Fic: Breaking The Rules by Sapphire (PG-13)

[sapphireej]

Title: Breaking The Rules
Author: Sapphire (sapphiresfic)
Fandom: Real Person Fiction - Glee
Pairing/Characters: Lark (Lea/Mark) with some family members and Glee cast mentioned
Rating: PG-13
Word Count: 10,000
Glee spoilers: Up to 3x11 ~ Michael; just to be safe
Series: Possibly!
Summary: Lea and Mark finally get to spend a New Year's Eve together!
Disclaimer: I have no affiliation to Lea Michele, Mark Salling, any Glee Cast members, other celebrities, or family members of celebrities mentioned in this fic. This is a complete work of fiction, *but* I do own any original characters, original plot or other original ideas contained inside. I do not own Glee, any mention of the show or characters are borrowed for the fun of writing.
A/N1: I edited this, so all mistakes are mine.
A/N2: Feedback keeps me writing, so please comment or review. :D
A/N3: This fic will NOT be posted on FF.net. RPF goes against their content guidelines.

~*~

A/N4: This is my first of many Lark fics... I started writing this back in mid-December and at the time I was wasn't sure if I would write and post it, but I wanted to get the idea out of my head. I asked my Tumblr followers recently, and got some great feedback in support of trying my hand at writing and posting Lark fics, so here I am... This is totally fiction; I don't know if any of this is true. The idea came to me after seeing an article from US Weekly and some interviews of Lea's from her 'New Year's Eve' movie press and the red carpet premiere (see notes/links at the bottom of fic). After getting about 2 pages written for this, I stopped writing it to focus on my Puckleberry WIPs. After shelving it, Mark went home to Texas for Christmas and Lea went home to NYC for the holidays. My original idea was Mark would surprise Lea on NYE just before midnight, but now, after we learned that Mark really did spend New Year's Eve with Lea, I wanted to incorporate that into the fic, so I changed up my plan. Again, this is all fiction; I don't know if anything contained in here is true... Hope you all like!

~*~

Nine Hours Until Midnight
Walking down the already busy streets of New York City, Lea and her best friend, Jon Groff, were on their way to her parent's apartment to help set-up and prepare for the traditional Sarfati New Year's Eve party. They both had bags hanging over their shoulders, changes of clothes in them because they weren't sure what they wanted to wear that night and would be there the rest of the so they needed everything with them.

"So are you excited for tonight?" Jon asked Lea, but he already knew her answer; she had been for a few days.

"I'm so excited," Lea grinned, "I love New Year's Eve! And it's great we get to spend it together," she said, slipping her arm around his as they walked.

Jon smirked, "somehow I don't think I'm the reason you're so eager. You've only been like this for a few days."

Lea couldn't help the blush grow on her cheeks, "do you realize what I get to do tonight?"

"Of course I do. Kiss him on New Year's Eve for the first time since you met," he replied, not saying any names, since they were on a public street and didn't want anything overheard.

"Exactly," Lea nodded, unable to stop smiling.

"Didn't you say he's hanging out with friends today? What if he loses track of time?" Jon asked curiously, teasing her more than anything else.

At his question, Lea gathered her thoughts, "I trust that he'll be here. I know he's with friends and others that his publicist works with, but he promised he would be," she said honestly, "and if he isn't, then he's going to be in the dog house," she added with a grin.

Jon smirked, but nodded in understanding, letting Lea continue to guide him towards her parents place, "so this is the first holiday you've spent with him ever?" He wondered, trying to remember their history, there was a lot.

Lea nodded, "yeah, as a couple at least," she took a deep breath, "we first started dating while we were still filming the first thirteen episodes of Glee, around May '09. We dated through January '10, but we thought it was better to spend the holidays with our families that year, since Glee was just getting popular and we'd been traveling a lot. Then we broke up at the end of January, so we never got a Valentine's Day together. We didn't really talk much after I started hanging out and dating Theo and he was kind of hooking up with Naya, which you know I hated," she explained, trying to keep her voice down, "and after a while Theo realized that I still hadn't gotten over Mark and probably never would, so he settled for just being friends and my publicist thought we should stay 'together', so it kept rumors from starting about me, I guess."

"Yeah, I know. I'm just surprised he let it go on as long as he did. I would have figured he'd want to end it sooner than just a few months ago," Jon admitted.

"I don't know... I mean, when Mark and I filmed one of our scenes in 'Special Education' during season two, we talked for really the first time all year and I told him I'd started out dating Theo, but I didn't have any feelings for him, so even though we were still dating to the public, we were just friends. That's kind of when our relationship started to piece back together. I did feel bad that I didn't have any feelings except friendship towards Theo, but I appreciate that he was willing to stay 'with me' so Mark and I could figure us out. He understood that it was tough for me, being in the public eye all the time and knew why we broke up in the first place," Lea paused, realizing she'd gone off on a little tangent from what they'd been talking about, "anyway, Mark and I weren't together over the last holidays and even though when we filmed our duet in January of this year and started getting closer, it wasn't until the cast and I all came here to film the 'New York' episode of Glee that things really changed between us, so we missed Valentine's Day again. Mark and I had talked about getting back together, and Theo encouraged it, because he knew I was still in love with Mark, so that first day on set, when we were in Times Square," she thought back to that day and smiled at the memory, "he'd just gotten back from getting that hat with the bird on it and it was cute. I just couldn't wait any longer, so while we were sitting together over lunch, I asked him if we should make it official and he said he wanted to, so we did. I'm so glad we're back together, and we spent Thanksgiving and Christmas apart, again, and we hadn't planned on New Year's Eve together, but after his plans fell through in Spain, I invited them to New York," she paused, as they finally reached her parent's apartment building. Heading inside and over to the elevator, she continued, "I know it's risky, but I don't care. I want to spend tonight with him so bad. I also feel bad about his Spain trip being cut short, but I can't feel too bad, because now we get to be together."

Jon nodded once they were on the elevator, "I knew most of that, but thanks for the reminder and I get it. Are you ready for problems with Ryan when you get back, though? I mean, he doesn't like you guys being together publicly," he admitted, hating to bring it up, but knew it was a big deal.

"Ryan's rules are what made us break-up almost two years ago; it won't happen again. It's not like he can have us sign a contract that we refuse to have public contact and we won't be alone tonight. You, Jenna, her boyfriend Michael, Amber, Darren and his family will be here, so it's not unlikely that Mark, another cast mate, would be here, too," Lea commented, "and I don't care what Ryan thinks."

"As long as you're prepared to deal with him, you know I got your back," Jon reminded her.

"I know and I never thought you didn't," Lea replied. "I get why Ryan doesn't want Mark and I to be public. He wants me and everyone to support the pairings that he wants to be 'endgame', but I can't continue to lie to everyone. I like working with Cory, who is like a brother to me, but I don't support that pairing and I want people to know I'm with Mark," she smirked, "and just to give Ryan something to be pissed about, I'm tempted to tweet 'I'm spending New Year's Eve with the man I love' and add a picture of me and Mark to it."

"Whoa," Jon gasped, "I mean, go for it, if you want, but isn't that going to be a little much all at once?" He wondered, as they stepped off the elevator on her parent's floor and headed to their door.

"It's going to be 'too much' no matter when we announce our relationship. There's always going to be someone or something going on. I want to be able to say, 'Mark, let's go to dinner tonight after we're done on set,' and be able to do that, without someone saying we can't," she sighed, missing a lot of the real things couples did because of 'the rules' Ryan forced on them years prior, which lead to their break-up.

"Then maybe it's time to lay it on the line with Ryan. Tell him how you guys feel and not let him say 'no'. It's not fair that you've had to hide your relationship for this long. You're not the only person who has gotten with a cast mate. It does happen. I mean, look at Nina and Ian," Jon admitted, "you and Mark are professional and Ryan should be able to see that."

Lea looked at him as she unlocked her parents door and headed inside the familiar space, "maybe it is time to talk to him," she agreed, "I think I get his reasons why, but it's not fair. I should be able to be happy with who I want and not be punished for it. If I do something he doesn't like, he threatens me," she sighed, "I did tell you about the tour, right?"

Jon nodded, "yeah, you didn't want to go, but he said if you didn't he'd write Amber out of the show."

"Exactly. And I know if I went and told him I wanted to go public with Mark, I have a feeling it would mean Mark wouldn't come back for the fourth season they're talking about," she took her jacket off and plopped down on the couch, knowing her parents weren't there at the moment, "and he was extremely pissed when he found out I 'broke up' with Theo! I don't want to lose my job, but I'm getting tired of his bull shit."

Seeing the complete change in her mood, Jon knew it was a good idea to get her off the subject of Ryan, so he moved to sit down next to her on the couch, "alright, I get it. Just relax. Forget about Ryan and all that right now. Just focus on having fun tonight," he told her.

Taking a deep breath, Lea calmed down and smiled, "yes, you're right. Tonight is going to be amazing and that's all I care about right now. I can deal with the rest later."

~*~

Lea was glad she had talked with her best friend; having a chance to get some things out in the open that she'd been thinking about for the past few days. Her feelings for Mark were strong and real, but the stress of Ryan's 'rules', as they called them, made it difficult to expand their relationship outside the set of Glee or the privacy of their homes.

The main rule was Ryan didn't want them seen or photographed together in public or at any events, because "Puck and Rachel are not endgame and I don't want to lose Finn and Rachel fans because you two are dating," Ryan said in late-January 2010, and that was the strain that really caused them to break-up by the end of the month, after being together for eight months.

As a couple, Mark and Lea filmed part of the original thirteen episodes of Glee, traveled to malls in the US for Glee press, headed to Australia for a week for press, sang at the World Series, did CD signings when Glee's first album came out and did multiple talk show visits around the same time. They thought they were doing great, but when Ryan saw Glee's fans were growing exponentially, he feared that if they came out as a couple, the fans wanting Finn and Rachel together, would stop watching because Mark and Lea were dating.

That's why Ryan put a stop to them being together for interviews or at events, and after just short time, the stress from his rules forced them to break-up. It's something they both regret, wishing they had tried harder to stay together, but at the time, they didn't know a lot about being TV actors and were learning as they worked. Looking back, they know that was the best choice. Now they are on a completely different level, because they have learned, are stronger, older and mentally ready to deal with the stress, because they now have a clearer picture of what they want in their lives and being together is one of the solid foundations of their future, but they both longed for a time when they could go out together, even if it was just for coffee or grocery shopping.

The plus about spending a lot of time at home is since they've started dating again, they've had an opportunity to see what it would be like to live together. Mark spends a lot of time at Lea's and they enjoy the simple things, lounging around in pajamas, watching movies, talking, playing board games and cards, and even cooking and cleaning up after they've had friends over. Neither are worried about the horror stories they hear about couples getting married and moving in together afterward, only to find out they can't stand living in the same house. They were both glad that didn't seem to be an issue, so far, so even though they hadn't gotten a chance to experience much of a public relationship, they had a solid grasp on a real life together, which was just as important to them.

~*~

Six Hours Until Midnight
"That should be it," Lea admitted, taking a seat on the chair she finished moving, and pulled her phone from her pocket to look at the text messages from her parents with things they wanted them to do, "we've mostly rearranged the furniture and the food is prepared or almost prepared. Mom and dad should be home soon," she explained.

Jon smirked and looked at her from across the living room, "remind me why they're not here helping?" He asked curiously, taking a seat on the couch he was near.

Lea giggled lightly, "because I told them we'd get things ready, so they didn't have to take another day off of work," she replied, "I thought it would be fun to get ready for the party, because I'm not always here for family gatherings and I wanted to be a part of it; I just didn't want to show up," she explained.

Before Jon could respond to Lea's comment, the front door opened and a woman walked into the house, "hey mom!" Lea jumped up and moved towards her.

"Hey sweetheart," Edith greeted her with a hug, looking around, "hey Jon," she smiled in greeting when she saw him, "you guys did great! Did you get everything done?"

"We did," Lea nodded, as Jon came over to give her a hug, "is there anything else you need done?"

"I can't think of anything. Our party is never super fancy, but dad and I really appreciate your help with set up," she admitted, "I'm going to go shower before he gets home, too."

"Okay. We're probably going to change, too, because I think people will start arriving soon," Lea replied, knowing the party didn't officially start until eight, but some may begin to arrive earlier and she hoped one of them would be her boyfriend.

"You said Mark is going to be here, right?" Edith wondered, seeing her daughter's mood change slightly.

"He will be," Lea blushed, "but I don't know when he's going to get here. I've messaged him a few times today and haven't gotten a response. I'm sure he just hasn't heard his phone, because I think he was going out with his friends for a few hours."

"I'm sure he'll be over soon. I can't believe he'd lose track of time and accidentally miss the only opportunity to spend a holiday with you," Edith told her honestly.

Lea nodded, taking a deep breath, "this morning I was nervous that today was too good to be true. That spending tonight with him was a dream, but I pushed it aside to be excited, then Jon said that earlier, and I've been thinking it, too. Now that you bring it up, I'm even more confident that he'll be here and it's not going to be just a dream," she admitted, her cheeks still red from blushing.

"It's not a dream and honestly, I think Mark is the only guy you've ever been with, since I've known you, that you're this happy with," Jon commented, "so that means something, right?"

"It does," she nodded, "I love him and it's something that has lasted; I don't see my feelings ever changing. If I hadn't felt this way, I don't think we would have gotten back together, and I know it may be cliché to say, but I don't want to let go again. We broke up once from stress and all that mess before, but now we're back together and I'll fight to stay that way and I'm pretty sure he feels the same."

"Now, if you could only talk Ryan into making Rachel and Puck get together, you guys would be set," Edith smiled.

Lea giggled lightly, but nodded, "yeah, that'd be awesome," she agreed.

~*~

A little after seven, guests began to arrive and while Lea's parents were finishing getting ready and putting the last touches on some of the food they were serving, Lea was greeting the new arrivals and mingling with friends and family. She hadn't seen some of them, since they weren't all at the family Christmas party, so she spent some time catching up, and also greeted Jenna and her boyfriend, Michael Trevino, Darren and his family when they arrived and quickly introduced them to the others there.

Amber arrived around seven-thirty and once she greeted some people, she looked at Lea, "so I heard a rumor that a certain person is in the city," she commented to Lea, but was also standing near Jenna, Michael, Jon and Darren.

"If by 'certain person' you mean Mark, then yes he is," Lea replied with a smile.

"What happened? Wasn't he supposed to be in Spain?" Jenna asked, "or was I just misunderstanding things because Dianna was going there."

"He was supposed to, but something happened. He hasn't said exactly what, but it pissed him off enough that he paid a big chunk of money to change the flights for him and his friends to get back. When I talked to him he wasn't sure where they were going, so I told him to come to New York and they did. He'll be here sometime soon," Lea explained.

"He's in the city and he's going to be here. As in, with you, here, at this party," Amber's eyes widened when Lea smiled and nodded at her, "whoa, isn't that going to piss Ryan off?"

Lea looked around at the guests, family, friends and some coworkers of her parents that she'd known for years, "I don't care," she shrugged, "I love Mark and he loves me. Ryan has his rules, but I'm tired of following them. It's not like we planned this all along, either. It happened in just a few days and I'm not going to be in the same city as him and not be with him for the holiday," Lea added.

"We've got your back," Jenna commented and her boyfriend, Michael, Darren, Amber and Jon nodded in agreement, "you guys should have never needed to hide your relationship in the first place."

"Very true and thank you," Lea smiled, "but as Jon and I were talking earlier, the last thing I should be thinking about tonight is what Ryan is going to think," she added.

"I'll drink to that," Darren agreed with a grin, holding up his cup.

With a few laughs, the whole group tapped their cups, bottles or cans together and changed the topic to something more cheerful.

~*~

Four Hours Until Midnight
Her parent's apartment was pretty full and though she wanted to sit and talk with her cousins because some of them were siblings to her, she tried to move around, mingling with everyone. Her walk through ended in the kitchen that currently was empty, so she picked up an empty cup and filled it with some water, not wanting to drink until later. Taking a sip of the water, she laughed lightly to herself when she realized it was a red Solo cup. "I wish I could have been a part of that scene," she thought, remembering when the cast covered the song by Toby Keith; her character had been suspended, so she missed being in it.

Jon saw Lea go into the kitchen, so he excused himself from the people he was talking with and followed Lea's tracks, surprised to find her alone, "hey, you okay?"

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" She wondered, setting her cup down and looking at him.

"No reason. I just saw you come in here and it's not like you to hide at a party, so I wanted to see if you were alright," he replied honestly.

"Oh, I'm alright," she assured him, picking up her cup to show it to him, "I was actually thinking about the song they did on Glee. I wish I could have been part of the scene."

Jon laughed lightly, "I see. I'm glad you're alright," he admitted, relaxing once he knew that, "I was worried you were coming in here because you were upset."

Lea shook her head, "nope," she filled her class up with more water, "not upset. If he's not here in a few hours, that might change though," she added honestly.

"I'll make sure to warn everyone," he smirked, refilling his cup with the soda he'd been drinking, "your mood changed kind of quickly when we were talking about things today. You've bounced back to your usually bubbly self, and I just wanted to make sure you stayed that way."

"I have. Today I was trying to ignore some nerves I had, so that's why I was extra eager and bubbly at first. Then I just needed to get some of the stuff I said off my chest, but it did kind of upset me. Once I talked to you and mom, I relaxed and put my worries aside, so I can have fun tonight," she smiled.

"Sounds good," Jon smiled, draping his arm around her shoulders and guiding her out of the kitchen and into the living room.

Looking around the room, Lea could see her parents talking with some of their siblings, a few of her cousins were talking and scrolling through their cell phones and some of her parent's coworkers were mingling with people they knew. When her eyes landed on the group where her friends and cast mates were, she noticed a familiar person, currently hugging Jenna and she realized who it was.

Mark had arrived while she was in the kitchen and had gotten stopped by his cast mates, so he greeted them and as he pulled away from Jenna, he glanced over to see his girlfriend and smiled at her, "hey babe."

"You made it," she grinned, stepping a few feet towards him to give him a hug.

Slipping his arms around her body, Mark soaked in the familiar scents that he'd missed, "did you think I'd lose track of time?"

Lea blushed, "the thought crossed my mind, but I decided to remain confident you'd be here," she replied, standing up a little to press a kiss to his lips.

Returning her kiss, he let it linger for a moment, before pulling back, "I wouldn't spend New Year's Eve in NYC without being with you," he promised.

~*~

Lea was relieved when Mark had finally arrived. She hated to admit she had been a bit worried he'd change his mind, but after hearing what he said, she knew her concerns were for nothing and was able to relax and enjoy the rest of the night.

Mark didn't blame Lea at all for being concerned he wouldn't show up, given the rules they had to follow, but what he said was true. There was no way he'd spend the holiday in the city without being with her.

Everyone in the apartment was aware of their relationship or if it was news to them, they were sworn to secrecy and they promised to keep their secret, thinking it was only because of their celebrity status. They didn't quite understand the rules Lea and Mark had against them and it wasn't a conversation they wanted to have that night.

Just after his arrival, once Mark greeted the people he knew, Lea took his hand and led him around the room, introducing him to some of her extended family and friends that hadn't been able to meet him in the past. Mark enjoyed meeting everyone and they all were happy to finally meet Lea's boyfriend.

Conversations continued and slowly the apartment began to be split in half; the teens and younger adults, including Lea, Mark and the others from the cast, were all sitting or standing near each other, talking about whatever they could think of, while the adults were across the apartment doing the same thing.

Close to two hours after he'd arrived, midnight was only two hours away, Mark had made a decision he'd been thinking about for a while, so he asked her if there was someplace private they could go talk. Being teased about what kind of 'talking' they would be doing, Lea blushed, but took Mark's hand and guided him towards the bedrooms and slipped into the one she usually stayed in, not caring what it looked like to anyone; she was dying to get some time alone with him. As soon as she shut the door behind him, she walked over, wrapped her arms carefully around his waist and hugged him, "I'm so glad you're here," she murmured.

Mark smiled, "me too," he agreed, kissing her forehead, since she was wearing high heels and was closer to eye level with him than she usually was.

With her head resting on his chest, she got a chance to smell the familiar cologne and also noticed alcohol, "were you at a bar?"

"Yes, but I wasn't drinking, surprisingly," he admitted, "do you smell alcohol?"

"Yeah. It's not bad, I just noticed it mixed with your cologne," she replied, reaching up and resting a hand on his cheek, part of her still needing the touch to remind her it wasn't a dream.

"What's on your mind, babe?" He wondered softly, leaning into her touch.

"Nothing really, but part of me is still thinking that you being here is a dream," she blushed.

Turning his head, he pressed a kiss to her hand, "you're not dreaming," he promised, "but if you were, it'd be a damn good one."

"It would be," she nodded in agreement, smiling at him. After a moment, she remembered the reason for their private time and got curious, "what did you want to talk about?"

"That's a bit of a story," he admitted, taking a deep breath and then nodding to the bed, before letting her go. Moving over, he carefully took a seat, but because of his back injury from a month prior, he chose to lay on his side across the bed, propping himself up with his elbow, "it's something I've been debating about telling you, either now or waiting until later. I chose now, so you're not hearing about it from someone else."

Seeing the serious look on his face, the nervous butterflies from earlier in the day returned, so she kicked off her heels and stretched out onto the bed, shifting closer to him, mirroring his position so they could see each other. Biting her lip, she nodded, "okay... Is it something I should be worried about?"

Even without saying it, Mark knew she kept from asking another more personal question, so he closed the distance between them and pressed a kiss to her lips, draping his arm over her, "it has nothing to do with us or our relationship," he assured her, "I love you and I'm not letting you go again, baby, I mean it."

The redness in her cheeks slowly grew again, but she nodded and smiled, "okay, good, because I love you, too, and feel the same way. If it's not about us, then it's about you. What's going on?" She asked, wrapping her arm around his back.

"I may need to have surgery on my back," he sighed.

"What?" Lea gasped, her eyes widening, "why?"

"Turns out the reason why things didn't seem to be feeling better is not because of a fractured pelvis. Remember the MRI I had just before we got to come home for the holidays?" He asked and when she nodded, he continued, "well, I asked my doctor to call me with the results because I wouldn't be home for a few weeks and didn't want to wait to find out. He called me a couple days before Christmas and told me that I have a herniated disc that's putting pressure on a nerve in my back."

"Oh Mark," she reached up and rested her hand against his cheek, "that's horrible! No wonder you've been in so much pain. Surgery is the only option?"

"Maybe. He didn't go into too many details, but told me surgery may be something I'll have to think about. He didn't want to say for sure until he could see me, so once we get back to work, I'll have to schedule an appointment, so I can go talk to him. I hope I don't need surgery, but I don't think I can deal with this pain much longer," he admitted.

"I hate seeing you in pain," she admitted, "I wish there was something else I could do besides just being there for you," she commented honestly.

Mark smiled at her, "I love the moral support; it's helping a lot."

"Good," she replied, "and if you do need surgery, I'm there, but I hope you don't need it," she added, pressing a kiss to his lips.

Returning her kiss, he smiled, "thanks, babe. So, I'd get my own personal nurse?"

"Of course," she winked at him, "just call me Nurse Lea."

"Does that title come with the little outfit, too?" He wondered, wiggling his eyebrows a little.

Lea grinned, shifting closer and letting one of her legs gently brush against his, "I definitely could come up with something," she whispered, kissing him again.

Mark couldn't help the groan escape his throat as they kissed, fighting the urge to start taking her clothes off and making up for the weeks they'd been apart. He also didn't want to rush the moment with her and knew they didn't have complete privacy, so he reluctantly pulled back and rested his hand against her cheek, "Lea, I want you right now more than you know, but I don't want to rush things," he whispered against her lips, "let's wait until we really can be alone."

A tiny part of her brain sighed in disappointment when he stopped them, but the rest of her knew it wasn't the right time to be fooling around; besides being in her parent's guest room, there were plenty of guests only a few feet from the door and anyone, at any time, could walk in there unannounced and the last thing she wanted was to be caught in an private moment, "you're right. Sorry, but I've really missed you."

"Don't be sorry," Mark shook his head and kissed her gently, "I've missed you, too, and I'm feeling the same way you are, but I just think we should wait until we're really alone."

"It will be more special," she agreed, settling against him, "can I ask you something?"

"Of course you can," he replied easily.

"How come you wanted to tell me about your back in private? I mean, everyone out there is friends and family," she motioned towards the direction of the living area where the guests were.

"Because I don't want anyone else to know until I know more. I've been meaning to tell you, but I didn't think it was something to talk about over the phone, and once I got here tonight and we were talking with everyone, I thought we could slip away and get some alone time, where I could talk to you about it," he explained.

"That makes sense," she replied. "I definitely like the alone time and I'm glad you told me. I won't say anything to anyone, either."

"I know you won't," he said, kissing her again, the closeness and simple touches helping keep his senses from taking over and going against what they'd agreed to do. "So, enough with the depressing talk, let's enjoy the rest of the night."

"Sounds like a good idea to me," she agreed, settling against him, "I could stay like this all night," she murmured, "but I'm sure someone is going to come looking for us, if we don't get back out there soon."

"Yeah, and I wonder how many of them are taking bets to see how long we'll be in here," Mark replied with a smirk.

Lea pulled back a little from him and giggled lightly, "you're probably right. Maybe we should go join them and pick this up next year," she grinned.

Knowing exactly what she meant, since the new year was less than an hour and a half away, he nodded and leaned in, pressing a kiss to her lips to seal the deal, "it's a date."

~*~

One Hour Until Midnight
When Mark and Lea rejoined the party, their friends and some of Lea's cousins were quick to tease them about what they'd been 'doing', but no one was too serious about it. The couple knew they were just joking around and were used to it, so they teased them back and after a few minutes of comebacks, the subject had been changed to something else.

On top of New Year's Eve being celebrated with a party at her parents place, every year, about an hour before midnight everyone there would bundle up in warm clothes and head down to Central Park for midnight. This year was no different and around eleven, the family and friends started putting on warmer clothes along with their jackets, hats, gloves and scarves and slowly the apartment emptied.

The Glee cast members tried to split up so all of them were not in the same group as they walked and even though they were all bundled up and could hardly tell who anyone was, Lea walked with Jon and Mark walked with Jenna and Michael, just in case they were spotted on the streets.

It wasn't too far to Central Park from her parent's place. When they arrived in a large field in the middle of the park, tons of people were already gathered, listening to music from a DJ playing on the stage set up and mingling around the open venders. The crowd was still growing, but it still was much smaller than the one going on in Times Square, which is why Lea and her family continued to go to the park every year.

Finding their way towards the edge of field, near some trees, the group kind of claimed an area and then several of them went off in search of coffee or other drinks to warm up with from the almost freezing New York City temperature. When some of them wandered off, Lea and Mark moved towards the back of their group, so they had some privacy with everyone blocking them from the view of other people partying, but they still could see the stage and the open sky above for when the fireworks began at midnight.

"You're used to the LA sunshine," Mark said after a little while when he noticed Lea's arms crossed over her chest like she was cold. Unsnapping his favorite Carhartt jacket, he stepped closer and with his jacket still on, wrapped it around her so he could help her keep warm.

"I thought this would be enough," she blushed, "I'm wearing a pair of pajama pants under my jeans and when I went to get my jacket, I put another shirt over the one I had on."

When Lea had changed, she'd also put on flat shoes to walk in easier, so she was now a few inches shorter than she had been earlier, so he was able to rest his chin on the top of her head, "damn, more layers to take off later," he murmured.

Lea giggled lightly, "but it'll be worth the wait," she replied.

"That is true," he agreed.

"You two are so adorable together," Edith commented as she and Lea's dad returned with coffee for the four of them, "here's your coffees, but I don't think you need them to keep warm," she added with a grin.

Lea let go of Mark, but without moving from the warmth of his body and jacket, she turned around so her back was pressed to his chest, and each of them took their warm drinks from her parents, "thanks," Lea smiled, "it will keep us warm and also help us stay up later."

At her words, Mark pulled his phone out to see what time it was and saw it was a little after eleven-thirty, "speaking of time, it's less than thirty minutes until New Year."

"Awesome," Lea grinned, turning and reaching up to adjust Mark's baseball cap that was ajar, "I really like your hat," she said to him.

"Thanks. I really like it, too," he nodded, "why do you like it?"

"Because you bought it the day we got back together," she explained, lifting the bill of the cap a little to see his eyes more, "and every time I see you wear it, it makes me think about how excited and happy it made me to know we got back together."

"Definitely a very memorable and happy day for me, too," he agreed, "are you still happy?"

"So very happy," she nodded, slipping one of her arms around his waist, under his jacket, "I love you and I want to be with you, no matter what drama or rules we have to deal with."

"I love you, too and that's very good to know," he smiled, letting his arms drape around her gently, holding his jacket closed around them.

~*~

Slowly the others from the Sarfati's party had gathered around in a large group, friends and family all pulling out cameras and getting ready to take pictures of the fireworks that would be going off at midnight and to capture other moments during the final minutes of 2011 and the beginning of 2012. Lea did the same thing, taking a few photos of her and Mark standing together and Jenna took one of Mark, Lea and her parents, before everyone's attention turned to the large screen that was showing the ball in Times Square, with a timer counting down with ten minutes left.

Standing against her boyfriend's chest, his jacket wrapped around them, Lea couldn't be happier. She was finally spending New Year's Eve with him and hoped that it could continue to be a tradition with them, just like it had been with her family. Where they were standing, the lights were kind of dim, but Lea still could see his face in the faint light, even with his hat shading his eyes, while she was thinking about the beginning of a new year with him and was looking forward to their midnight kiss.

Mark felt like he was being watched and glanced down, his gaze meeting Lea's sparkling chocolate eyes. Smiling at her he squeezed her lovingly and held her close, wanting to wait until midnight to kiss her again. "You're really here. You're finally with her for a holiday. It definitely wasn't the original plan, but I'm glad it worked out this way, because this is where I belong; with her," he thought, letting his eyes drift closed briefly, "this is an epic night."

Lifting her coffee cup to her lips, she took a sip and a thought popped into her mind, "why didn't your friends come over with you?" She wondered.

"They wanted to go to Times Square and I had somewhere more important to be," he said honestly, "so, they went one way, I went another."

Lea nodded in understanding, "some of them haven't been here for New Year's Eve, huh?"

"Yeah," Mark replied, finishing the last of his coffee, "so they said to wish you a 'Happy New Year' and they'd see you later."

"Oh, alright, cool. I hope they enjoy Times Square," she admitted.

"I think they will," Mark smiled at her, "just like I'm really enjoying Central Park."

Lea returned his smile and nodded, "me too."

~*~

When the clock dropped below a minute, their group, along with the huge crowd, began shuffling closer to whoever they'd be sharing their midnight kiss with. Lea downed the rest of her coffee and set her and Mark's cups on the ground at their feet; she'd pick them up later, because she wanted her hands free when she kissed her boyfriend. Quickly returning to his embrace as the ten second countdown began, Mark and Lea found each other's gaze and didn't need words to say what they were thinking; they were very happy to finally have that moment together.

As the last few seconds of 2011 passed by, cheers erupted all over the crowd as fireworks began exploding over their heads, lighting up the dark night sky. Couples all around them were kissing, and Lea and Mark joined them, their lips connecting for the first time in 2012.

The moment they touched lovingly, sharing their first New Year's kiss since they'd known each other, the two got lost in the other, feeling sparks and fireworks going off all over their bodies the longer their kiss lasted. Lea slid her arms around his neck, not wanting it to end and Mark wrapped his arms around her body, their their tongues brushing against their lips, while feelings of excitement and relief poured into their connection; neither of them wanting to forget that moment.

Needing to catch his breath, Mark reluctantly pulled back slightly, but kept his arms around her, "Happy New Year, baby," he smiled brightly, his face only inches from hers.

Returning his smile, Lea felt the sparks continue through her body as they remained wrapped around each other, "Happy New Year, sweetheart," she replied, her gloved hands moving to rest on his cheeks for a moment, before shifting to find a more comfortable position standing on her feet, but their gaze remained on each other.

Out of the corner of his eye, Mark saw Lea's parents and Jon moving towards them, so he slowly let her go, so she could have a few moments with them. With her attention now on the others, it gave Mark an opportunity to take a small box out of his pocket, and pop it open long enough to make sure it's contents were still safely tucked inside. Closing it back up, he smiled at Edith, who was now standing next to him with a bright grin on her face; her parents were well aware of what he was about to do. Giving her a hug and wishing her a 'Happy New Year', he pulled back just as Lea let go of Jon, "Lea," he said softly, wanting to catch her before she moved on to anyone else.

Hearing her name, Lea turned to him, "yeah?"

Mark held out his free hand and when she took it, she stepped closer to him and he took a deep breath, "I never should have let you go when we broke up and I know we agreed we did the right thing, because we had a lot going on at the time, but I never stopped loving you and I always will. No one compares to you and now that we're back together, I don't care what life throws at us, I'm not letting you go again. I will fight with all I have to make us work, because I want to spend the rest of my life by your side and I was wondering," he paused and lifted his other hand, popping open the soft velvet ring box to show her the ring inside, and then slowly knelt down on one knee, "Lea Michele Sarfati, will you marry me?"

The fireworks continued to pop overhead, but the gasps of their friends and her family around them could easily be heard over the noise and now they were all waiting for her answer.

As her boyfriend began talking, Lea's stomach did a flip flop, confused at what he was doing, but loved his words. When he opened the small box in his hand, she saw a gorgeous peridot ring, the large, square, olive-green stone surrounded by smaller diamonds, with several more diamonds laid into the white gold band. She quickly recognized her birthstone, which she also shared with him, but as he asked her that four-word question, she quickly realized it wasn't just a birthstone ring; he'd chosen it as an engagement ring. Gasping at the realization, her eyes widened in shock and stared down at the ring, and then looked at him, seeing his eyes locked on her, trying patiently to wait for an answer. Flicking her eyes back to the ring, which sparkled momentarily from the exploding fireworks, she quickly remembered what he said and knowing her strong feelings for him would never change, she smiled brightly as tears began to fall from her eyes, "yes, yes I'll marry you," she choked out, nodding and tugging the glove off her left hand, so he could put the ring on her finger.

Mark sighed in relief and smiled just as brightly, standing up as she removed her glove. Taking the the ring out of the box, once her hand was free of the material, he gently took it and carefully slid the ring onto her finger, finding it fit perfectly; like it was meant to be there all along.

As soon as the ring was on her hand, Lea lifted it up briefly to look at it and then threw her arms around his neck, "I love you so much, Mark," she murmured into his ear as she hugged him tightly, tears still falling from her eyes.

"I love you, too, Lea," he replied happily, holding her close, relief and happiness filling his emotions.

Even if everyone hadn't heard her response, now that they saw them hugging, they knew she had said 'yes', so they all began passing on their congratulations, trying not to draw too much attention to them; the last thing they wanted was a bunch of people recognizing them at the moment.

Staying lost in each other's embrace for a long moment, Lea finally calmed her tears and pulled back a little to look at the ring again, "oh my God," she blushed, looking at Mark, "we're really engaged?"

"We are," he smiled brightly.

Lea returned his smile and turned to her parents to see her mom wiping her eyes and her dad holding a camera, "did you guys know about this?" She asked, looking between them and her fiancé.

"We may have had some warning," Edith admitted, stepping forward to wrap her arms around Lea and Mark, "I'm so happy for you both," she said honestly.

The newly engaged couple returned her mom's hug and then looked at her dad, who also gave them a hug, "and I hope the video turned out. There was just enough light to see your faces and with the cheers and fireworks, I hope you can hear your voices," he said, holding up his and Edith's digital camera.

"I'm sure we'll be able to hear it," Lea said, then gasped, patting her pocket, "where's my camera?"

Edith held it out to her, "I never gave it back to you when I asked to use it a little bit ago," she said, "I took a few pictures and I'm sure with everyone's photos there should be a lot of great angles for you to see the proposal with."

Lea nodded her thanks, still in shock from his proposal, but couldn't be happier. Jon walked up to them and was the next to congratulate them, commenting he had a feeling something was up, but had been unable to figure out what it was. He also admitted that he was super excited and happy for them and promised he'd back them up if they needed the support with anything, including Ryan.

Jenna, Amber and Darren agreed with what Jon told them, promising their loyalty to them and their relationship and also added their congratulations, which started a chain reaction for others to do the same. A lot of Lea's relatives welcomed Mark to the family and he appreciated hearing that, glad they seemed to approve of him, even though they didn't know a lot about him, except from what Lea and her parent's have said or what they might have heard in the news.

While Mark and Lea were in the middle of everyone, Lea's dad suggested they start heading back to their place to continue celebrating the new year and Lea and Mark's engagement. When everyone agreed and started gathering up their trash, they started to leave, dropping by a garbage before heading in the direction they'd come from earlier. As they walked, Mark was surprised to find Lea wrapping her left hand around his right and lacing their fingers together, "are you sure this is a good idea?" He asked softly.

"I don't know, but I want to walk with my fiancé," she shrugged, "besides, it's dark out and we're all bundled up, so I don't think we'll be recognized," she added, wrapping her other hand around his arm.

"No complaints here, just surprised. I gotta admit, I really love hearing you say 'my fiancé'," he grinned, bringing his free hand to rest on hers that was wrapped around his arm.

Lea nodded happily, "well, I love saying it and hearing you say it, too," she glanced down at their hands, the dim streetlight helping her ring sparkle, "we're a little rebellious because we're breaking the rules, but I don't care; I feel amazing right now!"

"The feeling is mutual, babe," he replied with a grin.

~*~

Once safely behind the closed doors of her parent's apartment, the bottles of champagne and sparkling apple cider came out, glasses being filled and passed around. Once Lea got her jacket and the extra shirt off, now back to what she had on earlier in the evening, all the women began to crowd around her to get a look at the ring.

She happily talked with her aunts and cousins, along with Jenna and Amber, showing off her new ring and getting a great reaction to Mark's original choice. When questions began to come up about where she wanted to get married, when they wanted to have the wedding and if they wanted to go simple or elaborate, she was getting overwhelmed, "to be honest, I don't know. I haven't thought about it. We've never even brought up marriage, so this is a complete shock. It's definitely something we'll have to talk about soon," she said, politely trying to get them to lay off those questions.

One of her aunts caught on, understanding Lea's emotional state at the moment, and helped break up the group so Lea could breathe. Sharing a thankful smile to her aunt, Lea moved over to Mark and slipped her arms around him, "we've got lots of things to talk about," she murmured.

"Yeah, we do, but tonight, well, this morning, we celebrate," Mark replied, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

~*~

With drinks in hands, toasts were made to 2012 and also to wish Lea and Mark a happy, healthy and long life together. The couple thanked everyone for the support and promised as soon as they began on the details of the wedding, they'd let everyone know.

Since some of the guests had a bit of a drive to get home and it was almost one-am, a lot of them began to say 'goodbye' and slowly the apartment emptied, leaving only a small few who lived or were staying in hotels nearby.

Out of habit, Lea began to pick up some of the empty cups and things that had been left around the apartment, but her mom stopped her, "Lea, sweetheart, don't worry about that."

"But I was just going to help clean up," she replied, a little confused.

"Don't worry about it," she said again, "dad and I will take care of it. You and Jon set up and did everything this afternoon while we were at work and we're both off tomorrow, so we'll put things back together. Go home spend some time with Mark before you guys have to get back to LA," she explained, motioning to where Mark was talking with Jon, Darren, Michael and her dad.

Lea did want to be alone with her fiancé, but didn't want to leave her parents with a huge mess, "are you sure?" She asked hesitantly.

"Yes, we're sure. Go, have fun and we'll see you tomorrow," Edith said with a smile, giving her a tight hug.

~*~

Without anymore coaxing, Lea gathered her things and she and Mark said 'goodbye' to everyone still there. They could have taken a cab to save on being out in the cold, but with parties still going on in various parts of the city, they figured traffic would be bad in certain areas and it wasn't too far to her place, so they opted to walk. Both dressed warmly again, the two walked hand-in-hand, feeling liberated, in a sense, for being out in public together, but also kept quiet and tried not to draw attention to themselves, because they didn't want to press their luck.

The closer they got to Lea's apartment, the more relaxed they became and once they arrived and were on the elevator up to her floor, Lea wrapped her arms around him, standing up on her tiptoes to kiss him.

Being caught off guard, Mark reacted quickly and pulled her close, continuing her kiss by letting his tongue gently brush over her lips. When the elevator came to a stop on her floor, they reluctantly broke apart and walked off, hands still joined together and she used her other hand to dig her keys out. Mark unsnapped his jacket and let her lead him in the right direction and quickly they came to her door. After sliding a few keys into her locks, she pushed the door open, eagerly moving inside and pulling him with her.

Mark smirked, taking the hint and as soon as he was inside, while she was locking the door again, he shrugged out of his jacket and laid it over the back of her couch along with his hat. "Let's get out of these clothes," he said softly, reaching out and helping her unbutton her jacket as he let his lips press against hers again.

Without breaking their kiss, she dropped her house keys and bags to the floor and once her jacket was loose, she let it join her bags, not caring where it landed, "bedroom," she mumbled, lifting each foot up to kick her ballet flats off her feet.

Between the front door and her room, they hardly broke their lips apart as clothes continued to be tossed or dropped on the floor until they were falling onto her bed in just their underclothes. Mark swiftly unclasped her bra, freeing her body of the garment and tossing it out of the way, "God, you're so gorgeous," he murmured, his lips leaving a trail of soft and warm kisses along her exposed skin.

Lea couldn't help the contented smile that grew on her lips as he spoke, her body feeling sparks every time he kissed her, "I love you," she said, looking to meet his eyes.

Shifting a little, Mark could see the twinkle in her eyes, even in the dim light of her bedside lamp and smiled back at her, "I love you, too."

~*~

Mark and Lea took their time, making sure to savor every moment, wanting to remember everything they could about their first intimate celebration of their engagement.

Settling against her pillows and under her blankets, while Mark laid on his side, Lea snuggled close to him and for a long moment they were quiet, letting their heart rates and breathing return to normal. Lea also passed the time studying her ring. "I love my ring, but can I ask you why you went with our birthstone?" She wondered softly.

"Of course you can," Mark smiled, "my first thought was about you wearing it. I knew if I went with a traditional diamond ring, the moment you wore it out, someone would see it, and then the rumors would begin, possibly forcing us to go public sooner than we planned, so I wanted to go with something you could wear anytime; not just for private events with our families and friends. Then I realized that we have the same birthstone and I thought it'd be meaningful for us because it's something we share and you'd be free to wear it whenever you wanted. If anyone sees you wear it, all you have to say is that it's a birthstone ring you were given as a gift."

Lea grinned brightly, "that's the first thing I thought of; wearing it out, because," she paused and slid the ring off her left ring finger and tried it out on a few more fingers before returning it to her left hand, "I can wear it on other fingers. I really don't want to take it off at all and there's no reason why I couldn't keep it on while filming. I've worn other rings on different fingers before."

Mark nodded, "I know and I'm not going to be one of those dudes that expects you to wear it every day and gets pissed if you don't. I trust you and with the whole Ryan situation, if he asks you to not wear it and you chose not to, then I'll understand; I just would like to see it on you as often as possible."

"Like I said, I don't plan to take it off, but thank you for being understanding," she said, pressing a kiss to his lips as she rested her hand on his chest.

"You want to know the other reason why I chose it?" He smiled, gently resting his hand on hers, his finger brushing over her ring.

"Really? There's another reason?" She grinned, "what is it?"

"Because it reminds me of the ring William gave Catherine. Her engagement ring wasn't a diamond; it was a sapphire and considering you're my princess, I think it's a perfect combination," he told her honestly.

"Oh wow," she gasped, feeling the blush growing on her cheeks as she looked at her ring, seeing similarities to the ring he was talking about, "you make me feel like a princess and I love it. Sometimes I wonder what I did to make me lucky enough to get you back in my life, but now I know that you've always been my prince and we just needed time to figure it out. Now that I have you back in my life, I'm never letting you go," she told him, tears falling again, "I love you."

Mark reached up and wiped her eyes gently, wrapping his arms around her to hold her close, "I love you, too, and I'm never letting you go again, either," he promised, "and whatever happens, the good and the bad, I know we'll get through it together."

"Yes we will," Lea nodded in agreement, meeting his eyes as his words sunk in. In the very near future, she knew they could face some major roadblocks, once the rest of the cast, crew and 'the powers that be' of Glee, find out about their engagement, but she was confident no matter what the consequences or repercussions were, they'd support each other and deal with them together.

~*~

A/N5: So there you have it... My first Lark fic. I really hope you enjoyed it. It can definitely stand alone as a one-shot, but as I finished up the last few pages, I realized it could be the beginning of an awesome Lark series in it's own universe, AU after Glee '3x11 - Michael'. What do you guys think? More? Let me know! Just be gentle; it is my first!

A/N6: A huge shout out to all my awesome friends that have supported, encouraged and helped me while writing this and all of my other fics! You know who you are! You rock! <3!

TO NON-LJ USERS - You're welcome to comment without having an LJ account. To leave a comment, at the top of the page, there are several little icons. Click the one that looks like a little blue pencil. That will drop you down to the bottom of the post and open up a comment window. Fill out the body section and if you'd like me to reply back to you, give me your FF.net or Tumblr user name so I can. If you'd rather not, I'll just reply to the comment on the post. If you're anon, when you post your comment, it won't show up right away. Anon messages are screened and I'll get a message that there are waiting comments to read, so I'll check them out and reply when I can! Thanks for reading!

~*~

The ring:
Found here

The things that helped spark ideas for this fic:
- The "Mutiny At Glee" article in the 12/19/2011 issue of US Weekly, specifically the the 'Petty Revenge' section. You can see a photo of the article that I reblogged on my Tumblr here.
- In an interview Lea did for the 'New Year's Eve' movie press, she talked about what they did for New Year's Eve and who would be with her from the cast. (I reblogged it here on my Tumblr)
- At the 'New Year's Eve' premiere, Lea was asked who she would be kissing at midnight and she said it would be her best friend, Jon Groff, and pointed him out in the crowd. The video is here on YouTube (Lea shows up about 2:25)
- Mark and Lea's tweets from New Year's Day where we learned they were together for the holiday:
Mark: 'Learned so much this holiday. Some good some not so good but thru it ALL I learned. Thank u @msleamichele […] for saving new years'
Lea: 'Happy New Year everyone!! Rung in the New Year with my dear friends J Groff, @Mark_Salling [before he dropped the '_'] @DarrenCriss and @JennaUshkowitz :)' ( I reblogged a screen shot of their tweets here on my Tumblr.)

~*~