Fine, you impatient little shipper people. I hope this is up to your standards. My second update today, of course. I love you guys for following, favoriting, and reviewing.
Summary: McKinley High goes on lockdown with Marley and Kitty stuck in the choir room together. Karley.
Characters: Marley R. and Kitty
Rating: T
THE DAY AFTER, 3:20 A.M.
Cold.
That was the first thing Marley registered when she regained consciousness, the severe, biting cold that seemed to hang around her skin like an aura. She shivered once, keeping her eyes closed.
The second thing she noticed was the lack of it on her left side, and she instinctively leaned into the warmth radiating from what she, a split second later, a human body. Her eyes snapped wide open as the events of yesterday flooded back into her mind, and in a second she was sitting upright, her stomach churning as she remembered exactly what had happened.
Shots.
Kitty.
Jake.
Kitty.
Shots.
Her mom.
Kitty.
There was some faint movement in the body lying next to her, and Marley looked to the side at the still-sleeping figure. Something about sleep made her look younger, more innocent, even, Marley mused, and right as she caught herself staring, the blonde stirred again. Marley quickly averted her eyes and looked away, clearing his throat awkwardly as Kitty sat up.
"What time is it?" She asked, then seemed to remember where they were. A faint shadow of doubt crept into her eyes. Marley shrugged and looked outside, where it was still dark. The school was mostly silent, the generator quiet and the lights still completely off. Marley sighed and leaned against the wall, hoping desperately for some sort of salvation.
"We should leave," Kitty said suddenly, and Marley spun around harshly, more harshly than she meant to, confusion and fear combining in her eyes.
"What?" Marley asked, shaking her head vigorously. They couldn't leave. The choir room was their safe haven, the only place where they were safe. The glass had held. The door had held. It was truly the only place.
Besides, where would they go? No doubt the shooters had somehow managed to lock the main entrances of the school, and Marley highly doubted it'd be any safer. The hall was open territory now, no-man's land, and she would be damned before she or Kitty could be caught out there.
"We need to get out," Kitty said with a certain finality that made Marley shiver. "You know we can't stay here forever."
"Wait for help," Marley pleaded in a soft whisper, casting a nervous glance at the door. "We don't know what's out there…"
"There's nothing," Kitty spat out, arguing with a pointed look in her eyes. "Let's go."
She got up and moved towards the door, her legs wobbling but steadfast. Marley was struck with a feeling of intense déjà vu, and she shook her head. "Kitty," Marley said in a warning tone and got up, needles shooting up her legs at the sudden movement. She swayed lightly but regained her balance, putting a hand against the wall to steady herself.
After regaining some sort of feeling in her legs, she quickly caught up with the shorter blonde and grabbed her shoulder, déjà vu shooting through her again. "Let go of me," Kitty said, but she sounded almost bored.
"We can't go out there," Marley said. She shook her head. They had done this before, when Jake had been out there… and what had happened? He had died. He had died, and the cold, hard realization of this fact made tears spring to Marley's eyes and her heart twist and turn.
"Marley." Kitty said matter-of-factly, her voice wavering slightly as she tried to keep up the façade. "We can't stay here forever. You know that." Marley pursed her lips and shook her head firmly.
"It's too dangerous," she repeated, and a knot of nervousness twisted into place in her abdomen. Chicken, a small voice in her head whispered, and Marley's eyes watered. You're just too scared of what you might find. Marley swallowed, her nostrils flaring slightly as she tried not to cry. What would they find out there?
"Marley!" Kitty's cry interrupted her thoughts, and Marley looked up at her. "We need to go!"
"Why?" Marley shot back, her voice cracked and almost at the breaking point. "What's the point?"
"The point is getting out of here," Kitty hissed, and motioned vaguely with her hands towards the outside. "We're not going to stay stuck in here forever, eventually that lock is going to break and then we'll be screwed!" She finished in a forced whisper.
"They're not going to keep trying to get through," Marley protested and wiped a tear from her eye with her hand, sniffing slightly.
Kitty seemed to pause for a split second, her mouth opening slightly and then closing it again. The air was sharp and crisp and cool, the moonlight flooding in through the window. It couldn't be past four in the morning, Marley mused. The school was silent. There was no indication that anyone was even there anymore. She sighed and shook her head. If there wasn't anyone in the school anymore, the police would've come and helped them out. They had to have. Marley refused to believe that she could be forgotten.
"We have to get out of here." Kitty said with a certain finality, staring at Marley with an almost pitying expression in her eyes.
"No." Marley said and crossed her arms, uncrossing them again after mere seconds because she felt like an idiot. "Why don't you just leave without me, then?" She asked, flinging her arms away from her body.
"I'm not going to leave you," Kitty said and rolled her eyes, taking an uncertain step towards Marley.
"Well, I'm not going," Marley said with a strange glare, panic reflecting in her features. "I'm not going anywhere."
"Ugh—" Kitty said and averted her eyes, a few perfect blonde curls spiraling out of her already loose ponytail and framing her face. Marley's heart thudded slightly. "You're so stubborn," Kitty hissed, and she brought her eyes back to Marley's. Marley squared her shoulders slightly but refused to look away.
"I'm stubborn?" Marley asked and pointed at herself, shaking her head. "No. You're stubborn, I'm sensible."
"Oh, like there's a difference?" Kitty mocked and stepped closer. Marley's hand flew up to her shoulder and pushed her away lightly. Kitty's hand grabbed her wrist and gripped it tight. Marley stared at her with a questioning expression, something burning in her lower stomach. Marley tensed slightly, and Kitty's hand came back, pulling Marley with it. Their noses were almost touching, and they stared at each other with wide-eyed expressions.
The next moment, they were kissing.
A strong tingling sensation passed through Marley's body, and her heart began to race, to fly—she couldn't even breathe anymore. She closed her eyes.
Time seemed to freeze in Marley's head, and nothing existed anymore. The moonlight was non-existent, the choir room was imaginary. There was nothing left in the world anymore, and time seemed to both freeze and quicken. Marley could almost hear the infinite ticking of a clock somewhere buried deep in her mind, and her eyes were open in shell-shocked surprise.
Eventually, they pulled away, Kitty staring at Marley with something so lost and scared and vulnerable that she felt her heart snap in two. "Fine," she whispered, and mentally cursed herself for giving in.
"What?" Kitty asked softly, her cheeks beginning to burn.
"We can go," Marley said and chewed on her bottom lip, closing her eyes tightly and then opening them again, shaking her head.
"Are you sure?" Kitty asked, looking at Marley for confirmation, who paused for a split second and then nodded solemnly. She couldn't shake the feeling that they were heading straight into their doom.
Kitty nodded too, closing her eyes and walking towards where they had stashed the key, weighing it in her hand and walking quietly to the door. Marley looked away from what the blonde was doing, the weight of what had just happened burning in her chest.
They had kissed. What? Marley didn't even have to think about it, the idea was insane. They had kissed. She shook her head and tried to calm her heartbeat. There was no way that had been genuine, no matter how genuine it may have felt… Marley had only felt slightly crushed when Kitty didn't try to be her friend after the whole Sectionals incident. She had never noticed the way her hair fell perfectly down her shoulders, and her stomach had most certainly not flipped the first time she had heard her sing.
Kitty finished unlocking the door and opened it quietly, staring at Marley with a grim and expectant expression. Marley nodded again and stepped towards the door, her stomach fluttering madly. She smiled weakly at Kitty, who smiled back like she understood.
She stepped through the door.