Chapter 5: Don't go yet
She spotted Naya outside her trailer talking to Telly and Lea. And, as it had always been with them, it took the brunette a mere second before brown met blue. Heather smiled cheerfully, her heart already pulsing faster with giddiness.
"Heather Morris, get your ass over here," Lea's voice echoed down the lot - that Broadway bone of hers kicking in.
"We're planning a party."
Heather reached them in quick steps, her arm interlacing with Naya's instantly. The brunette seemed hesitant, but before Heather could ask, Lea was grabbing her chin and turning her head to hers.
"My place, this Friday. We need a break so I'm throwing a party. Boyfriends are allowed."
"You know what's better than a boyfriend, though?" Telly prompted. "Hot male dancers."
Naya cracked up, leaning against him, her arm smoothly freeing itself from Heather's grasp. The blonde missed the warmth, but was too transfixed on that crunchy smile to complain.
"That's also an option," Lea agreed. "One demand: bring alcohol."
"Yes madam!" Heather complied, winking at Telly. "And male dancers it is."
"I need to go to make-up, so they'll fill you in on the rest of the details. See you later, gleeks!"
Lea left in a hurry, catching up to Dianna who waved at them from a distance.
Heather shouted a loud "hey" at their blonde friend, before turning to the other two. She noticed that Naya was already entering her trailer with Telly joined at the hip, causing an involuntary whine to come out from her lips. The shorter girl looked back amused.
"Are you hiding a baby under that hoodie?"
"I don't even get a 'good morning' before you snuck up to your trailer?" Heather answered with a frown.
Telly rolled his eyes at them, remaining silent. Naya eyed him before stepping down the stairs and enveloping her in a hug.
"Stop being such a whine baby." She whispered.
"I need my daily Naya fix." The blonde replied, gripping tighter.
"Girls, enough with the love fest. I've got places to be."
"Then go." Heather said with a cheeky smile.
"Ok, if Naya doesn't want my help anymore."
"No, wait! I do!"
The brunette quickly let go of Heather and joined him again on the stairs.
"Help for what?" The blonde asked, standing at the bottom of the steps.
Naya hesitated and faced Telly who simply shrugged.
"We're picking a smoking outfit for her date."
With that he opened the door and they both walked in. Heather stood frozen on the same spot for a minute, before she snapped back and started moving. The silence in her head was so strong it seemed like it drowned everything else. But she would rather have a deafening silence than let the sinking feeling in her chest get to her head.
She opened her trailer door and changed to her cheerleading outfit. With her ipod on, and a book under her arm, she went to the make-up trailer without a single thought reaching through.
They spent the morning shooting choir-room scenes. Heather sat next to Harry and Jenna most of the time. She wasn't supposed to sit with Santana on that particular scene and, although she didn't really know why, she appreciated it. Dianna was behind her and kept playing with her ponytail. They shared some laughs and it got Heather on the perfect mood right before lunch. They were a little behind on schedule so half an hour later most of the cast was back to work. Heather didn't have any scenes just yet, so she sat on the grass outside the cafeteria, along with Jenna and Dianna. The sun wasn't as warm as it had been the week before, but the cool breeze made her sleepy. It was quiet and comfortable there, so they spent their free hours chatting and drinking coffee on the grass. They gossiped. The girls would throw questions about Taylor every chance they got, so Heather decided to nestle her head on Dianna's lap and doze off. She felt like she needed alone time, but wasn't so keen on being by herself today. A quick nap with her friends seemed the best way to fix her dilemma.
About three hours later they went to the tin shed and started rehearsal. Everyone was back. As soon as the music played, Heather's body dove into the rhythm forgetting the silent whispers on the back of her head. They practiced for almost two hours and were given another half an hour break before starting to film the actual dance sequence.
They were sweating like pigs, falling flat on the rubber mattresses for a quick recovery. The boiling tin shed was barely breathable as the group scattered on the floor, stretching their legs and chugging down water.
Heather joined Naya, who sat next to a big blue bag, browsing through it.
"I'm beat." Naya confessed with a puff, her head almost entering the bag in search for her phone.
"Me too. But save some energy for tonight. Hannah and the rest of the girls invited us for dinner."
"Tonight?" Naya repeated, abandoning her search. "I can't tonight."
Heather was so disappointed that didn't even registered Naya's guilty expression. Not right away.
"The date." She murmured as her mind collected the pieces.
Naya nodded with a smile that was too small to be real.
"I really wanted you to come," Heather confessed sadly. "You haven't been to one of these in a while. They miss your drunken ramblings."
They did. And so did her.
"Next time."
Naya stated simply before shuffling her bag again.
Heather was staring at her intently. Normally she would ask her friends all about their dates and clap excitedly at their romantic plans. But with Naya it was always tricky to get into that mood. She wasn't even sure if she ever had before. Did that make her a bad friend?
"So, who is he? Or she…" She trailed off.
Honestly, she didn't know which would hurt most. Not that it should hurt. It shouldn't. And it didn't.
"Nate. You remember him, from Megan's party?"
"I don't."
Naya looked at her for a second and in that second something flashed in brown eyes. But Heather wasn't able to read it.
"Is he a good guy?"
"I don't know. Let's hope so." Naya was giggling slightly.
She seemed happy. Not ecstatic happy, but content, so Heather smiled - this time genuinely. Or at least she thought she was smiling, because when Telly joined them the first thing he asked was, "Are you okay?"
"S-sure. Why?"
She touched her face suddenly a little self-conscious.
"You're brooding."
"I'm not brooding," Heather let out a rough laugh, it made her blush. What the hell was that?
"I'm smiling."
Naya smiled weakly at her, grabbing her hand and gripping it. Again, Heather didn't know what that meant but, for some reason, it made her agitated.
"So, did you pick out the outfit already?" She asked, more to make conversation than any other reason, since Telly's eyes kept travelling between them.
"Sort of." She mumbled.
And then there was silence.
Awkward. That's how it felt now. They weren't really talking, they weren't looking at each other and their hands slowly drifted apart. Awkward was a strange feeling between them.
"So…" she started a little high-pitched. "You mentioned hot dancers. I'm going out with the girls tonight. Wanna join, since Naya isn't coming?"
"Thank you for such a warm invitation," Telly joked. "I can't tonight. I'm having dinner with the folks and tomorrow we have an early call. But why don't you take your new roommate? Isn't he your official date to this kind of thing, now?"
Heather didn't really reply since Brad was already calling them to shoot the scene.
Taylor was her official everything now. She needed a little break from that, although that wasn't something she was willing to share for now.
She met her friends outside a little Italian Restaurant called "Ricordare". It hadn't been that long since they last hung out, but their hugs and the laughter bubbling in their throats seemed to indicate otherwise.
They were drinking their second bottle of red Lambrusco, and Heather could already feel the heat in her cheeks from the alcohol burning her stomach. She ate a salad because, frankly, her appetite was low since that morning.
"OH MY GOD!" Hannah exclaimed louder than she should have, calling attention to their table.
She tugged Heather's shirt impatiently before continuing.
"How's it been with Taylor? I totally forgot he had moved in. He could have joined us."
Heather smiled, shaking her head no.
"I already spend every hour with him. I don't want to be one of those girls who can never be without her boyfriend."
"Let's cheer to that!" Brittany exclaimed raising her glass.
She was never Taylor's biggest fan.
"You girls and your ungratefulness!" Hannah spat indignantly, making everyone laugh. "It's good to have someone you love waiting for you at home."
"And you don't actually spend every hour with him. You're at work for so long." Pete commented with a sad frown. "That must be hard for him during this transition."
"He's not a baby. He can take care of himself." Brittany quickly intervened.
"Are you happy with the new living arrangements?" Dylan asked with a smirk that reminded her of Santana Lopez.
"Yeah. I do miss Ashley, though."
"Aww…" Hanna pulled Heather by the arm for a side hug. "Don't worry. I'm sure she'll be around all the time, anyway. Isn't she living like next door?"
Heather laughed softly.
"Not next door, but near."
"You exchanged a wife for a husband. Fair deal." Dylan noted raising his glass.
"The best!" Pete added "Taylor is a fox. No offense to Ashley but she's got nothing on him."
"Ashley is hot." Heather firmly replied. "I lost a hot roommate."
"All your friends are hot, just look at us!" Brittany joked and everyone cheered.
"What about Naya?" Hannah remembered.
"What about her?"
Why was she panicking? She cleared her throat before tuning in to Hannah's words.
"Why didn't she come?"
"I told you she couldn't make it."
"But why?"
"You're so nosy, Hannah." Pete snorted, taking a bite of his calzone.
"Naya is my friend too! I'm allowed to know why she dumped us."
"She had a date." Heather stated numbly.
"What? With whom?" Hannah asked cheerfully, almost making Heather roll her eyes.
"Heather is not amused." Dylan mumbled, earning a glare from the blonde.
"I just don't think she has great taste in men."
"Look who's talking." Brittany joked with a mischievous grin.
"You know him, already? Who is he?" Hannah continued ignoring everything else.
"His name is Nate, I think."
"Wait, you don't know him?" Hannah was frowning with the most confused look on her face.
"I don't remember him. But apparently I do know him."
"He made quite the impression," Dylan joked. "So why don't you like him?"
Heather opened her mouth to answer but honestly, she didn't know why. She was very protective of Naya. The girl was amazing, but also incredibly gorgeous, and it seemed like sometimes that second side of her was all guys cared about. It maddened Heather. It maddened her that anyone would have the chance to be with Naya and not fall in love with everything about her. Were they blind? She had ranted about it once, in front of the brunette, who ended up blushing like Heather had never seen her blush before. It was cute. She felt a smile growing on her lips but she stopped it, quickly taking a sip of her wine.
"Yes…" Dylan pressed on, still waiting.
"Guys like Naya because she's hot."
"Well, they aren't wrong."
"I know, D; but she's a lot more than that and they're complete idiots if they can't see it."
She was smiling as she said it, it wasn't even one of her angry rants, but she still felt eyes on her. Those looks were way too heavy for her liking. She ignored them, resting her glass on the side before crossing her arms over the table and leaning forward.
"Moving on. Tell me about your new gig, Ms Parks!"
By the end of their dinner they were all slightly drunk and their bodies were begging for a dance off. Pete had to be up early in the morning for a photo shoot, so they said their goodbyes before deciding where to go next. It didn't take long for them to decide, since they knew where they would end up anyway: "Mashing", the best cocktail bar for people who didn't like to spend a lot of money and would rather dance than talk.
They decided to walk so it took them an extra half an hour to get there. The bar was packed. When they entered she could immediately smell the sweat of the bodies surrounding her mixed with the intense strawberry freshener that always filled the place. There were hints of smoke coming from the booths at the end of the bar, near the large arched windows.
She loved that place. It was lively and yet cozy. No one seemed to mind that it was a dim lit, and somehow romantic, bar. People danced in the open space at her right and cheered whenever a popular song started playing. It was a chaotic place, but still warm.
"What are you having?" Dylan asked her in his way to the bar.
"Piña Colada!" She replied excitedly. She hadn't had that in a while.
He made a disgusted face but nodded before leaving to get their order. Hannah was already pulling her by the elbow to the corner where everyone was dancing to King of Leon's "Sex on Fire". Heather chuckled loudly, starting a pretty intense made up choreography with her friends. She was having a blast. It felt good to be with her friends like this. She felt free and without a worry in the world.
Dylan joined them later, holding two glasses in one hand and one between his waist and arm, while holding a fourth drink in his left hand. They took the drinks from him quickly as he was already slipping alcohol from every corner. Heather took a huge swig, letting the sweet taste fill her mouth before her tongue darted out and cleaned the drops from her lips.
"You're on a roll today!" Brittany noted, pinching her wrist. "We're so gonna do shots after this!"
"Hell yeah!" Heather nearly shouted.
They finished their drinks quickly. If you went out with the dancers one thing was certain, you could never stand still for too long. They were calling attention to themselves with their expert, yet goofy, dance moves. Heather swirled around Hannah throwing herself to Dylan dramatically, making her friends laugh. She felt a little dizzy after that. And the strawberry aroma was starting to make her nauseous.
"I'm gonna call Taylor to say goodnight." She announced, needing to get some fresh air.
Her friends made smooching sounds as she walked away and gave them the finger.
Outside she breathed in deeply, lazily closing her eyes before walking along the road as she dialed the number. She waited for him to pick up, knowing the unenthusiastic sleepy response she was about to get. He wasn't a great chat partner through phone, but he always insisted that she call at least once when she when out without him. It was cute that he cared even if he didn't feel like talking on the phone. He picked up and they talked for a bit. She said she probably wouldn't be home for another three hours and then listened as he talked about the game he was just watching. He always loved to do that. Even if he had done nothing all day, he would always find something to tell her about at the end of the day. She used to love that, but now that they lived together it seemed unnecessary.
She wandered through the street of the bar, reaching the arched windows. She could see her friends moving to the bar stools and made a note to memorize where they were. As her eyes darted across the booths, her heart froze.
A guy with light brown hair and cold grey eyes was talking animatedly to a girl Heather would recognize even with her eyes closed. Naya was smiling that crunchy smile she loved so much. She had a cigarette between her fingers and her thumb was playing with the borders of her glass. Had she started smoking again?
Heather wasn't breathing. She walked back to the entrance in a flash, glad that Taylor had finished his story and was now ready to hang up.
She walked back to the bar and saw Dylan wave at her. She waved back and signaled him to wait a second. With a will of their own, her legs moved across the bar into the booth where Naya was sitting. Before she reached them, the brunette glanced her way, her eyes widening greatly, turning her smile into an awkward open mouthed, lopsided grin that was weirdly goofy and yet adorable.
"Well, hello." Heather greeted smiling warmly at the boy in front of her friend. "You must be Nate."
"Hi, Heather!" He stood up and kissed her cheek. "Don't you remember me, from Megan's party?"
"I do." She wasn't lying, although she had only now remembered that she had met him briefly.
He arrived late that day and she left early. But she didn't miss the drool dripping from his mouth as Megan introduced him to Naya. Of course she remembered.
"What are you doing here?" Naya's voice had a hint of panic that didn't match her soothe smile.
It made Heather cock an eyebrow at her as she crossed her arms over her chest a little defensively.
"Don't you remember the dinner we had today and that you skipped? We usually come here after."
Naya blushed profusely, laughing forcedly towards Nate that smirked in an annoying smug way.
"This is my first time here. Nate suggested it."
"Nice choice." Heather stated plainly, still watching the girl.
Naya was wearing a fitting grey dress and red stilettos. It was simple, but the way it shaped every inch of her body made it as tantalizing as if she was wearing black lingerie. It was obvious to Heather that her intention was to floor him and she was sure she had succeeded. But while it looked like Naya looked effortlessly good, Heather could tell he was trying too hard. He was wearing a pressed black shirt and jeans. They had that fake worn out look, but were obviously new. And his shoes were way too shiny and serious, contrasting weirdly with the rest of his clothes. Also, he probably had jumped in a pool of cologne earlier that day. They had had dinner already and his perfume was as intense as if he had just put it on.
"I'll go say hi in a second."
Naya interrupted her thoughts and only then Heather noticed that she was looking down at him.
"Okay. See you later."
She put on her smile again, and waved goodbye to them before joining her friends at the bar.
"Is that Naya?" Hannah asked excitedly "Is that her date?"
"No, it's the waiter." Heather rolled her eyes. "Of course that's her date."
"He's hot!" Hannah kept going unfazed by Heather's sarcasm.
"You think?"
"Definitely." Brittany responded before Hannah could.
"He's trying too hard." Dylan noted, stealing a glance at the couple while he took a sip of his new drink.
Heather grinned and nodded.
"I wish a guy tried too hard for me too," Hannah said with a sigh. "Beats the alternative."
Heather shrugged and ordered a new drink.
"Let's leave them alone. I don't want to ruin their sweet date."
Heather's voice was dipped in sarcasm again, making Dylan snort loudly at her.
She didn't know how long had passed when Naya joined them at the bar. Heather was drinking much faster now, so her vision was blurred and she couldn't tell what had happened two seconds ago from what had happened one hour before.
"Hey guys!" Naya greeted them happily.
The girls threw themselves at Naya in quick hugs before smothering her with questions. Dylan lay back in his stool, sipping his drink with a smirk. His eyes kept going from Naya to Heather, but she barely noticed since she was staring intently at the brunette.
God, she looked gorgeous. Now that Heather could actually see her legs, she noticed how the dress ended high above her knees. It reminded her of Santana's barely-there dresses, although this wasn't as tight as those usually were.
Her blurry vision scanned Naya's body until she rested her eyes on her friend's face. Naya was watching her too.
"And that's basically it."
Heather was happy she didn't actually catch the story. It made her feel guilty, but she really couldn't care less about her date with shiny shoes.
"What did you say?" Naya asked her around an ill-concealed grin. "Shiny shoes?" Naya looked back at her booth. Nate waved at Heather's friends with a smile.
"His shoes aren't that shiny." Naya concluded.
Heather gulped. She didn't notice she had spoken out loud.
"They kinda are." Dylan commented, his eyes on Heather.
"Should I introduce you?"
"No, Nay!" Brittany immediately answered the brunette's question, turning her around by the shoulders and slightly pushing her forward. "Go have fun with your hot date. But you owe us dinner to tell us all about it."
Heather scoffed looking at her now empty glass. She didn't think anyone noticed it, but when she looked up Dylan lifted an eyebrow at her before laughing whole heartedly.
"What are you laughing at?" Hannah asked.
"He's drunk." Heather quickly responded before looking back at Naya's booth.
Nate was still alone.
She probably went to the bathroom.
Before she could stop it she heard herself announce she needed to pee, and then her legs were moving fast towards the restroom.
She slid open the heavy door – probably heavier to her than someone who had drank less than five shots – and looked around. One of the stalls was occupied. She waited, looking at herself in the mirror. She looked good. Messy, but good. She had tried to put her hair up in a bun, but strands kept loosening as she danced. She was too lazy to fix it. Her make-up was also slightly smeared, but she was afraid that trying to do anything about it would do more harm than good.
She heard the stall open.
"Oh…"
Heather turned in an exaggerated twirl becoming face to face with Naya. The girl laughed, her eyes travelling across the dancer's body before settling on her face.
"You look drunk."
"I am drunk." Heather shrugged, leaning back to the counter.
Naya walked closer, standing by her left washing her hands. She bended sideways to grab a paper towel and caught Heather's drifting eyes running over her body.
"Do you like my dress?"
Her voice was sultry and playful, and it seemed to catch both of them by surprise.
"Very much."
Heather said honestly, looking up and down once more before facing her. "Do you like Nate?"
Naya blinked fast. Heather had caught her off guard. She shrugged and inched closer to Heather to throw the paper towel away. The blonde held her breath as Naya's hair brushed her face lightly, before stepping back. They were still close, but not as much.
"It's going well so far."
"Good." She was lying. She wished she wasn't, but she was.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
Naya's voice was warm. She cocked her head to the side narrowing her eyes as if inspecting her friend. Heather didn't want that so she stepped closer. As expected, Naya snapped her head back and discreetly took a step back. It made Heather smile.
She might be drunk but her every sense was now fixed on Naya. She could tell everything. The way the brunette's chest heaved faster and higher when she got closer. The way her hands fidgeted. The way her smile turned nervous. Heather liked it. She liked noticing this. Even if she had no explanation as to why they acted like that around each other. It wasn't like they weren't used to being close.
"I wish you had come with us."
Naya pressed her lips into a thin line, a smile gracing her eyes.
"I know. And next time I will. But we got to see each other after all. So you don't get to miss me."
Heather nodded and stepped closer again. When Naya tried to inch apart, her back hit the wall. She gasped. She looked nervous again. Her hands quickly flew to Heather's hips, keeping their bodies slightly separated.
"I should go. He's waiting."
"You're running away from me." Heather whispered with a sly grin, pressing her body weight against Naya's hands.
The brunette moved her arms to the blonde's shoulders to try and keep her steady. She didn't seem so agitated now, because she was smiling knowingly when she spoke.
"You really are drunk."
"That doesn't change a thing."
Heather stood, moving away from Naya but not before grabbing her waist and pulling her from the wall.
"What are you doing with a dress this short?"
Heather twirled Naya in her arms. The brunette chuckled and held onto Heather's shoulders again.
"You don't want Shiny Shoes to become Wet Pants, do you?"
Naya laughed loudly.
"That was the lamest joke I ever heard."
Heather was smiling, but still looking at Naya's legs.
"It isn't a joke."
Her fingers grazed the skin just under the hem of the dress. Naya gasped a little louder this time, and gripped Heather's shoulders. Heather's gaze moved slowly up her body, stopping at her chest before settling in her eyes. She had a lazy smile fixed on her lips.
"Did you just gasp?"
"No." Naya answered quickly, she wasn't even smiling.
That made Heather grin harder, letting her fingers press against the brunette's leg pulling the dress up a little.
"You sure?"
Naya widened her eyes, before letting out a mix of a snort and a whimper. She grabbed Heather's hands and interlaced their fingers.
"Someone's flirty tonight."
"You look hot." Heather stated honestly.
"I can tell you think so."
Their eyes were locked on each other now. Heather started smiling; she could feel her lips turn upwards. Naya reflected her actions, cracking up softly. The sound filled the empty bathroom and made Heather sigh. She missed this. The silent moments with her best friend, the way her heart would fill with unexplainable warmth. Naya was good for her. She made every day better. She wished she could tell her that without making things awkward. She wasn't sure why she feared they might.
"I really like you."
She heard herself say. Her cheeks tinged pink and she was happy for the dim lighting covering her blush.
"I like you too." Naya whispered back.
Her brown eyes were so open, so honest. Heather knew she was frowning now. She knew it because she could feel her face change. She wanted to say something, but she wasn't sure what.
"I really need to go."
No.
"No. Wait." Heather was gripping her wrists now. Her buzzed mind throbbed as she tried to hold onto her dizzying thoughts. "Don't go yet."
Naya smiled one of those sad smiles.
"Don't smile like that."
"Like what?" Naya asked, her voice cracking a little.
"Like you're going to do the opposite of what I asked."
The girl chuckled; holding Heather's wrists just like the blonde was holding hers.
"You love to ruin my dates, don't you?"
She was joking, Heather knew that, but her words sounded so heavy and drained. It made her breathing slow down to a scary, unfulfilling rhythm.
"Do I do that?"
Her eyes were big and questioning and Naya seemed lost in them.
"Sometimes."
"Why do I ruin them?"
"Because you won't let go." She answered, looking downwards at their hands. "And I can't leave when you're looking at me like that; but I should. And you should be a good friend and let me leave."
There it was again, that heaviness. Heather nodded gently, but didn't actually release her. She gripped tighter the thin wrists that seemed so fragile under her grasp.
"I'm sorry."
She whispered, not really sure if she was apologizing for this specific moment or something else. Pulling the girl into her arms for a hug, she nestled her face on the crook of her neck, now noticing that Naya must have been wearing gigantic heels, since they were about the same height right now. She felt arms wrapping around her torso tightly and it gave her a drowning cold feeling that swelled her chest, making it ache like she was freezing inside. She let go, trying to get rid of that feeling. But her movements were slower after all the drinking, so as Naya's hair brushed her cheek, she whispered against her face.
"I never like the guys you date."
Naya's eyes met her own, their faces barely apart.
"I know."
There was a warm smile in her lips. And with that she stepped backwards and shrugged lightly.
"I'll see you later."
Heather felt like her face was frozen. She didn't respond or nodded, she just watched as Naya left the bathroom and the door closed behind her, trapping Heather in the small space. She looked around, she could tell her eyes were watering and before she knew it the tears were cascading down her face. She didn't make a sound. She walked to the counter and wiped the tears even as they kept falling. And then she just stopped. She looked at herself in the mirror and saw the most miserable looking girl facing back at her.
What's happening?
She waited until the ache felt lighter, until her legs grew stronger and her hands stopped shaking. She wiped away the traces of tears with her fingers, and with a long breath she left the bathroom and walked back to the bar. She didn't look to the booth, not once.
Her friends were already beyond drunk and hadn't even notice the amount of time she had been gone. She faked a few laughs and convinced her body to dance a little more, impatiently waiting for someone to suggest they go home. When Dylan did, relief flooded her. She nodded her approval, immediately grabbing her coat and purse to leave.
"Should we say bye to Naya?" Brittany said wobbling backwards.
"I don't think now is a good time." Hannah said around a huge smirk.
Heather knew she shouldn't, but she still looked back. Her eyes caught a glimpse of brown hair held by a pair of rough hands as their clasped mouths moved against each other. She looked away as if it burned.
"Let's just go." She mumbled and walked out of the bar with her friends slowly following.