is it too late to remind you how we were?; pg; rpf; lea/dianna (1/2)
Title: is it too late to remind you how we were? (1/2)
Author: yesssirrr
Pairing,Character(s): Lea/Dianna, side Naya/Heather, Lea/Cory, mention of Chris and Jenna
Rating: pg (slight curse words)
Word count: 4,148 (IKR! IT JUST RAN AWAY FROM ME AND WROTE ITSELF)
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: The people portrayed are real BUT THIS NEVER HAPPENED. THIS IS NOT REAL. DO NOT TAKE ME SERIOUSLY.
Summary: This is the sequel to where i fall is where i land. That was obviously really angsty and wasn't supposed to have a happy ending, but that didn't fly all too well with me. I needed for them to have a happy ending. And this is what I got. It was definitely about two-three thousand more words than I anticipated, so sorry for the long read.
A/N: title from Snow Patrol's song "You Could Be Happy"
;;
He's sitting on the couch with his hands together, head down. She sits on the coffee table in front of him and puts her hands on his. He doesn't look at her, just at their hands, at the ring on her finger.
“Why'd you say yes?” he finally mumbles out, no doubt trying to keep his emotions in check.
She tightens her grip on his hands. “Because I loved you. I still do. And I thought I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you.” He turns his head away, slowly shaking it.
“No, please listen. You have to believe me when I thought that's what I really wanted, at least at the time. You and I were a good match and we worked well enough together. But I can't hold it in my conscience to know that I'm just settling with you. You don't deserve to be with me when there's someone out there who's better suited to love you more and better than I ever can.”
He laughs bitterly and pulls his hands away from her, she flinches.
“I don't want someone else! I asked you to marry me because I know in my heart that you're the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. You said it yourself, we worked together.”
She swallows down her heart that's been lodged in her throat. “I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you or for this to end up this way.” She slowly walks up in front of him and opens his palms wide. She wriggles the ring free from her finger and places it in his hand before closing it. He tightens his grip on it and clenches his jaw, finding that she really was going through with this.
“Is it someone else?”
She hesitates. That's all the confirmation he needs.
“Did you sleep with him? Have you been cheating on me behind my back all this time? What's his name?” he asks, voice booming.
“No! I would never cheat on you like that. We've never done anything. I would never do that do you!”
“How can I trust that? Huh? How do I know you're not lying to me right now?”
“I would never, ever, do that to you,” she says to him, pleading.
“It's still cheating if you're thinking about someone else instead of your fiancé!”
“I-”
“What's his name?”
She doesn't know how to answer him because she's never seen this side of him before. His normally gentle and kind disposition seems like a distant memory to his angered towering figure.
“Dammit! What's his name?!”
She bites her lip as tears continue to prick her eyes. “Her name,” she says, slowly exhaling, looking at him in the eyes, “is Dianna.”
His eyes narrow considerably and he attempts to say something but nothing comes out. He tears himself away from her altogether and by the sheer force of his action, she stumbles backwards, feeling frightened of what he might do. He starts walking toward the apartment door and swings the door open.
“Get out,” his tone much quieter than moments earlier, still as angry.
“I'm sorry.”
“I said get out.”
She blinks the tears away as she regains herself and starts walking to the door. She stops in front of him, hands trembling and tries to touch his forearm. He snatches his arm away from her and takes a visible step back, still holding the door.
“I hope that maybe one day, you'll find it in your heart to forgive me.”
She turns around when she crosses the threshold, eyes brimming with tears. He looks at her, like really look at her, and the outrage is apparent in his otherwise normally kind eyes.
“Don't hold your breath,” he says angrily before slamming the door in her face. It takes her a little while to regroup herself, standing on his 'welcome' mat before her shoulders slump down and she begins walking away.
--
Lea's been sitting in the parking lot of Heather's apartment complex for the last thirty minutes, staring at her steering wheel. She knows she's the one that ended her relationship with Cory, but it doesn't make the hurt in seeing him that angry at her, something he rarely was, feel any less.
She's been trying to cry ever since she left but nothing has fallen down her cheeks at all. Aside from the ones that threatened to fall earlier, there hasn't been anything that remotely resembles a breakdown. For someone who can cry on cue, her face has been completely dry this entire time. She doesn't like it.
She jumps when her phone disrupts her thoughts.
"You've been sitting there for the past thirty minutes. And you called me an hour ago. Come on up here."
Lea looks out of her car to see Heather by her window, phone on her right ear, and Naya resting her head on the blonde's shoulder by the other ear, watching.
"Okay."
When she walks up the flight of stairs, she's grateful that Heather opens her door before she gets there.
"C'mere," is all Lea hears before she gets engulfed in a tight hug, with Heather's arms wide open and Naya following suit and hugging her from the other side, sandwiching her in.
They break apart after a little while and they go inside.
While Heather's making tea, Naya and Lea are waiting on the couch. Naya doesn't say anything to her and Lea appreciates the comforting silence right now. She's absentmindedly looking around the living room before she meets Naya's eyes beside her. She's looking at her, almost in understanding, Lea can't be sure, but the other girl only offers a kind smile.
When the blonde comes back, she hands Lea a mug before settling beside Naya.
"What happened?" Naya asks.
"I broke the engagement off with Cory." Heather's eyes are full of concern while Naya nods, her brown eyes looking down.
"Hence the ring."
Lea follows her gaze and sees her naked finger, without the ring she's been wearing for a little under a year.
"Yeah."
"Why?" Heather asks, moving to the other side of the couch to sit beside her and taking her hand. "What happened?"
“It wasn't working out.”
“Why not?”
Lea shakes her head, not sure how to answer that. It should have worked. They were the perfect couple. Both of them were talented, driven, and they were good for each other. But Lea couldn't go on in good conscience, knowing that she has feelings for someone else.
“So you waited to do it now…”
“What?”
“What made you do it now? If you've known for a while.”
“I-I don't know. I guess it just wasn't working out for me anymore and I-it's not fair to him that I'm stringing him along when my heart's not in it.” The three of them are quiet for a moment. Finally, Heather speaks up.
“Does this have to do with Dianna?”
“What? No. Why would- no,” she denies. Naya raises an eyebrow and Heather looks at her expectantly, both seeing through her bluff. “I don't know.” Heather puts a hand on her shoulder and speaks softly with a seriousness that rarely ever crosses the blonde's features.
“Lea, we love you, and we're here to support you. But you need to figure out what role Dianna plays in this.”
She nods mutely before burying her face in her hands. Heather starts rubbing her shoulder as Naya puts a hand on her back.
She doesn't realize she's crying, not until the tears pass through her fingers and fall on her jeans. The sad thing is, she knows that Dianna plays the biggest role in all of this. She just can't bring herself to admit it, knowing she's not only broken the other girl already, but she's also broken a good guy in the process.
--
He knocks vehemently on Dianna's door until the blonde opens it, looking frustrated and confused.
“Cory! What're you-” she starts to say, but gets cut off.
“You've been lying to me all this time!” he accuses, desperate to make sense of it all.
“What are you talking about?”
“Don't play dumb with me!” he yells, pointing at her, hurt and anguish written all over his face.
“Cory, I don't know what you're talking about.”
“Lea! She broke the engagement because she said she was in love with you.”
“She did what? That's not-why don't you come inside, you're making a scene,” she says as she opens the door wider.
“Look, don't pretend, okay? Just-” he says, not knowing what to do with himself, standing awkwardly in front of her.
“Cory, I know you're mad, but can you please just get inside. We can talk about it in here. C'mon,” she demands, yanking him by the hem of his shirt. Once she walks in, she shuts her door and faces him. “Don't look at me like this is my fault. I didn't know she was gonna do what she did. And I'd appreciate it if you calmed down.”
He nods at her, tries to gather his thoughts. She waits patiently for him, but there is deep concern in her eyes.
“I'm sorry, but I-” He fumbles over his words, lost and uncertain. He looks anywhere but her. She's waiting for him to continue, but when he doesn't, she walks toward him and places a hand on his arm.
“What is it?” she asks, her voice much softer now.
“So you guys didn't plan this? You two never cheated?” She can see that he's steeling himself for the worst, the betrayal of two people he cared for. It hurts her to see him like this. He's a good guy and one he doesn’t deserve this.
“No. You and I have been friends for a long time. You have to understand that I would never do that to you. And I didn't know she would do that.”
“If I had known she loved you, I wouldn't have done anything stupid, like propose to her.” He slumps in front of her and leans against the counter, feeling deflated - defeated. She attempts to meet his eyes, but each time she tries, he averts them away.
“Oh, Cory. I'm really sorry. I don't know what to say.”
“Did you two do anything together?” He sounds so small when he says it that for a moment, she doesn't see him as the grown man that he is, but as a young lost boy.
“No. I would never do that to you.”
“Yeah,” he sighs. “That's what she told me.”
There's a long pause that settles over them. Dianna doesn't so much as move from her spot in front of him, not knowing what to do with herself. She's never seen him this fragile that she doesn't want to be the cause of him completely coming undone. So she stands, she waits. He finally looks up at her.
“So are you in love with her too?”
It's a question she knows the answer to. She's known the answer for as long as she's known Lea. But she doesn't know how to answer him, and if she should answer. She wants to keep on lying, but that's why he's here, because someone kept the truth from him. And she can't do that to him anymore, not when he deserves better.
“Yeah.”
He rubs at his face, head down, trying his hardest not to fall apart in front of her. He falls on the barstool behind him. She cautiously takes a sit on the other barstool. “Why didn't you guys say anything to me? I'm not Finn. I can take care of myself.”
“We didn't want you to get hurt. And I’m not a home wrecker, Cory.”
“Yeah, I know.” They’re silent for a while before Cory speaks up again. “I'm sorry for barging in here like that.” Dianna shakes her head before putting her hand back on his arm again.
“Do you need anything? Can I do anything?” He laughs a little.
“Thanks, but no thanks. I'm not sure how to take getting help from the girl your ex-fiancée is in love with. It feels too much like a slap in the face.”
“I'm sorry, Cory.”
“Yeah, I know. Me too.”
He offers her a small sad smile, the best one he can muster. He eventually gets up and slowly walks to the door, not once glancing back in her direction before he pulls the door shut behind him.
PART TWO
Author: yesssirrr
Pairing,Character(s): Lea/Dianna, side Naya/Heather, Lea/Cory, mention of Chris and Jenna
Rating: pg (slight curse words)
Word count: 4,148 (IKR! IT JUST RAN AWAY FROM ME AND WROTE ITSELF)
Spoilers: None
Disclaimer: The people portrayed are real BUT THIS NEVER HAPPENED. THIS IS NOT REAL. DO NOT TAKE ME SERIOUSLY.
Summary: This is the sequel to where i fall is where i land. That was obviously really angsty and wasn't supposed to have a happy ending, but that didn't fly all too well with me. I needed for them to have a happy ending. And this is what I got. It was definitely about two-three thousand more words than I anticipated, so sorry for the long read.
A/N: title from Snow Patrol's song "You Could Be Happy"
;;
He's sitting on the couch with his hands together, head down. She sits on the coffee table in front of him and puts her hands on his. He doesn't look at her, just at their hands, at the ring on her finger.
“Why'd you say yes?” he finally mumbles out, no doubt trying to keep his emotions in check.
She tightens her grip on his hands. “Because I loved you. I still do. And I thought I wanted to spend the rest of my life with you.” He turns his head away, slowly shaking it.
“No, please listen. You have to believe me when I thought that's what I really wanted, at least at the time. You and I were a good match and we worked well enough together. But I can't hold it in my conscience to know that I'm just settling with you. You don't deserve to be with me when there's someone out there who's better suited to love you more and better than I ever can.”
He laughs bitterly and pulls his hands away from her, she flinches.
“I don't want someone else! I asked you to marry me because I know in my heart that you're the one I want to spend the rest of my life with. You said it yourself, we worked together.”
She swallows down her heart that's been lodged in her throat. “I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to hurt you or for this to end up this way.” She slowly walks up in front of him and opens his palms wide. She wriggles the ring free from her finger and places it in his hand before closing it. He tightens his grip on it and clenches his jaw, finding that she really was going through with this.
“Is it someone else?”
She hesitates. That's all the confirmation he needs.
“Did you sleep with him? Have you been cheating on me behind my back all this time? What's his name?” he asks, voice booming.
“No! I would never cheat on you like that. We've never done anything. I would never do that do you!”
“How can I trust that? Huh? How do I know you're not lying to me right now?”
“I would never, ever, do that to you,” she says to him, pleading.
“It's still cheating if you're thinking about someone else instead of your fiancé!”
“I-”
“What's his name?”
She doesn't know how to answer him because she's never seen this side of him before. His normally gentle and kind disposition seems like a distant memory to his angered towering figure.
“Dammit! What's his name?!”
She bites her lip as tears continue to prick her eyes. “Her name,” she says, slowly exhaling, looking at him in the eyes, “is Dianna.”
His eyes narrow considerably and he attempts to say something but nothing comes out. He tears himself away from her altogether and by the sheer force of his action, she stumbles backwards, feeling frightened of what he might do. He starts walking toward the apartment door and swings the door open.
“Get out,” his tone much quieter than moments earlier, still as angry.
“I'm sorry.”
“I said get out.”
She blinks the tears away as she regains herself and starts walking to the door. She stops in front of him, hands trembling and tries to touch his forearm. He snatches his arm away from her and takes a visible step back, still holding the door.
“I hope that maybe one day, you'll find it in your heart to forgive me.”
She turns around when she crosses the threshold, eyes brimming with tears. He looks at her, like really look at her, and the outrage is apparent in his otherwise normally kind eyes.
“Don't hold your breath,” he says angrily before slamming the door in her face. It takes her a little while to regroup herself, standing on his 'welcome' mat before her shoulders slump down and she begins walking away.
--
Lea's been sitting in the parking lot of Heather's apartment complex for the last thirty minutes, staring at her steering wheel. She knows she's the one that ended her relationship with Cory, but it doesn't make the hurt in seeing him that angry at her, something he rarely was, feel any less.
She's been trying to cry ever since she left but nothing has fallen down her cheeks at all. Aside from the ones that threatened to fall earlier, there hasn't been anything that remotely resembles a breakdown. For someone who can cry on cue, her face has been completely dry this entire time. She doesn't like it.
She jumps when her phone disrupts her thoughts.
"You've been sitting there for the past thirty minutes. And you called me an hour ago. Come on up here."
Lea looks out of her car to see Heather by her window, phone on her right ear, and Naya resting her head on the blonde's shoulder by the other ear, watching.
"Okay."
When she walks up the flight of stairs, she's grateful that Heather opens her door before she gets there.
"C'mere," is all Lea hears before she gets engulfed in a tight hug, with Heather's arms wide open and Naya following suit and hugging her from the other side, sandwiching her in.
They break apart after a little while and they go inside.
While Heather's making tea, Naya and Lea are waiting on the couch. Naya doesn't say anything to her and Lea appreciates the comforting silence right now. She's absentmindedly looking around the living room before she meets Naya's eyes beside her. She's looking at her, almost in understanding, Lea can't be sure, but the other girl only offers a kind smile.
When the blonde comes back, she hands Lea a mug before settling beside Naya.
"What happened?" Naya asks.
"I broke the engagement off with Cory." Heather's eyes are full of concern while Naya nods, her brown eyes looking down.
"Hence the ring."
Lea follows her gaze and sees her naked finger, without the ring she's been wearing for a little under a year.
"Yeah."
"Why?" Heather asks, moving to the other side of the couch to sit beside her and taking her hand. "What happened?"
“It wasn't working out.”
“Why not?”
Lea shakes her head, not sure how to answer that. It should have worked. They were the perfect couple. Both of them were talented, driven, and they were good for each other. But Lea couldn't go on in good conscience, knowing that she has feelings for someone else.
“So you waited to do it now…”
“What?”
“What made you do it now? If you've known for a while.”
“I-I don't know. I guess it just wasn't working out for me anymore and I-it's not fair to him that I'm stringing him along when my heart's not in it.” The three of them are quiet for a moment. Finally, Heather speaks up.
“Does this have to do with Dianna?”
“What? No. Why would- no,” she denies. Naya raises an eyebrow and Heather looks at her expectantly, both seeing through her bluff. “I don't know.” Heather puts a hand on her shoulder and speaks softly with a seriousness that rarely ever crosses the blonde's features.
“Lea, we love you, and we're here to support you. But you need to figure out what role Dianna plays in this.”
She nods mutely before burying her face in her hands. Heather starts rubbing her shoulder as Naya puts a hand on her back.
She doesn't realize she's crying, not until the tears pass through her fingers and fall on her jeans. The sad thing is, she knows that Dianna plays the biggest role in all of this. She just can't bring herself to admit it, knowing she's not only broken the other girl already, but she's also broken a good guy in the process.
--
He knocks vehemently on Dianna's door until the blonde opens it, looking frustrated and confused.
“Cory! What're you-” she starts to say, but gets cut off.
“You've been lying to me all this time!” he accuses, desperate to make sense of it all.
“What are you talking about?”
“Don't play dumb with me!” he yells, pointing at her, hurt and anguish written all over his face.
“Cory, I don't know what you're talking about.”
“Lea! She broke the engagement because she said she was in love with you.”
“She did what? That's not-why don't you come inside, you're making a scene,” she says as she opens the door wider.
“Look, don't pretend, okay? Just-” he says, not knowing what to do with himself, standing awkwardly in front of her.
“Cory, I know you're mad, but can you please just get inside. We can talk about it in here. C'mon,” she demands, yanking him by the hem of his shirt. Once she walks in, she shuts her door and faces him. “Don't look at me like this is my fault. I didn't know she was gonna do what she did. And I'd appreciate it if you calmed down.”
He nods at her, tries to gather his thoughts. She waits patiently for him, but there is deep concern in her eyes.
“I'm sorry, but I-” He fumbles over his words, lost and uncertain. He looks anywhere but her. She's waiting for him to continue, but when he doesn't, she walks toward him and places a hand on his arm.
“What is it?” she asks, her voice much softer now.
“So you guys didn't plan this? You two never cheated?” She can see that he's steeling himself for the worst, the betrayal of two people he cared for. It hurts her to see him like this. He's a good guy and one he doesn’t deserve this.
“No. You and I have been friends for a long time. You have to understand that I would never do that to you. And I didn't know she would do that.”
“If I had known she loved you, I wouldn't have done anything stupid, like propose to her.” He slumps in front of her and leans against the counter, feeling deflated - defeated. She attempts to meet his eyes, but each time she tries, he averts them away.
“Oh, Cory. I'm really sorry. I don't know what to say.”
“Did you two do anything together?” He sounds so small when he says it that for a moment, she doesn't see him as the grown man that he is, but as a young lost boy.
“No. I would never do that to you.”
“Yeah,” he sighs. “That's what she told me.”
There's a long pause that settles over them. Dianna doesn't so much as move from her spot in front of him, not knowing what to do with herself. She's never seen him this fragile that she doesn't want to be the cause of him completely coming undone. So she stands, she waits. He finally looks up at her.
“So are you in love with her too?”
It's a question she knows the answer to. She's known the answer for as long as she's known Lea. But she doesn't know how to answer him, and if she should answer. She wants to keep on lying, but that's why he's here, because someone kept the truth from him. And she can't do that to him anymore, not when he deserves better.
“Yeah.”
He rubs at his face, head down, trying his hardest not to fall apart in front of her. He falls on the barstool behind him. She cautiously takes a sit on the other barstool. “Why didn't you guys say anything to me? I'm not Finn. I can take care of myself.”
“We didn't want you to get hurt. And I’m not a home wrecker, Cory.”
“Yeah, I know.” They’re silent for a while before Cory speaks up again. “I'm sorry for barging in here like that.” Dianna shakes her head before putting her hand back on his arm again.
“Do you need anything? Can I do anything?” He laughs a little.
“Thanks, but no thanks. I'm not sure how to take getting help from the girl your ex-fiancée is in love with. It feels too much like a slap in the face.”
“I'm sorry, Cory.”
“Yeah, I know. Me too.”
He offers her a small sad smile, the best one he can muster. He eventually gets up and slowly walks to the door, not once glancing back in her direction before he pulls the door shut behind him.
PART TWO