Wednesday brought even more sunny weather, and they once again ate breakfast on the porch. When Dianna woke up, Chord was gone. Before she decided to even come for the week, he had let her know that today he had to do some sort of press. She had been nervous at first, wondering what she would do if Chord's family didn't like her. Was she supposed to just find something to do to occupy herself until he came back? But as she grew closer with his sisters she realized it wouldn't even be an issue; Harmony had already planned a little outing for them, including shopping and getting to know each other better.
They came downstairs dressed and ready, the day's agenda clear in Harmony's head. They had invited the rest of Chord's sisters, but only Skye and Charity could come- Summer still had work. The four girls ate a quick breakfast and then headed out, ready to get a head start on their day.
Their first stop was a little spa the Overstreet girls frequented on the days just the sisters hung out together. It was local, only about a ten minute drive from their house. The building resembled a house, white siding with very subtle purple accents. The front was perfectly landscaped, and upon first glance Dianna really did think they were pulling into a house. The only thing that told the difference between the business and a house was the sign out front proclaiming that it was a spa. A bell clinked against the glass door as they walked in and the receptionist looked up, immediately recognizing them.
"Hi, it's been a while." They laughed and the receptionist moved from behind the desk to hug the sisters, stopping at Dianna. "I see you have a stowaway."
"Yeah, I'm visiting for the week." She held out her hand and the receptionist shook it eagerly, trying in vain to hide her excitement. "Dianna."
"Laura, and I know who you are." Laura laughed half out of embarrassment and led them over to the other girls, standing in front of a line of comfortable looking chairs. Their mani-pedi's were great, each girl getting something a bit different for their nails; Harmony's were vibrant blue while Dianna's were French tips, Charity's were pastel pink and Skye's were a green barely used by the salon she managed to pull off every time. The sisters caught up with the girls who worked at the spa, knowing each by name and bits about their lives. Dianna even grew a bit jealous, seeing the hint of small town charm she had pined so much for when she was growing up. Even now seeing the way the girls walked in and out of shops conversing with the employees by name brought back her old feelings, and she was left to reminisce about the life she wished she had been given a chance to live.
This need only increased as they were leaving the spa. Somehow, word had finally gotten out about Dianna's visit to the small town, and people had been looking out for her for days. She and the Overstreet sisters were flocked by a mini-paparazzi and Dianna sighed, dragging the girls back to the car and driving off. She could already see the headlines;
Glee Star Spotted in Small Town Tennessee:
And no, not the one that lives there…
Glee star Dianna Agron was spotted out and about yesterday, catching a spa day with three other girls. But these girls weren't random. Upon further research, sources confirmed the three girls to be Harmony, Skye, and Charity Overstreet, sisters of Glee star Chord. Other sources confirmed with photos that she was also spotted at the county fair a day earlier, and cozying up to Overstreet at Dale Hollow, a popular tourist sight, days before. One can only speculate the reasons for Agron's impromptu visit, but one thing's certain-she's definitely the only Glee star who was invited to this little reunion.
She let Skye drive and sat in the back, wondering what was going to happen next. Ryan would clearly see the headline and be less than happy, as well as her manager. Defending herself, she thought that at least she did try and keep a low profile. Hell, she'd gone two and a half days without being noticed at all, if anything she deserved a damn prize. As they continued to the mall, Dianna shrugged the situation off. She didn't want to let a simple run-in with the paparazzi ruin her whole day, especially when she was extremely hell-bent on making a lasting impression on Chord's sisters.
They spent the rest of the day shopping with no interruptions-luckily the group of people who'd been waiting outside of the spa hadn't followed them to the mall. In such a large group of people, it was more than easy for Dianna to blend in. She took this as a blessing, guessing that this would be the last day of her trip she would go somewhere without being noticed. As soon as word really got out about her being in the state, she knew it would only be a matter of time until she was faced with speculations and stalkers on her so far peaceful vacation.
She had been right, faced with a not so happy call the day after. Ironically, it was her manager, the girl now chastising her, who had been so insistent on Dianna visiting in the first place. She had been prodding the reluctant girl, telling her that it'd be good for her to take a break. Dianna and her manager had a pretty friendly relationship outside of the business part, so she was trying to get her to really rest for a while. She had even said that a town as small as his might be easy to hide in, and it was at first.
Dianna wasn't going to let stupid speculations and some candid pictures ruin an already perfect vacation, so she kept her chin up as well as her plans. The day after the salon incident, she and Chord had made plans to go to the lake closest to his house. Another frequented childhood spot, it was a continuation of Dianna sort of getting acquainted with a different kind of Chord, the one who went fishing with his brother and was his sister's dress up doll as a baby. The one who ate the crusts from his siblings sandwiches willingly and loved helping his mother clean. She loved this different side of him, where he felt he didn't have to change to fit in with Hollywood life. He could be the same Chord he had always been, just without the restraints the life of an actor had face him with.
The lake was quiet, most of the people there just older couples who were residents, with quaint little houses right on the water. There was another larger lake not even ten minutes away, so most of the crowd usually decided to go there instead. Chord picked the spot because it was peaceful, and after yesterday's debacle that's just what they needed.
It was a hot day, the humidity at a low point making it the perfect temperature for being at the lake. Dianna and Chord spread out their stuff and headed straight for the water, eager to cool off. Their mission proved to be easy, the water frigid compared to the temperature around them. Dianna was wading slowly into the water, but soon Chord disappeared. Coming back up for air, he just looked at her and smirked, crossing his arms while feigning impatience.
"Shut up!" She was laughing and he was now tapping his foot although he knew she couldn't see it above the water.
"I didn't say anything." Chord teased, arms still crossed. Water now dripped from his head back into the lake and as the wind blew goosebumps began to gather along his arms. He ducked back into the water, only his head visible now. "It's colder out there than it is in here."
"That's because you're used to it and I'm not!"
"Well I guess we'll have to fix that then, huh?" He started to come toward her with his arms outstretched and she let out a light scream, scrambling to get away from him. Her efforts were in vain, Chord having no trouble catching up to her. Slinging her over his shoulder, he started to wade deeper through the water, Dianna laughing as he finally made the move to throw her in. Instead of throwing her, though, he dipped her in the water, holding onto her arms while she shook her head at him. He did succeed in getting her used to the water, which was why he had picked her up in the first place.
After being in the water for only half an hour, Chord's back was turned when he heard Dianna wince. Turning almost immediately, he was met with a bent over blonde, face contorted in pain. She was holding her foot, and her chin was just barely touching the lake's water from her bent shape. Suddenly he was right next to her, dropped to one knee so she could sit on the other. He asked what was wrong and she motioned to her foot, not wanting to bring it above the water because of the pain. This ended up in a compromise, and Chord's eyes met Dianna's cut up foot in shock.
"What happened?"
"I don't know, I was just standing there and I went to step forward a little and I stepped on something. I started to panic and I got it out but not before it cut me up a little. I can't really walk on it, I think it was glass." He scooped her up bridal style and carried her from the water, stopping only to gather their stuff. He was so focused on making sure she was ok that neither of them realized they had gathered a little audience. Soon enough there were camera flashes and voices and they both looked up in shock at their pursuers.
"Hey, can you back off it's kind of an emergency!" Chord was irritated, his tone rough as he tried to shove his way over to his car. Dianna's foot was wrapped in a towel, but the blood was beginning to soak through. The glass had cut deeper than either of them thought, but the pain was beginning to ebb away from Dianna.
The good news is that they didn't have to wait to go into the hospital. They weren't going to go in the first place, but Chord didn't want to take any risks since they still hadn't discovered what had cut her foot. The bad news was that Dianna's foot was now adorned with stitches, running along its side and awkwardly placed on the bottom of her foot. Other than that she managed to get away completely unharmed, but their beach day had ended earlier than either of them would have liked. They laughed at the headlines of what had been deemed 'Chord's heroic rescue' that night, and then went their separate ways for bed.
In the middle of the night, Dianna woke with a start. Pain shot from her foot up her leg, and she moved it in panic. That only made it worse, and she began to freak out. She contemplated waking Harmony up, but realized that she couldn't really do anything to help. Instead, she rolled out of bed and made her way down the hall, stopping two doors down from Harmony's. She knocked lightly but the door was already slightly ajar. When she got no response from knocking she poked her head in, met with a drowsy Chord rolling over to see who was at his door.
She looked smaller than usual, oversized t-shirt hanging loose over her tiny frame. Her hair was still a little wet from the lake, but it had begun to take its normal shape again, no longer clinging to her neck. He motioned for her to come in and she was hobbling, still clearly in pain. Dianna made her way over to his bed and he scooted over, patting the empty space next to him. She complied and crawled next to him, putting her head on his chest while he draped his arm around her. As soon as she was with him, the pain seemed to have melted away. Sleep came easily for her now, snuggled up against Chord and breathing in his familiar scent, not wanting to pay attention to the fact that the week was almost over.