Chapter 17

That night, we ended up in a sushi restaurant in the main part of town. Mark decided to take it upon himself an hour before dinner to call around to different restaurants to see if there was a back room available for us all to sit in, since we were all skeptical about people finding us all out together as a group. Not that we don't love our fans or anything, because we love them like we love life itself, but we were all on vacation to get away from the madness that was our lives. It just wouldn't be ideal if people were gawking at us as we were shoving pieces of sushi in our mouths. Do you have any idea how unattractive it is to try to eat a piece of sushi that's just too big for your mouth? First, you have to shove it in there, sometimes with your fingers, and then your cheeks are all filled with rice and seaweed and whatever else is on your sushi. You never get a full bite because you have to eat everything separately, and usually, the spot of soy sauce always lands on your tongue, and then all you can taste is the salty liquid that the rice has soaked up.

Don't ask me how I know all of this. Really, don't.

So, anyway, Mark was able to find this great sushi place. I don't know the name of it – the guys drove whatever cars we had, and all of us girls just hung out and relaxed in the passenger and back seats of whatever cars we chose. Remember how sexy I said it was when men drove, like when Cory and I drove down from Los Angeles? Yeah, Cory drove again today, and like I even need to say it, he bumped up the sexiness level when he drove dressed in his fanciest button-down shirt that he packed and his jeans. Break me off a piece of that! In fact, we all got dressed up. I straightened my hair (even my bangs!), did my make-up with Jenna's help with a smoky-eye effect, and donned my prettiest dress that I had packed – a black lacy number that ended a few inches above my knees with short black sheer cap sleeves. I capped it off (footed it off, in this case?) with a pair of black, sky-high stilettos that I really only break out in red carpet events. However, I felt that they just went perfectly with the outfit. I really packed for all occasions, as you can tell. Everyone else cleaned up nicely too, with the boys in their pressed and tailored button-down shirts (Darren even wore a tie! How cute is he?), and the girls in their cocktail dresses and high heels. Granted, it took us three or four hours to look this good, considering the amount of people in the house and the shortage of bathrooms. The guys had agreed to get ready first because they said they would be quicker, and some of them were. Chris happened to take longer than some of us girls, but you win some and you lose some, right? The girls and I got ready then while all of the boys sat on the couch and watched television. And I must admit, us girls looked good.

The whole group of us sat at a long, dark wooden table that was dimly lit with simple small chandeliers that hung from the high ceilings. Soft music was pumped into the room through speakers that were, I assume, hidden in the tall bamboo plants that lined the walls. Cory and I sat at the end of the table, with him getting the aisle seat, and across from us sat Darren and Chris. The rest of our group lined both sides of the rest of the table. On the other side of me was Kevin, and he was seated next to Amber. On the other side of Chris sat Heather. The rest of our group lined the remainder of the tables. And as ridiculous and far-fetched as this sounds, I couldn't think about anything else except the man that had his fingers interlaced with mine under the table that rested on his leg.

His warm touch sent chills up and down my spine. The scent of his cologne propelled my senses into overdrive. The sound of his laugh as he spoke to Darren cuddled my heart. And as I was totally overcome by him, I looked over at Chris, and he smiled warmly at me. It was like he knew what was going on in my head and what my body was feeling. I smiled back at him before rubbing my thumb against the top of Cory's hand under the table.

"You clean up so nicely, Chris," I complimented him, trying to do anything to keep myself from exploding on this chair.

"That's the seventh time you told me that tonight," he replied with his head cocked to the side. "How many glasses of pinot have you had so far, by the way?"

I eyed my near-empty wine glass. "That was my second."

He chuckled softly as he picked up his martini glass and took a sip from it. His lips puckered slightly, though he tried to hide it well. "At least it's not another Corona and lime. You should just buy stock in that company, by the way. You'd make a fortune off of your drinking."

"How often do I ever drink when we're working?" I protested, knowing full well that I hate drinking while working. Rachel Berry would never do such a thing, and neither would I.

Chris pulled his bottom lip into his mouth before replying. "Fine, you got me there. But I also think you are just getting all of the drinking out of the way now so you can enter Rachel Berry mode."

"Whatever you say, Chris Colfer."

"No, please, call me Kurt Hummel. I'm beginning to get into character," Chris smirked as he placed his hand on top of Darren's, who had his hands folded on the table in front of him.

Without missing a beat, Darren looked over at Chris and smiled his brightest Blaine Anderson smile. "Yes, honey?" he cooed, and I watched Chris' eyes light up like the Rockefeller Center Christmas tree. God, that must be the face I make whenever Cory addresses me.

"My sweetest boo, why don't you tell Rachel and Finn what we did this summer?" Chris (or Kurt? I'm confused now…) asked Darren (Blaine?).

Darren chuckled before taking Chris' hand and placing it between his. He looked back at us and turned on the Blaine switch. It was hilarious, let me tell you. Cory and I couldn't help but laugh as Darren spoke. "Well, fellow esteemed Glee club members, Kurt and I had the most glorious summer under the Lima, Ohio sun. First, we wrote, produced, and co-starred in his Pippa Middleton musical, 'Pip Pip Hooray', which made quite a splash at Columbus Street's annual block party. I was Prince Harry and Kurt was Pippa herself, and we told about the sweetest mildly-inscestual love story in all of the United Kingdom. After that ended in mid-August, we decided to spend the rest of the summer sunbathing in my parents' backyard and catching up on all of the trashy reality television while we had time. You both know how crazy and demanding the glee club schedule can be during the school year."

I nodded empathetically towards Darren and Chris.

"What did you two lovebirds do this summer?" Chris asked with a sly smile as he tilted his head towards Darren's shoulder, clearly signaling that he was ready to be wooed with our romance.

I opened my mouth to speak, but Cory had piped up first. My heart did somersaults in my chest as he began to speak, and I think Darren and Chris could read it all over my face, and they both stifled giggles.

"Well, Rachel and I had an incredibly interesting summer. After everything that had happened at nationals, I spent most of it trying to make it up to her, since I knew that Rachel had wanted to win more than anything. I did everything that I thought that she would appreciate. First, Rachel and I spent about a week watching each and every one of her favorite movies. Every Barbra Streisand video that she had in her collection, 'Breakfast at Tiffany's', you know, the classics. Then, we worked on every solo and duet that she could have ever dreamed of or wanted to do, and I listened and applauded at the end of each one as if she was on a Broadway stage giving her final performance. We dined often at Breadstix AND I worked out a deal with the waitress to pack our leftover baggies with as many breadsticks as possible. What else did we do, baby?" he asked, as he looked into my eyes, and I thought I was going to fall off my chair.

"Oh, Finn, so many great memories," I started with a bright Rachel Berry smile. "On top of all of these things, Cory brought me to the field at school and he taught me how to toss around the football, just in case the team ever strikes over a halftime show again. We then spent lots of time at each other's houses when our parents were off at work."

"Ooh, do tell!" Chris prodded as he took his hand out of Darren's grip and clasped them over his heart.

"Tell what?" I asked. "Rachel Berry doesn't kiss and tell! What kind of woman do you think I am? Do you think Barbra would kiss and tell?"

Darren looked over at Chris and shook his head disappointingly. "What were you thinking?" he quietly asked.

Chris opened his mouth to combat Darren's question with an, I'm sure, reasonable answer, but before he could speak, the waitress arrived at the table with our plates of food. She distributed our dishes of sushi – Cory ordered a shrimp tempura roll with crab on top, Darren ordered a spicy tuna roll, and Chris got crafty with an eel and salmon roll. On the other hand, I got a vegetarian roll that was filled with julienne carrots, sliced cabbage, and red and green peppers with a side of edamame.

"How do I use these things?" Cory asked as he picked up his pair of chopsticks, which unfortunately made him release his hold on my hand.

I chuckled as I took his hand once again and fixed his fingers into position to hold the chopsticks. "It's tricky," I warned him as I rested the chopsticks in his shaped fingers.

"How do I move them?" he asked as he stared at the sticks in his right hand.

I laughed, but disguised it behind a subtle clearing of my throat. "You're a drummer. You should be good with sticks in your hands."

"That's what she said!" Chris exclaimed loudly as he pointed at Cory, and he laughed loudly, proud of his joke.

"Shit!" Cory laughed as he tossed his head back. "I walked right into that one."

Darren gave Chris a high five before consuming their meals. I went back to showing Cory how to use his chopsticks. "You've never used a pair of these before?" I asked him as I picked up my set.

He shook his head quickly. "No, I just use forks and knives."

"Okay, watch," I directed him as I quickly placed the chopsticks in between my fingers. Slowly and carefully, I showed him how to pinch the chopsticks together in air, before practicing on food. The whole time, Cory had a quizzical look on his face, and I could tell that the poor boy just couldn't get the hang of it.

"Screw it," he finally muttered and he placed his chopsticks down on the table. Then, quickly, he scooped up his first piece of sushi between his fingers and dipped it into his small soy sauce dish before popping the piece in his mouth.

I shook my head before looking at my dinner plate. "Or you could just do that," I smirked as I then picked up my first piece of sushi.

We all ate our sushi dinners together. A few of the guys swapped pieces between themselves, and Dianna passed her salad along to Jenna and I if we wanted to grab a few mixed greens and veggies. Despite not knowing how to pick up food with chopsticks, Cory was doing quite well with his fingers.

"I have to use the restroom," I whispered to Cory after we had all finished eating our meals and the waitresses had cleared our tables. I gently pushed my chair out and used the back of Cory's chair to help me get up. My dress was practically skin-tight, which made it hard to move.

"I'll go with you," he quickly whispered in return and he sprang to his feet with gusto.

"You don't have to," I said as I turned my head to look over my shoulder to speak to him, and he was quick on my trail.

The back room of the restaurant where we ate that night had it's own private bathroom, which was really quite convenient. Behind the table where we were all sitting was the wall, and behind that wall was a small hallway that led to the single shared bathroom. I started walking down the hallway, but I could hear Cory practically breathing down my neck.

"Hey," he said softly to me, almost in a whisper, and it made me snap my head around to look at him. Electricity surged through my body as he placed his hands right on my hips and pressed me up against the painted black wall. "You look beautiful tonight."

I looked up into his eyes and I saw everything that was good in the world. Thank you, God, for this moment. I smiled and I could feel my red lips stretch as far as they could travel on my face. "Thank you," I managed to breathe out.

"I can't keep my hands off of you," Cory whispered as he leaned towards me. He lowered his head and pressed his lips to mine. And I swear, if he didn't have his hands on my hips and I wasn't pressed against the wall, I'm pretty sure I would have slid right down to the hardwood floor. I raised my arms and draped them over his muscular athletic shoulders and I allowed my hands to travel through the bottom of his hair. My fingers played with his short brown curls that were starting to form as our lips and tongues danced together.

"You have to go back," I was able to mutter in between kisses, and I was able to get the most words out, shockingly, when he started to move his lips down towards my neck, because that was pretty much right when I lost my breath.

"I don't want to," Cory growled in reply.

"I have to pee," I giggled, and Cory lifted his lips off of my skin. Damnit, that feeling sucks.

"I'll wait right here for you."

"You're crazy."

"About you."