Disclaimer: Geez, seems I forgot to do this on two previous stories (talk about embarrassing). As we all know, I owns nothing associated with Glee except for my overactive imagination as it relates to Glee characters—especially Samcedes.

Author's note: To ease my withdrawals during the current hiatus (really, Jan. 17th, can you just get here?), I've re-watched season 1 of Glee and the episode 'Bad Reputation' put a thought in my mind…

Let's Get Physical…

Mercedes Jones was certain of two things. One, this upcoming calculus exam was going to be a bitch; and Two, Sam Evans was going to be the death of her. Her first problem was the current cause of the massive headache forming behind her eyes. As far as Sam, he was the cause for an ache somewhere completely different. She attempted to shake the cobwebs free for the third time since class began so she could focus on the study guide before her. However, her mind was far from the paperwork on her desk.

Mercedes had always made it a habit of arriving to all of her classes at least five minutes early—yes, there was a possibility she was a bit of a nerd. However, she was assured by Kurt's constant 'We may be nerds now, but in five years, they will all be pumping our gas.' She was just settling into her seat, breathing a sigh of relief to have dodged Sam and Shane for the first three classes of her day when he walked in.

Mercedes closed as relaxed in her chair; she could hear the rustle of clothing as someone entered the classroom a few minutes later. Almost immediately, she could feel the atmosphere in the room change. She opened her eyes to determine why and was met by the green-eyed gaze of one Sam Evans. The predatory way that he watched her made her shift in her seat. She shook away her momentary shock and sat up a bit straighter in her seat, determined not to let him get to her this time. Every since Sam returned and made his intentions known—to the entire school—he had the uncanny ability to make his presence known without uttering a word. She had caught him staring at her at nearly every turn, and he never apologized for it. In fact, he always wore his trademark lopsided grin when she caught him. Strangely enough, his watching her never creeped her out. In fact, it did the opposite. Sam had this quiet intensity about him and it showed in everything he did—even when he watched her every move. Currently he stood a mere two feet from her and his eyes bore into her with thunderous force. Mercedes could tell he had momentarily lost focus as his eyes zoned onto her lips for a split second. The result was his small groan as he bit his bottom lip. Mercedes' eyes latched onto that movement and she was helpless to stop the small groan that escaped her.

She remembered those lips. The way they felt as they glided across her own; she could recall the way they felt as they ghosted across her collarbone, breasts…other places. She stopped herself from traveling any further down that road.

"Can I help you, Sam?" She tried her best to infuse as much sass as possible into the question.

She noticed other students begin filing into the classroom around her.

Sam regarded her for a moment more before settling into the seat behind her, making sure his hand brushed her shoulder in the process. He was rewarded by her sharp intake of breath. Once he was settled in, he leaned in dangerously close to whisper in her ear. So close, in fact, that his lips momentarily brushed across the shell of her ear. He was rewarded this time by the small tremor that racked her body.

Smiling as he spoke, "That's a loaded question, if I ever heard one…but no help needed."

"Then why do you keep staring me down? It's annoying and my boyfriend wouldn't appreciate it if he caught you." She didn't dare turn around to face him, afraid of what she'd see.

He remained too close, hovering near. She could feel the heat from his body and smell that scent that was all Sam.

"I was listening to my 'Workout Music' playlist while in the weight room this morning and imagine my surprise when 'Let's Get Physical' blared through my ear buds." Mercedes felt the heat begin in her ears as he spoke, the warmth slowly spreading throughout her body. "Let's just say I was in need of a cold shower in the worst way."

She could hear the smile in voice, but she was too far gone to call him out. She was immediately drawn back to this past summer.

Four months ago, McKinley High Weight Room….

"I can't believe I let you talk me into this." Mercedes whined as she allowed Sam to lead her into the weight room.

"If you recall, it didn't take much convincing, Miss Jones." He drawled, chuckling as she ducked her head to hide her blush. "As a matter of fact, if I recall correctly, you said you would love to see me workout. Of course, that was after you watched a certain YouTube video."

Again, she turned her head from him. Her voice was barely above a whisper. "Damn! I knew I shouldn't have shown you the video Coach Sylvester made with Olive Newton-John."

Sam moved into her line of vision, his eyes intense. "Never apologize for that. Seeing how that video affected you was…hot."

Mercedes was momentarily taken aback by the intensity of his stare and tried to inject a little levity.

"So…you were going to show me how you keep that fine frame in shape?"

It worked and Sam led her over to the weight bench as he began his workout routine, stopping briefly hook up her iPod to the room's sound system. Twenty minutes later and he was going at a good clip, as evidenced by the sheen of sweat her wore. He was nearly finished with his dumbbell reps when he heard the familiar opening bars of 'Let's Get Physical' float through the room. His eyes were immediately drawn to Mercedes as he momentarily considered teasing his girlfriend. He nearly dropped the weights in his hands as he took her in—her eyes were fixed on him in an almost predatory way as her lips parted slightly, her breathing ragged.

Mercedes didn't know what hit her. One minute she was enjoying the view of her delicious looking white boy as he worked out, loving the way the sweat trailed down his bare back; the next, that damned song began playing and she had flashes of him in the same red spandex suits as the guys in the video. So…Hot.

Sam carelessly placed the dumbbells on the nearest rack and met Mercedes halfway, their lips and bodies crashing into one another. He couldn't get close enough, pulling her body flush with his as he teased her bottom lip slowly with his tongue. His control snapped when she mewled her appreciation before granting his tongue access into her mouth. He grabbed one of her legs, hitching it across his thigh as he pressed his hardened member against her.

Mercedes nearly came right there from the contact. She and Sam broke apart momentarily, solely for their need to draw a breath. She saw the wild look in his eyes, confident that her own mirrored his. Grasping the short hairs at his nape, she pulled his mouth back down to her waiting lips. This time, she initiated the tongue and was rewarded immediately by Sam suckling hers as he continued to grind into her. She was so caught up in his ministrations that she barely registered the fact that Sam had moved them back to the weight bench. He lowered her onto the bench, making sure to keep his body in constant contact as he followed her down.

It took every shred of that last ounce of control he had to not strip her down and take her right there on the bench. Instead, he trailed hot kisses from her lips down to her collarbone, counting his blessings that she chose to wear a tank top today. He breathed in a scent that was all Mercedes as his tongue danced across the tops of her breasts, eliciting a ragged moan from Mercedes as she tugged at his short hair. That only served to spur him on even more as raising up only long enough to free her of her tank top. Mercedes was a step ahead of him and had her bra unclasped by the time he tossed her shirt over his head. He stared at the feast before him and felt himself grow even harder, if that was possible. He immediately latched onto one of her areola, unable to resist any longer. He sucked, nipped and lapped at her right breast before giving the same attention to her left.

She was hot…so hot. Mercedes thought she would combust from the fire coursing through her veins. Sam was doing things she never imagined—and that was just to her breasts! She groaned from the overwhelming sensation of his trouty mouth at her breasts and the large bulge she felt him grinding into her warm center. She. Wanted. Him. Plain and simple. Never in a million years had she thought she would be doing this, but she wouldn't have it any other way. She pulled his mouth back to hers as she ground her hips against him, smiling as he whimpered. Sam pulled his mouth away from hers to stare deeply into her eyes. Her heart nearly stopped from the way he looked at her.

"Mercedes…" he rasped. "I…we…" He looked down suddenly.

She knew what he was trying to say, they had yet to pass this threshold in their relationship. Sure, they had come thisclose but never went beyond exploring hands and long, deep kisses. She took his face into her hands, meeting his gaze.

"Sam, I want this. I want you." Her voice was a breathy whisper.

He closed his eyes momentarily as her voice washed over him before he took her hand in his, turning it so he could place a kiss to her palm.

"Mercedes, there's nothing I want more than…this. But, you deserve better than this weight room." He gestured to their surroundings. Seeing the crestfallen look on her face, he took her chin in his hands, forcing her to meet his gaze. "I love you and promise to give you everything you deserve, Mercedes, and nothing less."

He kissed her breathless then.

"Thank you, Sam."

She began to sit up, but was stopped by Sam's hand to her shoulder. Looking at him in question, she saw that the previous fire was back in his eyes. The look sent a jolt of electricity straight to her core.

"Now, Miss Jones…" he drawled. "What kind of gentleman would I be if I didn't…relieve you when you are so clearly in need now?"

"W-what?"

"Mercedes, I can feel how wet you are. It's driving me crazy."

"B-but you said-"

"I said we wouldn't do that here, but there is something else I want to do for you…i-i-if you'll let me."

Mercedes could never tell him no, especially when he looked at her like that. She nodded meekly, biting her bottom lip as he relieved her of her shorts and panties. The look on his face as he took in her nude form was inexplicable. Sam's eyes darkened a shade as he licked his lips in anticipation. That day, Sam Evans introduced her to a whole new world of loving, and twenty minutes later she was hitting high notes that put Steven Tyler to shame as 'Dream On' blared overhead.

The ringing of the bell startled her from her reverie. She shook the cobwebs free once again and closed her eyes in an effort to calm her racing heart.

Damn him, she thought. And damn me for wanting that again.

Her classmates filed out as she sat motionless at her desk. She finally stood from her seat when she felt her knees wouldn't immediately buckle beneath her. She turned to see Sam still in his seat, his eyes unfocused. She regarded him in concern.

"Sam, are you okay?" She touched his shoulder, immediately cursing herself as she felt that all too familiar spark.

He started as he looked up at her, clearly startled. His face looked flushed as he looked around, clearly relieved that his classmates had already vacated the room.

"Sam, I sai-"

"I'm fine…or at least I will be in a few minutes. After you leave."

The confusion on her face must have been evident, as he then gestured to his lap. Mercedes allowed her eyes to drift downward to the prominent bulge briefly before turning away.

"…"

Sam chuckled lightly from his seat. "Guess we can file this attempt in the loss column for ol' Sammy Evans, huh? I can't even seduce you without getting myself all worked up. I just… miss you so damn much, 'Cedes."

Mercedes felt the resistance she built up for him start to chip. She regarded the hopeless expression on his face and felt that wall crumble. She took a chance and grabbed his hand, drawing his eyes to her own.

"Sam…I may be with Shane for now, but you were right. It was so much more than a summer fling." She gave his hand a squeeze before grabbing her belongings and exiting the room.

Sam watched her as she left, his heart lighter now than it had been in recent months. 'For now'…she said for now, he thought excitedly, not even bothering to hide his grin. Sam Evans is back in the game, folks.