"i'll hold you close and pretend you're mine" — wonder what she thinks of me, chloe x halle
September 2021. New York City.
The sunlight creeps through his bedroom window and shines down on Mike's face causing him to stir awake early in the morning. He tosses over on his side, hoping to get a few more seconds of sleep before having to start his day, when his arm lands on top of a warm body, their chest rising and falling slowly, still deep in slumber. His eyes flutter open and confirm that there is another person sharing his bed. And he smiles to himself knowing that it is Tina Cohen-Chang.
Mike can't help but tighten his hold around her waist, drawing her body impossibly closer to his and breathing her in. Tina releases a low moan in her sleep, burrowing herself further into his warmth and it spurs him into action.
He props himself up by his elbow and brushes her hair back, giving himself access to press soft kisses on her neck while his hand travels from around her waist and underneath his t-shirt that he lent her to sleep in, trailing along her smooth skin. His hand finds its way to cup her left breast, his thumb brushing across her nipple and he feels her shiver from his touch.
"Good morning," she mumbles as she slowly stirs awake, giggling from his ministrations, before turning her head slightly backwards to meet his lips.
"Morning," he murmurs against her lips, kissing her contentedly. Tina shuffles in bed to fully face him, her fingers reaching up to tangle in his hair. He uses the shift in position as an opportunity to roll her over on her back and climb on top of her, deepening their kiss. Her teeth graze his bottom lip in that way she knows makes him see stars.
"Well, this sure is a nice way to wake up," Tina muses when Mike releases her lips to nip at her pulse point. She wraps her legs around his waist, encouraging him to press his hips into hers, creating delicious friction that has her eyes rolling to the back of her head.
It has been two weeks since they revisited Asian camp and shared a kiss under the moonlight. When they finally pulled apart, they agreed to leave the camp and meet back at a motel outside of Lima. They spent the entire night reconnecting with one another. But Tina had a flight back to LA in the morning and their time together was cut short, the two of them returning to their respective homes.
And it wasn't until Tina flew back to New York City that their illicit affair truly began. Being the up-and-coming movie star that she is, Tina has her schedule filled with multiple high-profile projects. Her most recent film stars Michelle Yeoh and began filming in NY a couple of days ago.
It usually starts off innocently. They'd get a cup of coffee. Or he'd run into her during his morning jog. Or she'd invite him out for dinner. Just two friendly exes catching up with each other — nothing too incriminating to the public eye. Except that it always ends with Tina sneaking over to Mike's apartment and spending the night until the morning comes and they have to separate and the cycle repeats.
Despite their confessions to each other at camp, they haven't talked about exactly what this is yet. They should – they know they should. But they haven't.
They're not in high school anymore. They are too old to be playing games. Too grown to be sneaking around with each other beneath everyone's noses, especially while Tina's fiancé is distracted filming his own movie in London.
And the last thing she wants to do is hurt Artie. She doesn't know how she could ever look him in the eye and tell him that she cheated on him again. At the same place. With the same guy. Just the thought of it makes her feel awful.
Her relationship with Artie is a lot different compared to when they were freshmen in high school. He's actually a good boyfriend this time around. He respects her. He puts her first. He pays attention to her. And she doesn't want to ruin a good thing.
But Mike still has this hold on her that she can't escape no matter how hard she tries. And she has tried. They have tried to start over too many times and it always ends in heartbreak. If they give this another shot and it still doesn't work out… she doesn't know if she could survive it.
And Mike knows this, completely understanding her apprehension. Tina put her heart on the line and proposed to him just for him to turn her down. And however justified he believes he was in doing so, he knows that it hurt and embarrassed her.
Honestly, it's a miracle that she's even here with him now. He knows he doesn't deserve it which is why he doesn't want to do anything to scare her away and jeopardize what little relationship they have. If all she is willing to give him are these clandestine moments, then he will accept it.
But while his vision is blurred with lust, he can pretend that it is still his name that is permanently etched on her skin and if that wasn't enough, the marks he leaves all over her body convince him that she is his.
Tina trails her hands appreciatively along his bare abs before placing them on his chest, gently pushing him away to look at her. "As much as I would love to spend the entire day doing this in bed with you, I have a long day at set today."
Tina ignores the slight pang she feels in her chest at the sight of Mike pouting in disappointment, his eyes still half-lidded with lust. He buries his face in her neck once more and groans earning a giggle to escape her lips from the way his breath tickles her. "And I have some classes to teach at the dance studio today," he says disappointedly before trailing sweet kisses from her collarbone to her ear, biting it lightly and whispering, "We could save some time getting ready if we hopped in the shower together."
"I like the way you think." Tina pushes him off of her body and climbs out of his bed before standing in front of him and locking her eyes with his. With a devious smirk plastered on her face, she slowly removes his t-shirt and reveals her naked body, tossing it on his head. He hastily throws the shirt from his view and reaches out to grab her by the waist but her hand meets his halfway, lacing them together, to pull him out of bed. "Come on."
Mike lets Tina drag him a few steps towards his bathroom before lifting her over his shoulder causing a squeal to escape her lips in surprise. He turns on his shower, allowing the water to warm up, before stepping inside and gently placing her down. She grasps the back of his neck and captures his lips in another steamy kiss, pressing her body against his, and Mike imagines that this is what heaven must feel like.
After their shower, Mike slips on his underwear and a pair of sweatpants before heading to his kitchen and starting to prepare breakfast. Meanwhile, Tina gets ready for the day in his bedroom, styling together her outfit from the night before with some pieces from Mike's closet that she thinks she could get away with calling hers.
Mike is fixing up a cup of coffee for her when she steps out of his bedroom, looking absolutely beautiful and completely put together. He holds out the cup for her and she accepts it with a soft peck on his lips. His hands find their way on her hips once again and he can't help but deepen their kiss. She quickly places her coffee on his kitchen island before he spins her around and traps her between him and his refrigerator.
Once they are both breathless, they pull away, resting their foreheads against each other. "Okay, I really have to go," she whispers begrudgingly before pulling away to gather her things.
Mike returns to his task of making breakfast, sneaking glances at her while she roots through her purse, and the sheer domesticity of it all hits him like a shit ton of bricks. He pictures a life with her where they could spend every morning like this. Waking up next to her as she snuggles against him, getting ready for their workday together, making her breakfast. If only he could convince her that this is exactly the way things are supposed to be.
But then he's watching her slip her engagement ring back on her finger and it feels like a bucket of cold water is being dumped on his head, bringing him back to reality where the love of his life is engaged to someone and it wasn't him.
He tries to shove the thought and the gnawing feeling in his stomach away. "Are you sure you don't want to stay and eat something first?"
She looks over her shoulder and smiles at him in appreciation for caring. "No, it's okay. They usually get me breakfast on set."
"Being an actor must be so nice," he quips.
"I don't have very many complaints so far," she jokes.
He tosses his bacon and scrambled eggs on a plate before turning off the stove and approaching her from behind. He wraps his arms around her waist, indulging in the freedom of getting to hold her the way he wants to even for this fleeting moment. "Are you coming over again tonight?"
Tina rests her arms along his and leans back against the hard planes of his chest as she bites her lip and responds, "We've got a late shoot tonight… I probably shouldn't."
"That's okay, I don't mind. I've got some classes later tonight anyways," Mike responds with a shrug as she twists in his arms to face him. "I'll wait for you," he declares, looking deep into her eyes, meaning his words in more ways than one.
The sincerity in his tone takes Tina's breath away and all she can do is nod her head in acknowledgement and press her lips against his once more. "Okay, then. I guess I'll see you tonight," she manages to say before extracting herself from his arms.
Mike watches as she takes her things and leaves his apartment, trying to ignore how badly he doesn't want her to go. But he knows he can't beg her to stay. So, he just takes a deep breath and continues making breakfast.
He isn't the only person that watches Tina leave his apartment.
From across the hall, Santana opens her front door with the intention of visiting Mike at his apartment like she does every Wednesday morning when they both have dance class around the same time. But when she sees her old friend creeping out of his apartment and covering her face with large sunglasses, attempting to maintain anonymity, Santana quickly retreats back into her home.
She can hardly contain the gasp that escapes her mouth as she peeks through the peephole and confirms that what she is seeing is true. The sound makes Tina turn around in confusion as Santana stands frozen by her door, her hand clasped tightly over her mouth. Tina looks around the hallway curiously but figuring that she was just hearing things, she shrugs and continues her way towards the elevator.
Santana waits for the familiar ding of the elevator that signals its departure before she barges into Mike's apartment using her spare key and slams the door shut behind her.
"Good morning Santana," Mike greets, not even bothering to turn around and confirm that it is in fact her that entered his home. Five years of living across the hall from each other also mean five years of Santana and Brittany constantly showing up at his place unannounced and it doesn't bother him… anymore.
Santana goes towards his kitchen with her jaw agape in disbelief while Mike takes a bagel out of his toaster, adding it to the plate with bacon and eggs before sliding the plate on his kitchen island so that it lands right in front of her.
But now that he has turned around, she has a better view of him and she gasps once again. Santana approaches him and places her fingers on his bare chest, pointing at the tell-tale marks and scratches all over his body. She shakes her head at him, her eyes wide in shock. "You sick son of a bitch."
"Excuse me?" Mike scrunches his eyebrows and tries to act confused despite the way his face flushes, giving away all his secrets.
Santana wags a finger in his face and shushes him. "No, don't even try to play innocent or tell me some lie – I just saw her sneaking out of here." Despite her warning, Mike opens his mouth to try and protest but Santana doesn't let him. "Plus, your lips are shining with her lip gloss, your chest is covered in hickeys and bitemarks – which, by the way, confirms my suspicions that she is a biter – and I'm also pretty sure that is her underwear sitting underneath your couch right now." She points to the piece of black lace sticking out from under the couch and all he can do is blush in response. Santana paces through his kitchen, ultimately sitting at his island and shoving a piece of bacon Mike made in her mouth. "I mean, seriously, you couldn't even make it to your fucking bed?"
"We made it there eventually…" Mike responds with a shrug before looking down at his feet and biting back a smirk. "We made it a lot of places actually."
Santana pauses, her jaw hanging slightly causing some food to spill out of her mouth, as she points to the counter where she currently sits, silently questioning him. Mike nods his head in confirmation, a smug grin plastered on his face. She shudders in response and jumps up from her spot.
"Britt and I knew something had to be up because you've been so giddy lately… She was so sure you were using those vitamin D pills again," Santana reveals before narrowing her eyes at him. "How long has this been going on?"
"Well, she flew in a couple of days ago because of her new movie… But I guess it started when we went to Asian camp," Mike says before taking a bite of his bagel.
"Did you use my plan? I told you showing your abs would work again," Santana quips.
"No, I didn't use your plan – my shirt was on the entire time," he denies with an eye roll. "I didn't go to camp with the intention of getting back together with her."
"Yeah, I know, because you told me and Britt explicitly that you didn't want to mess with Tina and Artie's engagement," she reminds him pointedly. "But now you're sleeping around with her. I can't even imagine what else you do when we get too busy to visit for a few nights. So much for just wanting her to be happy."
Mike huffs exasperatedly. "Oh, come on, like you're one to talk," he spits. "How many times did you sleep with Brittany while she was dating him?"
"Mike," Santana warns, giving him a stern look.
"No! How is this any different?" Mike yells, unable to hold back the frustration that is bubbling up in his chest.
Santana takes a deep breath. "Okay, fine, it's not that different… And I don't regret having done it… But, you have to know that a lot of people are gonna get hurt the longer that this continues."
Mike sighs and runs his fingers through his hair. "Look, I know it's wrong but I just… can't help it," he starts as he takes a seat at his dining table, resting his head in his hands. Santana watches him in concern before taking a seat across from him and resting her hand on his wrist comfortingly, sensing his pain. "Every time she enters the room, the whole world just makes sense again. And every kiss, every touch, every time she smiles at me… it feels like coming home."
As Santana gently rubs his wrist with her thumb, her wedding ring catches her eye and she is filled with complete understanding of what Mike is rambling about. She knows that he must be hurting a lot and her heart aches for him.
For a moment, they sit together in silence. Mike feels a heavy weight on his chest at having to confront his reality while Santana is at a loss for words, not really knowing what she can say or do to make this any better. She knows that Mike and Tina belong together – in fact she is rooting for them to get back together – but she has also grown to care about Artie and she knows there is no ending to this situation that doesn't involve any of them getting hurt.
With a deep sigh, Santana taps Mike's hand to get him to look back up at her. "Just be careful, Mike."
"Madeline, excellent work. Ricardo, great but fix your form," Mike instructs his evening intermediate adult hip-hop class as they run through his choreography. He is marching throughout the room, keeping a critical eye on his students and ensuring they are nothing short of perfect. He tries his hardest to maintain a straight face but deep inside, he is filled with pride at how far they have progressed in his class.
When the music ends, Mike finds his way back to the front of the room. "Good job, everyone. I can tell you've all been working really hard on the choreography," Mike praises while his class cheers excitedly, giddy about having pleased their teacher, but their celebration comes to a sudden stop as they stare at the door behind Mike.
Out of confusion and curiosity, Mike slowly turns towards the door, following his students' gaze to find Tina standing at the door with a sheepish smile. "Hi," she says meekly.
Mike can't help the wide grin that mounts his face at the sight of her. "Hey, what are you doing here?"
"Well, we wrapped early tonight and I happened to be in the area so I thought I would drop by and say 'hello.' Sorry for interrupting your dance class, by the way," Tina explains and gives his students an apologetic smile.
"Not a problem at all," Mike dismisses with a wave of his hand before redirecting his attention back to his class. "Everyone, please welcome, Ms. Tina Cohen-Chang."
They all gawk at her in awe as she enters the room and stands beside Mike, brushing a strand of hair behind her ear. "Thanks for letting me crash your class."
"Anytime… Actually… How would you like to help me out with tonight's class?" Mike suggests with raised eyebrows.
"Is that alright with all of you?" Tina asks, looking around at the students as they gasp and bounce enthusiastically in response and their reactions make Tina and Mike chuckle. "Then, sure, I would love to."
Mike's class applauds while Tina places her bag to the side of the room, letting herself get settled in, and tries to ignore the snide, whispered comments being made about her and Mike's infamous history of teaching dance together (damn that Jacob Ben Israel!)
"And that's all for our class tonight. I will see you all next week – please keep practicing the choreography for our big showcase in three weeks," Mike declares, wrapping up his class after spending the last half hour teaching with Tina by his side.
"Will you be here again next week, Tina?" Mike's student, Madeline, asks as they all gather their belongings from the side of the room.
"Sorry, guys, but you're stuck with just me next week," Mike says before nudging Tina with his shoulder. "Tina Cohen-Chang is a very busy woman."
Tina laughs and nods in confirmation. "Yes. But I will be there to watch the showcase, so you all better bring you're a-game."
One by one the students finish gathering their belonging and wave goodbye to Mike and Tina as they exit the dance studio. But one of his students, Emily, approaches Tina sheepishly on her way out. "Tina, would it be okay if we took a photo together? I'm a really huge fan."
Tina smiles brightly and accepts, "Of course, we can."
"Here, I can take it for you," Mike offers before taking Emily's phone and snapping a photo of the two of them.
"Thanks, Mike. And thank you so much, Tina, for being here tonight. You have no idea how much of an inspiration you are to me," Emily gushes and fidgets with the strap of her duffle bag.
Tina grins in response and gently grips her bicep in appreciation. Mike watches from the side as the two of them begin to engage in a deep conversation about showbusiness and making it in the industry and he is filled with overwhelming pride for Tina. He is so proud of her for achieving all her dreams and she did it all on her own – just like he knew she would.
His thoughts are interrupted when another one of his students, Layla, approaches him, placing her hand softly on his muscular arm. "Hey, Mike. Great class tonight."
Mike smiles politely at her as Tina notices the exchange from the corner of her eye and tries to back a smirk in amusement. "Thanks, Layla. You did very well tonight, you're getting a lot better."
"And it's all thanks to you," Layla gushes while batting her eyelashes at him.
"I just want to help you all reach your potential," Mike replies with a shrug, shoving his hands in the pockets of his sweatpants.
Layla is about to open her mouth to say something when Tina joins the two of them after Emily leaves for the night. She narrows her eyes at the way Mike's focus solely goes to Tina as she stands next to him and huffs out a breath of annoyance before donning a tight-lipped smile and grumbling, "Well, thank you. I guess I'll see you next week."
Tina and Mike wave goodbye to her as she stomps out of the studio. "She is so into you," Tina points out with a laugh as soon as the room is empty, leaving them alone together once again.
Mike scrunches his face at her in disbelief. "You think so?" The question makes Tina roll her eyes and nod in response. "Well, it's too bad I'm not interested."
Tina scoffs and quirks an eyebrow at him. "Have you seen how hot she is?"
Mike shrugs in response and smirks at her. "I've got my eyes set on someone else."
Tina feels all the air leave the room and her face flushes at his words and deep stare. She lightly shakes her head and clears her throat before taking a deep breath. "It's really great what you're doing here," she says, changing the subject. "You know, I had a dream once that you moved to New York to teach dance to the homeless?"
"I guess dreams really do come true," he quips.
"Yeah, I guess they do," she says softly, pointedly ignoring the fact that said dream also included him proclaiming that he wants to win her back.
"So, did you just come over here to crash my dance class?" Mike teases.
Tina rolls her eyes but smiles. "No… We wrapped shooting early and I thought your dance class would have already been over so I wanted to see if we could grab some take-out before heading to your place."
Mike places his arms around her waist, pulling her closer to him before dropping a sweet kiss on her lips because it's just been too long and he's missed her. "I would love to but I still have some work for the showcase to finish up before heading home," he says with a disappointed frown.
Tina wraps her arms around his neck and runs her fingers gently through his hair. "What if I help you out so that we can get out of here quicker?"
Mike's eyebrows shoot up in surprise. "You don't mind?"
"No, of course not. Besides, I got a preview tonight of what your kids can do, so I definitely have some input to provide," she reasons. "But we should order in because I'm starving."
"Yeah, that's fine. What do you have in mind?"
Tina narrows her eyes in careful thought and Mike can't help but find it so endearing. "How about some dim sum, for old times' sake?"
Mike nods his head in response and extracts himself from Tina's grip before digging his phone out from his pocket and opening up his Uber Eats app. "So, is a chicken feet salad okay for you?" he jokes and she glares at him, unamused. Mike just kisses her frown away with a chuckle before taking her hand and leading her into his office.
They spend the next two hours in Mike's office eating together while working on the showcase. They sit together at his desk, Tina perched on Mike's lap, with a mess of empty take-out containers and papers scattered around. Mike is carefully reading through the notes Tina made with her thoughts and critiques on his class' choreography and progress whilst Tina sketches a possible costume design for his class.
His hand finds its way beneath her oversized t-shirt and he absentmindedly draws patterns on her ribs, his touch sending shivers across her skin. She glances at him to see if there is any purpose to his actions and her heart pangs at the sight of him, still engrossed in the notes in front of him, nibbling his bottom lip in thought.
Finding him completely endearing, she can't stop herself from placing her fingers underneath his chin and turning his face towards her before claiming his lips in a sound kiss. Dropping the notes back onto his desk, Mike's hand draws upward, releasing the tie from her ponytail so that he can tangle his fingers in her hair and deepen their kiss.
Tina wriggles until she's straddling him in his seat and grips the front of his shirt before trailing her hands down to tug it off and tossing it somewhere in the room. She captures his lips once more as his hands find their way to her ass, squeezing it lightly and pressing her flush against him. The increased pressure makes her moan with pleasure and he takes the sound as encouragement to grip the back of her thighs, wrapping it tightly around his waist, as he stands up and slides the papers on the ground before placing her on top of his desk.
Mike pulls away to lift her shirt off, tossing it over his shoulder to join his shirt on the ground. He takes a moment to appreciate how beautiful she looks with her hair mussed, her lips swollen from his kiss and her eyes half-lidded with lust before kissing her again.
She sighs his name against his lips as she runs her hands down his abs in appreciation. His hands trail down to the waistband of her leggings, about to tug it down when her phone starts to ring, interrupting them from their reverie.
He groans into her neck when she pulls away slightly and reaches for her phone. "It might be Quinn – she always forgets about the time difference," she explains, somewhat finding his disappointment charming. He distracts himself by nipping at her collarbone while his fingers dip beneath the elastic of her pants to tease her through the lace fabric of her underwear. But at the feeling of her body suddenly tensing, his fingers halt and he looks up at her questioningly. "It's Artie."
All Mike can do is stare at her as she gives him an apologetic glance before answering the phone. "Hey, babe," she says so sweetly that Mike struggles not to roll his eyes. "How's London?"
"It's great, babe!" We're making some real movie magic over here," Artie boasts and Tina smiles at his excitement.
"That's amazing. I can't wait to see what you've come up with," she responds but she senses a sudden shift in his demeanour as he releases a shaky breath over the phone and it makes her stomach twist with panic.
"This is probably nothing but, I don't know, someone sent me this tip from Deux Moi – which can I just say, how crazy is it that we're relevant enough to be featured on Deux Moi?" Artie attempts to joke despite the unease that he feels. "But… have you been hanging out with Mike?"
Tina freezes at the question causing Mike to gently rub her skin with his thumb in concern. "W-what?"
"Someone said that you two were hanging out together…" he elaborates. "It's nothing, though… right?"
Tina pauses to look up at Mike and cups his face, caressing it gently with her thumb, before releasing a deep breath. "We ran into each other here in New York but yeah… it's nothing."
"Yeah… yeah, that's what I thought," Artie dismisses with a shake of his head. Tina can tell from his voice that he feels silly for even asking and it makes her feel awful. "Anyways, it's pretty late out here and we've got an early shoot tomorrow. But I can't wait to see you again in a few weeks for that big showcase Brittany, Santana and Mike are putting on."
"Yeah, I'm sure they've got some great stuff planned," Tina adds, trying her best to not sound as guilty as she feels.
"Good night, babe. I love you."
"I love you, too," Tina whispers before clicking off her phone and tossing it aside.
It isn't long until Mike draws his fingers underneath her chin, lifting her head to face him and recapturing her lips in a heated kiss. He lifts her up from the desk slightly to drag off her pants before his hands trail up from her waist, reaching behind her to undo her bra clasp, when Tina places her hands on his shoulders, pushing him away. "Wait, Mike… Maybe we shouldn't keep doing this," she suggests, her face revealing her inner turmoil.
Her words make Mike's heart sink to his stomach but he takes a small step backward, keeping his hands tightly around her waist like a lifeline. "Tee, if you want to stop, I'll stop. But just know that I really don't want to."
Tina takes a moment to stare up at him, his eyes flitting back and forth between her eyes and her lips, and damn it – he looks so fucking sexy. Despite the nagging voice in her head that's telling her to stop, she squeezes her eyes shut and curses herself for not having enough willpower before gripping the back of his neck and kissing him feverishly.
a/n: fictional cheaters will always be loved by me!