a/n: hey everyone, just thought I would give you a little insight into this chapter and future chapters. this chapter is obviously based off "Blame it on the Alcohol" but it occurs much earlier in season 2, so there are some significant differences (ie - no Puck, no Blaine, no Lauren). i use the first 4 episodes of season two as foundation for this as they fit within the timeline of the story thus far and, in general, this story will run concurrently with season 2. So my AU headcanon for this (and upcoming) Lima scenes is based on season 2 canon plus the "what if" Quinn was no longer at McKinley factor and any changes that may have on actual canon.
"Quinn!" the brunette exclaimed as she answered the door. I recognized her as one of the girls in the pictures on Quinn's dresser.
"It's good to see you, too, Rachel," Quinn said in a much softer tone, smiling.
She extended her hand out to me. "I'm Rachel Berry. It's a pleasure to meet you."
I grabbed her hand and nodded. "Paige McCullers."
"Welcome, Paige! I hope you're ready for an exciting party!"
We headed down into the basement and stopped on the landing as Rachel made our grand introduction.
"Look who has finally arrived! And let me introduce everyone to Paige McCullers!"
"H-hi," I said as I timidly waved at the large group. I peered around the room trying to remember everyone's names that Quinn told me in the car.
The first person I recognized was Mercedes, who approached us and gave Quinn a giant hug.
"I'm Mercedes. It's nice to finally meet you, Paige. I've heard so much about you!" Mercedes said with a smile as she also brought me in for a hug. I wondered what Quinn had told Mercedes.
Rachel and Quinn descended the final two steps as I remained on the landing surveying the room. I immediately could pick out Santana and Brittany, the two cheerleaders, even though they were on separate sides of the room. Santana was with a blonde-haired boy, I don't think Quinn mentioned him, and Brittany was with the boy in the wheelchair. I think his name was Artie. Tina and Mike were sitting on a couch while a particularly eccentric boy stood by himself. That must have been Kurt. Then I saw Rachel head over to the last boy in the room. I assumed that must be Finn. I didn't see anyone with a mohawk though.
"Where's Puck?" I heard Quinn ask Rachel as my stomach churned.
"The idiot landed himself in juvie," Santana interjected.
Quinn paused for a moment. "Do I even want to know?"
"No," Mercedes quickly stated.
Somehow, I found it to be a relief that I wouldn't have to meet Puck.
I finally fully entered the room once I gained my bearings and headed over to the corner with Kurt. He gave me a welcoming smile.
"Hey! RuPaul! This party's a real drag. We need some real alcohol!" Santana yelled to Rachel.
The rest of the party joined in agreement and completely overwhelmed the hostess.
"Look, Berry. Just let us into that liquor cabinet. We'll replace it before your dads even get home," Santana urged.
Rachel looked upset and confused, examining all the unhappy party guests in the room. Finally she gave in, lifting her wine cooler in the air and shouting, "Let's party!"
"That's absolutely awful."
"I know. I don't even know what to do other than try to seem invisible and hide."
"It's not any better here in Lima. I've been getting bullied since before I even came out. They're just jealous that they can't look this fabulous," Kurt joked.
I looked upon him sadly. He seemed like such a genuinely amazing person, but people couldn't see past his sexuality. I could more than feel his pain.
"After my father had his heart attack though, I realized how great my friends are. How wonderful of a support system they are. Without them, I don't know if I'd be able to put up with this bullying day in and day out."
"Yeah. I don't know what I'd do without Quinn. She's the only one at that school who treats me like a human being."
Kurt gave me a hug before he continued.
"Quinn may be a bitch sometimes," he laughed, "but she really does care. Especially after what she went through last year. I know you guys will take care of each other."
I nodded. I looked over into the crowd of people and saw Quinn mingling among her former classmates and chatting with that mysterious blonde boy.
"Who is that?"
"Talking to Quinn? That's Sam. He's new," Kurt explained, "I'm convinced he's gay, but he adamantly denies it. I do know, though, that he dyes his hair. He'd never put that one by me."
I laughed as I took a sip of my drink.
"Thanks."
"For what?" Kurt asked.
"Listening to me ramble for the last twenty minutes."
"Oh please, darling, it was my pleasure." Kurt smiled. "What do you think family is for?"
I returned his smile.
"And if you ever need anything, feel free to send a text or give me a call. Quinn has my num -"
"Move it, Lady Hummel, my turn with the fresh meat," Santana interrupted Kurt.
Kurt rolled his eyes and patted me on the shoulder and whispered, "Good luck."
Santana had been glued to Sam's side since I had gotten here, but now that Quinn was talking to him, she had found her way over here.
"H-hey."
"H-hey," she replied, mockingly. "So," she said, looking me up and down, "you're Quinn's new roommate."
I nodded, looking at her curiously.
"You better not mess with her or hurt her," Santana threatened. "No one does that, except for me. Got it?"
"G-got it."
"Good."
Santana stood there silently, eyeing me as she drank from her cup. She looked me up and down once more before she turned and walked off without saying a word.
The night flew by and more liquor bottles were emptied, the music got louder, and the crowd got drunker and rowdier. Tina and Mercedes were constantly in hysterics while Brittany was using anything she could as a pole, losing more and more clothing as the night went on. Sam was relentlessly flirting with Quinn, who seemed to be lapping it up. Santana tried to get Sam's attention but continually failed, and instead, started doing body shots off of the now shirtless Brittany. Artie was watching the Brittany show while Rachel, Kurt, and Mike were dancing like crazy. Finn, the designated driver, was stone cold sober and leaned against the wall taking in all the activity. I was sitting on the staircase, slowly sipping on my second drink of the evening when Rachel took the stage and grabbed the microphone.
"Everyone! Let's spin the bottle," she slurred. "Who wants to play spin the bottle? Spin the bottle!" she excitedly yelled.
The crowd stopped what they were doing and cheered, gathering and forming a circle on the floor. I got up and walked over, only to stand there, apprehensive about joining in the game.
"C'mon, we won't bite," Kurt coaxed, sliding closer to Brittany and patting the floor next to him.
I scowled at him for a moment while I took a sip from my straw. "I'm not drunk enough yet for all of this."
"Girl," Mercedes chimed in, giggling from across the circle, "we'll get you there. Don't you worry."
Kurt continued to pout as he motioned for me to sit. Just beyond Kurt, I saw Quinn, seated next to Mercedes, smiling at me and nodding, mouthing the word "go".
I shrugged and sighed. "Fine." I sat down cross-legged in between Finn and Kurt, who smiled and lifted his red plastic cup.
"Cheers."
I smirked as I knocked my cup against his and we both took a sip. Just as we did, Rachel came prancing over to the circle, supplies in hand. She clumsily placed a checkerboard and a vodka bottle on the ground in the middle of the circle. She began to lose her balance as she leaned over and Finn quickly grabbed her at the hips and brought her to the ground between himself and Quinn. I saw Quinn roll her eyes and divert her attention to Mercedes as all of this transpired. Mercedes and Tina both cheered as Mercedes grabbed the empty liquor bottle and handed it to Quinn.
"You take the first spin since you're our Guest of Honor!" she excitedly told Quinn.
"Great," Quinn mumbled under her breath. She took the bottle and placed it on the board. She glanced over to me just before she spun the bottle. I anxiously awaited to see where it would land, but as it slowed and passed where I was sitting, I knew there would be no kiss from Quinn...this round at least. The bottle finally came to a stop on her friend sitting next to her. Mercedes clapped and took a sip of her drink before she planted a light peck on Quinn's lips. Kurt made a cat call while a few of the others laughed.
Mercedes nudged Quinn. "See, that wasn't so bad," she laughed.
Quinn let a little smile grow on her face as she took a long swig of her drink.
"My turn!"
Mercedes spun the bottle, which landed on Artie who was sitting across from her in the circle. She placed her cup on the ground and staggered over to him, again lightly pressing her lips against his.
Artie looked to the ground forlornly, unable to reach the vodka bottle. Sam noticed and reached into the center of the circle. "Let me get that for you, bro."
The bottle spun around the circle a few times before stopping in front of Brittany.
"I win, I win!" she excitedly squealed.
She got up and wrapped her arms around Artie before she kissed him. And continued to kiss him. Everyone was cheering and whistling as the two of them began to make out. Everyone except Santana. Santana stuck her finger into her mouth and pretended to throw up. They continued to kiss until Santana loudly cleared her throat and broke Brittany's concentration.
"Let Wheels come up for some air and spin the bottle, Britt," Santana said, holding back her irritation as best as she could.
"I didn't know robots needed air..."
Artie rolled his eyes as Kurt handed the bottle to Brittany, thus prying her away from him. Brittany sat back down on the ground and spun the bottle. When it stopped, she drunkenly crawled across the ground to Tina and lightly kissed her on the lips. I heard Artie grumble to himself as he finished his drink. After the peck, Brittany returned to her spot on the floor between Kurt and Artie while Tina sheepishly picked up the bottle.
"Do I really have to do this?" Tina whined.
"Rules are rules, Tina," Rachel slurred, still sipping from her plastic cup.
Mercedes began to laugh when the bottle pointed to Kurt. Both Tina and Kurt leaned forward into the circle and Kurt placed a dainty kiss upon her lips.
"See? Now wasn't that just fabulous?"
Tina began to laugh along with Mercedes. The laughter continued and spread as Kurt and Rachel were forced to awkwardly peck.
As Kurt returned to his spot, Rachel excitedly clapped and proceeded to try and spin the bottle. Her first attempt sent the bottle flying off the board and hit Mike in the leg. Her next attempt had the bottle pointin directly at me. My eyes widened and my heart started racing. I was horrified. Everyone started cheering, except for Quinn. I could see a touch of jealously in her eyes as she sat next to Rachel. I took a sip of my drink and waited for Rachel's drunken kiss, trying to avoid Quinn's glares.
"Lady McCullers, I'm going to rock your world."
Rachel's lips met mine, but after our lips had locked, she didn't pull away. In fact, she kept kissing me. She kept deeping it until her tongue was trying to sloppily enter my mouth. My eyes snapped open and I pushed Rachel away. I couldn't even begin to describe how awkward that kiss was. How wrong it felt. I stared at Quinn and her despondant expression while the room seemed to spin around me, full of everyone hollering and yelling and drinking. I knew it was only a silly game, but I felt like I had taken something away from Quinn.
"Your face tastes awesome," Rachel babbled.
Finn grabbed her again and brought her back to his side. He didn't seem terribly pleased by her behavior either.
Avoiding eye contact, Quinn got up and headed to the bar to refill her drink.
"Good idea, Q, I'm going to need a lot more to drink," Santana said, stumbling her way over to the alcohol.
"Hey, can you guys hook me up with a refill!" Artie slurred.
"Me, too!" Rachel yelled.
"I think you've had more than enough, Rachel," Quinn snapped.
"But -"
"She's right," Finn interrupted.
Rachel sat on the floor and pouted as the two girls returned with their overflowing cups, plus one for Artie.
Brittany picked up the bottle and thrust it into my face. "Your turn!"
I placed the bottle on the board and took a quick sip of my drink. Here goes nothing, I thought to myself.
I watched the bottle spin and spin, and as it began to slow, it approched Quinn. But, it slowly glided past her to Rachel and, finally, stopping on Finn.
"Well, that's awkward," Santana chuckled.
"This is not happening," I said under my breath.
Kurt handed me my drink. "This might help."
I took the cup and threw the straw to the ground and chugged the rest of the drink.
"Let's do this."
Both Finn and I leaned into the circle and exchanged a chaste kiss mere feet away from Quinn, who was mostly focused on her beverage at this point, though I could still feel the burn of Quinn's stare. I picked up the bottle and handed it to Finn as I returned to my spot.
I turned to Kurt and muttered, "Gross."
He smiled and picked up my empty cup. "I'll fix this."
Kurt returned with a fresh drink as Finn began his turn.
"I win again! I'm totally awesome at this game," Brittany cheered.
Finn and Brittany exchanged a quick kiss as Santana sneered in the background. Her expression only grew more distressed as Brittany had to kiss the boy sitting next to Santana. After attempting to flirt with Sam most of the night, while still keeping her attention on Brittany the entire time, it didn't take a genius to know there was something more going on there. The anger in Santana's eyes began to drain and they became cold and sad as Brittany and Sam seemed to linger for a moment longer than they should have. She suddenly stood up and swatted at the two of them, yelling in Spanish, separating them.
"Your turn, froggy lips," Santana growled.
Santana sat back down and continued drinking while Sam spun the bottle. A smile grew on his face as the bottle stopped while pointing at Quinn. Santana and I both made eye contact as we brought our cups up to our lips. I couldn't even watch, and instead, I stared at the bottom of my cup. I chugged my drink while everyone cheered for Sam and Quinn. I pounded the cup on the ground just in time to see them break apart from what was most certainly not a quick little peck. Sam picked up the bottle and handed it to Quinn, his eyes still locked on her lips. Quinn looked a bit caught off guard, but returned his glances. I felt my blood rising. Or, maybe, the alcohol was just starting to hit me hard.
Quinn took a sip of her drink and spun the bottle, again avoiding my eye contact. The bottle stopped just short of me, in between Kurt and Brittany. Brittany grabbed the bottle and moved it slightly so it was facing directly towards herself.
"Hey! You can't do that," Kurt said.
"I think I just did," she slurred as she began to crawl across the floor, still oblivious to Santana's reactions. Quinn's mood changed as she began to giggle at Brittany's non-threatening approach. The two friends shared a brief kiss before Brittany retreated with the bottle in hand. She sprawled out on the ground and continued on with the game. Unfortunately, the bottle stopped in front of me. Mercedes and Tina continued their giggling while Quinn suddenly stopped. Brittany, already laying on the floor, rolled over so she was laid out below me. Despite the mess of emotions running through my head and the alcohol in my blood, I couldn't help but laugh. I leaned down and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. She clapped and eventually sat up, crawling back to her place in the circle. I grabbed the bottle and proceeded to find out who I would next share a kiss with.
My eyes widened, as did hers. She took the last few sips of her drink and tossed it aside. She looked towards me, then to Brittany, then back to me. She smiled diabolically as we moved into the center of the circle. I looked towards Quinn. I could see her visibly getting upset. Not sad upset, but "I'm going to punch someone in the face" upset. Then I looked to the girl right in front of me. Without warning, her lips crashed into mine, passionately, and caught me off guard. We both pulled away for a moment, but our faces lingered close together. Through all the yelling and cheering, I heard Quinn announce that she was going to the bathroom. I went to turn to see her when Santana grabbed my cheek and drew me in for another kiss. I didn't resist. It wasn't awkward like kissing Rachel, or gross like Finn, or funny like Brittany. In fact, I continued to deepen our kiss. I wanted to taste her. I wasn't thinking with my head. I wasn't even thinking with my heart. I knew the only person I wanted was Quinn. But right now, I didn't have her. All I had was this funny feeling the alcohol was giving me and a really hot girl kissing me.
"Well, that escalated quickly," Kurt said as he stood up. Sensing that the tension in the room had reached its boiling point, he yelled, "All right! Time for a break!"
"Karaoke!" Rachel excitedly yelled, stumbling towards the stage she had in her basement. "Kurt! Duet! Now!"
I finally broke away from Santana to see Quinn descending from upstairs. I took this singing break as an opportunity to head outside and get some fresh air. I darted away from Santana and went out the backdoor of the basement and ascended a set of stairs into the backyard.
I leaned against the side of the house and stared up at the sky. The stars started spinning and I felt dizzy. The thoughts in my head were spinning, too.
I hated feeling jealous. I hated seeing Quinn flirting with other people. I hated seeing her kiss other people. And I hated myself for not hating the kiss with Santana. I felt like such a hypocrite. But it killed me to see Quinn hanging out with Sam and flirting with him. And then kissing him. And enjoying it. I didn't know if she was just putting up a front around her friends or if she was genuinely interested in him. Either way, it hurt.
So, why should I feel bad about kissing Santana and enjoying it? Quinn and I aren't together, so it shouldn't matter, right? Right.
What I feel bad about is not having Quinn.
I let out a scream and took my frustrations out on a nearby empty trash can.
"What's your deal, McStutters? You usually beat up inanimate objects?"
I shot around and found Santana steadying herself against the wall at the top of the stairs.
"What?"
"You. What's the deal with you and Quinn?" Santana pried, slowly approaching me.
I looked towards the ground. "N-nothing. We're just friends."
"Uh huh. And I'm sober."
I looked up at her again, scowling. "Yeah, we're friends just like you and Brittany are friends." I snapped.
Santana's eyes began to tear up. "Don't even go there, butchie. You have no idea -"
"Oh, I have an idea -"
"No," said putting her hand up and shaking her head. "I love her, and she has no clue. I tell her that she's just some hook-up while Puck is gone, all the while she's completely oblivious to how I feel about her and I'm too scared to tell her otherwise," Santana said, her tone rising.
"Seems like this Puck guy is turning all the girls..." I joked, trying to make Santana laugh.
Instead, she just started bawling. "No one loves me. Brittany is trying to get with Wheels. Puck only wants me because Quinn isn't around and she'd never take him back anyway." Her sobs broke up her speaking as she drunkenly rambled, "I can't even get with Sam. He just met Quinn and he already likes her more than me. She's blonde and awesome and so smart. Even Finn would rather be with that needy Hobbit over me."
Then, Santana grabbed my vest and pulled me closer to her, closing the distance and finishing what we had started earlier. I got completely lost in her soft lips as I brought my hand up and held her behind the neck. She cradled both of my cheeks in her hands. I felt dizzy as her kiss made me feel drunker and I leaned in closer to her. Her tongue parted my lips as I gave her access, holding her neck even tighter. She dropped her hands from my face and slid them down to my waist, pulling me in so that our bodies were touching. My knees weakened and my entire body tingled and I found it nearly impossible to stand.
"What on earth do you think you're doing!"
Santana was abruptly ripped from my embrace by Quinn. She threw Santana against the side of the house who immediately pushed her back.
"I do what I want, Tubbers."
Quinn growled and pinned Santana against the wall again.
"At least I'm not a slut," Quinn spat back.
"Me? A slut?" Santana pushed off the wall and got right into Quinn's face. "At least I'm not a mother."
Quinn screamed and slapped Santana in the face. Without hesitation, Santana threw Quinn to the ground. Quinn recovered and jumped up to her feet and charged at Santana as Brittany stood by the stairs.
"Stop the violence!"
After watching the scene unfold before me, I finally came to and ran over and wrapped my arms around Quinn trying to restrain her. She tried to wriggle free as Brittany grabbed Santana's wrist and dragged her back inside.
I stood there holding Quinn, the only sound was the dull thud of the music inside and Quinn trying to catch her breath.
"Why?"
"What?" I released her from my grip.
"Why would you kiss her?"
"Do I need a reason other than I'm drunk and I wanted to?"
Quinn turned. She clicked her tongue and stood with her hands on her hips. "No," she replied sharply.
"I didn't think so." I cocked my eyebrow and began to walk away, brushing past her as I walked back towards the stairs. Suddenly, she grabbed my wrist and pulled me back towards her.
"I don't want anyone else's lips on yours, but mine," Quinn whispered she leaned in to kiss me.