love like fools ➙ glee

forty-nine ; uptown girl.

"Thanks for coming with me to visit the Warblers, Alicia. If I'm being honest, I was a little nervous."

Alicia looked over at Blaine, lips twitching into a small smile. He looked adorable in his little gray cardigan and red bowtie. She could understand why Kurt defended his sense of style so fiercely. 
"Don't worry about it, I figured as much. It can be hard confronting the people from your past, even if it's for a positive reason."

Frankly, Alicia had been a little desperate to escape McKinley today. So many people were stressing over the play, and it seemed that Rachel was suddenly desperate to pursue Quinn despite their terse interactions recently. After all of the suffering Quinn endured from her religious mother after their Nationals kiss went viral, Alicia had expected them to interact more, but they'd been wholly silent together until this week.

Something about the sudden shift bothered Alicia. Quinn had become such a close friend to her, and while she did still admire Rachel, she couldn't help but suspect there was something other than romantic attraction on her mind lately. She didn't want Quinn to get hurt.

"And I heard so much from Kurt about Dalton," Alicia said. "I'd be lying if I said I wasn't a little curious." As they stepped inside, Alicia looked around with wide eyes, taking in the massive spiral staircase and glimmering walls. She couldn't help but gape a bit. 

Blaine chuckled. "Yeah, Dalton has that effect on people when they see it for the first time. Come on, there's an old shortcut this way." Nudging Alicia's shoulder, Blaine let her in the opposite direction she'd assumed. 

Her companion was true to his word, because they ended up near the Warblers choir room in under a couple minutes. There was an upbeat song belting out from the interior, and Alicia marveled at the impeccable acoustics, even in the hallway. She followed Blaine tentatively as a random boy pulled him into the performance. She recognized the song as Uptown Girl by Billy Joel as she observed from the doorway.

As the performance died out, Alicia noticed one particular boy taking an interest in Blaine.

"You guys killed it, as always!" Blaine exclaimed.

One boy that Alicia recognized as Trent from last year's competitions grinned. "We'd sound so much better with you back in the mix. Is this your triumphant return to Dalton? Please?"

Blaine looked pleased. Alicia couldn't help noticing how effortlessly he basked in positive attention. It was one of the few traits he shared in common with Rachel. "Actually, I'm here to invite you guys to my opening night at McKinley. West Side Story! I reserved a whole block of tickets just for the Warblers, it'd mean the world to me if you guys could come."

The one unfamiliar boy who wouldn't quit staring at Blaine stepped forward. "We'll be there. Once a Warbler, always a Warbler, right?"

As the other boys returned to their personal business, occasionally offering Alicia confused looks, the intrigued boy pulled Blaine to the side. Slowly, Alicia stepped further into the choir room, hovering protectively just a few feet away. The boy offered Blaine a dazzling smile. "Sebastian Smythe."

That face wasn't unfamiliar to Alicia, after all. The longer she continued staring at the boy, a nagging sensation grew stronger in her gut. She watched Blaine return the boy's pleased smile and inquire if he was a freshman, but she was hardly paying attention to their conversation. She couldn't stop staring at the boy. At Sebastian Smythe, apparently.

She knew him. But from where? 

Vocal Adrenaline? Had he been one of the nameless choir kids in the background when she performed Burnin' Up with Jesse? She was so confused that the usual throb in her heart didn't activate at the memory. She needed to nail down this mystery or her brain might actually explode.