Teagan didn't want him to feel bad for her. In fact, that was the last thing she wanted. She was already so damn sick of seeing her mother's co-workers in the store and getting pity looks from them. She didn't need that from her own friends. "A reset button would be nice, yeah. Or a time machine. I could go back to before I was born and keep my mom from sleeping with that douchebag. Everyone would win. She'd still be with my dad and I wouldn't be here." It wasn't until the words were out of her mouth that she realized how they sounded. A normal person in a normal situation would take it back and say she didn't mean it. Instead, Teagan found herself bringing the whiskey bottle to her lips once more, taking as big a sip as she could. "But yeah.. a reset button."
Finn: He reached out for her without thinking, placing his hand over her's on the bottle as she lowered it from her mouth. "If you weren't here, I'd be working my ass off trying to support a kid that wasn't mine and a girlfriend that couldn't hook up with the real father fast enough so, as far as I'm concerned, I'm glad that you are."
Teagan looked up at him when he set his hand over hers. At his words, she gave a simple shrug and a tiny smile. "At least I did one thing right." She lowered the bottle so the bottom of it rested on the bed. "I still can't believe them," she muttered. "They're just throwing it in your face. They really deserve each other. They're both such horrible people."
Finn gave a short, harsh laugh. "No argument here." He pulled his hand away, resting it on his chest as he rolled onto his back. "I think that's what hurts the most, that I never really meant anything to her. She keeps sending me notes saying how sorry she is but..." He lifted his head long enough to take another mouthful of vodka. "But you don't do that to someone you care about. Even if you care about someone else more."
Teagan "I would love to say 'oh, no, she totally loved you' but I can't say that with a straight face. It's not fair that she dragged you into all this. It was a terrible thing to do. I wouldn't even do that to someone I despised with every piece of my soul." Teagan moved herself closer to him, resting her chin on his chest as her head began to feel heavy. "You deserve so much better than her. And him, for that matter."
Finn 's hand moved on its own accord again and started to lightly brush Teagan's hair along the back of her head. He grumbled, "Yeah, like that's going to happen." His hand shifted again, coming to a stop on Teagan's back. "You might not believe this but it's not like I'm super popular with the ladies. Quinn was my first real girlfriend and I doubt there are going to be a whole lot of them lining up to date her cast offs."
Teagan tilted her head to look at him easier. "Seriously?" She thought it was adorable that Quinn was his first girlfriend and that he had been so faithful to her. "Wow. Girls would literally kill for a boyfriend like you. Besides... I doubt you'll have trouble finding someone new. You're the gorgeous star quarterback who also has a killer voice. You'll do just fine."
Finn 's lips quirked into a half smile that disappeared almost as quickly as it had shown up. He lifted his head to take another mouthful of vodka, this time keeping it raises so he could look at the girl resting her head on his chest. "It's nice of you to say that but I'm not goregous. Just as Santana. The only reason half the girls in this school even gave me the time of day was because I was dating Quinn and as far as being the star quarterback... We suck. We won like one game so far this season." He dropped his head back down then picked it up again. "Now you, You're gorgeous. And you're a cheerio. And you date guys and girls. I bet you'll get a date before I do."
Teagan knew that it wouldn't be a good time to bring up her college freshman booty call so she simply scoffed playfully and rolled her eyes. "Please, no one's gonna want to date the crazy girl who dated her sister. You, on the other hand, they will. You can't listen to anything Santana says, first of all. She's a pathetic brat who's hellbent on making sure everyone's life is as horrible and useless as hers."
Finn nodded in agreement even as the alcohol loosened his lips enough for, "yeah, but she's hot." to slip past them. He glanced down Teagan's length then tried to snag the bottle of whiskey from the dark haired teen, an attempt that resulted in him curling up against her. "Have you two talked about it?"
Teagan rolled her eyes. "She's not that hot." At the mention of Brooke, Teagan could almost literally feel her walls going up. She let her body set against Finn's as she shook her head. "I've only spoken to her once since we were making out right before the bitch told me the truth." Closing her eyes, she swallowed down the bile that threatened to rise. "We technically never even broke up."
Finn: "Wait... So you two were like..." Finn's right eyebrow rose. "Right before you found out?" His face scrunched into a wince. "Ouch. I don't think I could talk to her either if I was you." His hand closed around the body of the whiskey bottle and he started to tug it free from Teagan's grasp. "Hell, if that happened to me I'd probably never leave my room again."
Teagan frowned and nodded. "Pretty much why I've been holed up in here most of the time. I go to Cheerios practice, I go to some classes, I come home. That's it." Loosening her fingers, the bottle fell easily from her hand to his. Letting out a deep sigh, she closed her eyes and pressed her face more against his chest. "I don't like thinking about it so I kind of do everything I can not to..."
Finn tried to bring the whiskey to his mouth but his balance was off with Teagan leaning against him so he repositioned himself until he was sitting up against the bed's headboard then pulled the brunette back to his chest. "Sorry." whether the apology was for temporarily disturbing her from her spot or for bringing up the topic of Brooke, Finn didn't make clear. The source of the second "Sorry" however was as Finn pulled away from Teagan long enough to grab a bag of chips before once more settling into place. "You sure you don't want some?" He asked, tearing the mylar bag open with his teeth.
Teagan let herself be moved along with Finn. Once he seemed like he was comfortable, she curled up against him, keeping her eyes closed. "It's okay." She could hear the potato chip bag crinkling near her ear. If she tried, she could actually hear the chips moving around inside. The very tiny, very hungry part of her tried to make her say yes. She could feel it. Instead, she shook her head, opening her eyes for the moment and making a face. "I'm not hungry. Thanks, though."
Finn shrugged before popping several chips into his mouth, his jaw flexing under his skin as he chewed. He washed down the first mouthful with a slug of amber then dug into the bag for a second helping. "So, other than fighting over which one of us is gonna get girlfriend first, what do you want to talk about?"
Teagan watched his jaw move up and down as he chewed on the salty snack. Right about now she wished she'd had the willpower to say yes at the offer. To shove a handful of potato chips in her mouth without having to worry about the consequences. But she couldn't, that wasn't who she was anymore. She was sure that Finn would be at least a little worried if she binged on chips and other snacks before rushing to the bathroom. His question brought her back to reality. She shrugged and moved herself a little closer. "I dunno. Your choice." She set a hand on his stomach, slowly moving it up until it lay on his chest next to her head.
Finn stuffed the second set of chips into his mouth then wrapped his arm behind Teagan so he could dust his fingers clean against the leg of hisĀ jeans.Ā He left his arm draped across her back, hand on her side, as he chewed over both the choice of topic and the contents of his mouth. After swallowing the latter, Finn licked the thin layer of grease and salt off his lips. "School? Or, I don't know... movies?" He put the bag of chips down on the side opposite Teagan and reached in with his spare hand. "Gotta have something to do while we sit in our rooms, right?"
Teagan "Movies? Hm... I've been watching Netflix the last few weeks. I've watched all eight past seasons of Grey's Anatomy and I started rewatching Buffy the Vampire Slayer again. Ah, with the occasional horror movie tossed in the middle." She sat up the tiniest bit to make herself more comfortable. "What about you?"
Finn pulled his arm away from Teagan and, not really sure where else to put it, left it hanging in the air as he replied. "Uhm, not much. Never really got into Grey's though a Buffy re-watch sounds pretty good. Mostly I've been hitting the books and the gym."
Teagan "Sorry," she muttered, sitting up even more so that he could put his arm down. "Well, whenever you want to re-watch Buffy, come over. I will never say no. The same goes for if you want a gym buddy." She smiled at him and shrugged. "I haven't actually gone in a few weeks and I wouldn't mind going again."
Finn: "Thanks." He said, flashing Teagan a quick smile as he returned his arm to it's former position with only a hint of self-consciousness. "Think you could keep up with me at the gym?"
Teagan shrugged. "Honestly? Probably not," she said, laughing softly. "I mean, I can kill Jenna at the gym. It's just about the only thing I'm better than her at. But I haven't worked out with guys in a while. I guess we'll have to see." SHe winked at him as she absentmindedly reached for a potato chip, not noticing what she did until it passed her lips.
Finn: "Only one way to find out" He said as he reached into the bag for another round of chips himself. "If we weren't drinking, I'd say we hit the gym right now." He plucked one chip free from his fingers with his teeth and used his tongue to draw it into his mouth. "I suppose we could always arm wrestle."
Teagan scoffed and let out yet another laugh. "I don't think alcohol plus heavy gym equipment is a good idea, but who knows." When he suggested arm wrestling, Teagan smirked. She could totally take him in arm wrestling. Figuring she'd need to take care of it later anyway - that and the alcohol gave her a damn good excuse - she reached for a few more potato chips. "Lets do it. My desk?"
Finn 's eyebrows wrinkled in amusement. He hadn't expected Teagan to take him up on the challenge, after all he was a quarterback, winning team or not, and a quarterback's strength lay in his arms. Literally. "You're on." He shoved the remaining handful of chips into his mouth before he pulled away from Teagan and bounced his way across her mattress an onto his feet. "I'm not going to go easy on you." He warned her as he approached her desk.
Teagan "Psh, no one asked you, too, Frankenteen," she teased, sticking her tongue out at him. As she stood up, she followed suit in shoving chips into her mouth before reaching for a hair tie and tying her hair up. "But don't worry, I'll go easy on you." She wobbily walked over to her desk, standing on the side across from him, leaning over a little and setting her elbow down.
Finn 's eyes dropped to the neckline of her top instinctively but he quickly pulled them back up to Teagan's face when, once again, liquor loosened his lips. "And don't go thinking you can distract me with all your sexy hotness either." He gave both hands a quick wipe against the backside of his pants then rolled up his shirt sleeves, flexing his arms as he did, before he leaned over the desk and put one arm into position.
Teagan 's brow shot up. "I didn't realize that I could use my sexy hotness to my advantage." Just as Finn leaned over into position, she straightened up and swiftly pulled her t-shirt over her head, leaving herself in just her purple lacy bra. Leaning back down, she smirked at him, interlocking their hands. "Count of 3?"
Finn 's adams apple made a slow trip down his neck, almost as slow as the trip his eyes took. "Wha?" He asked, Lifting his head with his gaze following a few seconds later. "Hey, no fair."
Teagan "Life isn't fair. One, two...three." As soon as the word 'three' left her lips, she pushed against Finn's hand, not quite using all of her strength.
Finn 's head snapped back down, but this time his focus was on their joined hands as he pushed back against her grip. Only when he was sure he was holding his ground did he risk looking up again. After all, it wasn't like he had to beat her too quickly.
Teagan let him push against her hand. She could feel the muscles in her arm start to kick in. Letting it go for a few more seconds, she pushed back against Finn's hand with almost all of her strength, smirking as she easily pushed his hand back quite a bit.
Finn snapped back to their test of wills and pushed back, hoping she didn't hear the soft grunt that escaped his throat as he pushed their hands back towards parity. Maybe he should have gone for the quick win after all. There was only so long a guy could be around a shirtless Teagan before his blood strayed elsewhere. An image popped into Finn's head, one he had tried very hard to erase, one that he'd long since erased from his phone even if it not as quickly as he should have. An image of a significantly more exposed Teagan than the one standing opposite him. His arm wavered as he gave another grunt.
Teagan 's smile widened as she felt his arm shaking slightly. That was all she needed. With one final push, she felt Finn's knuckles hit the table. "Whoo!" Throwing her arms up in victory, she spun around a few times, laughing. Always a competitive person, she was usually a sore winner. "That was awesome," she said as she slowed down. Even as she stopped, the room continued spinning around her. Teagan grabbed on to the edges of the desk as she stared at Finn, the smile still on her face as she focused. "Don't worry, I think I only won 'cause I cheated by taking my shirt off."
Finn held his hand protectively in front of him and nodded. "Uhm, yeah. Maybe. Or it could be the whiskey and vodka, or maybe you're just a lot stronger than you look. Not that you don't look strong or anything..." Finn'
Finn: s forehead scrunched up as he finally let himself look at Teagan again. "You look thin... like, really thin."
Teagan "It's the boobs." She stuck her tongue out at him as she finally regained her composure. When he called her thin, her smile brightened and she looked down at herself. "Thanks."
Finn felt heat spread across his cheeks at her mention of the b word and he tried to shake the x-rated picture out of his head without looking like he was trying to. His hands didn't move from their spot. "Your welcome but I meant you look a lot thinner than last time. Were you sick or something?"
Teagan didn't notice his slight embarrassment at the mention of her breasts but she did notice his question. She didn't think people had noticed her weight loss. While she was grateful that people were noticing, she didn't need them asking questions. "Nope, not sick. I've just been stressed and stuff like that. I haven't had much of an appetite." She gave him a smile hoping that would be enough to please him.
Finn nodded. "Yeah, I can get that. I'm kind of a stress eater myself." He gave his gut an awkward glance. "Another reason to hit the gym."
Teagan "Exactly." Teagan casted a glance down to his abdomen and shook her head, walking around the table and swiftly lifting his shirt up She pressed her palm against the skin and looked up at him. "Your stomach is fine."
Finn started to pull his hands up to tug his shirt back down then dropped them back into place since her touch had undone any progress the last few moments had made towards his 'problem'. "Uhh th-thanks."
Teagan "No problem." She stood there awkwardly with her hand on her stomach for a while. Her eyes dropped and her lips tugged up into a smirk, her teeth sinking into her bottom lip to keep from saying anything. "So, what now?" she asked as she pulled away.
Finn sagged with relief as she pulled away and quickly turned his back to her as he made a hasty adjustment, hiding the gesture as best as he could. "Uh, well... we could have a rematch or... um... I guess... y-you could put your shirt back on."
Teagan politely averted her gaze so he wouldn't be embarrassed even more. "Oh... um, sure." Walking over to where her shirt had landed, she turned it correctly and pulled it on, smoothing it out as she sat on her bed. "There we go."
Finn gave his head a shake, not bothering to minimize the action, when Puck's voice invaded his thoughts long enough to deride him for suggesting Teagan put on clothes and not the other way around. Whatever chance there had been for that, for them, was passed. One more thing he could be mad at Quinn about. Not that it mattered either way, his baser teenage boy instincts aside, he'd practically ruined their relationship the last time they'd let it stray in the direction of anything more and he needed a friend right now more than a friend with benefits. "How about that rematch?"
Teagan arched a brow when he asked about the rematch. "Seriously?" She smiled and stood back up, shrugging. "Sure. Hang on." Jogging out of her room, she went down the hall to her father's office and grabbed one of his chairs, dragging it back to her room. "Here, it'll be better if we sit." Putting his chair on the side of the desk she was on and sat down, crossing her legs Indian Style.
Finn took the empty seat, his feet placed firmly against the floor as he leaned into position once again. "For the title?"
Teagan "Yes, sir." Staring into his eyes, she narrowed her own in what was supposed to be an intimidating glare. "Ready?" She grabbed his hand in hers once more.
Finn flexed his fingers, rolling them from pinky to index before sealing them around Teagan's hand. "Ready"
Teagan found herself pushing a little harder than she had the previous match. For some reason, she thought that she could get him with a quick win, just use all her strength to attack him at once.
FinnĀ pressed back, locking his eyes on Teagan's face with as much effort, if not more, than he was putting into holding Teagan's arm at bay. It wasn't just about pride or winning, it wasn't about proving his masculinity to the brunette. It went deeper than that. He was trying to prove something to himself. Though what that was, he wasn't entirely sure. All he knew for certain was that he wasn't going to let thoughts of the woman sitting across from him, thoughts he knew he shouldn't be thinking, distract him this time.
TeaganĀ groaned softly, hoping Finn didn't hear it. The last thing she needed was for him to think she was faltering. "Worried, Hudson?" she teased. Perhaps if she teased him a bit, it would distract him and she could win two out of two.
FinnĀ glanced down at her lips as she spoke, quickly snapping his eyes back up to hers. This was going to be harder than he thought. Which was stupid because she was his friend. He wanted her to be his friend, nothing more. It was that stupid shirt's fault. If it hadn't come off and he hadn't seen her bra, and what was filling that bra, than he wouldn't have any trouble keeping Teagan squarely in the friendzone but he had and now he was. He cleared his throat. "Nope. You? Afraid you can't win without cheating?"
TeaganĀ pouted. "Who said I'm cheating? Just a little friendly banter here." Teagan shook her head and let out a sigh. Her arm was beginning to give, she wasn't as strong as she used to be. The only thing giving her muscles these days was the constant workout at Cheerios practice. She let out a bit of a louder groan as her arm lowered.
FinnĀ 's eyes dropped to her lips again. He wasn't sure if that was a good groan or a bad groan. He wasn't even sure which kind of groan fell into which category anymore. Either way, it was getting harder and harder to stay focused, along with other things. He swallowed hard. "There's not banter in arm wrestling." He said, though the words rushed from his mouth, sounding more like one word than the sentence it was. The muscles in his arm tightened under his skin as he increased his force, pushing Teagan's hand towards the desktop. If he was going to win it, he had to do it fast.
TeaganĀ "Says who? I don't think there's an actual rulebook that says you can't banter." Her words came out separated by short puffs of breath as she tried to hold her own. It was getting harder than she thought it would. She had won so easily before and now she was almost completely positive that it had to do with the fact that she wasn't wearing a shirt. Her arm lowered yet another inch. Teagan knew that if she didn't try something fast, she would lose. Too bad her timing was off. Before she could do anything, Finn's hand pushed her own into the desk. "Damnit!"
FinnĀ matched Teagan's short puffs of breath with a powerful one of his own as he released her hand, followed by a sharp hiss of air as he refilled his lungs. If it had been Puck, at least Puck pre screwing him over, Finn would had cheered or shouted in victory or something else typically male. Hell, if it was any of his friends, even Rachel, he probably would have. All he did this time was give Teagan a sheepish grin. Yeah, this was not going to be easy.
TeaganĀ pouted at Finn, her eyes narrowing playfully. "Jerk." Pretending to be upset, she got up from the chair and plopped onto her stomach on the bed, face burying in the pillow. Her body sunk into the mattress as she let out a deep sigh. That last match had really worked her muscle and she could feel it finally start to relax.
FinnĀ gave his own arm a quick rub as he watched Teagan flop onto her bed. "I told you I wasn't going to go easy." Had he not drunk as much as he had in as little time as it had been, he might have stayed where he was, several safe feet from his 'friend'. As it was, the lure of the mattress' comfort soon pulled him out of his seat and he dropped down beside Teagan, laying on his back. "We'll hit the gym together, couple of weeks I'm sure you could beat me."
TeaganĀ "Yeah, yeah," she replied, her words muffled by the pillow. Teagan's body bounced as Finn plopped onto the bed. Quickly moving, she rested her head on his chest and closed her eyes again. "Ugh, I don't want to talk about working out right now."
FinnĀ nodded as he slipped his arm around Teagan and placed his hand on her shoulder. Friends did that kind of thing after all. He lifted his head up just enough to peer down the length of the bed. "More chips?"
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