𝐛𝐞𝐠𝐢𝐧 𝐚𝐠𝐚𝐢𝐧 | r. berry

Dance With Somebody

"Britt, you can't go!" Maya sobbed, burying her face in the crook of the older cheerleader's neck.

"I don't wanna leave," Brittany pouted, holding the petite blonde close to her.

"You made my babies cry," Bailey frowned, blue eyes narrowing at Mr. Schue.

"There's no point in sugar-coating it," Mr. Schue sighed. "Lots of changes are coming up. Lots of saying goodbye–"

"No bye!" Maya, Ava, and Naomi all shouted.

"–to your friends, to your significant others–"

"Luce, no bye," Juniper pouted, leaning her head onto Quinn's shoulder and hugging her waist tightly.

Quinn smiled sadly and wrapped an arm around her girlfriend's shoulders. She kissed the top of her head, blinking back tears.

"–to the last four years of your life. For a young person, all that transition can be overwhelming, so it's easier to focus on other things–"

"Like your murder," Sugar said, mocha eyes narrowing dangerously. "You can't make my sweet Nao cry and think you can get away with it."

"No body, no crime," Ava mumbled sadly, sniffling. "My mommy wrote a song about it. San, will you help me?"

"Of course, angel," Santana whispered. She gently brushed a tear off of Ava's face and kissed her cheek before hugging her close again. She comfortingly rubbed her back as she tried to help her baby Snixx calm down.

"Ava's no angel," Maya muttered.

"Shut up," Ava scoffed, kicking her twin with her combat boot.

"You shut up," Maya grumbled.

"Stop the violence," Brittany whispered, pushing the twins apart before they could start fighting.

"–like not being able to say goodbye to Whitney Houston."

"What are you talking about?" Santana asked, cradling Ava's head protectively to her chest.

"Santana, it's okay," Mr. Schue said, holding a hand up. "I get it."

"He's creeping me out," Ava whined, hiding her face in Santana's chest.

"You're hanging on to Whitney because it's difficult to handle the upheaval in your own lives."

"We're hanging on to Whitney because she was incredible and we love her, so don't put your baggage on us," Santana scoffed.

"Yeah, bitch," Ava grumbled, sticking her tongue out at Mr. Schue.

"You guys, Mr. Schue's attempt to understand us, though misguided, doesn't matter," Rachel said. "What matters is that I start rehearsing Whitney's version of The Star Spangled Banner immediately. It is the Mount Everest of anthems."

****

Naomi approached Juniper and Kurt at the older boy's locker, bags under her eyes from barely getting any sleep the night before.

"What happened to you, dude?" Juniper asked, sipping her coffee. "You look like a sleepwalking zombie."

"Rachel was up all night rehearsing Whitney Huston's version of The Star Spangled Banner, making it impossible to get any sleep," Naomi grumbled.

Juniper took her thermos out of the side pocket of her backpack. She handed it to the younger girl, who raised a brow. "This is my afternoon coffee," she said. "You clearly need it more than I do. I'll just have Quinn take me off campus during lunch to get some more...Or steal it from the teacher's lounge."