Disclaimer: I do not own Glee or any songs performed in this story. This is purely a work of fiction.
A/N: I honestly have no idea why this took so long. I'm so so so so so so so sorry!
Dinner was salad, homemade veggie burgers, and a double chocolate no-bake vegan torte.
"Oh my God, Des! This torte is amazing!" Rachel gushed.
"Thank you. I found the recipe online and thought I'd give it a try."
Des had to admit, the torte was pretty awesome.
"Who's excited for Call Backs!?" Rachel squealed.
"It's not like you've never been before, Berry," Santana replied, rolling her eyes.
"I know but we rarely get to hang out anymore and I miss you. This is going to be so fun!"
Rachel led the way into the crowded karaoke club.
"There's a table," Des told them, pointing to a small table off the side.
They made their way over as a guy walked up on stage and sat down at the piano.
"Hi, I'm Jesse St. James and I'll be performing 'Hello' by Lionel Richie."
Rachel spun around with the most shocked look Des had ever seen on her face.
"What?" she whispered as they took their seats.
"No freakin' way," Santana hissed.
"What's going on?" Des asked.
"It's Rachel's ex-boyfriend," Kurt told her.
"I thought Finn..."
"Yes, him too. But Jesse..."
"Oh my God. What is he even doing here?"
Rachel covered her face.
"It can't be that bad, can it?"
"It's just weird. He knew I was going to NYADA."
Kurt was giving her this weird look.
"I have to talk to him. I mean, he's obviously here to see me."
"Rachel, get over yourself. Maybe he's got a real reason for coming here."
Rachel looked both hurt and determined.
"Let it go, Rachel!"
"Wait, so do you still like him?" Des asked, confused.
"No, of course not..."
"Really?"
"Yes, really. I just...I saw him at Nationals last year and I found out he spoke to Carmen Tibideaux about me. He was at Nationals the year before that, too, because he was trying to get me back."
"Oh."
For someone who claimed to have been a social pariah in high school, Des thought Rachel had way more of a social life than she let on.
"What do I do?" Rachel asked.
"Ignore him. He's selfish, conceited, pompous douche bag. Forget him," Santana told her.
"He's not all that bad," Rachel insisted.
"I'm telling you, if you start talking to him again you're just going to end up getting back together with him and then feeling bad about it. He's not the one for you. Let him go."
Kurt nodded fervently.
"I agree with Santana. He's bad news."
"He threw eggs at your head, Rachel."
"He said he was sorry for that."
Santana rolled her eyes and sighed angrily.
"You're right," Rachel sighed.
She frowned.
"He's singing the song we sang together the day we met."
"God, Berry!"
Rachel grinned.
"Okay, okay. Sorry."
After he finished his song he took a bow and made his way off stage. Santana pulled Rachel's focus to her so she wouldn't stare. He was half way to their table when he suddenly stopped, took out his phone, looked at a message, and promptly turned around and left the building.
"He's gone," Des told them.
"Gone? What do you mean gone?"
Rachel looked around but he wasn't there.
"Where did he go?"
Des shrugged.
"Checked his phone and walked out. He was coming this way before that though."
Rachel frowned.
"Don't worry about it. I'm glad he left. I, for one, do not need him crashing our girl party."
Rachel smiled a bit at that.
"That's almost sweet, Santana."
"Whatever, dwarf."
Des grinned, knowing how hard it was for Santana to be openly kind or loving.
"Um, speaking of girl parties..."
Des bit her lip.
"When my mom was here she told me that my sister had some big news and she told the rest of the family, but she texted me earlier today and said she needed to meet with me."
"That sounds so...formal."
"Well, that's Cordelia."
"Wow, Desdemona and Cordelia. Your parents must not like you guys very much," Santana said, lightening the mood.
Des laughed.
"Pretty sure I got it worse, but our brother's name is Orlando."
"Oh my God...like, what even?"
"Shakespeare."
Des had made plans to meet with her sister at about four the next day. She waited alone at a little table at the coffee shop she and Santana frequented with a caramel iced coffee between her hands. Cordelia walked in, spotted her, waved, and ordered a coffee. After her order was handed to her, she made her way over to where Des sat.
"Hi," Des said as Cordelia sat down.
"Hello. How have you been?"
"Fine. How are things with you?"
"Fantastic."
The grin on Cordelia's face said it all. This meeting was pointless.
"So...when did he propose? How? Give me all the details."
Cordelia actually squealed before going into all the specifics.
"Oh my gosh, it was soooo romantic! He took me out on his father's yacht. It was only us and his brother..."
"His brother? Why..."
"So that when James proposed, Thomas could drive the boat."
"Oh."
"So anyway, James is driving the boat out and Thomas is giving us our space, playing video games below deck. So he's telling me all of this boat stuff and I'm just so impressed by how knowledgeable he is when it starts getting late. So he gets on the intercom and asks Thomas to come up and drive for a while."
Des leaned in, getting caught up in the story.
"Thomas takes over and James and I go up to this, like, extra deck thing...kind of like a balcony, I guess. Anyway, he's set up a picnic complete with flameless candles and rose petals. At this point I think I know what's going on, but I try not to get too excited. So we sit down and he pours us some wine...good wine. An old vintage his father gave him for graduation. We talk and laugh and have an amazing time."
Des smiled, waiting for the proposal.
"Then he pulls out our dessert. He's got these two huge cupcakes. One had a tiny top hat situated on top of the frosting and the other had an engagement ring!"
"Awww, he put it on a cupcake? That's cute!"
"Right!? So cute! Then he hands me the one with the ring on it and he takes my other hand. By now I'm barely breathing and I'm trying to keep a handle on my emotions but, ohmygod he's proposing! So he looks me in the eye as the sun is setting and he says...'Cordelia, you are the most breathtaking woman I have ever known. You're my best friend, my soul mate, and...if you'll have me...I'd like to add wife to that list.' So I lose it. I'm sobbing and trying to get out a coherent 'yes' but I can't so I just nod."
Des nodded excitedly.
"That's so romantic!"
"I know! I'm so lucky! James is...he's the best thing that ever happened to me. Besides getting into Yale."
Des smiled. She was genuinely happy for her sister.
"And I came here, not only to tell you I'm getting married, but to ask...will you be my maid of honor?"
This surprised Des for some reason.
"Me? You want me to..."
"Be my maid of honor, yes."
"But...why?"
"You're my sister. Tradtionally, the sister..."
"I mean, I'm flattered but..."
"Don't do this to me, please."
"I mean it's a big deal. You're sure?"
Cordelia nodded.
"Of course! I know we don't always see eye to eye but you're my sister and I love you."
Des wiped a tear from her eye and nodded.
"Really?"
Des beamed.
"When's the weddin'?"
Cordelia seized Des in a bear hug and Des hugged back.
"We're opting for a shorter engagement."
"Are you pregnant?"
"Of course not! The wedding is October 26 at 5:00 in the evening. I've got to run, I have to meet with the wedding planner in Manhattan..."
"Y'all are gettin' married here?"
"Yes. I'll call you later with more details, okay?"
"Sure. I'll talk to you later."
"Okay. Love you, bye."
"Love you, too."
They hugged quickly before Des watched her sister leave. She was still in shock when she got back to her apartment.
"So, what happened?" Santana pried.
"My sister is getting married."
"You seem...weird about it?"
"No, I'm glad for her. And James is a sweet guy once you get past his ego."
"Well, something's off."
"She asked me to be her maid of honor..."
"And you weren't expecting that? I thought she was your only sister."
"I wasn't and she is. I guess I should have expected it, but given that we're not as close as we should be I just thought she'd ask her best friend..."
"When's the wedding?"
"October 26."
"This year?"
Des nodded.
"Is she pregnant?"
Des smiled.
"That's what I asked."
"Great minds think alike. So is she?"
"No, she isn't. Anyway, she said she'd call me later with more details. She's gone to meet with her wedding planner in Manhattan."
"So they're getting married here?"
Des nodded.
They talked for a while. Des decided to make cookies while she waited for her sister to call.
"October, huh? That's only four months away..."
"I know. I mean, how do you even plan an entire wedding in four months. And I know my sister. It's gonna be extravagant."
"Do you get a plus one?"
"I assume so..."
Des looked up and eyed Santana.
"Why? You wanna go?"
"Are you asking me for real?"
Des rolled her eyes playfully and sighed.
"Santana Lopez, would you give me the honor of being my plus one to my sister's wedding?"
Santana feigned surprise.
"Why, Des! This is all so sudden! I don't know what to say...YES! Yes, I'll go with you!"
Des tossed a chocolate chip at Santana's head. It hit, bounced off, and landed on the counter making them both laugh. Minus the dramatics, she was glad Santana wanted to go to the wedding. She was going to have to meet the rest of Des' family eventually anyway.
Thank you for reading! Sorry it took so long to get out. I'll try to get the next chapter out by next Friday!