Unfortunately, if she stayed at home when she rang him, she’d be hounded by her parents – ‘Is that Mike? How is he? Studying hard? Well, he didn’t need to study, really, how silly of him to throw his life away on unreachable dreams...’ So, if Tina wanted to have an uninterrupted conversation with her boyfriend, she needed to be alone. Which was why she usually made it to school half an hour before she needed to be there.

Usually, she’d just stand by her locker while she was talking to him – there weren’t too many people around, so she could talk unimpeded. However, occasionally, she just needed the extra guarantee of being completely alone, because it’d hit her, all over again, that she wasn’t going to see Mike that day, she wasn’t going to see most of her friends that day, or the next, she probably wouldn’t even see most of them over Christmas... On those sort of days, she’d make her way to the choir room.

Glee rehearsals hadn’t started up yet – it was still too early in the year – so, even in the middle of the day, the room remained empty. The chairs were still set out on the steps from their final meeting last year, looking like everyone was going to come rushing in, talking excitedly about one trivial thing or another, but Tina was pretty sure she was the only one who went in there anymore.

Or, she had been, until this morning.

Mike had rung, so excited, to tell her that he’d got into a professional dancing group, which would pretty much double his chances of getting employed, and he’d sounded so grown-up and sure of himself that Tina knew she’d need to be alone after they finished talking. However, she’d barely walked through the door to the choir room when Artie came wheeling towards her, looking panicked.

“Oh, thank God you’re here, I can’t get him to stop crying, it’s actually scaring me.” He pointed towards the seats – Blaine was sat there, hunched over his phone, taking deep, shuddering breaths. Tina rushed over to put an arm around him.

They’d gotten close, over the summer, her, Mike, Kurt and Blaine, because they all understood each other. Mike and Kurt were both going to New York – not together, but still to New York – Blaine and Tina were staying behind. It wasn’t like Finn and Rachel, who’d chosen to be apart, or Santana and Brittany, who’d chosen to take a break – Blaine and Tina had been ripped from their boyfriends.

“Blaine, honey, no, no, don’t cry, it’ll be okay, it’ll be okay-”

“No, it won’t,” and he sounded so heartbroken, so lost, that Tina could feel her own heart clenching in her chest. “Because we’re not together anymore. I told him that we should take a break, get back together when he gets back, because what if he meets some amazing guy, and he doesn’t go for him just because he’s got some pathetic boyfriend back home who’s only a senior? I told him that it was just a break, it’s fine, but I know he’s going to meet someone, and then he’ll forget about me. But then he started crying, and I just wanted to hold him, and I couldn’t because he’s in New York and I’m still here.” And it was such an accurate representation of what Tina was convinced was going to happen to her and Mike, so awful that it happened to Kurt and Blaine, who deserved each other, that she couldn’t help it – she started crying too, leaving Artie, stunned, to helplessly comfort two crying people.

***

“I hate him,” Kurt muttered, sniffing, digging into his third tub of ice cream. Damn his hips. He was going to be single forever, so it didn’t matter.

“No, you don’t,” Rachel said soothingly, pausing ‘Funny Girl’ and turning to look at him. “Anyway, didn’t he just say he wanted a break?”

“Break... My eternal solitude... Same thing. It’s because of ‘West Side Story’, I know it. I tried not to show I was jealous, and I was happy for him, but maybe he-”

“Kurt, ‘West Side Story’ was months ago,” Rachel pointed out. “I’m telling you, he’s not breaking up with you, he just wants you to enjoy your time in New York. And you’ve got ice-cream on your chin.” She tapped his chin with her own spoon. He wiped the smear away hastily.

“I don’t see Finn ‘calling a break’ just because you’re in New York,” Kurt said bitterly, actually using air quotes – he’d sunk that low - before going to check his phone. No new messages. How apt. He supposed he should get used to it.

“That’s because - and don’t get me wrong, I love your brother – he’s not anywhere near as selfless as Blaine. Blaine doesn’t want you to hold yourself back if you do happen to meet someone else – and I’m not saying you will!” She added hastily under Kurt’s glare. “Kurt, Blaine loves you so much, he’s willing to let you go.” She sighed happily, and Kurt almost felt like slapping her. This was his love life she was sighing over, not a Nicholas Sparks film. “It’s romantic, Kurt. I said last year that I wanted to be your boyfriend – well, I quite want to be Blaine’s boyfriend, too.”

“And here I was, thinking the love between us was destined to last forever,” Kurt said, half a smile on his face. Rachel beamed in response.

“There we go. This is only a minor setback on the Rachel and Kurt story –”

“Pardon?”

“Kurt, one of our names had to go first.”

“Yes, so why did it have to be yours?”

“Because I said it? It doesn’t matter whose name goes first, mine was just the first one that came out. Anyway, where was I...? Oh, yes – it’s only a minor setback, because we are going to conquer New York, Kurt, and then we are going to go back to Lima, to whisk your boyfriend to New York with us. Then I will win lots of Tonys, originate several roles on Broadway, and everything will be glorious.”

“That pep speech started out so well, yet, inexplicably, your life plan doesn’t make me feel any better. Put the film back on, and please try not to sing along too loudly.”

“Oh, like you weren’t humming along to ‘I Am The Greatest Star’.” She pressed play on the remote, and Kurt used her rapt attention on the film to smile fondly at her. True, she was one of the most annoying people he’d ever come across, but that was probably because she was so much like him. Her heart was in the right place. “I really do think the role of Fanny was designed with me in mind, you know.” And then she’d go and say something like that, and any sentimental feelings towards her would all but vanish.

***

Considering how many friends he’d had in New Directions, only a few knew that Mike had gone to New York to pursue his dancing ambition. Tina knew, of course, Kurt and Blaine knew, so Rachel and Artie probably knew through Kurt and Blaine... He preferred it that way. He’d loved all of New Directions, of course, they were like his family – but they’d all been notoriously selfish, at times. The people that did know understood why he was doing it, and wouldn’t begrudge him his successes – not even Rachel, because she understood and appreciated talent when she saw it.

And he was having successes – a lot of them. Honestly, he hadn’t expected it to be this easy. Everything was literally falling into his lap: job opportunities, exposure, connections, and he’d only been in New York for a month.

He was getting everything he’d ever wanted. Yet it was still a struggle to get up in the morning. He’d always been shy, but then he’d always had something or someone to hide behind – football, Glee, Tina, he’d always been part of a set. Attention was never entirely focused on him. Now, it was like there was a searing spotlight on him at all times; and even though he was in a troupe, he couldn’t hide behind them, because if he did, he’d never get work. He had to shine.

Mike had never been especially good at shining.

***

“Dude. This is pathetic. I get it; you miss my fellow Hebe, but come on. You’re a college dude now, suck it up.” Puck threw another pen at the huddle of blankets – now he understood why people carried pencil cases with them. Back at McKinley, if he threw a pen at someone, that was it, he wouldn’t be able to work for the rest of the day. Now, though, he could throw multiple pens at Finn, and still do his work.

Yes, Noah Puckerman was releasing his inner nerd. When he’d somehow achieved this scholarship, he’d been determined not to waste it. He was going to prove to Shelby that the old Puck – the one that got crushes on his teacher slash adopted mother of his child – was long gone, and he was a mature, responsible adult, capable of seeing his baby girl occasionally. That was all he wanted – to be a positive force in Beth’s life.

Finn, however, seemed to have none of his ambition. He spent his days trudging between classes, doing the bare minimum work in order to pass, and then curling up in a pathetic ball with one of Rachel’s hideous sweaters. He claimed it smelled like her but, to Puck, it just smelled like a sweater.

“She rang today,” Finn mumbled. Puck sighed. He was obviously in for another one of what Hummel called ‘Lady Chats’. Honestly. Hummel had been a force of good in Finn’s life, for the most part – he tended to sleep regular hours now, he’d picked up some of Kurt’s immeasurable cooking skills, and it was only Puck’s underwear littering their floor – but these Lady Chats needed to go.

“Really. Tell me more.” Apparently, sarcasm was wasted on Finn when he was in this state, because he sat up eagerly.

“Well, you know how she’s living with Kurt? Apparently, Blaine and Kurt are on a ‘break’, so she stayed at home today, talking to Kurt, but she’s got an audition tomorrow, and she said she’s confident she’ll get it, and-”

“Finn, seriously, this is beyond pathetic.” Finn broke out of his monologue to blink at Puck confusedly. “You’re living through your girlfriend. If you wanted to go to New York so bad, you should’ve just gone.”

“Rachel wouldn’t let me,” Finn mumbled.

“You’re more whipped than Anderson,” Puck replied. “Rachel wouldn’t let you? You do realise she’s, like, four foot tall?”

“She said she would stop being my girlfriend if I turned down the scholarship. She said it’d be stupid of me not to accept, so I did.” Suddenly, Finn stood up, Rachel’s sweater falling to the floor. “I want to go out. Where’s the best place to go when you’re trying to forget that the girl you love doesn’t want you in New York with her?” Puck was torn. A part of him, this new, mature part, wanted to do his work, but that sounded lame even in his head, let alone saying it aloud. Part of him wanted to tell Finn that Rachel was actually being selfless, but then they’d spend even longer on this damn chat. And part of him just wanted to go out.

“Come on,” he said eventually. “I know just the place.”

***

There were about ten diners, but Mercedes wasn’t going to let that stop her from giving her all. The only reason she had this gig was that it was off-season for the holiday resort, so their regular performer wasn’t around – she hoped that, if she proved she was dedicated, they’d keep her on during the tourist season, too.

It wasn’t likely, but the hope kept her going.

She’d taken a gamble, not going to college. Everyone else had gone to college to do something – Kurt and Rachel had both gotten into NYADA (she’d found that out from Finn, as opposed to Kurt and Rachel themselves). Finn and Puck had their scholarships. Quinn, Santana, even Brittany, they were all at OSU. Mike was, she guessed, doing Law at Stanford. And here she was, going from restaurant to cafe, hoping that someone would take her on as regular entertainment, so she could just settle down somewhere.

She’d thought that experience would be more important for a diva than going to college, but she hadn’t realised it’d be so hard. And so lonely. True, she was used to loneliness – Kurt and Rachel never quite forgave her for what she’d deemed her ‘Shane-Mania’; Santana and Brittany were always a twosome anyway; Quinn had her own problems to deal with – but there’d always been someone to talk to. Blaine was friendly to everyone, Tina always made time to chat, and the rest of the guys were never ones to hold grudges for too long. Now, she was completely on her own.

For the first time in months, she thought about Sam. Sweet, nerdy Sam, who’d come back to Ohio for a few months to see them all – and she’d blown him off to spend the time with Shane. True, Shane had always been a loving boyfriend and, as a first boyfriend, she’d done pretty well for herself. But they were never going to last, and she’d learned the hard way that friends should always come before relationships.

There was a smattering of polite applause as she belted her final note, but Mercedes could tell that they weren’t really listening.

***

“I met a girl today, San, did I tell you? She seemed really sweet and friendly – we’re going out for coffee later.” Santana winced visibly. It wasn’t that Brittany was deliberately trying to hurt her, but that didn’t make it hurt any less.

They’d lasted almost a year together, and Santana couldn’t remember a time when she’d been happier. The people that mattered had known – her family, Britt’s family and, although she hated to admit that they mattered, the rest of New Directions – and Santana had felt unstoppable.

Until Brittany had mentioned that she wanted to go public.

At first, Santana had been confused. Weren’t they public anyway? Brittany had disagreed, saying that while the people they loved knew, she wanted everyone to know. Wanted everyone to know how much she loved Santana. She’d obviously seen the panic on Santana’s face – after all, they’d all seen and heard what Kurt and Blaine had each been through – so Brittany had said that it didn’t matter, that they didn’t need to tell people if Santana wasn’t ready.

That was about when the guilt set in.

Santana knew that Brittany deserved to be with someone who not only loved her, but also wasn’t scared of telling people that, hey, this is my girlfriend, got a problem? She needed someone who wasn’t afraid to go all Lima Heights on the haters and, unfortunately, Santana just wasn’t that person yet. So, just before they’d started college – the same college, different courses – Santana had told Brittany that they should take a break, until Santana was ready. Brittany had agreed, admitting that she felt guilty for pushing Santana, and they’d decided to remain friends.

But, when they’d arrived at college, there were a lot of out and proud people, and a lot of guys, who all seemed to be interested in Brittany. All of them. There were days when Brittany had whole crowds of admirers around her. On those days, Santana tended to seek out Quinn. They weren’t as close as they had been – Quinn had been through too much for Santana to really understand her anymore – but Quinn always provided a sympathetic ear in the library when Santana was feeling down.

“Really, Britt? That’s great.” Brittany smiled happily, licking whipped cream from her hot chocolate off her lip.

“I know! She’s on my course, too – her name’s...” Santana attempted to block her out, because there were only so many faceless voodoo dolls you could make before it was deemed weird.

***

Quinn, sat on her own in the coffee shop, nose buried in a book, looked up to see Santana and Brittany leaving, their pinkies ostensibly unlinked. She sighed – she’d really hoped they would have got their act together by now. Everything seemed to be going wrong amongst her old friends yet, through it all, she’d inexplicably remained in touch with Tina and Rachel, of all people. Nevertheless, they both kept her up-to-date on the gossip, and she couldn’t help but feel sorry for them all. She felt quite experienced next to her old friends – she’d already been through so much crap, she could nod wisely and lend a shoulder to cry on when they mentioned their newly found adult problems.

It had taken a long time, but Quinn was finally in a more secure place. She wasn’t happy, exactly, but she was content, and she had goals. She was training to be a teacher, and she hoped to get a job at McKinley. Granted, if she’d mentioned her goals to most people, they’d have shot her down in an instant. However, when she’d tentatively brought up her ambitions with Rachel over the phone – how, if she’d just had a teacher to get advice from, maybe her last three years of high school wouldn’t have been so awful, and she wanted to be the kind of teacher they’d never had at McKinley – she had the suspicion that Rachel had started crying.

She didn’t really talk to many people at school, but Quinn hadn’t been very good at making friends for a while now, and at least she wasn’t dyeing her hair pink to make a ‘statement’. She spoke to more of New Directions than she’d anticipated she would, and her tutors seemed to like her.

Overall, Quinn Fabray was content.

***

Next time, on ‘Different Directions’:

“I don’t understand,” Quinn muttered down the phone, ignoring the glares of others in the library. “What do you expect me to do?”

“Just talk to him. He’s a mess, and I don’t know what to do. He just cries all day. Come on, Quinn, please?” Quinn sighed.

“Put him on the phone.”