AN: Awh, final part! Wow I cannot believe I actually made my deadline to get this written before the episode premiered. It was originally only going to be a one-shot and then when it exploded into this I didn't think I'd actually make it. So forgive the spelling and grammar and formatting and etc errors, because this was written very quickly, mostly in little ten minute breaks between work shifts and in that precious hour I have in the evenings before bed to get all my stuff done on the computer. Really really appreciate all your support, and thanks again to fionacat36 for her awesome prompt, this really was an excellent plot twist I could not have come up with on my own. So finally, in conclusion...
We're having lunch in the auditorium before we have to go home, and as I look around I'm surprised again at the fact that the two groups are actually interspersed. I'm sitting near the back of the auditorium with Eve and Artie, and I think they are having a compare and contrast argument about Batman and Iron Man but I can't really follow it.
"Tina." I look up and Grace is standing behind me. "Do you want to take a walk with me?"
Yes and no. I nod and stand up, finally getting Artie and Eve's attention. "I'll b-be back," I say and they both nod, smile at me, and then instantly launch back into their conversation. I follow Grace out into the hall and she turns to face me.
"How are you holding up?" she asks and I can see the worry in her face.
"B-better now," I assure her. I can tell she wants to ask but won't, so I just tell her everything. She already knows about how I ended up here, but I tell her about how I started a new life for myself at McKinley, about how I joined glee club and found a place where I fit in, about making new friends who accepted me even with my unusual fashion sense and stutter, and then about how I never had the chance to tell them about my time in Jane Addams before coming here today. Grace never interrupts but at the end she takes my chin in her hand and tilts it up.
"I am so proud of you, Tina," she says and I can't help but feel teary eyed again. Grace is the closest thing I've had to a parent-like figure since I was old enough to have an opinion that clashed with my real parents', and it's good to finally feel appreciated. "I was so worried about you when you came here, you were so scared and quiet, but you really have become a beautiful young woman. It's good to see you feeling so strong and confident in yourself."
"I h-haven't been very conf-f-fident today," I point out glumly.
Grace shakes her head. "When I met you, you were so scared to let people get close to you that you didn't associate with hardly anyone. I still wasn't sure that after you left here you would be able to open up the way you did here at your new school. But when I saw you in there with your friends, all of those kids you've let get close enough to care about you as much as they do, I knew that you'd be alright."
There's singing coming from the auditorium again and I have to smile. Grace does as well. "You've got a good group of friends in there," she says. "It's good to see such an odd collection of kids working together like they do. Kind of like watching all of my girls coming together, despite all their backgrounds. I can see that you'll be safe and cared for with them, and that makes me happier than I can ever tell you. Especially watching the way that boy in the wheelchair was so quick to come after you. No one could stop him; he was out of the door before anyone could grab him. I can tell, he'll take good care of you."
"W-we take care of each other," I say.
"That's good to hear," Grace says with a knowing smile that makes me think she knows more than I do. That's pretty probable actually; she's been working with reform girls for years, and she is really good about being able to see the truth behind even the best lies. It's a big part in how she can connect so well with people, especially with girls like the ones here, who are used to just shutting people out. "Hang onto him, he's a good friend." She pauses for a second and then continues, "Your speaking has gotten so much better than it was when you left. Who knows, maybe in another year or so it'll be gone."
I glance in the doorway of the auditorium, my eyes landing on familiar faces, and then I shrug. "I d-d-don't mind it so much," I admit. "My friends love me even w-with it, so it doesn't really matter to me anymore."
Grace smiles and draws me into another hug and I drink in the feeling. "That's my girl," she murmurs and I can tell she's getting emotional because her voice is thick. It doesn't show on her face when we pull apart though, and we're both smiling when we go back into the noisy auditorium.
* * * * *
We go through five more rounds of erupting into random songs before Mr. Schuester finally puts his foot down and says we really do have to leave Jane Addams now. There was a lot of hugging and laughing and "We'll see you at sectionals!" Grace gives me her phone numbers and tells me to call her if I ever need a big sister's advice, and then tells me that if I send letters to her office she will make sure that Eve gets them. My two best friends keep up their comic discussions all the way until the moment Artie is tucked away into the bus and then promise they will pick it up again at sectionals. Eve and I try very hard not to cry as we say goodbye.
By the time everyone is loaded into the bus, we're all exhausted again. It's only about four in the afternoon but the early morning and the active day has worn on everybody and once the bus is on the road everyone starts dozing. Quinn has fallen asleep with her head on Finn's shoulder and the quarterback is nodding off against the window. Brittany, Santana, Matt, and Mike are having a whispered conversation that involves a lot of giggling. Rachel has headphones on and is mouthing to herself (that girl really doesn't ever stop working), and Puck is staring out the window in a distracted sort of way. Kurt and Mercedes, sitting in the row in front of me, are arguing quietly across the aisle way about clothes, as usual.
Once again I'm sitting up on my heels, my chin resting on the back of my seat so I can talk to Artie. "You're friend is pretty cool," he says with a laugh. "Even if she is rather – crass."
"Y-yeah, that sounds like Eve," I agree.
"What did – do you know why she's, you know, in there?" Artie asks curiously. "If you don't think she'll mind you telling me."
"She w-won't," I say. "She'd have told you herself if you'd asked. She used to hotwire c-cars, take them for rides." I smile, remembering all the exotic cars she'd told me about driving around Ohio. She had seen the error of her ways but that didn't mean she didn't still love talking about the cars.
"Wow," Artie says, shaking his head. "That would be kind of fun." I raise an eyebrow. "Driving the cars around, I mean. Not stealing them." I try not to look too sad when I realize that Artie's never going to get to drive a car. "I see what you're thinking, and don't," Artie says and I try, and fail, to look innocent. For some reason my masks never really do work on him. "Don't worry about it, I don't really mind not having to stress about a driver's test or pay my insurance or remember to fill the tank. I've got a set of wheels that are much lower maintenance."
"Artie, you're amazing," I say and it takes me a moment to realize I said the whole sentence without stuttering. Sure, it was only three words, but it's an achievement. Artie notices too, but he doesn't show it except to smile. Maybe he thinks if he says anything it will jinx it. I've never pegged him for being superstitious but then again he tends to be a surprise around every corner. I don't really care if it's a jinx or not, my stutter suddenly doesn't seem quite as important. "W-want to hear the new s-s-songs I have on here?" I ask, holding up my mp3 player.
"Do you have to ask?" Artie replies and holds out one hand for the headphone. I give one to him, slip the other into my ear, and then turn on the player. We talk about the music for a couple minutes until we're both yawning, and then we just settle in and listen.
After putting the headphone in his ear Artie had set one of his hands on the back of my chair, and I stare at it for a while until, for some inexplicable reason, I put my own hand on it. Artie's eyes widen and he blushes, but a few minutes later he flips his hand over and wraps his fingers around my hand. And I realize something sitting there on the bus, watched over by Mr. Schue and Ms. Pillsbury, surrounded by my new friends, and listening to music and holding hands with my best friend; just like walking into that auditorium in Jane Addams, this sort of feels like home too.