The fourth time it happens, there's a pretty decent chance that they're both blaming this one on God.
"Is it just me, or does this whole set-up seem just a tad cliché?"
He glances at her then, one eyebrow raised as his head lolls in her direction, his expression shifting from bored to what she thinks is a blend of disbelief and mocking amusement. She does not appreciate that look, quite the opposite in fact. She debates whether or not she should scowl at him, but ultimately decides that the gesture would not be becoming.
It's not her fault he's so…so, unsociable. Here she is, trying to alleviate the awkward tension (that may or may not exist), and he's just lounging in the corner, not even attempting to make this a little more tolerable.
She turns her head away, pressing her lips together, pouting in a fashion that she could probably trademark. She knows he's still staring at her, she can practically feel his gaze, and she's nearly 100% positive that his eyes are fixated on a point that is wholly inappropriate. She suddenly feels the need to defend herself. She's not entirely sure why she wants to, but she chalks it up to old habits. Clearing her throat, so as to draw his gaze upward, she promptly begins her defense.
"Well, I suppose this whole situation isn't cliché in its entirety. I mean, there was always some chance of us running into each other, eventually, even in a city of roughly ten million individuals. It was a dismally small chance, perhaps, but still a chance nonetheless. As for meeting at that party, it was clearly only a matter of time. With both of us being involved in the music industry, albeit at quite different ends, we were bound to have a similar contact somewhere. Still, while neither of those occurrences were entirely unexpected, it still seems like it would be highly unlikely for us to see so much of each other so suddenly…but then again, unlikely is not exactly impossible."
She takes a breath then, interrupting her little spiel to allow some oxygen to reenter her lungs. She notices him out of the corner of her eye, and can tell that he's staring at her in total, blatant disbelief. She tries to not think about it as she continues, staring straight ahead.
"Now, normally I would agree with the notion that the odds of us being in the same building at the same time, despite having wholly unrelated reasons for being in said building, are next to nothing. So, obviously I would have laughed if someone was to suggest the additional scenario of us both ending up trapped in the same elevator, because really, that's completely impossible."
At that she hears a grunt from him, and she doesn't have to look at him to presume that he's rolling his eyes. She continues as if she had not been interrupted, because she's quite good at that, "However, given the current context, I will have to remedy myself, and my opinion, and instead say that the scenario is just highly improbable."
Satisfied, she claps her hands together, lacing her fingers, and clasps them primly in front of her. Leaning back, she allows her shoulder blades to rest against the cool, creamy marble.
The cool, creamy marble of the elevator she is in.
The cool, creamy marble of the elevator she is currently trapped in.
The cool, creamy marble of the elevator she is currently trapped in with one Noah Puckerman, who, at this very moment, is looking rather-
She stops her train of thought, realizing that wherever her thoughts are heading is not a place she wants to acknowledge right now, not unless it'll help her pry those doors wide open. So, pleasantly redirecting her thoughts, she finally musters the courage to look at him.
He's leaning heavily against the side wall, his legs crossed out casually in front of him, his body angled towards hers. She's surprised to see that his expression of disbelief has only grown, and that now it may even contain a bit of revulsion. His gaze worries her, more than she cares to admit, and she looks away quickly, biting her lip. She remembers that look, and out of another old habit she moves to rectify the situation.
"Well, perhaps I am over-thinking this whole thing just a bit. Coincidences do happen, right? Yes, I'm clearly blowing this out of proportion; my therapist always said that I did that, and you never know there may have actually been some substance to his claim. At any rate, it's been several years since I've scheduled anything with-"
"Damn." he mutters, shaking his head, and he's just disruptive enough to break her out of her tirade. She takes a breath, looking over to see him with his head slightly bent as he stares ahead. He's not looking at her as he says, rather bluntly,
"I forgot how much you talk."
She blinks, momentarily stunned by his confession. Then she realizes that he pretty much just insulted her, and she should totally be angry right now.
"Did you even listen to a single thing I said?" She huffs, crossing her arms and proving just how upset she really is. She's beyond upset actually, she's positively furious. So she really can't understand why her lips quirk upwards, because it really just doesn't make any sense. When he doesn't respond to her she rolls her eyes, turning to face him. He looks up at her, but he just stares at her in disbelief until he repeats it,
"I can't believe I actually forgot how much you fucking talk!"
He sounds so horrified, so scandalized, that she has to fight back a smile. Being the terrific actress that she is, she doesn't let her amusement show, and instead she fixes him with her sternest glass. Then, in a voice that feigns severity and formality,
"You sir, are such an ass."
He smirks at that, at her, and she can't tell whether he's legitimately amused, or just mockingly so. His expression is hard to decipher, and she's reminded again of how good of an actor he can actually be. She's distracted by her thoughts when he snickers, and he looks sort of proud as he drawls, "Aw, look who's using profanities like a grown-up."
She had also forgotten how horrible of an actor he can be. She would recommend some classes for him to take but, thankfully, she knows him a little bit better than that.
So instead she just looks away, rolling her eyes as she distinctly refuses to acknowledge his comment with any sort of response. She really should know by now that Noah Puckerman isn't someone who is very easily ignored; then again, she probably does know that, even if she never remembers it when it matters. Like now for instance.
"Do your fathers know about this?" She practically feels his breath on her, and she almost jumps when she realizes just how close he is. She does squeal a little, to her great embarrassment and his further amusement.
Fighting off a blush, she scowls. He smiles triumphantly in return, laughing even as she hits him on the chest.
"That wasn't funny!" She snaps, feeling entirely dwarfed by his height. She steps back, distancing herself as the click of her heels is defined against the tile. Smoothing out her skirt, which was already perfectly straight, she fights off the indignant blush that she just knows is there. Calming herself, she turns on him, glaring in a very serious manner.
"Now, kindly return to your corner of the elevator and stay there until someone lets us out!" She pauses briefly then adds, for good measure, "No talking!"
He blinks down at her, his eyebrows rising as his look of disbelief returns full force. He doesn't move from his spot, doesn't even look like he's going to consider it. He just stares at her, a smirk slowly spreading across his face. This causes her to scowl, and she crosses her arms again at his defiance. "What?"
"Are you seriously trying to put me in a time out right now?" He looks far too amused, and when he crosses his arms she knows he's just mocking her. And if he's trying to hide his laughter he's doing a horrible job. She opens her mouth to protest, but she can only proceed to close it and open it several more times. She really can't say no, because that would be a lie, but she doesn't plan on saying yes either. So, really, her only option is to use this to insult him further.
"Well, if you insist on behaving like an overgrown child, then you will be treated as such."
"Yeah?" He asks, humoring her. She nods sternly in response.
"Yes. If you can't behave, I have no choice but to send you to the naughty corner."
She wants to slap herself as soon as the words are out, because even she can tell that her phrasing was…unfortunate. Still, she realizes that slapping herself would be pointless, as in reality physical abuse probably wouldn't help the current situation.
He smirks down at her, again, but this time it's slightly off, slightly different, and she knows exactly why. Subconsciously she presses herself against the wall, which seems to suit him just fine as he closes the gap in between them.
"Naughty corner, huh? I guess that's fair." He murmurs, resting his hands on either side of her, leaning in, his body overshadowing hers, "But I've got one question…" She shivers as he bends down, and it takes all of her courage to stare him in the eye as he offers a lazy grin.
"Do I have to go alone?"
Her breath catches in her throat, and suddenly she feels way too hot. The elevator seems a lot smaller, and she blames it on her on-again-off-again claustrophobia. It certainly has nothing to do with the man that's practically pressing her up against the wall, no, that's just a coincidence; right?
She struggles to maintain her composure as one of his hands skims along her side, his palm flattening around her hip. She tries to look anywhere but his eyes, but she's failing miserably. He leans in further, and she lets him, and she wonders for a brief moment if this, right here, is really happening.
Before she can get her answer the elevator lets out a musical ding, and then the doors are opening. He jumps away like he's been burnt, and he's out the door before she can fully come to her senses. She follows after him into the hall, and for a moment they're both there, and she's wondering if some sort of farewell is appropriate the fourth time around. Seeing as he's still standing there, she decides that it is.
Fixing a brilliant smile onto her face, she turns to him, pretending that whatever just happened didn't really happen.
"Well, I guess this is goodbye then. It was…good, seeing you again, Noah. I would assume this to be the last time we run across each other, but given our previous luck-"
"Yeah, yeah, Berry. I get it." He cuts her off, waving his hand dismissively. She resists the urge to frown. He's detached already, and he's pointedly not looking at her, so she can't see any of the emotions that cross his face. He turns to her then, and she's disappointed to see that his expression reveals nothing at all. He opens his mouth, then hesitates, and immediately changes what he was about to say,
"I'll see you later."
He turns away then, and he gets all of three steps before he stops again. Judging by his posture, she thinks he might be struggling with something, though she can't fathom a guess as to what (she's lying). She's completely perturbed when he turns around, both by the abrupt action itself and by the devilish grin that's now etched across his face,
"Congratulations, by the way."
She's confused, and it must show, because he lifts his left hand into the air, tapping his ring finger several times with his thumb. She feels the blood drain from her face, feels her insides turn to ice. She wants to say something, but no words come to mind. He's still smiling, and only now does she understand just how cynical that grin truly is. He takes a few backward steps before he turns around, walking away in a fashion that is entirely too anticlimactic.
It takes her a few moments to come to her senses, and then she's quick to remind herself that her schedule is far too packed to waste time standing here. She pulls out her phone, noting wryly that it gets much better service outside of the elevator. Noting the time, she frowns when she realizes that she's going to be late for her one o'clock.
She's trying to fight off the feeling of dread that's seeping through her; she's trying not to wonder when, exactly, he first noticed the ring.
You know, I was really at a loss for this chapter, inspiration wise. So I decided to ask my friend for a prompt. Her prompt was "naughty corner". So,... that pretty much explains the motivation behind this chapter. XD
I think I'll put in another memory next, though I'm not really sure at this point. I'll have to mull it over. Hopefully you'll all be distracted by this while I'm being indecisive. The next REAL (non-flashback) chapter will feature another glee character, and I actually have that chapter pretty much all planned out, so no worries there.
The poll's coming along nicely, it's good to get all your opinions on how I should end my story. I'd let you know what's winning, but I really don't want to spoil the surprise. ;)
As always, review if you have the time/desire. :3 I appreciate it.
Edit: I fixed up the ending a bit, I was disappointed by the last few paragraphs. It's sort of funny that this story started out from such a simple prompt.