Artie," Quinn called and rushed out into the hall after him after exchanging only a quick glance as he passed by. Artie pulled his chair to a stop and pivoted to face her. "Why didn't you fight it?"
He looked up at her quizzically. "Fight what?"
"Mr. Schuester's decision," she replied bluntly.
Artie shrugged indifferently. "What was I supposed to do Quinn? He'd already made up his mind..."
"Why do you always give in so easily?"
"What are you talking about, giving in?" he retorted incredulously, pausing only a second to drop his hands to his knees. "It's not like it wasn't the obvious route to go when trying to coordinate an epic dance number with thirteen students and one wheelchair." Quinn lowered her gaze to the floor, stung. "Look Quinn, I'm sorry," Artie offered sincerely, after another brief hesitation to internally chastise himself for snapping at her, "but I...I really gotta go."
Nodding, Quinn leaned over to give him a parting kiss. "Have a good session," she offered, her breath soft, her words genuine, and her embrace lingering just a little longer than actually necessary.
A silent nod of acknowledgment from him, and Quinn was forced to watch him retreat down the hall. Three small words that would have expressed what she suspected she was starting to feel, but that he would have probably just misinterpreted for pity...left unspoken.
...
ANx2...yet another angst building chapter:) A HUGE thanks to Megan(aka Dryadspeaks) for letting me borrow her Martin(or at least his name) for this chapter. Thanks for reading!