𝗚𝗟𝗘𝗘 | 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗔𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻

𝐆𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞

CHAPTER XXV : GLEASE

"Alright, guys, listen up. I have an announcement to make" Mr. Schue said, turning to face the class with a solemn look on his face. I sat on the opposite end of the room to Blaine, In between Sugar and Joe. I could feel the weight of Blaine's eyes on me but I refused to give in and look at him "Adele is dead" Brittany guessed, making people gasp "No. I have been asked to join a blue ribbon panel to rewrite the arts curriculum nationwide" Everybody cheered loudly and congratulated Mr.
Schue "I'll be taking a short sabbatical, which means I'm leaving McKinley at the end of the week" "What? This is crazy" Tina said in shock "But Glee Club is your life" Artie protested "Which is why this is only temporary. I'll be back right after Sectionals" Mr. Schue announced, outraging everyone even more "Wait—after Sectionals?!" Tina shouted "Guys, guys, calm down. Look, I knew I needed to find a replacement, which is why I brought in Finn Hudson" I clapped loudly as Finn stood up from his seat but I was the only one who did so "Mr. Schue, Finn cannot take over Glee Club. He doesn't know what he's doing at all. Sorry, Finn" Tina said frustratedly "Shut up, Tina. Of course, Finn can do it. He's an amazing singer, an amazing friend, and an amazing mentor. He's perfect for the role" I said, smiling warmly at Finn "Yeah, Naya's right. Finn would do great" Blaine said and I turned to look at him, narrowing my eyes "Don't agree with me just to get back into my good graces. Only agree if you actually believe that, and I can tell by the tone of your voice that you don't" I said, crossing my arms "How can you tell by the tone of my voice?" "We dated for a year Blaine, you have a variety of voices and this voice is an 'oops I've done something wrong, better suck up to Naya so she won't be mad' voice, you used it with the whole Sebastian thing, and plenty of other arguments" "Well, if you would just forgive me I wouldn't be using this voice" "Never gonna happen!" "Naya, Blaine, can you save that for after Glee Club?" Mr. Schue said, interrupting us. I slumped back down into my seat, my frown prominent on my face. Sam, who sat in front of me, turned around and patted my knee gently and comfortingly "Guys, look I know I can do this" Finn said, changing the subject back "And I've got some really great ideas for Sectionals" "Well all be dead by then!" Tina exclaimed and the entire class broke out into shouts "Finn doesn't know how to direct a musical!" "Finn Hudson, Schuester"  Sue said, walking into the room "Figgins' office, right now"
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Tina and I were put in charge of costumes. I don't completely know why I was because I was already a director but I was. We were trying to help Marley into her costume but for some reason, it wasn't fitting "Okay, hold on and suck in" Tina said as we tried to force the zipper of the skirt up "I am. I don't understand. This fit yesterday" Marley exclaimed frustratedly "Maybe it's stress bloating I get it all the time" Tina suggested. I place a hand on Marley's shoulder and squeezed it reassuringly "I'm sure it's nothing to worry about Marls. We'll fix it" I said "Hey, Tina, Naya" Brittany, and Sugar said in silly voices, getting us to look at them. They stood in their outfits, looking fabulous "You guys look amazing. We did a good job didn't we Tina?" I said, holding my hand up for her to high-five "We sure did" She said slapping her hand against me "I'm here for my fitting. Where's Harajuku Girl and Loopy Libs?" Kitty asked, coming up to us "I don't like this girl" I muttered to Marley before turning to face Kitty "I thought you quit because your part was too small" Sugar asked sassily "Well, Well, Spray-Tanned Hawk Nose, to quote Shakespeare, 'There are no small parts, only fat actresses'. Oh, I'm sorry. Did I just say 'fat?' I was distracted by Marley's unfortunate and very noticeable weight gain. I'm confused.
Are you playing the lead in Grease or
Hairspray" She said snidely "I swear I'm not eating any differently," Marley said as she still tried to force the zipper up "How is this happening?" "I usually don't believe in the lamestream media's definition of
'science,' but it just makes sense that your metabolism is grinding to a halt. You're getting the body you were destined to have. I had to accept how I am. I spend almost every weekend alone because everyone just assumes that the popular girl's busy. I'm doing this play because I could use some friends. Real ones. So, in the spirit of Grease, I thought it would be a good way for us to get to know each other, if we had a sleepover" I frowned as everyone around me celebrated, there was something about this 'sleepover' that had a bad feeling to it "Sleepover?" Sugar asked excitedly "Tomorrow night, my place? Just us girls" "Can I come?" Unique asked hopefully "I'm not going if Unique's not invited" Marley quickly said "Neither am I," I said, squeezing Marley's shoulder reassuringly again "Please?" Sugar begged "Ladyboy can come. But if I catch you hiding your dinky between your legs and prancing around like Silence of the Lambs, you're out"
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For some reason, rehearsal was at Finn's stepdad's tire shop. I arrived with Ryder, Sam, Jake, and Joe and they were not impressed "You sure you wrote down the right address?" Ryder asked as he looked around "Yeah, well, Finn works here" Sam said, rutting his hands in his pockets as he and I looked around for Finn "And we're supposed to rehearse here?" Joe asked confusedly "Guys, it's perfect," Finn said, revealing himself from under a car. I extended a hand down to him and helped pull him to his feet "Kills two birds with one stone. I got to overhaul this jalopy, and you guys need to figure out how to be convincing grease monkeys" "We're going full-on method rehearsal" Mike said as he and Artie rolled in from out of nowhere "Fine, what am I doing here?" I asked "You're my co-director, I need you to help me direct. Plus, you and Tina are in charge of costumes, figured you should see what real grease monkeys looked like so you can recreate the look perfectly" I nodded my head in understanding "I've never even changed the oil in my car—I can't fix this" Ryder said, throwing his hands up in defense "I cannot believe you got this part over me" Jake said bitterly "Right, right. Look, acting is all about knowing the material, right? The themes.
So, what is Grease all about?" Finn asked, as I picked up on the tension between Ryder and Jake and I think so did Finn "Well, it's about fixing cars and getting—getting grease under your fingernails, and about signing a blood oath with your brother—and sisters and sisters 'cause girls can be grease monkeys too—to the very end" Finn said, noticing the look I gave him "Preach, brother. That's totally the theme" Artie said, fist-bumping Finn "Okay, but where should we...? I mean there's no stage or anything" Joe pointed out "Look out there. Imagine an audience anxiously awaiting your arrival. And look up there. Spotlights" Finn said, waving his hands around. He walked over to the car and popped the hood "And—and look right here...and what do you see?" He asked Ryder who bent over the engine of the car "An old clunker" Ryder said confusedly and I had to stifle a laugh "Well, yeah, it's an old clunker. Look again. Tell me what Danny Zuko sees"
Greased Lightnin' — Grease (Sung By Ryder, Sam, Joe, Jake, Mike, Finn & Artie)
I didn't sing with them but Sam pulled me up to dance with them a little "Wow. Good start. Now, let's try it again but with like, double the energy!"
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Unique, Brittany, Sugar, Tina and I walked into Kitty's bedroom for the sleepover, carrying a bunch of snacks "Triple layer fudge cake, yo!" Sugar exclaimed excitedly "Kettle Corn and pizza!" Tina announced, placing it down on the bed "And chocolate donuts! Unique loves her delicious, chocolatey Krispy Kreme" Unique said, stuffing a donut in her mouth "Dig in, everybody, and then we'll have pillow fights and ghost stories and prayer circles and back rubs. Want a donut, Marley?" Kitty asked, and I glared at the back of her head "Are there any healthy snacks?" Marley asked self-consciously "You can eat Kleenex. They taste like clouds" Brittany said, taking a bite of her donut "Honey, we need to have a little talk" Kitty said, pulling Marley away. She shot Unique and me a worried look before allowing Kitty to take her into the bathroom. The rest of us sat down n Kitty's bed and started chatting "So, Naya, how are things with you and Blaine?" Sugar asked somewhat insensitively. Tina slapped Sugar's arm, trying to shut her up but I took a deep breath and decided to answer "It's hard but you know, I'm working through it" I said, picking up a donut "Maybe you should just forgive him, it might be what's best for you" Tina suggested "I mean, we saw that argument in Glee, you guys obviously have some residual tension. Maybe forgiving him will get rid of that and then you guys can move past this, maybe even become friends eventually" "I don't know, It's just so hard to even look at him, I just feel so hurt and angry. If I try and talk to him, I'll end up blowing up at him, maybe I will forgive him eventually but I just need a couple more weeks to, you know, cool down" They all nodded in understanding as Kitty came out of the bathroom, tying her hair up and going into her wardrobe. She re-emerged with a brown wig on "Hey, where's Marley?" Sugar asked, looking around the room "Why I'm right here? Wearing my signature Newsies cap with my mud-brown hair. I'm gonna buy my bargain-basement eyes and steal your boyfriends, just like I stole the lead in the fall musical" Kitty said mockingly. I exchanged a look with Unique as she clicked her fingers and the music played. We both subconsciously agreed to join in the song but if the teasing went beyond what seemed friendly we would stop.
Look At Me, I'm Sandra Dee — Grease (Sung By Kitty With Unique, Brittany, Sugar, Tina & Naya)
"Are you making fun of me, Kitty?" Marley asked, coming out of the bathroom "Some people are too touchy" Kitty said taking off the wig.
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"Of course, I can play Rizzo," Santana said turning around. Finn had called her the second he found Unique wasn't allowed to play Rizzo and I couldn't have been happier that she was back "Are you sure? We open tomorrow and we just gave you the script" Artie asked worriedly "I was born to play this role. I've known it by heart since I was one, Artie, come on" She said matter-of-factly "So, what are you doing in town, Santana?" Joe asked "Shut up. Who cares?" Sugar hissed "Yeah, the important thing is that she's here, so the show can go on," Brittany said excitedly. Tina walked into the room, dressed as Rizzo and everyone stared at her confusedly "This one fits. I just looked at the lines for Rizzo, and I think I can be off-book by Friday. I may have to hold a script in the second act" She said quickly "Sorry, Tina. I called Santana. She was the obvious choice for me. And if you played Rizzo, then we wouldn't have a Jan" Finn said awkwardly "You have got to be kidding me" Tina said frustratedly.
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"Tina! Naya!" Marley shouted, running up to Tina and me "I'm sorry I've been starving myself all week" "How could you have gained two inches in one day?" Tina asked confusedly, sharing a look of shock with me "I don't know" Marley said, trying not to cry "Maybe we can hot glue an elastic band on?" I suggested, rummaging through the fabrics and buttons and all that stuff looking for an elastic band whilst Tina grabbed the hot glue gun. We fixed the costume as quickly as possible but Marley had run off somewhere so Tina went to help someone else. I hung up some of the clothes that had fallen when I felt a tap on my shoulder. I turned around to see Blaine "Can you help me fix my collar? It's all messed up at the back" He asked and I nodded my head silently. He turned around and I folded over the collar of his shirt, patting his back gently to let him know I was done "Your sweater is over at your dressing table, by the way" I said quietly when he didn't leave straight away "Naya, I get that we aren't going to get back together any time soon, but can't we at least be friends?" He asked. I looked up at him and shook my head sadly "I'm sorry, it's too soon" I said, looking away from him "I miss you" "Yeah, well whose fault is that?" I said, spotting Rachel and Kurt behind him. A smile blossomed on my face and I gently pushed past Blaine jumping into Kurt's arms "You guys came! Oh, my God!" I said excitedly hugging them both as tightly as I could. They both pulled me away from Blaine and sat me down at one of the dressing tables "What's up with you and Blaine? You guys were all weird when you came to New York a few weeks ago and then you left with Finn without saying goodbye and now you guys are all awkward and he says he misses you and you saying it's his fault" Rachel said, speaking so quickly, I could only just understand her "He cheated, so we broke up" I said bluntly, shrugging my shoulders "Oh, Naya, we're so sorry" Kurt said, putting sympathetically "It's fine, yeah it hurt but I at least I know we weren't meant to be together and I didn't waste any more of my time in that relationship" I said, getting up and out of my seat "If you'll excuse me, I have costumes to fix"
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I was backstage with Finn as the play went on well. Everything was going wonderfully and by the time we got to Blaine's scene, I was actually in a good mood. But then he came on and my smile faded. Just hearing his voice, one that used to sing to me with so much love, void of its usual passion brought tears to my eyes. Finn, noticing this, put his arm around my shoulders comfortingly. I smiled up at him gratefully and rested my head on his shoulder.
Beauty School Dropout — Grease (Sung By Blaine)
During the song, he glanced over into the wings and spotted me. His smile faded for a second and I felt my heart break for the millionth time in three weeks.
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You're The One That I Want — Grease (Sung By Ryder, Marley, Finn, Rachel, Tina, Mike, Santana, Brittany, Blaine & Naya)
During the song, I imagined it was Blaine and I instead of Marley and Ryder. I felt tears well up in my eyes and I pulled away from Finn. I ran out of the auditorium and heard footsteps following me. I stopped in the middle of the hall and the person that followed me put their arms around me, hugging me tightly. I looked up and it was Blaine. I pushed him away harshly and tried to walk away again but he grabbed my hand stopping me "Blaine, let go of my hand. You don't get to hold my hand anymore" I said sternly, my voice wavering "I need to talk to you, I was going to and then you ran out of there crying" "We've already talked, I told you everything I had to say" "But I didn't get to talk. I realized I never told you what happened. The guy that I hooked up with—I need you to know everything" "What are you gonna tell me? That it wasn't serious? That you only made out? That you didn't care about him?" "I didn't care" "Well, guess what, you've already told me that. Do you think any of that matters to me? Relationships are about trust...and I don't trust you anymore—I've already told you this. We're having the same conversation we've been having for the past few weeks. Do you wanna know why I was crying?
Because I was imagining that, that was us up there, not Marley and Ryder, us.
Because you are the one I want. You're always going to be the one I want. I still love you, so much. And it's killing me.
Everyone's telling me to forgive you so we can move on and be friends. But I can't forgive you, you were the one person who was never supposed to hurt me. But now you're the one that's hurt me the most. So, please. I don't about hear about this guy, I don't want to hear about your hook-up. I want to go home, away from you" "Naya, please-" "No! Blaine, please stop! I can't take it anymore! It hurts too much! Can't you understand that? This is killing me I can't handle it, so you need to let me go before I completely break down. Don't talk to me. Not until I'm ready. When I'm ready I'll come to you but until then, don't talk to me, don't look at me, don't even think about me!" I shouted before walking off, away from him whilst sobbing.
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In the choir room, Artie was reading out one of the reviews for the production.
When I walked in, everyone was staring not-so-discreetly at my red-rimmed eyes and tear-stained cheeks.
I walked straight over to Finn and sat down beside him. Over the past couple of weeks, Finn had become my biggest source of comfort as he was going through a similar thing to me and I was so grateful for him and so glad that he was going to be coaching the Glee Club for three months. He took my hand and squeezed it comfortingly and in a friendly manner, and he held onto it for the rest of the time "Watching the skill, the nuance, this reviewer was forced to ask himself, Is this not how it felt? And might the directing team of Mr. Hudson, Mr. Abrams, and Ms. Vasquez be headed for careers at NASA? They should be because last night they plucked stars from the firmament and named them Marley Rose and Ryder Lynn. Has ever an audience been so enraptured Mayhap? But when the last breath of life crosses this reviewer's lips 'Grease, McKinley, Bravo" He read from his tablet "Guys, Fletcher Mantini's just a sophomore, but he's a notoriously tough critic. And that's what I call a rave review. Man, this week hasn't been easy, knowing it was the last time I was gonna see you guys for a while. But one thing that's helped is knowing that I'm leaving you in good hands. Here's one person who loves the Glee Club as much as I do, it's Finn. And I know in my heart that he has what it takes to get you guys a win at sectionals. I have so much to thank you, guys, for. Not just for making every day of my life an absolute joy...but for giving me this chance to share that joy with others. I'm gonna see you guys in a few months, but hopefully, there'll be a brand-new sectionals trophy in that case over there. I love you guys. I'm gonna miss you"