I want to stand out
Prompt: Losing your virginity on Prom night is a cliché. Losing your virginity on Prom night to your boyfriend's best friend is surprising. Left at the meme by pandiesboxx
Warning: None, other than has not been beta'ed and it's late.
Character: Puck/Rachel (Rachel/Finn)
Word Count: 2 558
Disclaimer: Don't own.
Something was off and she knew exactly what it was.
Had you asked her three years ago, when her life was a constant stream of up-hill battles to get her talent recognized only to be rewarded with nasty comments and slushies to the face, she would have said there was nothing good about it. And no, she would not give up the friends she has now, nor her boyfriend, to go back to those lonely days. And no, she doesn’t miss the huge dry-cleaning bills making a hole in her budget and rendering impossible her participation to any kind of paying social activity, had she ever been invited to one. And no, ... well let's just say, she remembers that it was bad.
But somewhere, deep down, where she won’t ever admit it to anyone because she doesn’t think she could explain it properly, she misses the recognition she used to get in those days.
Then, people laughed at her, but they laughed at her by name (they had to know it, to find her myspace account). Now, they either like that girl with the voice (and that’s definitely not the same) or worst, she’s just another anonymous face in the crowd for the ones that have no musical inclination and can’t rely on the weekly slushie show to notice her.
Then, principal Figgins tried to hide every single time she entered his office, but he knew who she was and who her dads were and the power of the ACLU. Now he smiles over her head when they meet in the hallways - since glee has won Nationals last year, she hasn’t had to defend the club’s rights to... well, anything.
Then, Mr. Shue was openly annoyed with her as soon as she opened her mouth and now - well actually, that hasn’t really changed, but now he knows her strength and he’s recognized that when it comes to competitions, it does each member of the club more good to actually win (scholarship, anyone?) then it would do any given member’s ego to get to perform the solo, so he hasn’t tried to take away one of her rightful song forever. That means she hasn’t had to storm out or diva-off or anything that would really make her stand out as more than the extremely talented co-captain of the club.
So she’s not famous anymore.
And being anonymous is worst than being poor. Fame is the most important thing in our culture*.
__
Everything is just too normal and that sentiment has been around for a while. Even her epic on again / off again romance with Finn felt like the expected thing for a first love, like every tv-show staging a high school was throwing back at her any given week day. (And yes, she realises how bad a thing it is to be thinking of it as her first love rather than her only love, but it’s something she’s had to come to terms with when he decided to attend OSU to be close to his (now sadly back to single) mom. There is no way she’s coming back to Lima every week-end once she starts university and that most likely means they will break up before the end of the summer, but there is nothing she can do about it now so she hasn’t even talked to him about it.)
Because she got accepted to Juilliard. And it made everything a lot worst, because she started worrying that if she wasn’t able to be recognized as a big fish in a small pond like Lima, how will she ever stand out in New York, where some of her peers would potentially, maybe be of equal talent? And how will she ever succeed if she doesn’t stand out?
So maybe she’s become a bit obsessed with distinguishing herself in the past weeks, and maybe it’s caused more than one fight with Finn. None as epic as this one though.
It’s Prom night and the voice of reason in her mind is telling her that she can’t be mad at her boyfriend for doing everything right. She still is.
She opened the door to him in his well cut black suit over white shirt and bow tie and she held back a sigh, thinking bland instead of yumm - and felt really bad for it. She had opted for her “Lady Ga-Ga” dress, because it was gorgeous and over the top and exactly the statement she wanted to make - unique! She had told him in advance too, not so much for color coordination but rather hoping for a similar statement from him. Apparently the message did not get across.
He looked a little annoyed when she asked if she could forgo the pretty white roses corsage he had brought her to the profit of the yellow-tipped orange gerberas she had bought herself. He said nothing though, because his mom told him that prom is like a mock wedding for teenage girls and that meant whatever the girl wants she should get.
They stepped out of the house and she did sigh. A limo. He had gotten them a white limo.
“Something wrong Rachel?”
It was already quite dark outside, that’s probably why he didn’t recognise her stage smile for what it was.
“No. No, not at all. It’s...”, (been done and over done), “classic, isn't it.”
“You don’t mind if we go pick up Mike and Brittany and Artie and Quinn, do you? The limo cost a bit so us guys thought we could all share.”
“No, it's great. We can start the party early.” She wasn't all that enthusiast about it (sharing the limelight? Never her first choice), but his smile was genuine, and so big it made her promise herself they would have a great night.
“My thought exactly”, he gave her a quick kiss on the lips and lead her to the door where the driver was waiting for them.
When they got to the hotel the prom was held at, they were one of no less than six limos pulled up at the same time. There was really nothing she could do against the annoyance that resurfaced inside her (well, at least she didn't have to share the limelight, there was none).
And it only got worst. Worst when she realized the evening would be spent talking to the same friends they talked to every day -the glee club, and like, three jocks that were not too douchey- and nobody else. Worst when Finn asked her if she minded hitting the dance floor with the other girls rather than with him for the fast songs because he still didn't felt at ease dancing without a pre-established choreography. Inexplicably, worst when she saw Noah Puckerman walk-in without a date in a bottle-green shirt and his Sammy Davis trousers with an matching unbuttoned waist coat showing suspenders underneath, holding a motorcycle helmet that got discarded promptly at the glee table before he went to ask a pretty brunette Rachel knew from literary club to dance (God, does the guy live inside her fantasy or what? (yes, yes he does. Shhh.)). And really, really worst when, in the middle of their first slow dance, Finn gave her a key card to the room he had reserved upstairs.
“What is that for?” She’s holding it between her fingers but looking right at him.
He blushes a little (a lot) answering her.
“Well, we don’t have to, obviously. But I thought it might be nice to have our first time here, tonight. Make it even more special, you know.”
No, they haven’t yet. And not because she’s not ready. Well, there was that at first, but then she would have been if only they had stopped breaking up every month or so, making the whole thing feel a little uncertain all the time. And when she decided that she was ready no matter what, that she just was, the whole him staying in Ohio thing happened and the certainty of their eventual break up made her wonder if it would be a good idea to have sex with him after all or if it would just make a big mess of everything.
None of that is what has her so annoyed with him.
“I can’t believe you.”
“Rach, I’m sorry. We really don’t have to. Really.”
“No, you know what? I can’t believe I haven’t seen this before. You. Are such a walking cliché.”
He’s lost for a moment. Fully expecting to have to defend his overture for sex has left him completely unprepared to defend his lack of originality. (What?)
“So?”
“Seriously. Have you ever had an original idea, ever? I mean, black tux, roses, white limo, hotel room, virginity, what else? Will you be giving me a promise ring in the morning? ”
Well, not after that little speech, he's not.
“It's classic Rachel. I thought... there must be a reason why so many people have done it before us, you know? I thought you would be pleased...”
“It's common, Finn. It’s unoriginal, run of the mill, standard, everybody does it. And I realise now that the appeal of being one of the group has always been strong for you. I should have noticed before. I don’t want to be one of the group, Finn. It’s boring to me, I want to stand out.”
She’s frowning, and he can tell that as fast as she’s talking, she’s thinking even faster. He might as well wait for her to get to the end of it because there is no way he can follow everything, let alone argue a point. Then he thinks he should have tried a little harder, because the first thing he knows she’s saying:
“I think it’s pointless to delay it further Finn. We clearly don’t want the same thing from life, and we will be going our separate way at the end of the summer anyway. We might as well finish it here. I’m sorry.”
She kisses his cheek and before he can say much of anything, she’s already out of the door.
___
She has been standing on the front step of the hotel for less than five minutes when she feels him behind her. She figured there was no point in staying in there trying to share the room with her (now ex-)boyfriend, making it uncomfortable for everyone. She’s just now realising that in Lima, there are no lines of yellow cab waiting for the pretty girl who just had an epiphany and now needs to be taken off to her destiny (ok, so maybe she was a little bit unfair. She does have her own cliché she'd love to live up to).
“Running off to buy condoms for the big night?”
She scoffs as she turns to look at him behind her shoulders. He’s a little sweaty and rumpled, but darn he still looks good. “You knew?”
“Of course”, he shrugs, and gets this little smile at the corner of his lips. “Helped him come up with the whole rationale of why he’s waited long enough for it already.” Oh yeah, the rationale she hadn’t been concerned with. “You don’t look happy, babe. Did he fuck it up? Cause I swear it make sense when put out there properly. Think about it.”
She shakes her head and gives him a sad smile. “I’m sure it does, in your heads. But unfortunately, your efforts were all wasted. Tonight turned out to be a huge disaster of bad tropes turning to worst and the bride ran out just before the wedding ceremony.”
It takes him a second to translate what she’s just said. “You broke up?”
“Yup”, she nods.
“Berry, I’m sorry. I didn’t think it was such a big deal. You guys have been together for ten months, I thought for sure...”
“Don’t be sorry, it’s not even that. Not really. I just realised that Finn and I may really like each other, but we don’t like the same things in life at all. It was fated to fail.”
There is really nothing to answer to that, so he doesn’t.
“You need a hug?”
“Always. It’s cold.” There's half a smile at the corner of her lips. She's sad but not broken hearted and that tells her it was more than time to do what she just did.
“I can believe that. That skirt’s not covering much of anything Berry.”
She smiles a little brighter and there is definitely a saucy tone in her voice when she says, “Maybe that was the point.”
He laughs with her cuddled against his chest and the deep rumbles of it mixed with his warmth and his smell (no cologne, just a hint of pine from his soap and a bit of sweat from the dancing) is turning her head. She doesn’t realise it, but she’s swaying a little in his arms to non-existent music and maybe, just maybe, she’s turning his head too.
“You want a ride home?”
“On that thing?” She looks at the motorcycle parked by the entrance, then up at him. He’s daring her, and she is tempted. Her eyes go back to the bike. She wishes she could have made her entrance on it, but maybe her exit would do it. “Is it even yours or will I end my prom night in a jail cell if I say yes?” She can’t help but think that that would indeed be something special.
“Not mine yet, borrowed it from my cousin. I’m thinking about it though. The truck wouldn’t be practical in New York but a motorbike might do it.”
“You’re going to New York?”
“NYU. Sport Management.”
She knows he wouldn’t be telling her that if he didn’t want her to know he was going to be in New York. She suddenly has a flash of herself running down the Juilliard front steps into the arms of a motorcycle riding Noah and she's tempted to pretend that it's her psychic gifts manifesting themselves.
“Couldn’t you do that somewhere else?” Her eyes are riveted to his face now.
“Yeah, but New York offers the best chance of me not actually having to finish that degree cause some big shot will discover me and make me the next bad-ass Rock n’ Roll star.” He smiles at her, a real smile, not a smirk and she makes a decision right then.
“You don’t have two helmets, you can’t drive me home.”
“You can have it. I’ll be careful.”
She pretends to ponder it for a second. “No. I wouldn’t want to have the death of the next bad-ass Rock n’ Roll star on my conscience, it’s not quite the something special I’m looking for.” They are both smiling now, they know this is going to be good. “I have a better idea though.”
She is still holding the key card in her hand and she looks right in his eyes to make sure he knows she’s completely serious. “Apparently, I have a room in this hotel. And it seems Prom night is just the night for first times...”
__
Losing your virginity on Prom night is a cliché and she doesn't do those. Losing your virginity on Prom night to your boyfriend's best friend is not though. And having it be the possible start of a steamy college romance, well that's nothing short of an adventure.
Warning: None, other than has not been beta'ed and it's late.
Character: Puck/Rachel (Rachel/Finn)
Word Count: 2 558
Disclaimer: Don't own.
Something was off and she knew exactly what it was.
Had you asked her three years ago, when her life was a constant stream of up-hill battles to get her talent recognized only to be rewarded with nasty comments and slushies to the face, she would have said there was nothing good about it. And no, she would not give up the friends she has now, nor her boyfriend, to go back to those lonely days. And no, she doesn’t miss the huge dry-cleaning bills making a hole in her budget and rendering impossible her participation to any kind of paying social activity, had she ever been invited to one. And no, ... well let's just say, she remembers that it was bad.
But somewhere, deep down, where she won’t ever admit it to anyone because she doesn’t think she could explain it properly, she misses the recognition she used to get in those days.
Then, people laughed at her, but they laughed at her by name (they had to know it, to find her myspace account). Now, they either like that girl with the voice (and that’s definitely not the same) or worst, she’s just another anonymous face in the crowd for the ones that have no musical inclination and can’t rely on the weekly slushie show to notice her.
Then, principal Figgins tried to hide every single time she entered his office, but he knew who she was and who her dads were and the power of the ACLU. Now he smiles over her head when they meet in the hallways - since glee has won Nationals last year, she hasn’t had to defend the club’s rights to... well, anything.
Then, Mr. Shue was openly annoyed with her as soon as she opened her mouth and now - well actually, that hasn’t really changed, but now he knows her strength and he’s recognized that when it comes to competitions, it does each member of the club more good to actually win (scholarship, anyone?) then it would do any given member’s ego to get to perform the solo, so he hasn’t tried to take away one of her rightful song forever. That means she hasn’t had to storm out or diva-off or anything that would really make her stand out as more than the extremely talented co-captain of the club.
So she’s not famous anymore.
And being anonymous is worst than being poor. Fame is the most important thing in our culture*.
__
Everything is just too normal and that sentiment has been around for a while. Even her epic on again / off again romance with Finn felt like the expected thing for a first love, like every tv-show staging a high school was throwing back at her any given week day. (And yes, she realises how bad a thing it is to be thinking of it as her first love rather than her only love, but it’s something she’s had to come to terms with when he decided to attend OSU to be close to his (now sadly back to single) mom. There is no way she’s coming back to Lima every week-end once she starts university and that most likely means they will break up before the end of the summer, but there is nothing she can do about it now so she hasn’t even talked to him about it.)
Because she got accepted to Juilliard. And it made everything a lot worst, because she started worrying that if she wasn’t able to be recognized as a big fish in a small pond like Lima, how will she ever stand out in New York, where some of her peers would potentially, maybe be of equal talent? And how will she ever succeed if she doesn’t stand out?
So maybe she’s become a bit obsessed with distinguishing herself in the past weeks, and maybe it’s caused more than one fight with Finn. None as epic as this one though.
It’s Prom night and the voice of reason in her mind is telling her that she can’t be mad at her boyfriend for doing everything right. She still is.
She opened the door to him in his well cut black suit over white shirt and bow tie and she held back a sigh, thinking bland instead of yumm - and felt really bad for it. She had opted for her “Lady Ga-Ga” dress, because it was gorgeous and over the top and exactly the statement she wanted to make - unique! She had told him in advance too, not so much for color coordination but rather hoping for a similar statement from him. Apparently the message did not get across.
He looked a little annoyed when she asked if she could forgo the pretty white roses corsage he had brought her to the profit of the yellow-tipped orange gerberas she had bought herself. He said nothing though, because his mom told him that prom is like a mock wedding for teenage girls and that meant whatever the girl wants she should get.
They stepped out of the house and she did sigh. A limo. He had gotten them a white limo.
“Something wrong Rachel?”
It was already quite dark outside, that’s probably why he didn’t recognise her stage smile for what it was.
“No. No, not at all. It’s...”, (been done and over done), “classic, isn't it.”
“You don’t mind if we go pick up Mike and Brittany and Artie and Quinn, do you? The limo cost a bit so us guys thought we could all share.”
“No, it's great. We can start the party early.” She wasn't all that enthusiast about it (sharing the limelight? Never her first choice), but his smile was genuine, and so big it made her promise herself they would have a great night.
“My thought exactly”, he gave her a quick kiss on the lips and lead her to the door where the driver was waiting for them.
When they got to the hotel the prom was held at, they were one of no less than six limos pulled up at the same time. There was really nothing she could do against the annoyance that resurfaced inside her (well, at least she didn't have to share the limelight, there was none).
And it only got worst. Worst when she realized the evening would be spent talking to the same friends they talked to every day -the glee club, and like, three jocks that were not too douchey- and nobody else. Worst when Finn asked her if she minded hitting the dance floor with the other girls rather than with him for the fast songs because he still didn't felt at ease dancing without a pre-established choreography. Inexplicably, worst when she saw Noah Puckerman walk-in without a date in a bottle-green shirt and his Sammy Davis trousers with an matching unbuttoned waist coat showing suspenders underneath, holding a motorcycle helmet that got discarded promptly at the glee table before he went to ask a pretty brunette Rachel knew from literary club to dance (God, does the guy live inside her fantasy or what? (yes, yes he does. Shhh.)). And really, really worst when, in the middle of their first slow dance, Finn gave her a key card to the room he had reserved upstairs.
“What is that for?” She’s holding it between her fingers but looking right at him.
He blushes a little (a lot) answering her.
“Well, we don’t have to, obviously. But I thought it might be nice to have our first time here, tonight. Make it even more special, you know.”
No, they haven’t yet. And not because she’s not ready. Well, there was that at first, but then she would have been if only they had stopped breaking up every month or so, making the whole thing feel a little uncertain all the time. And when she decided that she was ready no matter what, that she just was, the whole him staying in Ohio thing happened and the certainty of their eventual break up made her wonder if it would be a good idea to have sex with him after all or if it would just make a big mess of everything.
None of that is what has her so annoyed with him.
“I can’t believe you.”
“Rach, I’m sorry. We really don’t have to. Really.”
“No, you know what? I can’t believe I haven’t seen this before. You. Are such a walking cliché.”
He’s lost for a moment. Fully expecting to have to defend his overture for sex has left him completely unprepared to defend his lack of originality. (What?)
“So?”
“Seriously. Have you ever had an original idea, ever? I mean, black tux, roses, white limo, hotel room, virginity, what else? Will you be giving me a promise ring in the morning? ”
Well, not after that little speech, he's not.
“It's classic Rachel. I thought... there must be a reason why so many people have done it before us, you know? I thought you would be pleased...”
“It's common, Finn. It’s unoriginal, run of the mill, standard, everybody does it. And I realise now that the appeal of being one of the group has always been strong for you. I should have noticed before. I don’t want to be one of the group, Finn. It’s boring to me, I want to stand out.”
She’s frowning, and he can tell that as fast as she’s talking, she’s thinking even faster. He might as well wait for her to get to the end of it because there is no way he can follow everything, let alone argue a point. Then he thinks he should have tried a little harder, because the first thing he knows she’s saying:
“I think it’s pointless to delay it further Finn. We clearly don’t want the same thing from life, and we will be going our separate way at the end of the summer anyway. We might as well finish it here. I’m sorry.”
She kisses his cheek and before he can say much of anything, she’s already out of the door.
___
She has been standing on the front step of the hotel for less than five minutes when she feels him behind her. She figured there was no point in staying in there trying to share the room with her (now ex-)boyfriend, making it uncomfortable for everyone. She’s just now realising that in Lima, there are no lines of yellow cab waiting for the pretty girl who just had an epiphany and now needs to be taken off to her destiny (ok, so maybe she was a little bit unfair. She does have her own cliché she'd love to live up to).
“Running off to buy condoms for the big night?”
She scoffs as she turns to look at him behind her shoulders. He’s a little sweaty and rumpled, but darn he still looks good. “You knew?”
“Of course”, he shrugs, and gets this little smile at the corner of his lips. “Helped him come up with the whole rationale of why he’s waited long enough for it already.” Oh yeah, the rationale she hadn’t been concerned with. “You don’t look happy, babe. Did he fuck it up? Cause I swear it make sense when put out there properly. Think about it.”
She shakes her head and gives him a sad smile. “I’m sure it does, in your heads. But unfortunately, your efforts were all wasted. Tonight turned out to be a huge disaster of bad tropes turning to worst and the bride ran out just before the wedding ceremony.”
It takes him a second to translate what she’s just said. “You broke up?”
“Yup”, she nods.
“Berry, I’m sorry. I didn’t think it was such a big deal. You guys have been together for ten months, I thought for sure...”
“Don’t be sorry, it’s not even that. Not really. I just realised that Finn and I may really like each other, but we don’t like the same things in life at all. It was fated to fail.”
There is really nothing to answer to that, so he doesn’t.
“You need a hug?”
“Always. It’s cold.” There's half a smile at the corner of her lips. She's sad but not broken hearted and that tells her it was more than time to do what she just did.
“I can believe that. That skirt’s not covering much of anything Berry.”
She smiles a little brighter and there is definitely a saucy tone in her voice when she says, “Maybe that was the point.”
He laughs with her cuddled against his chest and the deep rumbles of it mixed with his warmth and his smell (no cologne, just a hint of pine from his soap and a bit of sweat from the dancing) is turning her head. She doesn’t realise it, but she’s swaying a little in his arms to non-existent music and maybe, just maybe, she’s turning his head too.
“You want a ride home?”
“On that thing?” She looks at the motorcycle parked by the entrance, then up at him. He’s daring her, and she is tempted. Her eyes go back to the bike. She wishes she could have made her entrance on it, but maybe her exit would do it. “Is it even yours or will I end my prom night in a jail cell if I say yes?” She can’t help but think that that would indeed be something special.
“Not mine yet, borrowed it from my cousin. I’m thinking about it though. The truck wouldn’t be practical in New York but a motorbike might do it.”
“You’re going to New York?”
“NYU. Sport Management.”
She knows he wouldn’t be telling her that if he didn’t want her to know he was going to be in New York. She suddenly has a flash of herself running down the Juilliard front steps into the arms of a motorcycle riding Noah and she's tempted to pretend that it's her psychic gifts manifesting themselves.
“Couldn’t you do that somewhere else?” Her eyes are riveted to his face now.
“Yeah, but New York offers the best chance of me not actually having to finish that degree cause some big shot will discover me and make me the next bad-ass Rock n’ Roll star.” He smiles at her, a real smile, not a smirk and she makes a decision right then.
“You don’t have two helmets, you can’t drive me home.”
“You can have it. I’ll be careful.”
She pretends to ponder it for a second. “No. I wouldn’t want to have the death of the next bad-ass Rock n’ Roll star on my conscience, it’s not quite the something special I’m looking for.” They are both smiling now, they know this is going to be good. “I have a better idea though.”
She is still holding the key card in her hand and she looks right in his eyes to make sure he knows she’s completely serious. “Apparently, I have a room in this hotel. And it seems Prom night is just the night for first times...”
__
Losing your virginity on Prom night is a cliché and she doesn't do those. Losing your virginity on Prom night to your boyfriend's best friend is not though. And having it be the possible start of a steamy college romance, well that's nothing short of an adventure.