Chapter 6: You're So Vain

SEBASTIAN

Sebastian didn't know anything about gymnastics or cheerleading, so he wasn't able to be of much help to Ella as she practiced for her tryout, even if he wanted to be. Every time Ella did a flip that he thought looked cool, Artie had something negative to say about it, and Sebastian wondered what he was even doing out here in the first place. He'd much rather be inside finishing his TV show binge.

Twenty minutes ago, Artie had requested to see Ella do her passes once more, but she hadn't applied his corrections the way he envisioned it in his head, so 'one time' turned into a million more. They were both beginning to get frustrated with one another, and after spending about an hour outside watching Artie berate Ella on her tumbling form, Sebastian began to get a migraine.

Then, a white Mercedes SUV pulled into the driveway, claiming all of their attention for a moment.

"Oh, great, Quinn's here," Artie said, fixing his face to hide his grumpiness from his girlfriend. "We're supposed to be hanging out, but first, maybe you'll listen to some notes from her, since you don't like hearing them from me," Artie told Ella, who stuck her tongue out at her brother before he rolled over to greet his girlfriend.

"Alright," Sebastian said, standing up and clapping his hands together after dusting the dirt off of his shorts. "This has been so much fun, but I'm heading inside," he excused himself once Quinn showed up.

The three of them didn't seem to care whether he stayed or not, and although it was still a bit too early to begin his bedtime routine, Sebastian headed for the shower anyway. It had just been one of those days.

Sebastian preferred his water extra hot, and as the bathroom began to steam up, he took a good, long look at himself in the mirror. For once, he didn't like what he saw. His usually-flawless skin was starting to break out, and the dark circles under his eyes were quite alarming. It had been an awfully long (though, not too eventful) first week-and-a-half of summer, and it was beginning to show.

Sebastian knew he didn't have much going on this summer, compared to his siblings or his friends from Dalton. He didn't have a job or a significant other to keep him busy, or a vacation home to stay at. He'd never been super attracted to the idea of having a boyfriend. He was much more into no-strings-attached hookups… at least they hardly ever ended in heartbreak. He told himself that he didn't want to be tied down, but even he could see the benefits of having someone to keep you company. Sebastian couldn't help but feel a bit lonely. This was his first summer with siblings, and he was supposed to get to spend each day with them– the way he'd envied his neighbors getting to do as he was growing up. But with Griffin working a summer internship at the law firm, Ella so focused on making the cheer team, and Artie spending much of his days with his new girlfriend, things weren't shaping up as Sebastian had expected them to.

What he really needed was to take the edge off with a night of relaxation. A little bit of self-care. He'd spent a lot of time in the sun, lounging by the pool, but the sun tended to drain him of all of his energy. For that reason, after he dried his hair, Sebastian opted to put on some sweats and return downstairs after his shower and facilitate a bit of a spa night to recharge for the week ahead.

After he gathered what he needed– freshly popped popcorn, a new bottle of Cabernet Sauvignon, a bottle opener, and a couple of his self-care supplies– he set them on the coffee table and took a seat on the couch. He turned on the television and flipped through his Netflix profile to find the perfect romantic comedy for the occasion. As the movie began, he carefully applied his clay facemask, staring at his reflection in Ella's makeup mirror he'd stolen out of her bedroom. He could feel himself starting to relax already. This was a pretty good idea, if he did say so himself.

"Ummm… what's this?"

Seb had just gotten himself stretched out on the couch when Artie, Quinn, and Ella peered into the living room, taking in the sight before them.

"What does it look like?" Sebastian replied, taking a sip from his wine glass. "I'm having a spa night."

"Spa night?" Artie repeated, raising an eyebrow.

"You heard me. Care to join?" Sebastian asked. "I have some cider in the fridge for the little sis, but, Quinn? Artie? Can I interest either of you in any of the real deal?" He held up the open bottle of red, offering to pour them both a glass.

Artie rolled down the ramp, coasting to a stop next to the coffee table, with Quinn and Ella following closely behind. "Uh… I don't really think any of this is my thing."

Now it was Sebastian's turn to raise an eyebrow. He paused the romcom he was watching, unwilling to miss any Matthew McConaughey moments in order to have this conversation. Artie's unwillingness to let his guard down really bugged him sometimes. His brother didn't like to be out of his comfort zone.

"It could be your thing if you gave it a chance," he countered. "You don't like to relax and watch movies? Last I checked, that's, like, your favorite thing to do."

"Not with… the facemasks, the nail polish, and the whole nine yards."

Sebastian glanced around. He had some cuticle care supplies on the table, sure, but he wasn't sure where Artie's comment about nail polish had come from.

"Suit yourself," Sebastian shrugged. "But can you…?" He gestured for him to get out of the way. "You're blocking my view of Kate Hudson."

"Is this How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days?" Quinn asked excitedly, taking a seat on the couch by Sebastian's feet, causing him to sit up properly in order to make room for her. "I loooooove this movie!"

Artie scowled at the way that his new girlfriend had seemingly accepted the invitation to 'spa night', causing Sebastian to grin. Artie stuck his tongue out at him, an expression which Sebastian returned.

"El, how 'bout you?" Sebastian extended the invite. "Want to join? It'll be fun. Please?"

She seemed hesitant, which was very unlike the confident and self-assured teenager Sebastian knew her to be. This Cheerio stuff was really weighing on her.

"I don't know… I feel like I should go back outside and keep practicing. I took the weekend off when I was at Dad's, which I probably shouldn't have done, and now I'm even more nervous about tomorrow," Ella honestly confessed. "What if I forget what I'm supposed to be doing and just freeze? What if I fall on my face and just completely make a fool out of myself?!"

She was clearly stressed and could benefit from a little spa night of her own, Sebastian noticed.

"You've been at this for months, kid. I've been watching you go out there to practice until the sun goes down," he reminded her. "You've done all you can do to prepare, right?" She hesitated for just a second before nodding. "Okay, then come sit next to your brother, and put on a facemask. You can't show up to your tryout looking all dull and lifeless. Then the coach really won't take you."

To Sebastian's delight, Ella gave in. "Alright. But I'm going to run upstairs and hop in the shower first. I'm kind of gross."

"Okay, well, don't take too long, or else you'll miss the best parts of the movie!" Sebastian called after her as she disappeared up the stairs.

To his left, Quinn was still engrossed in what was on the television, and, off to the right, Artie had his arms crossed over his chest and just looked annoyed.

"Why's your face like that?" Sebastian asked him, popping a piece of popcorn into his mouth. "What do you have against Kate Hudson?"

"Nothing, I-I don't have anything against Kate Hudson," Artie huffed, still not fixing his expression. Seb raised his eyebrows in his direction, hinting at him to get out whatever it was that he needed to say. "It's just… you stole my girlfriend," he said simply, with a nod in Quinn's direction.

"Sure did," Seb replied smugly, taking another sip of his drink, and placing an arm around Quinn's shoulders. It was all in good fun for him, but when Quinn giggled, Artie's face turned red.

Sebastian was trying to make an effort not to purposely say things that push Artie's buttons anymore, but sometimes the other guy made it too easy to get a reaction out of him. There was not a single emotion that Artie could experience that wouldn't be plastered across his face like an open book for everyone to see, and sometimes, it made for good entertainment.

"And, hey, if you're not going to participate in spa night, then make yourself useful and go bake us some cookies, will you?"

"Oh, yummmm," Quinn said, her eyes lighting up as she glanced hopefully at Artie. The second that she did that, Sebastian knew Artie would be won over. He'd always been kind of a pushover anyway, but Sebastian knew that his step-brother wouldn't be able to deny his new girlfriend her wish for some warm, delicious cookies homemade with love by him.

"Alright, alright," Artie conceded, just like Seb knew he would. "One batch of chocolate chip cookies, coming right up."

He pivoted his chair and pushed back up the ramp, disappearing into the kitchen and leaving Quinn and Sebastian all alone.

Sebastian removed his arm from Quinn's shoulders as soon as Artie was out of view.

"So… you and my brother are official now, I've heard," Sebastian noted, scooting over a little on the couch to establish more space between the two of them.

Quinn nodded.

"That's really great, you know? I think he seems really happy," he told her. "Happier than I've seen him in a while, at least."

This was the first time he'd really been able to have a conversation with Quinn without Artie around, and some things had been weighing on his mind that he had wanted to get out in the open.

"But listen, when I asked you to be his date for the wedding, I was just looking to give him a fun-filled night. I didn't really think that it would lead anywhere or spark anything," Sebastian told her. "I didn't even know that you'd be leaving for college in a few months. And I know you'll probably end things with him when you go off to school…"

"Do we have to have this conversation?" Quinn cut him off. She was wearing a sickeningly sweet– almost alarmingly pleasant– smile that Sebastian wasn't sure he trusted. "It's really none of your business."

Sebastian had experience with people like her: the sliver of polite society that attempted to kill you with kindness, even though they were silently praying for your downfall behind your back. He'd grown up with them. He knew what she was doing, trying to put on a pleasant façade, while using her eyes to shoot daggers at him whenever he turned around. Seb could sense that Quinn didn't like him very much. Artie had probably done his fair share of venting about him over the last few months, and he supposed that he couldn't really blame him for that. He had been pretty awful. But he wasn't that way anymore. Particularly now. What he was trying to do here was nice! He wanted Quinn to see that.

"I just don't want to see Artie upset," Sebastian firmly told her. "He's my brother."

"Artie and I have talked about this," she said coolly. "About the past relationships that we've both had and how neither of us has had much luck in that department. But things feel different this time. We've known each other for so long, and I don't think either of us is thinking of this as 'just another relationship'. I really think this one's going to last."

"Okay," Sebastian acknowledged, swirling the wine in his glass before taking another sip. "Just don't string him along, if you feel like things aren't going to last in the long run. He's… sensitive."

Sebastian didn't know if this was an appropriate conversation to be having behind his step-brother's back with the girl that he was newly dating while he was in the next room over. They were talking in low, hushed voices, and he hoped that Artie's ears weren't burning.

"Why do you think I'd do that?" Quinn wanted to know, narrowing her eyes and beginning to get defensive. "Artie's not like the other guys I've been with. I'm happier with him. And he feels the same way about me. Don't you want to see your brother happy? Isn't that why you set us up in the first place?"

That was true, he had been the one to set them up. Sebastian thought she ought to remember that and be more grateful, instead of attacking him for trying to protect his brother's feelings.

"Just don't hurt him okay?"

"Oh, you mean like you've hurt him– hurt our team– over and over for months? What you did to Blaine? One of his good friends? You don't think that hurt him? Your vanity, your superiority complex…" She was deflecting now, and coming for him in the process. "You didn't seem to care then, how Artie was feeling."

"It's called growth," Sebastian calmly told her. "I've changed. Things are different now than they were then. We're good. So don't hurt him."

Quinn rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to the movie.

Sebastian didn't think there was any actual tension between the two of them, but the topic of this conversation had definitely caused Quinn to be on the defensive. He wasn't going to act cold to her, though. In a way, Quinn was right. He'd ruined (or attempted to ruin) a lot for Artie over the last year. But this wasn't like that. He'd seen the way that she made Artie smile, and how happy she'd made him since the wedding. Sebastian may have been known as a colossal asshole in the past, but he wasn't about to do anything to jeopardize their relationship.

Ella returned just then, freshly showered and clad in a matching pajama set, taking a seat on the other side of Sebastian. She pulled the mirror closer to herself and began applying the facemask the same way that Sebastian had done before.

With a third party now in the room, Sebastian decided to put his little chat with Quinn to rest. He'd said his piece. He returned his gaze to the television just as Ben was in the middle of trying to impress Andie by cooking for her on their date, while she was trying to drive him away by moving her things into his apartment.

When Andie turned up the stereo and began to sing out loud, so did Quinn.

"You walked into the party like you were walking onto a yacht," Quinn sang along with the music playing in the movie, flashing a pointed glance in Sebastian's direction. "Your hat strategically dipped below one eye. Your scarf, it was apricot."

"What are you doing?" Sebastian asked her, confused by her sudden goofy behavior when she had been so cold to him just moments before. He looked at Quinn like she was crazy, which only seemed to make her want to sing louder. "Just take be quiet and watch the movie."

"You had one eye in the mirror, as you watched yourself gavotte." She stood up and began exaggeratedly singing to Sebastian, causing him to roll his eyes. "And all the girls dreamed that they'd be Seb's partner, they'd be Seb's partner and you're so vain. You probably think this song is about you!"

"Oh, please. Really?" Sebastian asked her, having to shout a bit in order to be heard above the television and Quinn's off-key singing. She'd even gone ahead and changed the lyrics of the song to include his name, just as Andie had done in the movie for Ben. "We're really doing this?!"

Ella caught on to what Quinn was doing, and it only took a second before she was in on it, too. She giggled when Quinn outstretched her hand toward her, beckoning for the younger girl to get up and dance with her for the next part of the chorus.

"You're so vain," they sang in unison, pointing to Sebastian. He crossed his arms over his chest and rolled his eyes, biting back a snarky comment about how the pitchiness of their voices was making his ears bleed. They were clearly just having fun, and he was trying to be pleasant today, but the girls were making this task impossibly difficult. "You're so vain. I bet you think this song is about you, don't you, don't you?"

So much for his relaxing evening. The hardened clay facemask he was wearing wasn't going to be able to serve its purpose if he had done the impossible and managed to frown while wearing it.

Artie cautiously rolled in just then with a plate of cookies on his lap, descending the ramp slowly enough that he wouldn't tip them over. He didn't look up until he'd made it safely into the room, and when he did, he didn't seem to know what to make of the situation playing out before him. Taking in his girlfriend and younger sister singing and jumping around together, coupled with Sebastian's irritated expression, Artie just seemed confused.

"Uhh… huh? What'd I miss?"

"We're dancing!" Quinn told him cheerfully, as she continued to goof off with Ella. "Come dance!"

That was one question that Artie never needed to be asked twice.

Setting the plate of gooey cookies next to Seb's uncorked bottle of wine, he was quick to join in and show off. With an exaggerated bite of his lower lip, Artie demonstrated his best attempt at a body roll in his chair– a move that he'd undoubtedly picked up from Sam Evans. The girls laughed hysterically as Artie brought out his goofiest, most enticing moves, all in good fun.

No matter how hard Sebastian had tried to suppress a smile, he wasn't able to anymore, watching Artie. Everything was a performance when you were rolling with Artie Abrams, and after almost seven months of living with the other guy, Sebastian had picked up on that.

"Come on, Seb, join us! You know you want to," Artie coaxed.

Against his better judgment, Sebastian did join in, even though his moves weren't half as smooth as Artie's. He felt foolish at first, but as he looked around at the others, he was able to summon a side of him that was a little more carefree. Sebastian had to admit, there was something so relieving about the ability to just let go and not worry about what other people thought about you, for once.

As the four of them continued to make a fool of themselves in the living room, lost in their own world thanks to their impromptu dance party, nobody seemed to care that the music in the scene that had been playing on the screen had faded long ago.