Hey Everyone! I hope you enjoy these multiple one-shots I made surrounding songs that I hear on the radio/iPod/show or wherever else I hear them. Some may become full stories later, but for now I'm either stuck or just being picky. Feel free to give feedback!

-Rayn

P.S. The song is "Catch My Breath" by Kelly Clarkson


New Directions was panicking. Rachel's voice had just given out as they warmed up for their set. They didn't know what to do about the solo that she was to sing to start it in only 10 minutes. NYADA was out there waiting for her to go on and they couldn't start late. The entire group was crowded around their female lead debating what to do next. All but one that is.

Kurt watched the chaos, tired of the fact that Rachel had it all. He was never going to get the chance to sing solo with out being told it was the wrong song, the wrong person, the wrong everything. He was taking matters into his own hands this time and he knew which song to sing.

Unbeknownst to the rest of the group, Kurt snuck down to the pit, handing them sheet music he already had on hand.

"Listen, there's been a change in plans. Here's the new song, do the best you can. I'll start off so follow my lead," he told the band before moving to the back of the center aisle of the theater. Kurt took a deep breath, smoothed down his red tie and sang.

"I don't wanna be left behind

Distance was a friend of mine

Catching breath in a web of lies

I've spent most of my life

Riding waves, playing acrobat

Shadowboxing the other half

Learning how to react

I've spent most of my time"

Kurt thought about the future that had been dashed. No one knew that he'd already received his rejection letter from NYADA. He wasn't going to New York. He was going to be left behind in Lima while his friends succeeded. The theater was silent as he sang the verse alone, walking down the aisle slowly to where his dreams had always been, the one place he always felt at home. He sang the first part of the chorus strong but quietly, hovering at the bottom of his range.

"Catching my breath, letting it go,

turning my cheek for the sake of this show

Now that you know, this is my life,

I won't be told what's supposed to be right"

Kurt literally turned his cheek at the line as if to hide his face. It's what he had always done in the end. Bowing down to what would be best for the show, even if he knew it wasn't right. He was tired of what was supposed to be correct. Not standing out, not being gay, not being into show choir. He was done letting it all get to him.

The band caught up with him as he belted out the second part of the chorus.

"Catch my breath, no one can hold me back,

I ain't got time for that

Catch my breath, won't let them get me down,

it's all so simple now"

"Addicted to the love I found

Heavy heart, now a weightless cloud

Making time for the ones that count

I'll spend the rest of my time

Laughing hard with the windows down

Leaving footprints all over town

Keeping faith kinda comes around

I will spent the rest of my life"

He always but his friends first, making time for them above everything else. He thought on the love that he usually felt when thinking of New Directions, the family he had found in that small choir room. The group now gathered in the wings, staring at him as if seeing him for the first time. He thought of all the summer drives, windows down as he and whoever he was with sang to the radio, of all the places his touch would be left in Lima.

"Catching my breath, letting it go,

turning my cheek for the sake of this show

Now that you know, this is my life,

I won't be told what's supposed to be right

Catch my breath, no one can hold me back,

I ain't got time for that

Catch my breath, won't let them get me down,

it's all so simple now"

He belted out the chorus, as he reached the middle of the stage, standing tall in the spotlight. He turned his cheek at the same line but refused to look at his teammates.

He stared steadily into the darkness beyond the stage where he knew the audience was wondering about the choice. He was singing Kelly Clarkson. He was a boy. He was alone.

"You helped me see

The beauty in everything"

He sang the lines out strong, stretching his arms out wide, as if about to be struck down there. He sang the next two choruses quietly, building to the line that Mercedes would have loved to belt out.

"Catching my breath, letting it go,

turning my cheek for the sake of this show

Now that you know, this is my life,

I won't be told what's supposed to be right

Catching my breath, letting it go,

turning my cheek for the sake of this show

Now that you know, this is my life,

I won't be told what's supposed to be right

Catch my breath!"

He took a deep breath before finishing the song.

"Catch my breath, no one can hold me back,

I ain't got time for that

Catch my breath, won't let them get me down,

it's all so simple now (it's all so simple now!)

Catching my breath, letting it go,

turning my cheek for the sake of this show

Now that you know, this is my life,

I won't be told what's supposed to be right

Catch my breath, no one can hold me back,

I ain't got time for that

Catch my breath, won't let them get me down,

it's all so simple now"

He stared out at the crowd as the music slowly faded, adding one extra line so his voice was the last thing heard.

"It's all so simple now," he whispered out holding his hand in front of him while the other rested on his chest. And it was. He'd get through this as he always had. He'd look at other schools, other opportunities to get him out of this town. He hadn't let anything hold him back before, he wasn't going to let the people from NYADA do it either.

He'd get through what the team would throw at him after the show was over.

The silence was overwhelming at first. Then every seat was emptied as the audience cheered for the boy that had just saved the show.

"We apologize for the change in program, our scheduled soloist has unfortunately lost her voice. And now, I present to you, NEW DIRECTIONS!" Kurt called to the audience as he swept his right arm out to the group that now amassed behind him.

Wow! I love this scene, this idea. This could be either Regionals or Nationals. I'll be honest, I never watched Season 3. I got tired of the show for a bit during Season 2 and am just now picking it up at Season 4. I'll catch up….eventually. Reviews and requests are more than welcome!