A/N- This is my little story plot for Adaptability week. This is a sort of continuation of my episode idea. Enjoy!
As they all sat on the couches, Robert began explaining their topic for the week. "This week's theme is Adaptability!" Robert told them. Some contestants squealed in excitement, like Aylin and Lily. Others just remained sitting and looked around in neither dread nor overly zealous excitement. Blake wasn't too worried. He knew that being on Glee required adapting to situations during shooting and being flexible, but he was still slightly anxious. He'd be an idiot if he wasn't.
Robert continued explaining the points of the week's theme and told them that the homework assignment would be You Oughta Know by Alanis Morissette. Blake knew the song, and he was excited to perform. Robert also told them that they wouldn't be picking their parts like they normally would. Blake had to admit, that made him slightly more nervous, but he still thought he would be able to overcome the challenges they threw at him. Some others didn't agree; Lily was not happy, since she was used to being able to pick what she sang and not being in control would be hard for her. Robert handed out their individual part assignments in envelopes and left them to it.
When they met in the choir room again, Robert finally introduced their guest mentor of the week. It was Kevin McHale who played Artie Abrams. Blake was excited and he knew that Kevin had more challenges than some of the actors on Glee and would be the perfect guy to teach them about adapting. Then he threw a wrench into the whole thing. "Instead of performing the song together with the small individual parts you all memorized, you will now be singing it as a solo by yourselves." Kevin announced while all of the contestants jaws dropped.
Blake was so relieved he had memorized all of the words to the song, but was still afraid he would mess up since he hadn't rehearsed the whole song. While they all one-by-one performed, he took note of those who did great. He always thought Nellie performed great on stage; he really loved her voice and had gotten to sing with her in the homework assignments and learn from her talent. Shanna forgot the words but just went with it and rocked it. Blake finally performed and he thought he gave a solid performance and he was just relieved he didn't forget the words.
Aylin won the assignment and before they left Kevin told them that they wouldn't find out the song for the video until they were in the recording studio. Blake felt himself pale at this; this might not turn out well…
When they got to the studio the next day, Nikki told them that the song they were singing was Price Tag by Jessie J. Blake had no idea what this song was. He'd never even heard it. Now he was really starting to get nervous. Nellie noticed he looked worried and walked over. "You ok?" she asked, concerned. Blake looked at her, "I have no idea what song this is. What if I can't get it right?" She placed her hand on his arm and looked at him. "Blake, you'll hear your line in the booth, then sing it. Nikki loves you and if you need to do it an extra time to nail it, she'll let you. Besides, you've always been a fast learner, especially in the booth." She smiled reassuringly and he smiled back. He felt some of the tension leave his shoulders. She was right; she always was. He didn't know what he'd do without her.
His turn in the booth had come and gone and Nellie had been right. He'd been able to pick up the line quickly and without any problems. Phew. Now he just had to get through the music video
At the video shoot, Zach told them that they needed to learn some basic choreography to just fill in some spaces in the video. Blake felt himself start to sweat. He usually practiced his dancing until he got it perfect, and now he just had to get it right the first time. The moves that Zach gave them weren't even complicated but even the simplest of movements were just tripping Blake up. He was so frustrated with himself and was just hoping he wouldn't go home because of this.
Blake stood in the line with the other five contestants who the judges thought were the weakest this week. He felt sick and ashamed. He had let his anxiety get the best of him and he had never had a last chance performance before. He was completely out of his element.
He, Charlie, Nellie, Ali, Abraham, and Mario stood before the judges awaiting the verdict. "Instead of just three of you performing tonight, you're all going to be doing duets for Ryan." Blake didn't know whether or not to be happy. He was upset he had to do a last chance performance, but doing it with someone else might make it less intimidating. "Mario and Charlie, you will be paired and singing Don't Let the Sun Go Down on Me. Ali and Abraham, you will be paired and singing Last Friday Night. That leaves Blake and Nellie and you will be singing Waiting for a Boy/Girl Like You." Blake and Nellie looked at each other. They smirked and gave each other that 'Oh yeah we got this face' which made both of them smile.
Blake felt so much calmer. He was singing with Nellie. She was a terrific performer and as long as he sang with her he felt confident they would do amazing. All of the sudden he was excited to perform for Ryan.
Nellie was partnered with Blake and they were in their dressing room listening through the song for the first time. She was so excited! She and Blake were really close and worked well together. She knew that they would give a kick-ass performance. As they practiced the song, they brainstormed ways to perform. "I think that we should make it a story. Kind of like a couple who don't know each other, but meet and are instantly drawn to each other. That kind of thing, you know?" Blake asked. She nodded. "Yeah, I think the judges will like that." They tried to focus on the solo parts and their combined chorus parts. "Maybe we should practice the way we're going to perform…" Blake suggested. She agreed. They stood on opposite sides of the dressing room (which wasn't that big) and slowly made their way towards each other singing their lines. They grasped hands and locked eyes and finished the song, singing as if they were a couple in love, who didn't understand the feelings that they had.
While they practiced, Nellie felt her cheeks getting slightly warmer. She couldn't help but notice how deep Blake's eyes were. They looked so sincere and she could see how he made a great actor. He really made you believe that you were the only person in the whole world and that their scenario was completely real.
Just then Nikki knocked on the door and walked in. They turned and greeted her. She asked how they were doing and then performed for her. At the end, Blake was looking at Nellie with such an intense look, that she felt herself drifting closer to him, hypnotized by the moment. She quickly remembered Nikki was here and they let go. "Wow, it's hot and steamy in here!" she laughed, jokingly at them. She laughed along with Blake, but was silently praying her cheeks wouldn't heat up again. "I think if you added more connection in your combined parts it would make it so much more powerful." Nikki suggested. "Like harmony parts?" Nellie asked. She saw Blake shift, looking restless. "Yeah, are ya'll down for that?" she asked.
Nellie glanced at Blake who looked kind of pale. "I'm cool if you are." She told him. "Uhh yeah that's cool," he mumbled looking at the ground. After Nikki left, Nellie asked Blake, "Are you sure you're ok with the harmony stuff, Blake? Because we don't have to do it…" she trailed off. "No, it's just that I've never really sang serious harmony and I'm not sure how good I am at it."
She looked at him, seeing that he was actually nervous. She thought he was never nervous; but then again, it was his first last chance performance. "It's ok, I do it all the time. Look, you just take the chorus and fix the other part to where some notes are higher or lower so that they mix well and sound good together." She scribbled down some notes on her sheet music; her past with instruments came in handy. "Ok sing this." She sang his part of the chorus and repeated it until he got it down. "Now I'm going to sing the actual chorus, but you keep singing that part, ok?" He nodded. They sang and it surprisingly sounded pretty good. A couple more tries and they had it perfect. About ten minutes before they had to go and sing, she noticed Blake pacing and wringing his hands. "Blake are you ok?" He looked up at her, like a deer in the headlights. "I'm just really scared. I've never performed for Ryan before. What if he hates me? What if I mess up, and forget the harmony? What if-" Nellie cut him off before he could ramble any longer. "Blake, that's not going to happen. You are a great performer and do great under pressure." He looked skeptical and didn't look convinced.
She finally understood how nervous he was. "Ok, how about this. Just focus on me. Like when we were practicing. It's just you and me. Once you get to me, just grab my hand and pretend no one else is there and we're just practicing. Can you do that?" Blake nodded. "Ok, so let's go do this." They walked out of their dressing room and onto the wings of the stage, waiting to step out on the stage.
Blake sat on the edge of the stage, waiting for the song to star. His heart was beating so hard that he thought he was going to have a coronary. He tried to remember what Nellie said. He glanced over at her on the opposite side of the stage, looking calm. He took a deep breath and sang when the music cued him. Once he finished his verse, he focused on Nellie while she sang, turned the other way, like they planned. He shakily got to his feet and slowly made his way to her.
He sang his part as he reached her and placed a hand on her shoulder, making her turn around to face him. He felt himself focus on Nellie, and surprisingly everything did slip away. It was like they were alone in their dressing room. She attempted to shyly turn away again, but he quickly followed her and stood in front of her, forcing her to look at him. He couldn't do this without focusing on her. He grasped her hand and intertwined their fingers, holding them aloft. She looked up at him with such a questioning look that was so sincere, and he saw the nerves behind her eyes. She had been trying to stay strong for him.
Little Nellie, who was always so quiet and nice; she never felt confident, yet she was supporting Blake during their performance. He felt his conviction kick in, and he gripped her hand tighter, as they kept singing. He looked her square in the eye and tried to send her the message that she could be scared too. He would be here for her, just like she was for him. They could depend on each other. As the song came to an end, he thought he saw her eyes look glassy so he pulled her forward and kissed her tenderly on the forehead. He held her there for a few moments before releasing her.
They ended up being called back in the group of three picked from the six and their fears were put at ease. But on their way back to the living room, where their fellow contestants were waiting, they walked silently. They didn't want to break the trance that their performance had left them in. Neither of them noticed they held hands the rest of the night, until Robert called the bottom three to look at the list.
A/N- Ok, I know the beginning was kind of boring, but I had to get to the last chance performance. So I hope you guys enjoyed! I love reviews so please feel free to tell me what you think! More Blellie to come hopefully!