I started to plan this before I saw the EPIC EPIC EPIC EPIC EPIC promo where its sort of confirmed that that hot yellow car is in fact Will's and not Carl's like I originally thought. Although I LOOOOVE the fact that it is Will's car and Emma is in the car with Will, for the sake of this chapter I'm going to have the car be Carl's. Maybe I'll do a version of the car being Will's too.
Will stepped outside into the crisp October air and sucked in a breath. The fresh air was refreshing, after being in that stuffy school it felt so wonderful to be in the cool air.
He also couldn't wait to get home and relax on the couch with a cold beer and maybe turn on a sports game. He had a long day and needed something to get his mind off of the center of his attention recently: Emma. More specifically, Emma and her stupid dentist boyfriend.
Earlier in the week, there had been email notice that there was a dentist convention at McKinley High School. Will usually would have ignored something like that but when he had seen the word dentist, his mind automatically drifted to Emma's new boyfriend. He had no idea if he would be making an appearance but Will's heart still clenched painfully even at the thought.
He was not pleased when he passed Figgins office and the principal called him in to introduce him to the dentist who would be running the convention. The name 'Carl Howell' left Figgins lips and although he continued to speak, it was all a jumble in Will's mind.
Will felt his heart sink at the sight of Carl Howell, much to his dismay, the man was extremely handsome. Will held onto the small shred of hope that maybe the man was dorky but that all came crashing down at the sight of the tall, dark and handsome man standing in Figgins office. He had a full head of dark, shiny hair and a charming smile filled with shiny, white teeth.
"It's nice to meet you." Carl's timbre broke Will out of his thoughts and his eyes fell on Carl's outstretched hand. Will narrowed his eyes slightly but then he shook Carl's hand, gripping onto the other man's hand tightly. He had been set down a notch by the attractiveness of Carl Howell but he still refused to give up.
Will put on a fake smile to fool Carl and the dentist seemed to fall for it. Carl smiled at him and released his hand. Once the dentists back was turned, Will dropped his smile and glared at his back. Before Figgins could notice the look, Will dismissed himself and walked out of the office.
He refused to walk past Emma's office for the rest of the day, the last thing he wanted to see was Emma and her new boyfriend spending quality time together. It was bad enough that Carl was friendly and attractive, he didn't want to see Emma giving him the look that Will had seen in her eyes when she only looked at him. He wanted Emma to be happy, after all he had done to her break her heart he wanted nothing more than for her to be happy...but it killed him that she wasn't happy with him.
After a long day of thinking about Emma and Carl, he couldn't wait to get home and distract himself.
However, when he stepped outside and glanced around the parking lot, the hopes of relaxing for the day were quickly shot to hell.
Parked near the entrance was a bright yellow convertible and seated in the passengers seat was Emma.
His heart sunk further at the realization that the car was Carl's. With a car like that, Carl no doubt had to be loaded and he could give Emma everything that Will couldn't. Will was kicked down another peg and the chances that he might actually win Emma back were getting slim.
With a pounding heart, Will stepped into the parking lot and bravely approached the shiny yellow car. He walked around to stand outside the drivers seat door and paused. He slowly turned to face Emma and she looked at him hesitantly.
"Hi Emma." He greeted warmly, leaning slightly against the car.
Emma's lips twitched upward as she averted her eyes for a second. "Hi Will." She replied quietly.
He placed his hands on the shiny yellow vehicle and Emma's eyes snapped to his hands then she looked up at him and smiled shyly.
"Nice wheels." He commented with a small laugh and she ducked her head to hide a smile.
"It's um, it's C-Carl's." Emma confirmed for him and his smile faded slightly, although he had already known that. "He likes cars." Emma went on to explain, daring a look up at Will. "This one is his newest one."
Will nodded quietly, not sure of what to say. He didn't exactly feel comfortable talking about Carl with Emma.
Emma glanced at Will, waiting for him to say something in response but after a few moments of silence, she turned to look down at the carpet of the car. Will ran his fingers against the yellow paint of the car and pursed his lips thoughtfully.
Emma glanced at him out of the corner of her eye and after a few seconds of more silence and Will had not moved, she turned to him curiously, "Is there something you wanted Will?"
"What?" Will lifted his head and Emma raised an eyebrow in question. Will cleared his throat and shook his head. "Oh no, no I just saw...the car and wanted to come check it out."
Emma's face faltered slightly and hope flickered in his heart at the brief look of hurt in her eyes. Her eyes drifted downwards and her hands wrung together in her lap. Will didn't even try to hide the hopeful smile on his face, perhaps Emma wasn't completely over him.
"So..." Will began after a few more moments of awkward silence. "Where is Dr. Clean?" He smirked at the bemused look on her face. "I can't believe he would just leave this car in the middle of the parking lot."
Emma turned to look at him. "He's inside, he should be out in a minute. He told me to come out here to wait for him."
Will nodded and then furrowed his brow. "Is there something wrong with your car? I thought I saw it in the lot when I came in this morning."
A faint blush rose to her cheeks and she shook her head softly. "No, um no, we're going on a date."
Will's smile completely faded and he tore his gaze away from her. He acted like that was surprising, like it was some big news that Emma was going on a date but that was what couples did and as much as he hated to admit it, Carl and Emma were a couple.
He quietly shuddered at the names, it hurt to say their names together even in his thoughts. He never wanted to hear any name but his own beside Emma's. Will and Emma, that had a better ring to it, a much better ring, a ring that made his heart flutter.
"He usually would just pick me up at home." Emma went on quietly and Will slowly looked up at her. "But, since he was here already, we're just going straight out and then he'll drop me here to get my car afterwards. Truthfully, I think he just wants to show off his car." Emma attempted humor but Will's smirk in response was barely believable.
"I don't blame him." Will said and gave a weak chuckle. "If I had this car I'd want to show it off." His eyes fell on her and he hoped he caught what he really meant. Sure, the car was nice but the real valuable was the woman sitting in the passenger seat and if she was his, he'd show her off to everyone.
Emma smiled weakly and Will suppressed a sigh. His silent message had gone completely over her head. He glanced at the front entrance quickly to see if Carl was coming. Thankfully, he wasn't and he had more time to spend with Emma alone.
"Well I hope you have a good time on your date." Will could barely manage to say the sentence with a straight voice but he managed to push it out with a brave smile. Emma stared at him in surprise but then she smiled warmly.
"Thank you Will." She whispered earnestly as their eyes locked. Will smiled weakly and gave a small nod.
Will couldn't help but notice the twinkle in Emma's eyes and he had to wonder if that twinkle was because of him or because she was excited about her date. With all he might he hoped it was the former.
Emma's eyes flickered to the right and her face fell in an instant. Her eyes widened and she dropped her gaze to the ground, her body tensing. Will furrowed his brow and looked over his shoulder to see what had Emma in such immediate discomfort.
He rolled his eyes and sighed heavily at the sight of his ex-wife approaching them. Terri was frowning heavily and strutting towards them in an outfit that she had only dreamed about wearing while they were married. She looked like she had just arrived from Hollywood and just a year ago he would have been attracted to the sight but currently all he felt was disgust.
She stopped in front of him, removed her sunglasses and smiled sweetly. "Hi Will." She greeted flirtatiously and he resisted another eye roll.
Terri then turned to Emma with a hard glare. "Hey home wrecker!" She purposefully shouted towards the redhead, catching the attention of the passing students and faculty.
Emma shot the blonde an annoyed and exasperated look and Will frowned.
"Terri!" Will scolded his ex-wife and she turned to him with a smug look.
"What?" She shrugged and smirked at Emma. "She is."
Emma shook her head slowly and turned her gaze away to stare out at the opposite end of the parking lot.
Terri huphed in triumph and turned back to Will who's face had hardened into a glare. "She destroyed our marriage, Will. She stole you away from me."
Will gave her an incredulous look. "I'm not yours Terri and do I need to remind you that we're divorced?"
Terri lifted her chin and cast another glare at Emma. "And whose fault is that?"
"Yours." Will snapped and both Terri and Emma whirled towards him, the same look of shock written on their faces.
"You, with the help of your insane sister, ruined our marriage. Do not go blaming this on Emma because it is no way her fault, its yours." His brow furrowed and he shook his head slowly. "You broke me Terri and Emma was the one who picked up the pieces."
Emma's face softened while Terri's only continued to harden. With a quick glance at Emma, Will continued to speak confidently.
"So excuse me for falling in love with the woman who saved my life."
Terri's eyes widened at the admission and a gasp passed Emma's lips. Her hand came to cover her mouth as both Terri and Will's eyes snapped to her. The look Will gave her was smoldering and confirmed that his words were one hundred percent true.
She had heard the 'l' word leave Will's lips before, that moment at the end of the school year would be forever burned into her brain, but hearing it again, coming out of his mouth directed at his ex-wife, it was more than she could handle.
"I don't know what you're doing here Terri and quite honestly, I really don't care." Will continued harshly and Terri's turned back to him, a pitiful look in her eyes.
Will had given in to that look one too many times, he would not be giving in again. He had learned enough to know that Terri was manipulative and most of her mood swings, most of her pathetic and helpless looks were nothing but ploys to catch his attention. In the past they had worked, they would not work anymore and Will would do anything to prove that.
"Leave Terri." He seethed quietly. "Now."
Terri's jaw dropped slightly and she glanced quickly back at Emma. The redhead still sat with her hand over her mouth and her glistening eyes never left Will.
Terri clenched her jaw and narrowed her eyes slightly. She turned back to Will who kept his fierce glare on her and she huphed, this time in defeat.
"Fine, William." Her voice was cold. "But when she breaks your heart it'll be me who'll be picking up the pieces."
With one more glare at a clearly distressed Emma, she turned and strutted away.
Emma closed her eyes to avoid Will's gaze that was sure to fall upon her at any moment. Terri's words stung because they were the truth and she hadn't even known it. She had already broken Will's heart.
As soon as Terri disappeared, with a small sigh Will turned towards Emma and was about to say something when he saw the figure of Carl in the front entrance. He bit his lip, glanced at Emma once more and then started to walk away dejectedly.
Emma waited and waited for Will to say something. The silence was killer and she craved his voice. She wanted him to confirm himself again, she wanted him to tell her he loved her.
"Emma?" A male voice reached her ear but her frown only increased when she realized that it was not Will's. She opened her eyes and lifted her head to meet the dark brown eyes of her boyfriend.
She swallowed and he gave her an unsure smile. "Are you alright?" He asked in concern.
Emma opened her mouth and blinking, shifted her body so she could pan the parking lot. In the distance she could see Will disappearing into his old blue clunker and her heart sank. She licked her lips and turned back to Carl with a nod. "Yeah.." She whispered. "Yeah, I'm fine."
Carl looked skeptical and Emma shot him a small reassuring smile. Carl raised an eyebrow but shrugged it off and a warm smile spread across his lips. "So are you ready for our date?"
Emma's eyes widened and her heart leapt into her throat at the reminded of their date. She let out a breath and glanced down at her lap in shame. "Um, actually Carl, I was thinking maybe we could rain check?" She glanced up at him through her lashes and his smile fell.
"I'm sorry." She whispered. "I'm just...I'm tired and I want to go home."
Carl's face adopted a look of understanding and concern. "Do you want me to drive you home? I can pick you up tomorrow morning so you can leave your car here."
Emma's eyes widened at the offer and she shook her head immediately. "No. No, no thank you, really I'm fine, I can drive home. Besides, as...showy as this car is convertibles aren't really my thing. There's the wind blowing in my face and the bugs in the air." She shuddered.
Carl nodded in understanding and he opened the door for her. "Well its alright Emma, we can reschedule. I'll call you tomorrow okay?"
Emma nodded and smiled thankfully, pushing herself out of the car. Carl leaned over to kiss the side of her face and Emma tensed at his touch. That was incredibly weird because apart from Will, Carl was the only man she felt comfortable touching.
A hint of a smile tugged at her lips and then without another word, she started to walk slowly towards her car.
She placed her hand against the roof of her car and closed her eyes tightly, letting out a breath. As she stood there quietly, she heard the roar of Carl's engine.
Emma pulled the door open to her car and slid into the seat and waited until Carl and his shiny yellow car disappeared out of the lot. Then she burst into sobs and tears for the same person and the same reason she had just a year ago.
She was in love with Will Schuester...and couldn't have him.
Only this time the only thing that kept them apart was her.