Glee: To the Next Level (the second book in the Glee series)

Chapter 40: Valentine Grams

"Bree, wait up!" Julie exclaimed as Bree walked a few steps in front of them. They were all in their cheerleader uniforms with similar ponytails after Principal Sylvester had done a surprise inspection of the squad and Coach Roz had warned them in time. Most girls were already in uniform, as it was the best way to claim social status during the school day, but a few of them didn't have their high ponies and Julie typically had neither.

Bree turned around, annoyed. "You could've gotten us in trouble," she said, firmly.

"I know," Julie said. "And I'll be more careful about wearing the uniform and the pony in the future but please just talk to me."

"So you can stab me in the back again?" Bree asked.

"Okay, enough!" Kitty exclaimed. "Okay? She's proven that she's not into Jake, Bree! She went to the dance with Ryder and was all mushy and cute with him so you can just--"

Bree raised an eyebrow. "Did she tell you who she left with?" she asked her.

Kitty turned to Julie. "Not..." she started.

"That's right," Bree said. "Your sweet little innocent friend left with Jake. Multiple people saw them. So if you want to defend her, at least do your research before beginning your argument."

As Bree walked away, heading past the choir room angrily, Kitty turned to Julie, waiting for an explanation. "Leaving with Jake was not part of the plan," she told her. 

"I know," Julie said, feeling guilty. "It was an emergency."

"It better have been life or death," said Kitty, crossing her arms.

Julie sighed. "It was," she said in a mere whisper. "Look, I don't really want to get into it because nobody knows except for Jake and pretty soon Ryder once I get a chance to explain. But the deal is... My m-- Isabella... She's sick. She has cancer and it doesn't look like she's going to recover."

"Oh my gosh..." Kitty murmured, putting a hand to her mouth. "Jules, I'm so..."

"I know," said Julie. "Me, too. Last night she had an accident and it scared me and I didn't want to have to explain to anyone so I had Jake take me to see her. And now everyone thinks there's something going on that isn't and other than coming clean to Ryder, I don't know how else to fix it."

Kitty forced a smile. "Sweetie," she began, "there's nothing for you to fix. People's misgivings about you and your personal life shouldn't be your concern, okay? You owe them no explanation and I'm sorry for making you think you had to give me one. But I'm glad you did because no matter what they think of you, I'm going to be there for you. Okay?"

Julie nodded, thankful that she had befriended Kitty in the first place. 

"Now let's go inside," she said. "We can sit together and show everyone we don't give a--"

Julie gave her a look. "We can be normal," she said to Kitty, who sighed and agreed. They headed inside the choir room and took a seat just as Will was getting them started.

"Love," he said as he wrote the word on the board. "Well, it's that time of year once again. Last year, I was on my way back into town after being gone for a while. And when I returned, I was getting married."

"Technically," Sugar pointed out, "you were getting stood up. It took a at least a week for you to actually get married."

Will looked over at her and pressed his lips together. "Yes, Sugar," he said with a nod. "And now I'm happily married with a beautiful boy. So I see Valentine's Week as the greatest time of year... Which is why this week we're going to be cliche and sing love songs."