A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews everybody! I promise the angst is over and I think you'll enjoy this chapter very much!
I got a review from somebody asking if I would ever change the rating of this story from a 'T' to an 'M'. The answer is sorry, but no. I am very...ahem, inexperienced in that area and where I have read more than enough 'M' rated wemma fics I am not confident enough to write them...yet.
Enjoy this chapter!
The weeks passed by slowly. The first week Will and Emma avoided each other at all costs, staying in their own offices even for lunch. By the second week they'd still each lunch in their own separate rooms but when they'd run into each other in the hallway they'd strike up a pleasant conversation but it wasn't anything like they were used to. The third week they started to eat in the lunch room again but the hour was silent with little to no conversation.
By the time a month went by they were meeting up in the hallway before class again and Will would walk Emma to her office and then they would part ways. They'd meet each other at lunch and began to speak to each other more often, more comfortably. Will was always tempted to stop by Emma's office and just sit down and talk to her like he always did but he didn't wind up doing it.
By the fifth week Will would stay in Emma's office until five minutes before class started in the morning. They would chat casually and Will would watch her as she cleaned various objects in her office. This continued throughout the sixth week and as time grew on Emma and Will fell back into their normal routine pre-lie. If Will needed any advice even so much as what to do about a failing student he'd go to Emma's and sit and talk with her until either he had to go to another class or she had a student coming in. More often than not they'd wind up getting off topic and talking about some of the most random things that would have them both in non-stop laughter.
At lunch they would sit next to each other, eating happily. Emma would slap his hand when he would try to steal a grape from her and then erupt in a fit of giggles.
"Oh Emma I think you missed a spot." He pointed to the table beneath her and her eyes widened as she looked down at it. "Where?"
Out of the corner of her eye she saw Will reach his hand toward her container and she snatched it away from him. "Will!"
Will laughed and retracted his hand and she pouted at him. "That's not nice Will."
"Sorry." He replied genuinely still laughing.
She huffed, still holding onto the container of grapes. "You know you can just ask for one instead of trying to steal it."
Will put on one his most adorable faces and blinked twice. "Emma can I have a grape?"
Emma rolled her eyes but smiled, took out a grape, wiped it down and extended it towards him. Will smiled and instead of taking it, simply opened his mouth and leaned towards her.
Without thinking about it Emma reached over and popped the grape into his mouth. Through her gloves she could feel the softness of his lips. Her eyes widened and she pulled her hand back, her face flushing at the memory of feeling them pressed against hers.
Will chewed the grape, his eyes remaining fixed on hers, also remembering that night nearly two months ago.
They avoided that topic like the plague. They didn't discuss that kiss or the possibility of a relationship or even Will and Terri's divorce. Will wanted to tell Emma that his divorce was coming along and should be finished soon but the whole topic was awkward so they avoided it.
However, just like pre-lie, they were always flirting. Incidents like the grape would happen often, they'd always be giving each other looks, without realizing it Will would wrap his arm around her while they walked in the hallway, they were always laughing and, in Emma's case, giggling around each other. Their flirting and affection for each other did not go unnoticed by students and faculty. When things like the grape incident would happen there would be whispers in the faculty lounge and the glee kids noticed Will's change in mood over the last few weeks. He'd been smiling alot more since he started talking to Emma again and throughout the day the kids would always see them together. They were practically inseparable. Rachel had kicked Will out of Emma's office a plenty of times when she needed to speak with Emma. On a slow day when Emma knew she had few appointments and not much work to do she would go down to Will's room. She'd talk to him quietly in the corner while he gave students make up tests or she would sit as his desk while he helped students with tutorials and just listen to his voice speaking the foreign language.
The glee kids had taken up to singing romantic songs to indirectly tease their teacher. Will, of course, caught on to it after a few songs but gave no notification that he did. Sometimes they'd ask him where she was and although he knew that they were generally curious as to why she hadn't been attending their glee rehearsals their voices also held a teasing, playful tone. He'd pretend to it ignore it but occasionally he'd hear the girls whispering his name and Emma's name and then they would all giggle.
"Sometimes people have so much chemistry you just know they're meant to be together." He heard Mercedes say one day in rehearsal, talking to the other girls. Then she turned to him with a knowing look. "Right, Mr. Schuester?"
Rachel, Tina and Quinn all looked at him with a knowing smirk and he tried to hide the blush on his face. "Uh...sure."
"Miss Pillsbury told us that." She didn't, he had asked her later. The girls just wanted to see his reaction to her name and unwillingly he gave them a reaction. His face flushed up red as a tomato and he stuttered a response, walking away from them to the boys on the other side of the room, hearing their giggles behind him.
Then, nearing the end of the seventh week, on a Thursday afternoon it happened.
Will left school early, canceling glee club and giving his last period class a free day. He passed by Emma's office and waved her a goodbye to let her know that he was leaving. Then he headed down to his lawyer's office where he would be meeting Terri and they would finish up their divorce.
When he got there Terri was already waiting, sitting dismally in a chair. To say the least, Terri had been unhappy with the whole process. At first she would try and convince him to take her back and not go through with the divorce but after a while she realized it was no use and reluctantly went through with what she had to do.
Terri caught Will's gaze and rolled her eyes, standing up. "Lets get this over with."
After all was said and done and they both signed what they had to, the divorce was final. Very civilly Will walked with Terri out to her car and they paused right by it.
"I'm sorry we had to end like this." Will told her sincerely.
Terri scoffed and glanced up at him bitterly. "No you're not."
"Yes I am." He stated firmly. "Ter, what we had was great. I enjoyed being with you for so long but it just wasn't meant to be."
"What if it was?" Terri whispered. "What if we made a mistake...getting...divorced."
"We didn't." Will said certainly. "Look Terri, we were meant to be together in high school and through college but we're adults now. We've both changed. We just don't fit together anymore."
"You're sure about that? Really, really sure?"
"Yes." Will replied quickly. "I wouldn't have even suggested divorce if I wasn't."
Terri bit her lip and shook her head, turning away from him.
"We were drifting apart before the baby thing, we both know that, you said it yourself." Will continued.
Terri only nodded silently, opening the door to the car, which she had borrowed from Kendra. "Goodbye Will." She whispered brokenly and got into the car.
Will watched quietly as the woman he had been with since high school drove out of his life forever. He fingered with the wedding band still on his finger and then turned his head down to look at it. He pursed his lips, slid the ring off his finger for the first time in five and a half years and pocketed it.
Will turned to walk back to his car and slid into the drivers seat. He sat, holding onto the steering wheel, staring at his bare left ring finger for quite a while. He looked up into the rear view mirror and stared at his reflection. A sad smile slowly creeped its way onto his face when he thought of his marriage ending. However, when he thought of what his marriage ending could mean, the sad smile turned into a hopeful, knowing smile.
With his destination in mind, he started the car and headed off.
He arrived in front of Emma's condo in less than ten minutes. His heart fluttered and the butterflies inside his stomach were going crazy at thought of seeing her. Of doing more than just seeing her. Of finally being able to be with her.
A grin spread across his face and he practically jumped out of the car and raced to her front door. He knocked a few times, lightly but yet somehow urgent. Not shortly after, the door opened and Emma appeared in the doorway. Her brow furrowed in confusion but she had a small smile of delight on her face.
"Wi-" Before she could have time to question why he was there, he stepped in, grabbed her by the hips and crushed his lips onto hers.
He could feel her freeze under his touch but then she relaxed and slipped her arms around his neck. He pulled her closer, putting all of his pent up emotions into that single kiss.
They stood there for as long as they could, in the middle of Emma's open doorway lost in the kiss.
Finally, they pulled apart and both were panting. Emma, feeling light headed, kept her arms around his neck and leaned against his strong arms for support. A dreamy smile crossed her lips as she looked up into his eyes. "What..." She breathed out. "...was that?"
Will grinned down at her. "That is what I've been wanting to do for the last two months."
Emma felt her heart pounding away in her chest and as she stared into his eyes she began to get lost. "Will..."
"Before you say anything..." Will cut her off gently. "I have to tell you something."
Emma nodded quietly and waited for him to continue.
"The past few weeks I have been meeting with a lawyer and Terri to get a divorce. Today we finished everything up, that's why I left early."
"What are you saying Will?" Emma asked, a hint of a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.
"I'm saying..." He smiled at her brightly. "I'm a free man. The divorce is final, I am no longer married."
"R-really?" Her smile grew bigger. Will, still supporting her with one arm, lifted his left hand to show her the bare left hand.
"Really." He added with a seductive eyebrow quirk.
A breathing taking smile took over Emma's face but then it slowly fell and she furrowed her brow, causing Will's face to fall. "Are you alright?" She asked, concern laced in her voice. "I mean divorce is a big deal and you were with her for a long time-"
Will placed a finger over her lips and shook his head. "I'm fine." Seeing the skepticism in her eyes he went on, "I've had the past two months to get over it. Truth be told, I'm glad its finally over. As painful as all of that was, I had something wonderful waiting for me at the end and I'm glad that I finally get to have it."
"And what's that?" Emma mumbled against the finger against her lips.
"You." He replied and replaced his finger with his lips. Emma melted under his touch and her knees buckled. She tightened her grip around his neck and smiled into the kiss. Will kicked her front door closed and leaned against it, still holding Emma firmly to him.
Emma broke the kiss after some time and grinned up at him. Will smiled adoringly down at her and lifted his hand to stroke the side of her face lightly. Emma's eyes fluttered closed and she leaned into his touch, sighing contentedly.
Emma's arms left their spot from around his neck and they settled down at his middle so she could rest her head against his chest. She stared off at the wall, a lazy smile on her face, as she listened to Will's heartbeat.
"Are you making dinner?" Will asked, getting the scent of something in the air.
Emma snapped her head up. "Oh gosh!" She pulled herself out of Will's arms and raced towards the kitchen, a confused Will at her heels.
Emma rushed over to the stove and checked all of the pots, sighing in relief. "Oh thank goodness." She turned to face Will and smiled sheepishly. "I totally forget all about that. You distracted me." She blushed shyly.
Will smirked, his eyes twinkling in delight. Then he walked over towards her and looked over her shoulder and into the pots seeing a pot of sauce and one of spaghetti. "Pasta...looks good."
"Would you like to um, would you like to stay for dinner?" Emma asked quietly, blushing at the thought that she was technically asking Will on a date.
"Oh Em, you don't have to do that." Her heart fluttered at the use of the endearing nickname. "It looks like you only made enough for one."
Emma shook her head furiously. "Oh no its fine. I have more." She reached into the closet behind her and pulled out the box of spaghetti. "See?"
"Are you sure you don't mind? I did just kind of barge in here without warning."
"No it's fine. Really, I didn't mind." Her face flushed even redder as Will grinned at her. "I mean um..."
Will raised his eyebrows in a playfully questioning manner. Emma could feel her face burning. "I just um...well...I..."
The next thing she knew Will's lips were on hers again. Emma closed her eyes and succumbed to his kiss. She couldn't believe that she was kissing Will Schuester and for the third time in less than a half an hour. They continued to kiss until the box of spaghetti fell onto the floor with a crash.
Emma jumped, pulling away from Will and looking down at the floor, her heart leaping into her chest. Luckily, no spaghetti had actually fallen out of the box. She looked up to Will, pleading with her eyes for him to step away so she could pick it up. Will obliged happily and Emma bent down to pick up the box.
Will followed her with his eyes, observing her spine sticking out of her thin back the way her hair fell over her shoulders, the round curve of her behind, and the muscles flexing in her skinny legs. Will felt his mouth grow dry and he swallowed the lump in his throat, unable to keep his eyes off of the beautiful woman before him.
Will followed Emma up slowly as she stood up, smiled shyly at him and then poured some more spaghetti into the boiling water. Will left out a quiet breath, shaking his head quickly to clear his cloudy head.
"Will?" Emma began shyly, turning to face him. "Um...would you mind helping me set the table?"
"Sure." Will replied thankful for the distraction and smiled at her. "No problem."
"Thank you." Emma said with a smile. "Um...I hate to be a pest but would you mind um...taking off your shoes and putting them by the door?" She looked up at him sheepishly.
Will smiled at her. "Yeah." He gave her a quick look and then walked out of the kitchen to place his shoes by the door where she asked him.
While he was gone Emma grabbed a sponge from the sink and got down onto the floor to quickly wipe up the dirt that Will had left there. It wouldn't have been noticeable to anyone else but she noticed it and if she didn't clean it up it would have bothered her the rest of the night.
From where she was on the floor Emma could see Will's socked feet pause in the doorway. She finished scrubbing the last of the floor and then glanced up at him, afraid of what his expression would be.
Will didn't look surprised or weirded out or confused he just simply smiled at her, like it was normal for her to be scrubbing at invisible dirt. "Sorry." She whispered as she stood up.
"Don't apologize Emma its okay." Will assured her.
"No," She sighed, "It's a completely unattractive quality, I know."
Will simply shook his head and smiling, reached out to take her hand. "You are adorable." He replied affectionately.
Emma beamed up at him and held onto his hand for a few more moments. Then she released his hand and went to put the dirty sponge back into the sink.
"So...where are those dishes?" Will asked.
"Oh!" Emma walked over to one of the cabinets and pulled out two bowls and handed them to Will. Will walked over to the table and placed the dishes on the perfectly placed place-mats. Emma brought over the silverware and helped Will arrange them on the table and they'd both smile when their hands would accidentally brush.
Just as soon as the table was done, the timer on the stove beeped and Emma went over to check on it. "Looks like its all done!"
"Great." Will's voice was closer than she expected and she looked around to see him at the sink. He flicked on the faucet and washed his hands, all the while smiling at her.
Emma's mouth parted slightly and her heart swelled. She couldn't believe it, she didn't even have to ask Will to wash his hands, he just did it for her.
Even though she didn't express it out loud the gratitude was written in her eyes. Will winked in response and shut the water off and dried his hands with a paper towel.
"Why don't you have a seat Will?" Emma motioned over to the table.
Will nodded and walked over to take a seat and watched Emma as she walked around the kitchen finishing up the spaghetti. She placed the pasta neatly into a bowl and walked over to him, leaning over to scoop some into his bowl. Will kept his eyes on her the whole time and leaned up to kiss the side of her face as she pulled away.
Emma's eyes twinkled in delight as she smiled at Will. Her face flushed as she took her seat next to him wondering how in the world she got so lucky.
The next morning, Will arrived at the school ten minutes earlier than he usually did on purpose. He knew Emma got there earlier than most of the staff and set up her office for the day and then she'd leave to meet him in the hallway when he arrived. But he didn't want to meet her in the hallway that day.
Even though there was plenty of time before the first bell rang, and there was no students in the hallway he jogged down the hallway towards her office. He swung his way into the doorway and knocked on the door, catching Emma's attention.
Emma looked up from her desk and smiled brightly. "Hi Will." The surprise was evident in her voice but she was clearly happy to see him.
Will walked in and over to the desk. "Hey." He greeted warmly and leaned over to kiss her lips sweetly.
Emma's breath caught in her chest and she smiled dreamily up at him after the short, sweet kiss. "Is that going to happen every day?"
"Do you want it to happen everyday?" He retorted, raising his eyebrows.
"Yes." She answered surely, blushing lightly.
"Good. So do I."
Emma smiled as Will took a seat. Keeping her eyes on him, Emma took her seat, and folded her hands on her lap.
"Thank you for dinner." Will said. "I know I said it last night but I thought I'd say it again."
Emma grinned. "You're welcome any time Will."
"So..." Will leaned forward, raising his eyebrows curiously, a smirk forming on his lips. "Would you say that was our first date?"
Emma couldn't keep the smile off her face as Will mentioned the word 'our' and 'date' in the same sentence. "Would you?"
"I would say so." He nodded.
"Then it was." Emma beamed.
"So what do you say about a second date? Tomorrow night? My place? I'll cook."
Emma's eyes lit up in surprise. "I didn't know you could cook."
"There are so many things you don't know about me and I can't wait to introduce them all to you."
Emma's heart fluttered and she watched as Will leaned forward and kept her eyes on his lips. Just as her eyes were fluttering closed and she prepared herself for his kiss, his lips redirected themselves to her forehead. "I'll see you later." He whispered before disappearing out of the room, leaving her totally love struck.
At lunch they say even closer to each other than usual. They sat so close their shoulders were touching. After Emma had officially cleaned all of her fruit and her spot at the table, she linked fingers with Will and they stayed like that for the whole lunch hour, resting under the table on Will's lap.
The school had a strict rule about faculty P.D.A. so they weren't as affectionate as they wanted to be. Will resisted the urge to kiss her the moment he walked into the lounge but occasionally would sneak little pecks to the side of her face, each time causing her to blush and giggle. Only Will Schuester could reduce her to act like one of the many teenage girls in their school with their first boyfriend.
"The glee kids have missed you." Will told her, halfway into their lunch period.
"They have?" Emma looked at him, a smile playing on her lips.
"They ask for you alot." He rolled his eyes. "Although I think part of it is so they can tease me."
"Tease you?" Emma questioned, taking a piece of fruit from her container and popping it into her mouth.
"Yeah." Will sighed and then laughed softly. "I guess I've been too obvious regarding my feelings for you."
Butterflies erupted in the pit of her stomach at his words. Even though it was plainly obvious that he did have romantic feelings for her given the night before it still warmed her heart to hear him admit it.
"They say your name just to see my reaction." He went on.
Emma raised her eyebrows curiously. "Oh? And what is your reaction?"
Will smiled and his cheeks turned a light pink. "This."
Emma studied the happy smile on his face and his slightly tinted cheeks and she smiled happily. She gave his hand, that she was still holding under the table, a squeeze. "I give the same reaction." She admitted shyly. "Probably worse."
Will raised his eyebrows and Emma blushed red. "Whenever someone says your name, I'll start thinking of you and when I start thinking of you I get lost in my own little world and..." She stopped herself when she saw Will's smirk.
"Oh gosh." She muttered closing her eyes. "That probably sounded really bad."
Will chuckled and rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb. "No it didn't. Would it make you feel better if I said that I think about you all the time too?"
Emma's eyes snapped open and she looked at him with wide eyes. "You do?" She whispered.
"All the time." He repeated with a nod.
Emma bit her lip shyly and looked down at the table and Will chuckled again, pecking her cheek.
Emma followed Will down the hallway towards the choir room. Since Will cancelled glee club the day before he called a make up rehearsal and he invited Emma to come. She readily agreed missing the glee kids just as much as they had missed her.
They walked down the hallway, hand in hand since it was after school there was no one really around to see them nor did anyone really care. As they approached the choir room, Will could see the faces and tops of heads through the window on the door. He smirked and leaned down to whisper into Emma's ear, "I think the secret is out."
"What?"
Will motioned towards the door and then Emma noticed the kids spying on them through the door. Emma lifted her hand in a small wave and through the glass they could see Rachel's horrified face and then she disappeared followed quickly by the other glee kids.
Will and Emma laughed quietly and finally reached the choir room. Will opened the door, let go of Emma's hand and stepped inside, followed by Emma.
The kids were suspiciously loudly talking to one another. Will and Emma shared a knowing look as they walked further into the room.
"Hey Mr. Schue." Mercedes greeted followed by the others in a mutual greeting. "Miss P."
"Hello kids." Emma greeted warmly.
"Guys I want you to be on your best behavior while Miss Pillsbury is here alright?" Will instructed his kids.
"You want to make a good impression, Mr. Schue?" Finn asked knowingly and the guys all sniggered. Will gave them a look but both he and Emma blushed lightly.
"Oooh they're blushing!" Rachel commented with a grin and the others smiled and the girls giggled.
"Guys." Will stated in exasperation, trying to ignore the burning in his face. He could practically feel Emma blushing from behind him.
"Oh come on Mr. Schuester." Artie stated. "You can tell us."
"Yeah," Finn agreed, "I mean you and Miss P are like the parents of this club. We have to know if Mom and Dad got together."
Emma's eyes widened at being called 'Mom' and having Will referred to as 'Dad'. She looked at Will's back and Will looked over his shoulder, questioning her with his eyes. She shrugged, smiling happily.
Will sighed and turned back to the glee kids, watching them with anticipating eyes. "Alright guys just don't make a big deal out of it okay?"
"So you're admitting it?" Tina asked, her eyes hopeful.
"Yes." Will answered and twelve faces lit up. "Em-Miss Pillsbury and I are seeing each other."
The girls all squealed at once and the boys cheered, clapped and cat called, shouting things like: "Go Schuester!" "Alright!" "About time!" "Finally!" with Will and Emma blushing like crazy.
"Alright, alright, alright!" Will laughed trying to get his kids to settle down. After about a minute of trying, Will realized it was no use trying to calm down the excited teenagers. So he just sighed and leaned up against the piano, looking towards Emma who had a bright grin on her face.
How did everyone like the new glee episode? and who is excited for next week? That looks crazy! "Nobody is safe! Nobody is safe!"