AN: I don't have a lot to say about this one, but I hope you enjoy it and leave a review!
Song list:
Collar-full - Panic! at the Disco
"Okay, spill," Tyler said, setting two cups down on the table in front of Levi and sitting down opposite him. The Lima Bean wasn't particularly busy this time of day, but they got a table in the back, away from the bustle around the counter. Taking a sip of his drink Levi felt a shiver run down his spine as he tasted the extra cinnamon in his hot chocolate. Tyler still knew his order. "What's your sudden interest in Glee club?"
"I like music." Levi shrugged.
"Come on." Tyler held two hands around his own cup, raising his eyebrows at Levi. "I know you better than that. You've always been the anti-flamboyant, why the sudden need to belt out show tunes in a choir?"
"How do you know we do showtunes?"
"You're a Glee club," Tyler narrowed his eyes at Levi, who rolled his in return. "All glee clubs do showtunes."
"Whatever," Levi took another sip of his hot chocolate. "I thought it would be fun."
"Come on," Tyler leaned back in his seat, playfully pushing at Levi's ankle with his foot and raising an eyebrow. "Why did you actually join?"
"Not your business," Levi shot back, harsher than intended. Tyler wasn't fazed.
"Levi," Tyler said, reaching a hand out and placing it on top of Levi's. Suddenly Levi was 14 again and Tyler was the first boy to hold his hand. Levi usually wasn't one to give in to sentimentalism, but everything about Tyler was bringing back memories. He was unsure kisses, fumbling hands and whispered secrets all wrapped up in a boy. "It's me. I hardly think this will be the most embarrassing thing I know about you."
Tyler winked at Levi and broke down the last of his defences. Sighing, Levi adjusted in his seat, leaning forward towards Tyler and lowering his voice. He was careful not to move the hand Tyler still held.
"I was at homecoming with Luke," Levi said, noting how Tyler sat up straighter at the mention of Levi's younger brother. "And the glee club was performing. And Luke was really into it."
Tyler nodded and smiled, leaning back in his seat.
"Thank you for telling me," Tyler smiled at Levi. Sometimes Levi wondered if Tyler deliberately placed himself where he knew the sun would hit him at the perfect angle and light his hair up in a halo, or if it just happened coincidentally. Knowing Tyler it was probably the former.
"You kind of made me," Levi retorted.
"No one could ever make you do anything," Tyler shook his head softly, squeezing Levi's hand gently. "Not anything you didn't want to do."
Tyler let the sentiment hang between them, keeping eye contact with Levi. Levi had never met anyone who kept eye contact the way Tyler did. It was like he was counting the shades of blue in Levi's eyes. Returning the favour by counting the shades of brown in Tyler's eyes, Levi caught the beginning of a smile at the corner of Tyler's mouth.
"But you guys are doing Panic at the Disco?" Tyler folded his hands around his cup again, and Levi immediately missed the warmth of Tyler's hand on his. "That's hardly the conventional choice for a Glee club?"
"Yeah, I don't think our director knows what he's doing," Levi shrugged and rolled his eyes. "He wants us to do a Panic song for Sectionals."
"Really?" Tyler raised an eyebrow. "Bold move."
"Yeah, bold and stupid," Levi stated, slumping back in his chair. On the opposite side of the table Tyler's posture was perfect, as always. Tyler's look was always spotless, his hair was always perfectly coiffed and his outfits always clean and appropriate. Ever since they met they had made an interesting pair, the two of them. Tyler was so pristine, Levi so unruly. Looking at him now Levi couldn't remember what it was that had first drawn him to Tyler. Maybe opposites really did attract. "There's no way the judges are going to like it."
"That depends," Tyler said, ever the diplomat. "What song is it?"
"Hey look, ma, I made it."
"An upbeat song about underdogs finally making it," Tyler mulled it over, seemingly tasting the song. "Doesn't sound like a bad choice to me. Not as good as Dancing's not a crime, but tolerable."
Sharing a mischievous smile, Levi could see why his younger self had fallen for Tyler. Despite his angelic looks, there was something devilish about Tyler, something dark peeking from behind his smile.
"It's good to see you again, Levi," Tyler smiled that smile, the one that sent tingles down Levi's spine.
"You too, Tyler."
"This is Trashcan," Katrina sat down with a shaggy mutt who looked up at Frank with her tongue lolling out of her mouth. The room they were in was small and Frank could smell the little dog's body odour clearly. Trashcan was probably the ugliest dog Frank had ever seen. Her spotted brown coat was matted and thin, her eyes were too big for her face and too far apart. She looked so frail a gust of wind might break her apart. Trashcan looked at Katrina like she was her personal Jesus.
"Why is it named Trashcan?" Frank asked, making a face at the little dog who was trying her best to lick Katrina's face. "Isn't that kind of mean?"
"The shelter gives them dumb names so we won't get attached," Katrina explained. "The names are temporary anyway, when they get adopted the new owners like giving them their own names."
Kneeling next to Katrina Frank attracted Trashcan's attention and instead of trying to lick Katrina's face, she decided that sniffing all of Frank was more important. Frank had never been to an animal shelter before, and was quickly realising that all the dogs he had been in close contact with before had been exceptionally well-behaved.
"She likes you," Katrina smiled when Trashcan jumped up to lick Frank's face. Her wet tongue rapidly rubbed against his skin, all the way from is jaw to his eye. "Thanks for meeting me here. I totally forgot I was supposed to wash the new dogs tonight."
"No problem," Frank said and immediately regretted it when Trashcan tried licking the inside of his mouth. The sound of Katrina's laugh made the sensation of Trashcan's tongue in his mouth more bearable, but he still pushed the little dog off. Katrina pulled the mutt closer to her and bit her lip, still smiling at Frank. For a moment they just looked at each other. Frank's mouth was dry and his heart was jumpy, but he didn't dare move. He wondered if he should bring up their kiss and apologise, but couldn't find the words.
"Have you ever washed a dog before?" Katrina asked, breaking the moment and getting up, still holding Trashcan.
"No," Frank said, getting to his feet and following Katrina over to the table. Gently placing the dog on the table Katrina found a brush and gently ran it through Trashcan's fur.
"The important thing is keeping them calm and happy," Katrina said, smoothing down Trashcan's fur with one hand and brushing it with the other. Judging by the look in the mutt's wide-set eyes, she didn't need much to be happy. "And Trashcan here really loves music, so I thought we could rehearse our song and wash her at the same time."
"She likes Panic at the disco?"
"She doesn't not like Panic at the disco," Katrina smiled mischievously and put their song on. Handing him the brush she headed over to a box on the shelf that lined the back wall of the room. Focusing on the music, and brushing Trashcan who was more interested in the taste of Frank's face, he didn't notice Katrina throwing glances over at him. She couldn't help smiling seeing how careful he was being with the little dog. Trashcan looked up at Frank from under her shaggy bangs, her entire body wagging with her tail. Frank was smiling down at the dog whenever she jumped up to lick him. It was the kind of smile that lit his entire face up. Heat rose in Katrina's cheeks when she stepped back to the table with the dog shampoo and he flashed one of those smiles at her instead of Trashcan.
Frank:
We've waited so damn long, we're sick and tired
I won't leave any doubt or stone unturned
Katrina:
I've got a collar full of chemistry from your company
So maybe tonight I'll be the libertine
Bringing the hose that was attached to the wall above the table down Katrina checked the temperature on her hand before holding it over Trashcan, who whimpered. Leaning over the table and facing the small dog Frank sang to her, making what he hoped was a reassuring expression to a dog. Trashcan seemed to accept it, stepping toward Frank and licking his nose. Katrina laughed and kept dousing the dog.
Frank (Katrina):
Show me your love (your love), your love (your love)
Gimme more but it's not enough
Katrina (Frank):
Show me your love, (your love), your love (your love)
Before the world catches up (your love)
'Cause there's always time for second guesses, I don't wanna know
(If you're gonna be the death of me, that's how I wanna go)
Trashcan panted heavily when Frank rubbed shampoo behind her ears. Jamming with Katrina and washing dogs was a surprisingly good mix, he hadn't expected that he would be having so much fun giving a dog a bath. The smell of wet dog mixing with the dog shampoo maybe wasn't an ideal combination, but if it meant he got to stand so close to Katrina he could live with it.
Katrina:
You've got it all worked out with so little time
Rubbing shampoo into Trashcan's fur Frank's heart skipped a beat when his hand brushed Katrina's. Both quickly looked away, Katrina biting her lip and Frank rubbing his neck. Trashcan cocked her head and looked between the two of them.
Frank:
Memories that I'd blackout if you were mine
You've got a pocket full of reasons why you're here tonight
Katrina:
So, baby, tonight just be the death of me
Katrina left Frank to dry off Trashcan while she went to get a couple more dogs who needed washing. Gently rubbing the little dog with a towel, Frank didn't think she was all that ugly anymore. Her too big and too far apart eyes were kind of charming, as was the long fur that fell into her eyes. When Katrina returned with a pack of dogs at her heels. Trashcan barked and leapt off the table to join them. She was immediately greeted with a sniff of the butt by a huge Leonberger mix that Katrina introduced as Toothbrush. Katrina swooped a mutt off the floor and placed him on the table so Frank could hose him down.
Katrina (Frank):
Show me your love (your love), your love (your love)
Gimme more but it's not enough
Frank (Katrina):
Show me your love (your love), your love (your love)
Before the world catches up
Both:
'Cause there's always time for second guesses, I don't wanna know
If you're gonna be the death of me, that's how I wanna go
Without warning the soaking wet mutt, named Banana Cream Pie, jumped off the table. Scurrying to catch him Frank and Katrina crashed into one another, Katrina still holding the hose. Both instinctively jumped away from one another, but only far enough to not be touching.
Suddenly finding Katrina standing less than a foot away from him, Frank's breath caught in his throat. Katrina looked up at him with big blue eyes. Frank didn't think he had ever seen such pretty eyes, blue and bright. He found himself leaning down toward her, and her eyes fluttered closed as she stretched up to meet him halfway.
Katrina:
Show me your love, your love
Gimme more but it's not enough
Frank:
Show me your love, your love
Before the world catches up
Just before they were about to meet, Toothbrush, the big Leonberger mix jumped up and pushed his heavy paws into Frank's chest, pushing Frank to the ground. Katrina doubled over laughing, accidentally aiming the hose directly at Frank's face just as Toothbrush bounded away.
"I am so sorry!" Katrina aimed the water back on the table, reaching out her other hand to help Frank up.
"That's alright," Frank looked down at his soaked t-shirt. Getting an idea he quickly grabbed the hose from Katrina's hand and pointed it at her, spraying her with water. She screamed and held a hand in front of her face, trying to grab the hose back with her other hand. Laughing and spraying each other, the two found themselves breathless with laughter and dripping with water within a minute.
Katrina (Frank):
Show me your love (your love), your love (your love)
Gimme more but it's not enough
Show me your love (your love), your love (your love)
Before the world catches up
Frank:
Show me your love
Katrina:
Show me your love
A single drop of water clung to Katrina's eyelashes. Frank was so mesmerised by it that he didn't notice she was moving toward him until she was kissing him.
Making her way down the halls of McKinley Brielle tried keeping her head down. The past few days had been the worst few week of her high school career and Brielle was more than ready for school to end. She still couldn't find the energy to put on proper clothes or do her homework, and only her dad physically taking her to school kept her from blowing it off altogether.
"Hey, Carol," Todd called out after her. Brielle bit her tongue and kept walking. She refused to give someone like Todd Cameron the time of day. "Finally setting free the butch inside of you? It's about time, we all knew this was coming."
"Leave her alone!" Both Tobias and Emilia snapped at Todd, who looked in shock between them. Tobias and Emilia also looked at each other in shock too, with Dakota glancing between them in confusion. Neither had ever stood up for one of the less popular kids.
"Whoa, babe, it was just a joke," Todd said, trying to place an arm around Emilia's shoulders. "Calm down."
"Don't touch me," she spat, brushing his hand off. Giving him one cold look, she turned on her heel and disappeared down the hall. Todd scoffed and turned to Tobias.
"What's her problem?" Todd rolled his eyes, but didn't get any response from Tobias or Dakota. "And when did you grow a spine?"
"Screw you, Todd," Tobias brushed past the other boy with Dakota right behind. Todd Cameron shook his head and wondered what had gotten everyone's panties in a twist that day.
"Okay, so they're called jiǎo," Hazel explained as she dropped the dumplings they had made gently into the boiling water. It was odd having Tobias in her kitchen, like watching your favorite movie and suddenly finding the lead is played by a new actor. When they sat folding the dumplings and sealing them, Hazel had realised that she had never been alone with a boy in her kitchen before, besides her brother. With her parents both at work, being alone in the house with him felt strangely intimate.
"Djau?" Tobias tried, studying the dumplings in the pot, as if they would help him.
"Jiǎo," Hazel corrected, putting the last of the dumplings into the pot. "It's less of a d-sound. Jiǎo."
"Ja-oh?"
"Jiǎo."
"Juh-ao?"
"Try again."
"Jiao?"
"That's so close," Hazel said, picking up a wooden spoon and stirring. "Jiǎo."
"Ja-oh?"
"Less close," Hazel scrunched up her face. "Jiǎo."
"Hazel, it's hopeless, I'm never going to get it," Tobias groaned, leaning his elbows on the marble countertop next to the stove.
"You will, you just need a little more time."
"How much?" He looked up at her, raising his voice. "I've been trying for weeks and I know what? Three words?"
"It's a hard language," Hazel said soothingly. "It takes some time-"
"No! I can't do it!" Tobias slammed his fist on the countertop without thinking. A wave of pain shot up from his hand, and he swore under his breath. Shaking his hand to relieve the pain, he took a deep breath to try to clear his mind. He hadn't meant to lash out, but the frustration building up in him needed release. Catching a glimpse of Hazel he immediately regretted it. Hazel was completely still, a faraway look on her face. "I'm sorry, Hazel, I didn't mean to yell at you."
"Wait here," Hazel ducked out of the room and Tobias heard her light footsteps bounding up the stairs. His hand still ached, but he was too preoccupied with feeling like an absolute jerk to think about it. He hadn't missed the misty look in Hazel's eyes as she darted for the room. Hazel was being nothing but nice to him and all he could do was yell at her and physically assault her house. His head was pounding, and he felt too hot. Shrugging off his sweatshirt he sat down on a chair at the kitchen table and waited for Hazel.
When he heard her quiet steps coming down the stair he was prepared for her to kick him out. He couldn't say he wouldn't deserve it.
"Here," Hazel held out a jewel case to him. The plastic was scratched and the cover inside was faded, but he could still see a multicolored butterfly on the white background. "It's Teresa Teng's album Lovers in Heaven."
When he was sitting and she was standing next to him they were about the same height, so he didn't need to look down at her like he was used to. Seeing the confused look on his face Hazel elaborated.
"She was a Taiwanese singer who sang in Mandarin," Hazel explained, sitting down in the chair next to Tobias. "I think part of the reason you feel like you're struggling is that you don't know what Mandarin is supposed to sound like. I thought maybe you could listen to this and get a feel for it."
Tobias didn't really know what to say, so he just nodded and turned the CD around to look at the back. The track list was mainly in Chinese so he couldn't read it.
"My brother and I used to listen to that a lot when we first came here," Hazel said, looking down at the CD and not noticing that Tobias was looking over at her and not at the CD. "My grandmother is a huge Teresa Teng fan, and she would always play this when we were visiting. After we moved Lao Lao used to ask if we could sing one of the songs to her whenever she called us. It's silly, but to me it's always been like a small piece of home.
"So, uhm, if you listen to that I think that'll help," Hazel shrugged and pressed her lips together, looking back at Tobias again. For a moment they sat in silence, Tobias hoping she could see his gratitude, and Hazel hoping he couldn't see her blush.
"Thank you, Hazel," he said softly after a while, leaning over and wrapping his arms around her. She froze, taken aback by the hug. He smelled like garlic and flour and something unmistakably boy. And he was warm. Engulfed in his arms Hazel was sure she would never be cold again. She also wasn't sure she'd be able to breathe properly again for a while.
"I think the dumplings are ready," Hazel said after what felt like multiple minutes of hugging, tearing herself away from him and turning to the stove to find the dumplings floating, swollen with air. Transferring them to a plate she put them on the table and sat back down, feeling her heartbeat stabilising. For a moment they just sat in silence, looking at the steaming dumplings, enjoying the smell of them.
"So, when's the next lesson, sensei?" Tobias asked her, clumsily picking up a dumpling with his chopsticks, and Hazel involuntarily made a face at him. Seeing her face he dropped his dumpling back down on the plate, and wrinkled his nose. "Does Sensei not mean what I think it means?"
"No, it does," Hazel said slowly. "In Japanese." Tobias' face fell, and he picked the dumpling back up and took a bite out of it. "You could say lăoshī though, or you could just call me Hazel."
"Lăoshī, okay" he said, and when he smiled Hazel didn't have the heart to correct his pronunciation. "When's the next lesson?"
"I have a gymnastics thing this weekend," Hazel said, picking up a dumpling and dipping it in a black vinegar sauce. "But what about Monday?"
"What gymnastics thing?" Tobias eagerly asked between mouthfuls of dumpling. In the time it had taken Hazel to get one bite of her first dumpling, he was already devouring his second one. Considering it took him much longer to get ahold of them with the chopsticks, it was quite impressive. "Are you competing?"
"Oh, no," Hazel said, shaking her head. "The McKinley team is, but I'm not. I'm there for the Muckraker, writing a piece on it."
"Cool, can I come?" He asked before she was even done talking. Hazel raised her eyebrows, confused by his enthusiasm. No one had ever volunteered to go report with her on something for the school newspaper.
"You want to come?"
"Yeah," Tobias grinned, shrugging. "That sounds fun."
"Okay," Hazel couldn't keep from smiling back at him.
"Okay," he bumped his dumpling gently against hers. "These are awesome, by the way."
"I told you Panda Express wasn't real Chinese food."
"You look like hell."
Brielle had been too lost in thought to notice the blonde cheerleader standing at the bottom of the bleachers looking up at her. The plan had been to stay out on the bleachers until school ended so she would't have to see anyone. In spite of the cold the cheerleaders had only just started wearing their sweatpants instead of their skirts. Judging by the hunch of Emilia's shoulders the cheerio jackets weren't doing a great job of keeping the wearers warm either.
"Thanks," she scoffed, looking away from the blonde. She knew she looked awful. Worn-out sweatpants and over-sized hoodies weren't exactly haute couture. "That makes me feel great."
"You know what I mean," Emilia looked up at Brielle who shrugged. The cheerleader sighed and headed up the steps to sit next to Brielle.
"You sure you want to be seen with me?" Brielle raised her eyebrows at Emilia, feeling the anger dripping from her words. "Aren't I going to drag you down?"
"I'm sorry about Todd," Emilia ignored her comment and sat down next to Brielle. Keeping about two feet between, Emilia didn't look at Brielle. She was looking out at the field, watching a flock of birds pecking at the ground. "He's a dick."
"You're just realising that now?" Brielle said. "He's been a dick this entire century."
"And I'm sorry about your parents," Emilia looked over at Brielle, taking her by surprise with the sincerity of her statement. Brielle felt tears welling up in her eyes and looked away. The birds were fighting over something and a few of them flew off. "Do you want to talk about it?"
"No," Brielle shook her head, trying her best to keep her voice steady.
"Okay," Emilia said, turning back to the birds. "Do you want to sing about it?"
"No," Brielle scoffed. Another day she might have found it funny. Not that week.
"Okay, just making sure," Emilia said. The two sat in silence for a while, just watching the birds. Brielle was torn between wanting to scream at Emilia that she wanted to be alone, and throwing herself into her lap and sobbing. To keep herself from doing either she remained completely still. "I can talk to the cheerios, make sure they don't mess with you. Half of them are dating or sleeping with football players, they can keep them in line too."
"You don't have to do that," Brielle said, letting her apathy show.
"Yes, I do," Emilia looked back over at Brielle, but Brielle didn't turn. She kept looking at the field.
"It doesn't change anything," Brielle said after a moment when Emilia didn't stop staring at her. "The kids at school don't matter."
"But it'll be easier for you if they don't bother you," Emilia insisted, turning her entire body toward Brielle. Shifting uneasily in her seat Brielle looked down at her knees. "I can make them leave you alone, I can keep them away, I can-"
"Why do you care anyway?" Brielle snapped at Emilia, turning sharply to her. Emilia's brown eyes were wet, and her lower lip was quivering.
"Because I love you!" Emilia said softly, blinking so two large tears rolled down her cheeks. Emilia's breathing was sharp and she sounded hoarse. Brielle had to look away. "I love you and you're hurting and I can't help you."
Brielle didn't know what to say. She just looked at her knees and listened as Emilia calmed her breathing down.
"Please just give me something I can do to help you," Emilia said after a while, when her breathing finally seemed to be under control.
"There's nothing you can do," Brielle breathed, cursing the tears that spilled from her eyes. After the weekend Brielle thought that she had run out of tears. As it turned out she was wrong. "There's nothing I can do. She just left."
Feeling like the dam had finally broken, Brielle couldn't stop herself from talking. Emilia just sat and listened, misty eyes fixed on Brielle.
"When I told them," Brielle said, drawing tiny breaths to try to keep her voice steady. Her tongue was sticking to the roof of her mouth and the back of her throat was dry, but she kept talking. "They didn't say anything. I've never seen my dad look like that. It was like I broke him." A fresh flood of tears welled up in Brielle's eyes at the memory. Brielle could count on one hand the amount of times she had seen her father cry. The first was on video from the day she was born. He was holding her in his arms, looking like he hadn't slept in days, but beaming with proud tears rolling down his cheeks. The second was when he told her that his father had cancer. The third was the day his father died. The fourth was that weekend.
"And they didn't say anything," Brielle swallowed hard, trying to push through the tears to get her words out. "They just looked at me. Like they didn't know me.
"Then my mom told me to get out." An edge crept into Brielle's voice, the same edge she had heard in her mother's voice. Her chest heaved painfully as she remembered the cold look on her mother's face. "She said she,- She didn't want me in her house."
"Bri, I'm so sorry," Emilia said, reaching out to put her arms around Brielle, but the other girl shook her head vigorously.
"Don't," Brielle said, sounding like it pained her to say. "If you hold me now I can't keep going."
Focusing on her breathing and trying to center herself, Brielle stared at the birds. They were still there, pecking away at the ground. Staring at them Brielle managed to calm her sobs, but her chest still hurt when she tried to draw breath.
"But my dad," she managed between sobs. "He said no. He said that he wasn't letting her kick me out. He asked me to go to my room, but they were fighting and I could hear them, and-"
Brielle bent over and sobbed. She couldn't stop herself. It felt like she had never cried before, the wound still felt fresh, like her mother had just walked out. She couldn't tell how long she stayed like that, but when she looked up the birds had all flown away.
"When they were done he came to my room," Brielle lifted herself off her knees, wrapping her own arms around herself. She felt empty and full, like her chest was a balloon full or air and nothing else. "I'd been listening at the door, so I heard her leave, but I got in bed before he came and pretended I didn't know what happened."
"It's alright, darling," her father had said, wrapping Brielle up in his arms. His voice had that warm, calming tone she remembered from when she was a little girl and crying because she fell off her bike. "No matter what you are still my baby, and I'm not going to let anyone hurt you."
"She still hasn't come back, or called, or anything," Brielle breathed in sharply. "I don't know if she is coming back."
The two sat in silence. Brielle's chest felt too full, but the sobs had stopped. Her face was hot and her eyes stung, but she felt better.
"Bri?"
"Yes?"
"Can I hold you now?"
AN: I hope guys liked it and leave a review! I would love to know what you liked, or what isn't working for you.
Also, I've said this on the tumblr, but I won't be able to update as often as I have before, as I am going away to be an exchange student. So if you're not following the story yet, you might want to so you'll be informed when I do update!
Thank you so much for reading!