Chapter 9: Lovesick

ARTIE

Artie had spent the first week of his summer vacation booked and busy, but by Wednesday night, he found himself making space for a new task in his daily life: wrestling his true feelings about Sam, Blaine, and Tina's newly-formed trio. Sebastian had been right, to some extent– it did upset him. But Artie had been honest in his response to Seb as well. He didn't want to make his friends feel bad about what could have been an honest mistake, and truthfully, he didn't want to throw himself a pity party. But on the off-chance that his friends had been excluding him solely because it was easier to plan things without having to keep the chair in mind? He was worried about that for sure.

On Thursday, Artie finally made it to PT, and Kyle was just thrilled to see his favorite client. By way of explanation for his lengthy absence from physical therapy, Artie told Kyle about what had been keeping him busy: Quinn. After enduring a lecture about not letting 'some girl' distract him from the important things in life (Artie went on to argue, however, that Quinn wasn't just 'some girl'– she was different from the others), his hour-long session was up and he was free to go. To Artie's surprise, Kyle had taken it pretty easy on him that day and left him with enough energy to invite Quinn over for a post-workout swim. By the time dinnertime had rolled around, however, Artie was exhausted. Too exhausted to cook something for the two of them, anyway, so they opted to split a bowl of popcorn for dinner (with some M&Ms mixed in, of course) and ended their night by settling on the couch and watching a movie.

On Friday morning, Artie called Quinn to see if she would want to go out for breakfast if he picked her up in ten minutes.

"Artie, it's eight-thirty in the morning," she replied, reminding him that what didn't seem so early to him was the crack of dawn for most other teenagers. "I'm still in my pajamas."

"Come as you are," Artie told her. "I'm just in a t-shirt and sweats anyway. It'll be casual. My treat, okay?"

She'd agreed, and that was how they'd ended up sitting across from one another at a diner twenty minutes later. She'd been so concerned about her appearance, and yet, Artie thought she looked beautiful in her oversized t-shirt and athletic shorts, with her short blonde hair pulled back into a tiny ponytail. He didn't care about the perfectly curled hair or all of the makeup; he loved her just as she was. They were in this blissful honeymoon stage where everything felt fun and flirty. Artie wasn't naïve enough to think that this stage would last forever, but he sure was enjoying it while it lasted.

"Why did we wait until now to do this?" Quinn wondered, sipping on the iced tea she'd ordered.

"Breakfast?" Artie played dumb, joking around with her the way that he knew she liked. "Jeez, Quinn, it's only nine o'clock. I suppose I could have called you up earlier, but you seemed so tired…"

Quinn smirked and playfully rolled her eyes at his attempt at a dad joke. She knew that he understood what she was intending to ask, but she also knew that he tended to skirt around any conversation that made him the slightest bit uncomfortable.

"You know why," Artie softly replied a moment later, with an almost imperceptible shrug as his tone shifted from goofy to serious.

He didn't know what else to say. Their lives just hadn't worked out that way. The universe had other plans. It wasn't anybody's fault, but it still sucked.

"I know, I know…" She acknowledged before turning her head so that she could glance out the window and watch the cars pass by. "But I wish we hadn't. Waited so long, I mean. If we'd known how well this would all work out, we could've done this years ago."

You still would have wanted to go out with me? Years ago? Artie wondered. Sure, these last few weeks had been full of surprises, but he didn't think he'd ever get used to hearing her say stuff like that, regardless of how many times it came out of her mouth.

"You know, then we'd have… Instead of…"

Her voice had trailed off, but Artie was able to finish her thought in his mind. Then we'd have been able to really relax and enjoy all of these little times together, instead of having what feels like a ticking time bomb hanging over our heads. It was a constant reminder of what was inevitably to come.

"Hindsight is always 20/20," was all Artie could bring himself to say, taking a sip out of the steaming coffee mug in front of him.

He didn't want to dwell on the looming end of the summer. He wanted to enjoy the time they had together now, just as Quinn had assured him they would when she'd asked him out in the first place. The last thing he wanted to do was waste the time they had together before she went off to school, mourning their relationship before it was even over. That wasn't his style. He was going to make the most out of each day he had with her. That was what made leaving for the weekend so hard.

He'd made it a priority to hang out with Quinn that morning because as soon as Griffin had gotten home from his internship on Friday afternoon, the three Abrams kids loaded up in his truck and headed to Akron for the weekend to stay at their dad's.

Artie hadn't seen his father since the wedding a few weeks back. According to the official custody agreement that had been put in place when the divorce had happened all those years ago, the kids were to live in Lima during the week– where their schools were– and stay with Art in Akron on the weekends. As the years had gone by, though, things changed. Baseball kept Art busy and traveling for most of the summer, and as Artie, Griffin, and Ella had gotten older, they'd become busier too. It became harder to orchestrate weekends where everyone's schedules aligned.

That was why Artie was excited to spend the weekend at his dad's house, after not seeing him for a while. Art Abrams was of the strong, while still a bit nerdy and sensitive, type– a lot like Artie himself– so Artie had always felt a secure bond with his father. Artie had taken the divorce pretty hard as a kid, shouldering the guilt of his parents' separation and grieving the loss of not being able to see them both every day. For that reason, Artie cherished every moment he got to spend with his dad.

However, amongst all of the excitement about the weekend away, Artie still felt this lingering lump in his throat that he couldn't swallow. He just wasn't all that thrilled to have to leave Quinn for three days. The hours they had left before she left for Yale were numbered, and he hated that he felt like he was wasting some of them by not seeing her every day.

Much of Saturday was spent in Cleveland, not Akron. That was typically how the siblings spent most days when they came to visit their father for weekends during the summertime. He had work in the city, and usually, the three of them tagged along. They'd get to sit in the accessible seats he'd reserve for them, get to eat all the peanuts, ice cream cups, and sodas they desired, then meet him outside after the game ended. It was a pretty good deal, especially on a day as nice as this one.

"Good game, Pops," Griffin greeted Art when he emerged from the team clubhouse after the game was over. He had changed out of his team uniform that he wears for games into shorts, an Ohio State t-shirt, and a baseball hat, making him look like nearly every other Midwestern dad. "I thought we were gonna lose this one, until the two-run homer there in the seventh inning."

"I thought so too," Art admitted, pretending to wipe the sweat off of his brow, which got the kids to laugh. "Hey, it's a beautiful day out. What do you say we go for a little walk down to the harbor? Then we'll head home and I'll throw something on the grill for us for dinner."

"Sounds good to me," Artie shrugged, indifferent to the idea. He'd stuffed himself with more ballpark hot dogs than he could keep track of and could use a good cardio workout before he was hungry enough for dinner.

"I need to burn off all of those extra calories I just had," Ella shared, seeming to read Artie's mind. "I definitely shouldn't have had that container of cotton candy. Now that I'm a Cheerio, I have to watch what I'm eating. Coach Sylvester does weekly weigh-ins and the girls who gain weight get cut from the team!"

"I don't think I like that," their father said, shaking his head. "Your coach should be teaching you proper ways to work out and stay healthy, not restricting your food intake."

"Now you all can see why I didn't want her to try out in the first place!" Artie exclaimed. He was trying to stay away from saying 'I told you so'– especially after she'd worked so hard to earn herself a spot on the team– but he knew that he was valid in not wanting Ella to join the squad, and this was the perfect example of why.

"A few years back, when I was a freshman, Mercedes and Kurt joined the team for a little while, and Mercedes was doing this crazy diet to try to lose weight for those check-ins. One day, she ended up fainting in the middle of the cafeteria."

He didn't want his little sister– who at nearly fourteen, was pretty small and thin for her age– to develop an eating disorder because she thinks she needs to look a certain way to please her coach. Artie shuddered at the thought.

"I won't do any of that," Ella assured them. "I wanted to be a Cheerio because I like the sport, not because I care about social status or looks or anything like that. If I get uncomfortable, I'll quit. I promise."

Artie nodded but made a mental note to keep an eye on her this upcoming school year. He wouldn't be afraid to call her out or stage an intervention if he needed to– not if her health was at risk.

Voinovich Bicentennial Park at North Coast Harbor was just under a mile from Progressive Field. On a warm and cloudless day like today, there were plenty of people– likely tourists– walking around, and there was a band playing live music on a stage to accompany the beautiful views of Lake Erie.

As they strolled through the park, Artie's phone dinged, catching his attention and causing him to look down at his lap. As he unlocked his phone, Artie beamed as he read the message Quinn had sent and opened the silly selfie she'd attached of her and her television screen back home.

I don't know anything about baseball, but I had the game on all afternoon trying to see if I could spot you in the crowd, her text read. Hope you're having fun!

Artie didn't waste a second before crafting his response.

Haha you're so sweet. I don't think the camera guy pans all the way up to my VIP seats too often. Maybe you can come to a game this summer and I can teach you all about the sport. And for good measure, he added: I miss you!

Her reply was immediate.

I'd love that. Miss you too. Can't wait to hear all about it when you get back!

He smiled again, unable to contain himself. They'd been texting almost every hour since he'd left Lima, but he still missed her like crazy. They'd gone from 'just friends' to boyfriend and girlfriend in record time, and that was enough to make anybody a little lovesick.

Artie's attention was so focused on reading and texting, with the occasional one-handed push on a wheel to keep propelling himself forward, that he nearly forgot to be aware of his surroundings.

"Artie, dude, watch where you're going. You're gonna roll yourself right into the water. Be careful," Art chastised him after he'd almost rammed himself into a bench along the paved walkway because he hadn't been paying attention.

"Wouldn't be the first time," Artie joked, remembering the rather resourceful way he'd entered the pool during the Glee Club's big number to help Mr. Schue propose to Ms. Pillsbury. It had been fun in the moment, to feel like he was flying like that, but regret had immediately followed when he had to sit in a chair that was soaking wet for the rest of the day. His mother had not been pleased when he returned home either, and he'd learned his lesson. Artie listened to his father and put his phone away, but the smile remained on his face.

"What's got you smiling at your phone like that? You've been glued to that thing since you arrived last night."

"I think a better question to ask would be who has him smiling like that," Griffin teased, glancing at Artie knowingly, which caused Artie to blush.

"It's… Quinn," Artie confessed, knowing better than to brush it off or make an excuse. He knew that his lying skills weren't impressive enough that he'd be able to get away with telling one, so he might as well come clean.

"Quinn?" Art repeated, as he walked alongside his younger son and raised an eyebrow. "Who's this Quinn? Someone I should know about?"

Artie nodded sheepishly, not bothering to suppress the smile that graced his face at just the mention of her name.

"She's Artie's new girlfriend," Ella eagerly filled their father in. "She's a cheerleader. Well, she was, before she graduated."

"She was also in Glee Club with me," Artie was quick to add, before realizing that he didn't need to overly explain himself. Not to his family. His father didn't see him as just a nerdy guy in a wheelchair, he knew that much, but Artie always felt like he had to be on the defensive in front of other people, just in case.

He was starting to wonder if downplaying his love life would go on to become a new defense mechanism– an attempt at dodging the inevitable question of, 'how on Earth did someone like Artie Abrams end up with a pretty blonde cheerleader?'. He knew that they were a better match than most other high school pairings, but he wasn't sure if everyone else was able to see that.

"You may have seen us together at Mom's wedding a few weeks back," Artie explained. "Sebastian kind of… set us up. He took it upon himself to find me a date for the wedding– which I assured him that he totally did not have to do– and having been friends for so long, things between Quinn and I just kind of fell into place."

"I think I recall seeing you two out on the dance floor together," Art replied with a knowing smile, to which Artie ducked his head, embarrassed. The two of them had spent a lot of time dancing that night. He'd kind of forgotten the possibility that others may have been watching them. "She seemed nice from what I saw. And if she's from Glee Club, I'm sure I've met her before, but you know me and putting faces to names. Aside from Tina, I'm afraid I don't know many others off the top of my head. But I can't wait to officially meet her as Quinn-the-girlfriend, not just Quinn-the-friend."

"She's cool," Griffin said, giving Artie his blessing and surprising him in the process. Artie wasn't sure why he was shocked– Quinn was a lot more like the girls Griffin had been with in the past than the ones he'd dated himself. It made sense that his brother would approve of her. "You know what, Art? I've always felt that you were too good for the girls you've been with in the past."

"What?" Artie blinked. "You have?"

"Oh yeah," Griffin nodded, as if it should have been obvious. "I mean, look at you. You're smart, good-looking in a 'boy next door' kind of way, and sometimes you can even be pretty funny…"

Artie raised an eyebrow at him.

"What he's trying to say is that you're a catch, but the girls you've been with… kind of haven't been," Ella said, taking over where Griffin left off.

"Yeah, like that girl… what was her name?" Art added, nodding along with what his other two kids were saying. "The tall blonde one who did all of the dancing at your competition that I came to last year."

"Brittany," Artie sighed, now seeing where this conversation was headed.

"Ugh, Brittany!" Griff moaned, rolling his eyes in a grand gesture. "She was an idiot."

"She was smart… in her own… special… kind of way," Artie said, immediately trying to come to his former-lover-turned-friend's defense, even if he felt the same way a lot of the time.

"Doesn't matter," Griffin waved his comment off. "My point is, you always just settle for whoever looks your way. You don't need to do that. You can have standards, you know. It's healthy."

Artie sat quietly, with his hands folded in his lap, allowing himself to absorb all that they'd just told him. He was used to hearing that– that he was better than he thought he was. He wanted to believe it, but it was just difficult to do so when everyone around you was that much better or hotter or more successful. He was tired of trying to play catch-up.

"I've always liked Quinn," Griffin added after Artie had had a moment to reflect on his thoughts. "She's not your typical wannabe prom queen. Don't get me wrong, she has the potential to be, she definitely has some of the qualities, but–"

"Alright, alright," Artie tried to cut in, holding up a hand to silence his brother from slandering his girlfriend.

"Hey, hear me out! What I was saying is that she's different from the other Cheerios. She's someone who can keep up with you in an intellectual way. You can't really say that about any of the other girls you've dated."

Artie was momentarily stunned by the bold accusation, but Griff kind of had a point. None of his past flames had rivaled Quinn in that department, even Artie could admit that.

Well, maybe one could.

"What about Tina?" Artie argued.

"But were you and Tina really dating? Or were you just… best friends who kissed sometimes?"

Artie opened his mouth to protest, but his father spoke before he had the chance.

"So things between the two of you are going well I take it? You and Quinn?" Art asked, changing the subject slightly, to avoid any squabbling between the siblings. "Wishing you were home instead of here?"

"No, no, it isn't that," Artie was quick to assure him. "I'm glad I get to spend time with you. I've missed you. It's just that… she just graduated and she's moving to Connecticut for school. We've been friends for years– good friends– but we only just started dating. Part of me wishes that we would have done it sooner, but I know that it wouldn't have worked. Not like this. We were both with other people, and we were at different points in our lives. We weren't ready. So, all we have is now, and we have to try to make the most of it. Before she… before she leaves."

He swallowed hard, as he always did whenever the inevitable fate of the relationship was brought to the forefront of his mind.

"Are you gonna try and make it work with long-distance?" Griffin asked, eliciting a shrug from Artie.

"I don't know. We haven't really talked about it. I guess we'll see where we're at once August rolls around. Tina seems to think it won't last. I really don't want her to be right."

"Since when do you care what Tina thinks?" Ella asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Since… pretty much always," Artie replied before shrugging again. "But, yeah. Quinn is great. She makes me really happy."

It felt nice to admit that and be truthful about how Quinn makes him feel. Most of their friends seemed to still be sort of getting used to the somewhat unusual pairing. They didn't know what to make of it. Artie found that having the opportunity now to talk so openly about his and Quinn's relationship with his family was a good way to clear out all of the thoughts that had been swarming inside his head lately.

He was still grappling with the fact that he'd have to let her go. Quinn would be heading off to Yale at the end of August, come hell or high water, and whether he liked it or not, Artie was going to be stuck in Ohio for another year. It was a selfish concern to have– he knew that– but it was nearly July already, and he just felt the summer slipping through his fingers with nothing he could do to stop it. Artie wanted to believe that he and Quinn would be strong enough to survive everything. That they were different. That they'd be the exception.

He felt that they were superior to the countless relationships that had wilted before they really had the chance to bloom. He only hoped that the universe felt the same. That he and Quinn were worth something more than the other relationships that had also started in that damn choir room at McKinley High.

Only time would tell.