BETTER THAN YESTERDAY

he slid the final plate onto the rack, racked the sled with a quiet metallic clang, and sat up, dragging the back of his hand across his forehead before reaching for his water bottle. it wasn't until he caught movement out of the corner of his eye that he realized someone had stopped nearby. his gaze flicked toward the leg press before returning to his new spotter. "you want to work in?" he asked between breaths, one corner of his mouth pulling into a tired smile, "i've got one more set, but i'm headed to squat next."

　　☠︎︎　　gyms weren’t really indiana’s scene .  they’d say that about most places, but they really meant it this time. however, it was clear that those she surrounded herself with didn’t seem to hold the same contempt for the place. “ god no, ” indy replied, the offer pulling a genuine laugh from their chest. “ the day i say yes to that offer is the day after i’ve been body snatched by aliens, okay ? ”

as co-captain of the new directions and someone still living in shame from last year's disastrous competition season, stella firmly believed that it was her duty to ensure that each and every new directions member was taking things seriously. not just in their group rehearsals, but outside of them too.

which was why she'd taken to cornering new directioners in public settings, appearing seemingly out of thin air beside them in a way that might terrify those with a weaker constitution. luckily, her voice alerted people to her presence soon after. that day's opening line? "hope you're excited about this week's show choir assignment," words she delivered with an only vaguely threatening smile.

"randomized pairing mashups - how fun! i recommend booking the choir room for your rehearsals sooner, rather than later, before it's monopolized by other - lesser and non-performance related - activities."

　　☠︎︎　　“ oh my god , so excited ! ” with a cheery tone that just reeked of sarcasm .  “ you’re using excited and show choir assignment in the same sentence. does that not feel weird to you ? ” then, not exactly damage control ( indiana had meant to say what they said ) but something along the lines of it. “ scratch that, you said excited and assignment in the same sentence. ”

but, honestly, they had kind of lucked out in the random partner assignment when they got noemi. indy wasn’t the type to sing her praises from the rooftop. the lack of complaints were a form of compliments. in a backwards way. “ you must’ve gotten to my partner first, or they’ve got some impressive rah rah team spirit. noems has already booked us a slot. ”

He quirked a look at her– grin, raised brow, questioning. No need to go back to his car if she had the lighter, but he wasn’t going to argue if she wanted to get away. He could use a break from the party anyway.

“Down the block.” He dug for the keys in his pocket, motioning for her to follow along. A few steps in, “I’ll get you back up here too. Might head out after.”

　　☠︎︎　　“ they’ll never believe you if you try to tell the tale . ”  even indiana didn’t know exactly who they were. the same mysterious group always referenced in conspiracy theories. “ big foot, aliens, indy presley’s the savior. all equally absurd. ” they totally believed in aliens, but that wasn’t a conversation to be had with lucas shepherd. even they shared glee club, she preferred to present as nothing more than an extra body to fill a chair. no more personality than some ( capitalistic cash grab ) talking punk doll. pull the string for sarcasm !

the offer to bring them back after had good intentions, but that didn’t stop indy from laughing. “ god forbid i miss out on too much of this frat party. ” they had shown up, so they couldn’t claim to be totally above it. that didn’t mean she had to like it. a reoccurring theme, it seemed.

money had been tight this semester. it always was, but emery was really feeling it. she didn't want to pick up another thing on her plate, but she knew she couldn't ask her mom for help. she was already on a work-study and as many scholarships as she could have picked up, but there was not a ton out there for girls who almost made the top 20% of their class. so, a regular old boring job it was.

　　☠︎︎　　nostalgia was a lying bitch .  clearly, something that indiana was above. the reason they hadn’t turned and left fabray’s immediately was because of complete and total emotional neutrality. not at all because they hadn’t seen emery working the counter. it’s not like they checked to make sure old friends weren’t lurking around every corner, but they would have noticed if she had been there upon entering. then, yeah, probably a swift turn around and walking out. sue her !

"I don't really have a song that represents me," Noemi admitted. At least, nothing that would be fun. They knew everyone would do Broadway hits or Top 40s from the last forty years, and she was sure a rendition of one of her own original pieces or Weird Al's My Bologna would not bode over well with their peers.

"But I can harmonize with almost anything," she added, tapping her fingers absentmindedly on the keys to play Twinkle Twinkle Little Star. "Do you have a pick?" Always a follower. Maybe if they knew Indy's, they could bounce off of that.

　　☠︎︎　　“ it’s a totally stupid cliche anyways. ”  noemi didn’t seem the type to analyse any choices indy put forward if they hadn’t given the disclaimer, but now wasn’t the time to find out. “ i haven’t really given this assignment much thought, but i was listening to recipe for disaster by honey revenge recently. they do these oh oh oh bits towards the end of the chorus that made me think of jet pack blues. fall out boy. except the verses would require a lot of tweaking. they’re much slower. ” which definitely sounded like someone that hadn’t thought about it much. “ or where did the party go might be a better fall out boy song. ”

then followed by the shake of her head. “ chiller options, ” they said out loud, as if it would magically pop something into their head. between the piano and general vibe, she figured her partner might want something a little . . . less. “ i like halsey. mainstream enough for the others to still enjoy. did that new version of britney’s lucky — do you think it’s cheating to mash those up ? ” they took a step back, figuratively and literally.

miss eleanor took it upon herself to host an extra practice for new directioners... and nobody showed up! she's totally crashing out now, so. good luck!

　　☠︎︎　　there should have been level of empathy for the complete ghosting .  really, they were glad that they had not been the only one to miss the memo. considering the amount they tuned out in the choir room, it wouldn’t have been all that surprising if they were. “ oh, i’m not late to this. ” which absolutely was not reassurance. something more akin to salt in the wound. “ i left my book here earlier. ” purposefully vague to not admit the personal contents of the notebook. its relevance to glee club.

thankfully, eleanor seemed more preoccupied with her own spiral to care about indiana.

Noemi Ibarra was not scared of most things. She could handle death, horror movie jumpscares, killer clowns circa 2016, and the list went on. Her number one fear? Pissing Stella Nasr off. As much as they could be a background swayer, Noemi took that job seriously enough to refrain from the wrath of her more divalicious counterparts. Her second fear? Actually performing front and center.

So, it was safe to say that she took no time to book a time for herself and Indy to rehearse, and she wanted to get ahead of the game so she could prepare both physically and mentally for the day. Noemi felt lucky enough to even be paired with Indy who she felt wouldn't give her shit or tell her what to do the entire time.

"Hey," she greeted when she caught Indy in her peripheral vision with about as much enthusiasm as Eeyore. Conversation didn't come easily to Noemi, so all they added was, "How 'bout Lunch Lady Bert's tuna sandwich?" She had not eaten it.

　　☠︎︎　　indiana would never admit it ,  but there were upsides to the presence of more overbearing new directioners. a shield, a scapegoat. an explanation for any thing above bare minimum. realistically, they did not fear pissing off any show choir god — or whatever else stella and julian would swear were natural consequences. perhaps true considering those two were the closest they had.

so she let them drag her by the hand. more work for them. ( unfair if she didn’t think they actually kinda liked bossing people around ! ) an apathetic shield. “ hey. ” it was how they could justify active participation in mash up week without looking too eager. noemi booked the space for them, so there was no need to show initiative. thank god.

　　☠︎︎　　there was a socially correct way to respond to this situation .  indy was sure of it. going for gold, probably offering to help. as a part of the chronic underachievers club . . . indiana would not be the knight in shining armour.

leave the man his dignity ! turn around and pretend you didn’t see. or hear. well, that was just unrealistic ! his one man show of alien’s first store trip rivaled the performances demonstrated by the new friends? acquaintances they had met in glee club. including stella ! the late hour had cast silence over the store. anyone in any aisle would have heard. unfortunately, indy was an anyone in this aisle.

the worst option by far — stand and stare. ding, ding, ding ! we have a winner ! perhaps they had booked a role without being aware of it, because they weren’t acting like a well adjusted human either. this was a scene pre - the discovery of empathy.

　　☠︎︎　　the request itself was inoffensive ,  but there was something about the pat of obviously empty pockets that made indy's eyes roll. they reach down, mimicking his movements for just a moment before they produced the white bic. disposable, in the sense that parties were often the last seen location of lighters. it had to be something she would willing it part with to even consider offering it up. a sentiment that seemed disproven by the sharpie designs that adorned the supposedly irrelevant plastic.