Hi Everyone! I am so, so sorry for not updating in over a month but I have a legitimate excuse for it; I was working (Also I'm lazy which isn't that legitimate but hey). Anyway, Thank you so much for all of your reviews and support! We're at 125 reviews which is amazing considering this fandom has dwindled down to so little people now! I hope I can update soon and please enjoy the chapter :)
Chapter 11 - Secret
Shanna smirked as she walked through the hotel, her eyes glancing at all of the different dance teams that were competing that weekend. McKinley weren't actually in this competition – they were already through to the next round – but Shanna figured she would go and scope out the competition, it always helped to be one step ahead.
She hadn't told anyone she was coming. She wasn't supposed to be here and if anyone found out what she was doing then she and the whole of her team would be disqualified, costing them the whole championship. McKinley weren't big on the dance team, but Shanna loved it and if the school board knew she was cheating, they'd pull the plug on the dance team immediately, giving what little funds they had to the football or hockey team.
Shanna wasn't an idiot, she knew what she was doing was wrong, but it was her senior year and she was determined to win the dance championships for McKinley. She wanted the team to finally be noticed for what they were – talented – not just girls prancing around in shorts and tank tops.
Shanna stopped dead in her tracks as she spotted Carmel's dance team stood by the reception desk. They were McKinley's main competition – in everything – and she wasn't going to let her team lose against them – not again. Shanna became captain of the dance team last year and that was the first time they had lost a competition. It was to Carmel, and though Shanna never meant to hold a grudge toward them, she did and as she watched them across the room she felt her eyes slit together slightly.
She had to stop herself from marching over to them, especially when she spotted their captain – Nellie Veitenheimer – come into view, they would grass her up as soon as they spotted her. She didn't know Nellie, but the brunette became captain of the Carmel team the same year as she did and she was related to Reece Veitenheimer so she knew not to go anywhere near her.
Shanna turned on her heels and started in the opposite direction, turning a corner and heading out the front door, hoping to grab something to eat before the teams started practicing. She stopped dead in her tracks as she spotted a very familiar looking boy stood against a bus, smirking into his cell phone as he typed.
She frowned, obviously confused and opened her mouth to say something when he suddenly looked up and Shanna came face to face with Blake. His eyes widened and the shock was evident in them even from the distance that was between he and Shanna.
"What are you doing here?" They both sputtered out in unison. "No, what are you doing here?" They said again, their confusion doubling.
"I asked first!" Shanna managed to get out before Blake could speak up.
"So!?" Blake responded quickly, glancing across to the hotel entrance where he could see Nellie with her dance team. If Shanna had seen them together everything would be over, no matter how understanding Shanna could be, this was one where situation where he knew she wouldn't be.
"I'm on the dance team! Why are you here!?" Shanna exclaimed, hoping that Blake would believe her lie.
Blake frowned, already knowing that McKinley weren't competing. He had made sure of that after Nellie had invited him, not wanting to run into anyone from school and blow their cover, but that seemed to be happening anyway.
"You're not competing this weekend?" Blake responded with a questioning look, his eyebrows raised.
"Who says I'm not?" Shanna bit back, mirroring Blake's own questioning look.
"The Internet!"
Shanna's eyes widened and she tried to find a response, she couldn't be found out, but she had been. Her shoulder's sunk and she let out a shallow sigh. "Fine. You caught me, I'm not supposed to be here." She admitted with a shrug of her shoulders. "Please don't tell anyone you saw you, I need the team to win next month and this is the only way."
Blake frowned again, still confused at her explanation, but after Shanna's words settled in, he realised what his friend was actually doing here. "You're cheating aren't you?"
"No!" Shanna exclaimed quickly. "I'm just seeing how good the other schools teams are. If I don't win this year then the team is getting cut."
"Riiight." Blake still didn't fully understand Shanna's reasoning to be here, but it got her off of the subject of why he was here and as long as Shanna wasn't questioning that, his and Nellie's relationship was still a secret.
"So what are you doing here?" Shanna asked, her eyebrows rising in question.
Blake's eyes widened slightly and he stuttered out a response. "I- Nothing."
"Nothing?" Shanna smirked slightly, knowing Blake was hiding something. "Somehow I don't believe that."
"I-" Blake started, his mind trying to come up with a lie to feed Shanna with. "-If you don't tell anyone you saw me here, I won't tell anyone that I saw you."
Shanna glared at him. "What the hell Blake? I told you what I'm doing!"
Blake shrugged and a small grin appeared on his face. "Shouldn't have gave it up so easy should ya."
Shanna glared at him again. "You're such a Jerk."
Blake's grin widened as he wrapped an arm around the blonde's shoulder. "C'mon, I'll help you cheat for awhile." He said and lead Shanna into the hotel as she laughed slightly. He knew that Shanna would keep bugging him about why he was here, but while he had one up on her, he was safe.
Nellie's eyes widened as the knocking on the door startled her. She turned her head back to the door as another knock sounded, yet neither she nor Blake made a move to open the door. They knew if they opened that door that their secret would be out and it was far too soon for that secret to come out. They hadn't had enough time with each other yet, they weren't ready.
"Open the damn door Blake Jenner!" Shanna's usually bright voice sounded angry as another bang sounded through the door, her knocking getting more inpatient.
Nellie's eyes widened again as she met Blake's eyes, his own were doubled as he stared straight back at her.
"What the hell are we going to do?" Nellie whispered frantically.
"Did she see you?" Blake whispered back and Nellie shook her head in response. "Hide!" He spluttered out, pointing into the hotel room.
"Where the hell do you expect me to hide!?" Nellie responded, looking around the room that only had a bed, a chest of drawers and a door leading into the bathroom that Nellie already knew would be smaller than a shoe box and would be the first place Shanna would look.
"Under the bed!" Blake said, pushing Nellie toward the bed before she could object.
"I am not getting under there!" Nellie protested, grabbing Blake's arms to stop him.
"Why not?" Blake frowned, obviously confused.
"This is a basic hotel Blake! Who knows what's lurking under there!?" Nellie responded, another knock sounding made them both turn and look at the door.
"I already know who is in there with you Blake, I saw you let her in!" Shanna's voice sounded and both Blake and Nellie felt their breath hitch in their throats. "Open this door before I tell the whole of Carmel's team what their captain is getting up to!"
"Is she serious?" Nellie managed to get out, a look of horror crossing her face at the thought of Shanna's threat.
Blake didn't respond and rushed to the door, pulling it open without another hint of hesitation. "Hey, Shan." He said, awkwardly waving his hand.
"Hey Shan!?" Shanna spluttered, her bright blue eyes were a few shades darker and Blake knew that meant that the blonde was angry. "What the hell are you playing at Blake Jenner!?"
Blake opened his mouth to speak, but Shanna pushed past him, her voice rising. "She is a Knight! Do you know how much crap this is going to get you into!? What the hell are you thinking!?"
"I do have a name, you know!" Nellie spoke up, glaring at the blonde as she came to a stop between Blake and Nellie.
"I know your name." Shanna spat, turning toward Blake. "What the hell are you thinking!?" She repeated her previous remark, her hands flying into the air.
Blake rolled his eyes at Shanna's dramatics. He had thought she would be the easiest to break the news too. Shanna was level headed and compassionate and always saw the best in people, but she could sometimes be a little theatrical. "Would you shut up for a minute?" Blake muttered and walked across the room, standing by Nellie in an act to shield her from his friend. Shanna wouldn't hurt a fly, but if looks could kill, Nellie would be dead pretty soon.
Shanna's eyes seemed to widen even further, something Blake didn't think was possible. "Did you ju-"
"Shut up!" Blake cut her off quickly. He held a hand out to her and she glared at him, exhaling deeply. "If you'd let me explain-"
"Explain!?" Blake didn't get very far before Shanna had interrupted him. "You're doing god knows what with Nellie freaking Veitenheimer! What the hell is there to explain!?"
"I like her, Shanna!" Blake snapped, throwing his hands into the air out of frustration. "I like her and that's not going to change because she goes to Carmel!"
Shanna's mouth shut abruptly and she looked between her best guy friend and the brunette that she hardly knew. She knew that the feud between their schools was stupid and she never had any part in it, but she also knew that Blake being with Nellie meant that he could get hurt, not just emotionally, but physically. If anyone else found out about this – Shanna didn't even want to think about what damage could be done.
"You're such idiots." She muttered, collapsing onto the single chair in the corner.
Nellie flinched slightly and fought the urge to snap at the blonde. Nellie knew it would just make things worse. "I won't let anyone at Carmel hurt him, you know." Nellie said, already aware that Shanna was acting this way because she was worried for Blake. She knew enough about the girl through their dance competitions that she didn't give a shit about the feud.
Shanna's head shot up and her eyes locked with Nellie's for a few moments. "If this gets out... If Blake gets hurt... Just remember that it's your fault."
"Shanna!" Blake exclaimed, breaking the girls eye contact. "I knew what I was getting myself into when we started this! We're not going to hide away forever, one day it's going to come out and we'll have to face whatever consequences come our way!"
Shanna glared, her eyes looking between Blake and Nellie in silence before she finally stepped back. "I'll talk to you when you get home, Blake." She said and turned on her heels, storming from the room.
Nellie and Blake watched after her until the dorm slammed shut, breaking them from their thoughts. "She won't tell anyone will she?" Nellie questioned, turning to Blake slowly.
Blake shook his head and ran a hand through his hair, a nervous habit that he had. "Nah. Shanna's harmless, she's just protective."
"I'll say." Nellie mumbled with a roll of her eyes.
"Hey," Blake muttered, resting his hands on Nellie's hips. "Shanna's bitchy, but she's got heart. She won't tell, and once you get to know her, she'll like you plenty."
"That's not what I'm worried about." Nellie sighed, shaking her head.
Blake frowned, tucking his thumb under her chin he lifted it up for her to look at him. "Then what is it?"
"Now that Shanna knows... She obviously doesn't like the idea of us being together, and I don't want that to influence you." Nellie admitted, unable to break their eye contact.
"That'll never happen." Blake smiled and lent down, pressing a soft kiss to her lips. He pulled away only a few moments later, but their foreheads stayed pressed together. "I want to be with you and not even my best friends opinion on us could change that."
Nellie smiled, wrapping her arms around his neck, only then realising that Blake still wasn't wearing a shirt. Her face grew hot and she quickly stepped away from him. "You should find a shirt."
Blake smirked. Nellie's pink cheeks a clear sign that she was embarrassed. He chose not to play on her embarrassment and grabbed his shirt from the bed, throwing it on quickly. "Better?" He grinned at her.
Nellie fought the urge to say No and nodded her head instead. She definitely didn't mind seeing Blake without a shirt on, but it just made things a lot more heated and she was definitely not ready to take things that far with Blake. This was going to be an uphill battle for them and she didn't want to fall too hard for him before they had everything figured out.
"Let's watch a movie before I have to head back to the girls."
Nellie groaned as her eyes flicked open and she came face-to-face with a sleeping Blake. She jumped slightly, unable to remember why she was asleep in Blake's hotel room. It only took a few seconds for her to remember that they had been watching a movie and they must have fallen asleep.
"Shit!" She cursed, noticing the time on the digital clock by the bed. It was gone midnight. She was supposed to have met up with the rest of the team at around six for dinner and a last minute rehearsal. She was sure that the coach would be going crazy looking for her and would have called her father.
"Mmm," Blake mumbled in his sleep, the arm that was wrapped around Nellie's waist pulled her closer. "What's wrong?" He muttered, his eyes opening slightly as Nellie jumped out of the bed.
"We fell asleep!" She exclaimed, grabbing her hoodie from the floor and pulling it on. "I missed dinner and rehearsal!" She explained quickly, glad that she had decided to meet Blake after their first competition earlier in the day. If she'd have missed that then she'd never hear the end of it.
"What time is it?" Blake spluttered, eyes widening as he looked at the clock. "Shit!" He cursed and jumped out of the bed. "Do you have everything? Oh god your coach is going to kill you!" Blake knew how strict the coaches were when the teams were away in other towns.
"My coach is going to kill me!? My Dad is going to kill me!" Nellie responded frantically, pulling her sneakers back on. "I'll see you tomorrow okay!?" She said before she rushed out of the door and down the hall, hoping that maybe someone had covered for her.
As she rushed down the stairs she knew she would need an excuse for where she was, but she her brain couldn't even put anything together in her current state. When she reached the floor she was staying at she expected to see the coach stood outside her door, that stern look on her face that Nellie knew so well, but she wasn't.
She slowly made her way down the hall and toward her room, still finding nobody waiting for her. She quietly opened her hotel room door, finding the room dark and a mass of blonde curls across the pillow of Katie's bed. Nellie tiptoed through the room, dropping her purse onto the floor and climbed into bed without bothering to change.
She thought she was safe until the lamp flashed on and Katie was now sat up in her bed, her eyebrows raised. "You are so lucky that I'm a quick thinker Nellie."
Nellie's eyes widened and she sat up, staring at the younger girl. "What do you mean?"
"Everyone was asking about you at dinner." Katie explained with a shrug. "I hadn't seen you since the first meet so I told everyone you were sick and you weren't up for dinner or rehearsal. The coach bought it and I think the girls did too."
"Really?" Nellie's shock was evident. She didn't know Katie extremely well, she would class her as a friend, but she never would have thought that she would cover for her like this. "Thanks Katie, I owe you."
"Mhm." Katie nodded. "So, where were you?"
"I uh- I was with a friend." Nellie admitted. She didn't want to lie to the girl after what she had done for her, but it was Nellie's secret and she couldn't risk anyone else finding out today.
"A guy friend?" Katie grinned, wanting to know more.
"A girl never tells." Nellie teased.
Katie giggled lightly and Nellie knew that she was safe.
For now.
She and Blake would have to start being more careful if they wanted to keep their relationship a secret.
Like it? The end was kind of rushed because I just really wanted to get something posted, but I have a pretty good idea as to where this story is going so please keep reviewing and letting me know what you think! I'll try and post as soon as I can :) Thanks for reading!