𝗚𝗟𝗘𝗘 | 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻

𝐎𝐧 𝐌𝐲 𝐖𝐚𝐲

CHAPTER XIII : ON MY WAY

Kurt, Rachel, and I were in the Lima Bean, looking through wedding magazines. Kurt was being unnecessarily negative, but I suppose I understood why "Oh, this is good. Oh, look at this one. Oh, it's so timeless. It's perfect" Rachel said, flipping the page and pointing at a dress "Yeah, timeless, meaning you can wait two or five years to wear it," Kurt said snakily "Stop being so pessimistic, you Negative Nancy" "Don't be so jealous," Rachel and I said our statements at the same time "Okay, I didn't understand what either of you said," Kurt said, holding his hands up "Well, well, well," An annoying voice said. I groaned loudly and head-butted Rachel's shoulder in annoyance "If it isn't a young Barbra Streisand, old Betty White, and young Angela Lansbury. Where is Gay Cvelops? Still trying to stumble his way in?" "We can't come here anymore" Kurt muttered frustratedly "Sebastian, how times do we have to tell you to leave us alone? We don't like you, you are a horrible, mean, vindictive little brat and we want nothing to do with you. So go, please" I said, rubbing m forehead, I could already feel a headache coming on "Now, now, Naya. I'm only here because I brought Rachel an engagement gift" He said innocently, handing an envelope to her. She opened it, pulling a sheet of paper out of it. Kurt and I leaned over her shoulders, looking at the piece of paper. My eyes widened as we saw a picture of Finn, how do I put this delicately? He was, undressed and in stilettos. I slapped my hand over my mouth, feeling sick as Kurt quickly covered the worst part of the photo "Oh, my God!" Rachel cried out in shock "Whoa. Oh, whoa, whoa!" "I can never erase that image from my brain," I said, slamming my head down on the table "Oh, no, that is, that is Photoshopped. His thing is not that small or—or brown" Rachel said quickly, still shocked "And he could never fit into those pumps" "You are disgusting, Sebastian" I said, leaning my head on Rachel's shoulder at burying my face in the crook of her neck, trying to disappear "Just think, from now until eternity, every time someone Googles Finn Hudson, they'll be treated to that and dozens just like it" Sebastian said, smirking cockily "That is a fate, worse than death" I mumbled quietly "That's the beauty of the internet" He continued, ignoring me "It stays with us forever" "What do you want, Sebastian?" Rachel asked angrily "I want a guaranteed Regionals win, so I want you to drop out. McKinley gets a home-court advantage this year. You're going to come down with Asian bird flu or whatever Tina Blowing-Wang just had" "Hey! Leave Tina alone!" I shouted angrily, balling my fists "That is show choir terrorism" Rachel protested frustratedly "You give a bad name to the entire gay community" Kurt said snidely "And you give the gay community cutting-edge fashion that's usually only seen in Puerto Rican pride floats" Sebastian retorted rudely "That's lowkey racist" I mumbled under my breath "You have 24 hours to drop out, Rachel, or I press the upload button" He smiled innocently before walking away, leaving Kurt, Rachel and me with our mouths hanging wide open in shock.
__________
"That's it. I'm done. I'm leaving this classroom, and I'm going to beat that Sebastian kid's ass!" Finn said angrily, standing up. In Glee the next day, Rachel had shown Finn the picture. Blaine accidentally saw it and shrieked in shock. I pulled him into my arms and he buried his head into my shirt, muttering about being 'scarred for life' "Finn, chill" Mr. Schue said, blocking his path as the other boys got up and followed him, Blaine included. I tried to follow the but Blaine told me not to, saying he didn't want me to get hurt "No, I'm not going to chill. I'm done chilling" Finn shouted "The official show choir rule book states that 'any real or perceived threat of violence, vandalism or humiliation will be met with a swift and unquestioned disqualification of the threatening party's team with extreme prejudice.' It's rig...here, Page 72, bylaw 15, section 6, article 44" Artie said, joining the boys and me "Damn it" I mumbled frustratedly "Guys, I contacted the headmaster of Dalton," Mr. Schue said, trying to reason with us "Like you did when Sebastian almost blinded me? What did they do then?" Blaine asked, annoyed "Oh! I can answer that! Nothing, they did nothing" I said, going to my boyfriend's side "Look, none of this matters now anyways, okay? We're not going to let him beat us like this. I'm going to perform at Regionals" Rachel said, attempting to calm everyone down "Even if he's going to post a photo like this of me if you do?" Finn asked, offended "Finn, I'm not going to negotiate with terrorists" Rachel retorted "If someone posted a picture like that of me online, I'd probably kill myself," Sugar said unhelpfully "Twice to be sure I was dead" Rory added, also being unhelpful "Look, you guys are just going to have to deal with things like this. The more successful you get, the more garbage people are going to make up about you. They're going to love to tear you down" Mr. Schue said, I don't know if he was trying to be encouraging or not but if he was, it wasn't working "I can't believe you would do that to me," Finn said incredulously "I'm going to be married to you. Don't you think I'm going to suffer the consequences as well? I mean, I just...I don't care about stuff like that. I love you, and we'll—we'll manage this together. Okay, the important thing right now is that we win" Rachel said somewhat insensitively "So, you wouldn't care if I photoshopped a photo of you like this and put it on the internet?" Finn retorted frustratedly "Look, our future depends on us winning Regionals. It'll help me towards my NYADA application" Rachel said, lowering her voice so people wouldn't hear her as well but we still did "Hmm...Hope you get in" Finn said bitterly, throwing the photo down on the piano and walking out.
__________
"What up, Anderson?" I said in a deep voice, pretending to be a dude. I walked onto the stage in the auditorium where he was pacing back and forth nervously "Why are you talking like that?" He asked, looking at me confusedly "I don't know, you look nervous and that makes me nervous. And when I'm nervous I do stupid things, like deep man voices" I said shrugging my shoulders. He chuckled softly and went back to pacing. I sighed, walking up to him and placing my hands on his shoulders, forcing him to stop and face me "You okay? You seem upset" I asked, rubbing his shoulder comfortingly "If Sebastian thinks that-" "Forget about Sebastian!" Blaine suddenly shouted, breaking away from me. I stepped back slightly, in shock and he sighed "I'm sorry, I'm not mad at you. I just...don't want to waste any more time on him. I—I want to focus on winning" I nodded my head, smiling softly "I've got a new song I want to try out. The theme for Regionals is 'Inspiration', and I think this fits the bill.
You wanna hear it?" "I always want to hear you sing," I said, crossing my arms. He nodded his head and went backstage quickly grabbing a stool for me to sit on. He put it at the front of the stage and then grabbed a microphone and a stand. I sat down on the stool and the band started playing.
Cough Syrup — Young The Giant (Sung By Blaine)
__________
For some God-unknown reason, Sebastian called Blaine and me too the Lima Bean. After a long talk and the promise that Santana and Brittany could come too, we decided to go. We walked into the coffee shop, Santana taking lead and walking ahead of us. We approached his table and I took Blaine's hand, squeezing it tightly "Let me break it down for you, from one bitch to another. All this vicious, underhanded crap has got to stop" Santana said, sitting down opposite him "Exactly. That's why I called you here. First of all...Blaine, I am sorry about your eye" Sebastian said, shocking us all. What surprised me the most was how genuine and sincere he sounded "Has he hit his head somewhere? What the hell is happening?" I muttered to Santana "That means nothing to me" Blaine said to Sebastian bitterly "Just give me a chance. I have no excuses, other than a lame prank that got completely out of control" Sebastian said, he took a deep breath and continued "Second, the Finn photos have all been destroyed. I want the Warblers to win fair and square. And we're gonna take donations for Lady Gaga's Born This Way Foundation. Win, lose, or draw, we're gonna dedicate our performance to Dave Karofsky. I thought you might want to join us" He said, looking up at me "Wait for the punch, you know it's coming," I said, holding Blaine's arm and squeezing his hand even tighter "No, not this time," He said "Well, forgive me if I don't believe you. Ever since I met you, you've been a lying, scheming, conniving bitch and frankly, I don't trust you at all" I said, frowning "I swear, I'm being honest. For too long I have treated everything like a big joke. It's all fun and games...until it's not"
__________
The New Directions sat in a circle on the stage in the auditorium. Mr. Schue was holding a peanut butter and a spoon and I had a growing headache, I could not take any more crazy "Mr. Schue, why do you have a jar of peanut butter with one spoon?" Mercedes asked, voicing everyone's thoughts "Yeah, there are 16 of us here, and I'm only comfortable sharing a spoon with about half of you," Sugar said, shrugging her shoulders "Well, it's come to my attention that our good friend Rory Flanagan has never tasted peanut butter," Mr. Schue said, directing all eyes to Rory "Outrageous," I said, straightening up as other made noises of shock and confusion "Are you serious?" Tina asked confusedly "No way. It's not possible" Sam said incredulously "Rory if you don't mind," Mr. Schue said, pushing himself up and off the floor and walking over to Rory. He took the lid off the jar as Rory stood up as well and scooped up a little amount on the end of the spoon. He handed the spoon to Rory, who apprehensively put the spoon in his mouth and licked off the peanut butter "Oh, my God...That's the best thing I've ever had" Rory said, chuckling to himself. The rest of the group laughed along good-naturedly as the two boys sat back down "Mr. Schuester, wow, that's incredibly moving, um, it's kind of been an emotional week for some of us" Kurt said solemnly "Yeah, Mr. Schue what's the point of all this?" Finn asked, leaning back a bit.
⚠️ MENTIONS OF SUICIDE ⚠️
"The point is, Rory just had a brand-new experience, something as simple as peanut butter. You guys are young. I want you to promise me that, no matter how depressed you get, no matter how hopeless or alone you feel, you'll try your best to imagine all of the amazing experiences you have ahead of you" Mr. Schue said seriously "Mr. Schue, look, I know we're a little dramatic sometimes, but I don't think anyone will ever consider taking their own life" Mercedes said, I balled my hands into fists, digging my nails into my palms. This subject was a bit of a sore spot for me "I did" Mr. Schue said, I looked up from my fists and at him in surprise "Junior year. That was a tough year. I, uh, cheated on my math midterm. Peeked at the answers of the guy next to me and...the teacher saw me do it" "Just 'cause you got caught cheating? I get caught cheating all the time" Puck said insensitively "They called my dad at his office, and he was coming to pick me up. How was I supposed to look him in the eye? I just kept...picturing my dad so disappointed in me. So...I walked up to the roof. I went right to the edge. One step and all the pain and humiliation would be over" Mr. Schue said, his eyes glassy with tears "Is that true?" Kurt asked in surprise "That day, I promise you, it felt like it was the end of the world. But you know what? It wasn't. You know, for some of you, getting caught cheating isn't a big deal. But there's something...everyone has something that might take them up to that edge" "He's right" I quietly said, glancing down at my hands "What, Naya?" Mr. Schue asked, not hearing me "I said, your right. Everyone has something that will take them up to that edge" I took a deep breath and straightened up where I sat "Look, I didn't know Karofsky, I've never met him, seen him, or anything. But I know how he feels, know how it is to be alone" "What do you mean?" Sam asked concernedly as Blaine took my hand "Look, I haven't told anyone this, so this stays inside our circle okay?" Everyone nodded and I continued "Just before I moved here my parents were away on business a lot. My sister had just moved here to Ohio and I had no one. They missed my 16th birthday, all of that. They were never home for more than four days. I felt so alone, so unloved and I just had enough. I started questioning my existence, if I meant anything, would anyone care if I was gone? I had no real friends at school. they were all fake and would leave me on my own. preferring each other more than me. I never felt, you know, good enough for anyone. So, one weekend when my parents were away; I, uh...I broke into my dad's liquor cabinet and my mom's medicine cabinet and drank until I was pretty much out of it and then took my mom's migraine pills. I poured all of them pretty much, into my hand, grabbed a cup of water, and took them. All at once. I passed out pretty soon after but luckily my parents had asked my neighbor to come and check up on me when I didn't pick up the phone and she found me in time. I'm alive still, luckily and soon after that we moved here and they promised things would get better. But they haven't, I mean, it's different this time, I have you guys and my big sister right around the corner and my parents are home for more than four days at a time now but it's still bad. No matter how much you think things won't get that bad, they can.
And when it does, it hurts. It hurts so bad. I wouldn't wish that upon anyone"
⚠️ MENTIONS OF SUICIDE OVER ⚠️
I teared up and pulled my hand out of Blaine's and stood up, running off the stage. I heard footsteps, a lot of them, running after me and I slowed down as I reached the choir room. I sat down in a seat and buried my face in my hands. I felt multiple pairs of arms wrap themselves around me and felt people crouch down in front of me. I looked up from my hands to see Quinn, Sam, Tina, Blaine, Kurt, Santana, Rachel, and Finn "Why did you all follow me?" I asked "We wanted to make sure you were okay," Finn said worriedly, he and Sam were the ones crouched down in front of me "Yeah, carrot-top we're your friends," Santana said, ruffling my hair. I chuckled softly and wiped my eyes "You never told any of us that you felt that way" Kurt said, leaning his cheeks on top of my head and winding his arms around my neck from behind me "I didn't think it was relevant. I came here to start a new life, to be a new person and I didn't want you all looking at me differently, scared to say the wrong thing around me" I said as I felt Blaine intertwine his fingers with mine "Your past is part of who you are, part of the reason you're so strong Naya" Sam said, patting my knee "Naya, your our friend, one of the best people any of us have ever known. You always make us feel safe and appreciated and we want to make sure you feel like that too" Tina said, resting her head on my shoulder "We've all had tough times here, we've all known how it felt to be alone, we know how horrible it is. So, we wanted you to know, you are not alone. No matter how often your parents are away, no matter how many big events they miss, you will never be alone. One of us will always be there to celebrate with you" Quinn said, taking my other hand "Yeah, and if you ever feel alone, or anything you felt before you moved here, you can always come to one of us, okay? I—I'm sure we would all be fine if you wanted to stay with us if your feeling extra lonely one night or - or anything like that" Rachel said, smiling warmly at me "We love you, Naya. We will always, always be here for you, come hell or high water" Blaine said, squeezing my hand reassuringly. I  chuckled softly and sniffled a little "You guys are the best, I love you all so much" I said, smiling softly at all of them "We love you too, Naya" They said in unison before standing up and crowding around me. They wrapped me in one big group hug, holding me tightly and I felt so very safe and truly loved.
__________
We all sat in our seats in the auditorium, ready for Regionals. We girls were in our black dresses with gold lining and gold headbands whilst the boys were in black shirts and pants with gold suspenders and gold bow ties. I sat in between Mike and Quinn, with Blaine just behind me "And now, let's meet our judges for the 2012 Midwest Regionals! Deputy Zoning Commissioner Melba Jackson-Wright!
President of the Ohio Plumbers Union
Local 109, Mr. Harl Beindorf! And Central Ohio's number one late-night horror movie host..." "No," Finn said in shock "What, who is it?" I asked, turning back to him "Svengoobles!" The announcer declared. People around me got out of their seats, cheering and clapping. I laughed as Blaine scared Kurt but then squealed myself when Mike grabbed my shoulders and went 'BOO!' in my ear "And now, from Westerville, Ohio, the Dalton Academy Warblers!"
Stand — Lenny Kravitz (Sung By The Warblers)
During the song, Finn had gotten us all to stand up, even getting another opposing show choir to as well "Thank you. Just a reminder to please donate to one of our charity baskets. We're set up all around the auditorium. Just look for the Dalton blazer. Please, give what you can" Sebastian said in between songs. He looked over at me in the crowd and I smiled softly, to which he smiled hesitantly back before singing the
next song.
Glad You Came — The Wanted (Sung By The Warblers)
The show choir that had sat beside us, went up to the stage, really for their turn "And now, from Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow High School, the Golden Goblets!"
She Walks In Beauty — Eric Barnum (Sung By The Golden Goblets)
"Those Golden Goblet madrigal singers were way better than I thought they'd be," Puck said when we were backstage, getting ready for our performance "Are you high? I couldn't hear their instruments at all" Brittany exclaimed with a sour look on her face "Alright guys listen up. Don't let them get into your heads, okay? Stay focused on what we do best" Mr. Schue said, trying to be motivational "Being over dramatic?" I said, putting my hand up "No, Naya, singing" Mr. Schue said, hopping down from the piano stall he was standing on "Okay, show circle time, come on, let's huddle up!" Artie, gestured for us all to come together, so we did "Okay, uh. Finn...you wanted to start us off?" Mr. Schue said, putting his arms around Rachel and Blaine "Yeah. I know it's kind of short notice, but. after the competition, Rachel and I are going to get married. At the Justice of the Peace, at the Lima Municipal Centre," Finn said, shocking everyone into silence. I exchanged a look of surprise with Blaine, who I stood beside and he raised his eyebrows, not believing it either "There will be some light refreshments afterward, my dads and I were rolling finger sandwiches all night long" Rachel said, smiling excitedly "With everything that's happened lately, we thought a lot about what Mr. Schue said. We didn't want to wait anymore. We just want to live every day like it's our last. So we wanted to thank a lot of you guys that were supportive of our decision to get married" Finn said gratefully "And—and for those of you who maybe weren't the biggest fans of our impending nuptials, we thank you also. So after we in, we would really love it if all of you would come to our wedding" Rachel said, looking over at Blaine and me. We both smiled warmly at her, nodding our heads. There were a few claps and 'whoops' from within the group "Come on, bring it in!" Mr. Schue said and we all put our hands in the middle "A......mazing!" We shouted, throwing our hands in the air before going into the stage.
Fly / I Believe I Can Fly — Nicki Minaj Ft. Rihanna / R. Kelly (Sung By The New Directions)
What Doesn't Kill You {Stronger} — Kelly Clarkson (Sung By The Trouble Tones)
Here's To Us — Halestorm (Sung By The New Directions)
After the songs, all three show choirs came back onto the stage as we waited for the results. The stage crew wheeled a fake vampire coffin onto the stage, they place it down in the middle of the stage as ominous music played. They open the door and Svengoobles stepped out, hissing at the audience as cheers rang out through the auditorium. I laughed along with my friends as Blaine wrapped his arm around my waist "You okay?" He whispered "I'm fine, I spotted Lauren in the audience" I whispered back excitedly as Svengoobles walked to the microphone stand "I've crossed oceans of time to bring the results of this show choir competition," He said, earning himself another round of applause. He opened the third-place envelope "In third place, from Our Lady of Perpetual Sorrow, the Golden Goblets!" Svengoobles announced, the Golden Goblets cheered excitedly and roan down to claim their trophy. Blaine's grip on my waist tightened and I wrapped my arm around his waist, rubbing his side comfortingly "And now...the moment you've all been waiting for. The 2012
Midwest Regional Champion from
McKinley High...the New Directions!" Cheers echoed through the auditorium and I pulled Blaine into the tightest hug, before being pulled away by Santana and Quinn. They both grabbed my hands and we jumped up and down excitedly, cheering loudly. Blaine tapped me on the shoulder and gestured over to the Warblers, I smiled softly at him and nodded my head. Pulling myself away from Santana and Quinn, I took Blaine's hand and together we walked over to them. Blaine and Sebastian shook hands but when Sebastian held out his hand to me, I shook my head. He frowned at me but then chuckled softly as I pulled him into a hug "I'm truly sorry, Naya. Everything you said about me, was true. And from now on, I promise you I will try to change" He said as he hugged me back "I believe you, and I forgive you. As long as you don't try and steal my boyfriend again, we're cool" I said, pulling back from him slightly "I wouldn't dare, don't wanna risk getting punched again. Had a black eye for a week" He said, smirking "Sorry about that" I said, rubbing the back of my neck, embarrassed "Don't be, I deserved it" I smiled and nodded my head, pulling away from him completely. Blaine took my hand again and gently pulled me back over to the New Directions again.
__________
We walked off the stage and celebrated in the choir room for a little before deciding it was time for us to go and get ready for Finn and Rachel's wedding. I walked out, hand-in-hand with Blaine, I spotted Moriah, Jordan, and the kids at the end of the hall and I ran down to them, dragging Blaine along behind me. I let go of Blaine's hand and threw my arms around my big sister "I'm so proud of you!" She exclaimed, hugging me back tightly "Thank you," I said, nuzzling into her shoulder. She suddenly pulled back and placed her hands on my shoulders "There are some people who want to talk to you" She said vaguely before stepping away and gesturing toward one of the classrooms. Two people walked out, my mom and dad "We'll leave you to talk" Moriah said, grabbing Oliver and Esme's hands whilst Jordan did the same with Evangeline and Arthur. Blaine tried to leave as well, but I stuck my hand out, grabbing his "Stay, please" I whispered to him quietly. He nodded his head hesitantly and came to my side, holding my hand tightly "Mom, dad" I greeted "Naya, you were amazing, we had no idea you could sing that well" Mom said, placing her hand over her heart "That's because you were never around" I said, no emotion in my voice. My parents' smiles faded and they both looked over at Blaine "Who's this?" My dad asked "My boyfriend, Blaine Anderson" I said, squeezing Blaine's hand. My parents nodded their heads, extending their hands out to Blaine. He politely shook their hands, smiling warmly at them "Why did you come?" I asked, a wave of sudden anger washing over me "We wanted to see you sing" Mom said, smiling "Oh, honey, I'm so proud of you" She said, stepping forward to hug me. I stepped back, gently tugging Blaine with
me "No, you don't get to be proud. You didn't raise me, you haven't seen me grow up. Moriah gets to be proud of me, my teachers get to be proud of me, Blaine gets to be proud of me, and my friends get to be proud of me, but you don't. You didn't help me get to where I am today. Sure, you moved me away from LA and put me in this school, but that is the only beneficial thing you've done in my life" I said angrily "Naya, you should be grateful. If we hadn't moved you here you would still be depressed, or possibly even dead" My father said, crossing his arms "I was depressed because of you!" I shouted, letting go of Blaine's hand "Don't raise your voice at me, young lady" My father said sternly "No, I will raise my voice. I swallowed pills because I didn't feel loved. You care more about your careers than you do me, and that's just a fact. And don't give me that, 'we're your parents, we gave you life' crap because you're the reason I wanted to take my life away. I wasn't happy. But now I am, since I've been back with Moriah and I have new friends, and you have been out of my life. I realize now that I'm not alone. I am loved, just not by you" "Naya, we do love you we just-" "You just love your jobs more" "No, we work so much so that we can pay for your clothes and food and a big house" "I've never wanted fancy clothes, fancy food or a massive house! I just wanted parents that were there for me! Not materialistic people like you!" I shouted before grabbing Blaine's hand and storming off, leaving to get ready for the wedding.
___________
Rachel was pacing around in her wedding dress, she did look amazing. You could tell she was very stressed as we waited for Quinn to arrive. She kept texting her, over and over again but as far as I was aware she hadn't texted back. I sighed, leaning my head on Blaine's shoulder as he and Kurt were with the bridesmaids "You okay?" He whispered to me, I nodded my head and nestled closer to him "Can I come back to yours tonight?" He nodded his head and maneuvered himself so his arms were around me "Finn, out" Mercedes said sternly, as Finn and his groomsmen walked into the room we were in "You can't see the bride before the wedding" "I've already seen her" Finn said casually "What?!" I asked in shock "But that's bad luck" Tina said as shocked as me "No, it's fine" He said, brushing us off "Rachel, we gotta go right now or we're gonna lose our slot" "Could we please just wait a couple more minutes for Quinn, please?" Rachel begged desperately "It's now or never," Finn said dramatically. Rachel said nothing, just turning around to grab her phone again to text Quinn one more time. But the wedding never happened, Quinn never made it, and she didn't text Rachel back.