love like fools ➙ glee

forty-one ; i don't want to know.

Needless to say, Finn and Quinn had broken up.

Alicia resisted the urge to add "finally" in her mind. As frustrated as she was with Finn Hudson, she had come pretty close to bonding with Quinn not too long ago. Around the time that Kurt initially had to transfer to Dalton. It felt like a lifetime ago now, and clearly any possibility of a friendship went down the drain when Finn serenaded Alicia while still dating Quinn, but still. Objectively, Quinn hadn't really done anything to deserve Alicia's bitterness.

If anything, it was the other way around. 

Which was why Alicia was horrified when she read the leading headline on the school newspaper just a week after the serenade incident.

When Two Prom Queen Candidates Are Hiding in the Closet, Why Not Just Host the Entire Prom There?

The article went on to mention that Brittany had exposed Santana as a lesbian on her Internet talk show, Fondue for Two, while having Tina and Mercedes as her guest stars. (Shouldn't that technically make it Fondue for Three?) Immediately following the bit about Santana, it noted that "former head bitch, Quinn Fabray, was caught leaving Rachel Berry's residence the night after her public breakup with quarterback Finn Hudson." It noted that there had been "many reports" that the so-called rivalry between Rachel and Quinn was really just repressed sexual tension, after all.

Well. It didn't seem unrealistic. But being outed in a crappy school magazine must feel horrible. Especially when you were someone like Quinn, with her passion for her religion and her insistence on being the most popular person at McKinley. Alicia felt bad for her, but she was quickly distracted by the article on the second page. 

Alicia Hastings Rendezvous with Former Enemy of "New Directions"

There were photos. Actual photos of Jesse St. James standing in her doorway. There was even a grainy picture of when Jesse kissed her, and Alicia felt heat flood her cheeks. She looked around herself, as if expecting a mob carrying pitchforks and torches to rush towards her while she was still reading the article. Other than a few judgmental stares, though, there was no reaction.

The article went on to acknowledge her public rejection of Finn's serenade and speculated that Alicia was the cause of Finn and Quinn's breakup. It suggested that Alicia must have been leading Finn on all along.

It was almost laughable, knowing her history with him, that people would actually believe this.

But it wasn't really funny, because people would actually believe this. It made Alicia's stomach twist into knots. In a sudden fit of emotion, Alicia tore the paper into little pieces, throwing it into the nearest trashcan. 

This was ridiculous. It isn't like anyone would read this garbage, right?

Just as Alicia thought that, three cheerleaders holding extra-large blue raspberry slushees came up to her. Before she could flinch away, all three were splashed directly in her face. It rushed down her neck, permanently staining her fluffy white cardigan. It was going down the front of her pants, thick clumps of slush turning her yellow converse to an unappealing greenish shade. 

It took Alicia a second to remember how to breathe. She spat out a mouthful of blue slush, leaning against the trashcan to keep her balance -- after all, it didn't matter if she got her outfit dirty now.

When she wiped enough slush and ice out of her eyes, she was being glared down by three tall blond girls. Cheerios, obviously. At one point, she'd known them and worked alongside them. They giggled at some of her jokes and lifted her so she could pretend she was tall. There was none of that friendliness on their expressions now, though.