Sam's POV

With a wide smile plastered on his face, Sam Evans walked down the halls of William McKinley High School. He waved at a few sophomores from the swim team, said hello to Mr. Shue as he rounded the corner and smiled at his friends Brittany Pierce and Blaine Anderson from glee club.

"Just smile and wave," he muttered to himself, "If I can make it through today, everything will be okay."

But it wasn't okay. He was really tired. He hadn't been sleeping very well. When Mercedes broke up with him, he took it really hard. He knew it was for the best, but it still stung. He'd lost her once before and although he'd fought to get her back (and won!), he was now back to square one. Sam felt all alone and he just wanted to go home.

He was almost at his locker when he noticed Tina Cohen-Chang near the water fountain. He was about to wave hello when he saw a single tear slide down her cheek.

"Hey," he said softly approaching her from behind. "What's wrong?"

Tina tried to discreetly wipe her eyes before she turned around, but it was too late. "Nothing," she lied smiling sweetly. But her eyes betrayed her. Blinking twice as fast she tried to look Sam in the eye before finally breaking down and collapsing in his arms.

As Sam held her, he looked around. Jacob Ben Israel had just finished his rounds and the crowds of students quickly dissipated. He waited until the last person besides the two of them entered homeroom before he softly whispered, "Tell me what's wrong."

Tina looked up at him. "It's Mike. We broke up this summer and I-I guess I'm still not over him. And walking around these halls, I can't help but remember him...and remember us, you know? I just really, really miss him," she sniffed, tearing up again.

Sam pulled her in for another embrace, rubbing small soothing circles into her back. He knew exactly how she felt. He felt the same way about Mercedes. Walking through these familiar halls, his feelings were always conflicted. These halls represented both the opportunity for love as well as heartache. When he came back from Kentucky, he was determined to get his girl back. It was in these very halls that he'd held her hand and declared his love for her, despite her relationship status. It was here he adorned her with his love as she prepared to head off to Los Angeles. But it was also here where he'd watched her walk away from him with Shane Tinsely. And here where he got his heart broken on Valentine's day. Every time he walked to the end of these halls and passed the auditorium, he thought of Michael and Whitney and every time, his heart broke.

"I know what you mean. Change is hard," he held her closer as her body shook from the sobs. He'd never been particularly close to the girl but in that moment he felt connected to her. Through their mutual heartbreak they shared a special bond. Tina was hurting and he was too. He wanted to do whatever he could to help her out. Maybe she'd be able to help him too. He let her cry for as long as she needed to.

After a few minutes, Tina wiped her eyes and looked up at him again. Her eyes were puffy and red around the rims. She appeared as though she'd been holding onto her pain for a long time. Looking up at him this time she smiled. It was very small, but genuine. "Thanks," she said to the boy.

"No problem," Sam replied, throwing her a slightly lopsided grin.

Tina dabbed away residual tear stains from her eyes with the back of her palms and placed stray strands of hair behind her ear. She cleared her throat before continuing. "So...how are you? How was your summer?"

"Great," he responded with a huge smile.

Just smile, he remind himself. But his smile did not meet his eyes. And Tina noticed.

"Hey, are you okay Sam?," she asked looking at him properly for the first time. His green eyes had several bags underneath and lacked the sparkle they usually had.

"Never better," he lied, straining to keep the grin on his face.

Tina raised an eyebrow and gave him a side eye. "Sam! Come on! You look like I felt five minutes ago and I just spilled my guts to you. Don't disrespect me by lying to my face, be straight with me. Is this about Mercedes?"

Sam swallowed, his smile slowly faded and Tina knew she'd struck a nerve.

"Oh my god, it is. I'm such an idiot," she said smacking her forehead. "Of course! You must be missing her too."

Sam began to shuffle his feet. His eyes floated down to meet them.

"Look. Sam, if you want, you can talk to me too you know. I'm a great listener."

He nodded as he considered her offer. He knew he needed someone to lean on right now and maybe, just maybe, Tina could be that person. He decided to open up.

"Yes," he admitted. "Yes, this is about Mercedes."

"What happened?"

"She broke up with me.. wait, no- she thought we needed to take a break. She didn't think the long distance thing would be fair to us."

"Have you spoken to her recently?," Tina inquired.

"No... we really didn't end on a good note. She's probably still pissed at me. I sorta lashed out on her," he explained.

"Why don't you call her and tell her you're sorry? I'm sure she'll understand."

"I know, I know. I've thought about calling her for a while now but I just can't bring myself to do it. Even if she does accept my apology, and that's a big if because it was pretty bad, she'll still be miles away and we'll still be over. It's childish and selfish and stupid, I know, but I won't apologize for the way I feel...I-I don't know." Sam looked back down at his feet

He saw Tina's boots come into his line of vision. She placed a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, no one says you need to apologize for your feelings. It's okay to be upset. I mean look at me."

Sam chuckled.

"I know what you're going through. I feel the same way about Mike. We both did what we needed to to give the people we love the push they needed to chase their dreams. We did it out of love. We just never accounted for the amount of pain it was going to put us through when they left us. It's not stupid to be upset. It's human"

Sam looked up and met her eyes. He smiled. "Thanks Tina."

She smiled back at him and gave his shoulder a reassuring shake. "Always."

"Guess we're kinda in the same boat then, huh?" Sam cocked his head to the side and smiled.

"Yea I guess so," she agreed. Tina smiled another watery smile.

He nodded as a brief moment of silence passed between them. They were both caught in their own thoughts. After a beat, a plan came to Sam's mind.

"You know what?," Sam began.

"What?", she asked curiously.

"I don't know about you, but I don't really wanna be here right now."

"I don't wanna be here either," Tina admitted.

"Then let's get out of here. Senior ditch day, just you and me," Sam said with a crooked smile.

Tina agreed and the pair grabbed their things before heading off campus in Sam's red pickup truck.

Mercedes' POV

*Tap tap tap*

Mercedes Jones was sitting in her dorm room in front of her brand-new macbook attempting to write one of her three 5 page papers for her Popular Music in American History class. It was only the second week of school and her professor had already assigned three papers! Mercedes was a smart girl and a very hard worker, but after a page and a half, she could not for the life of her think of what to type next.

She glared at the screen. She'd been staring at the same page for the last half hour. Sighing, she decided to take a break. Opening up chrome, she quickly logged into Facebook desperate to see what was going on with her friends from glee club. Despite running into Puck every now and then, it had been a while since she'd last seen any of her old classmates and she really missed them.

Her roommate Hanna Marin for the most part was nice and seemed like a cool person, but she sometimes came off as very presumptuous and not too serious about school. Hanna was very outgoing and a frequent party goer and while, she'd been sweet and invited Mercedes along a couple times, lately Mercedes had been way too busy with class to tag along. Because their schedules were completely opposite (Mercedes had early morning classes, Hanna had evening classes), they barely saw each other anymore. And between school, her part time job and daily grind at the indie label, Mercedes barely had time to herself. In a few short weeks, she was feeling overwhelmed and lonely.

Mercedes scrolled through her newsfeed and noticed a photo of Rachel Berry and her dads in front of NYADA's courtyard. Rachel stood in between her dads with a huge grin on her face. The girl was practically beaming! Although she smiled while clicking through the pictures, Mercedes couldn't help but feel slightly jealous. Rachel always knew what she wanted and seemed well on her way to achieving her dreams. Sometimes Mercedes wasn't sure where she was going with hers. Make no mistake, Mercedes knew she was talented and she knew that God had given it to her for a reason, but she still had her moments of doubt. Of course she was very proud of her friend, but after just about three years of being in her spotlight, she found it difficult not to constantly compare her own achievement to Rachel's.

Mercedes eventually came across a picture of Kurt and Rachel in what looked like their own apartment. She lingered on the picture for a moment, smiling a sad, nostalgic smile. It looked like Kurt had finally moved to New York! She became a little sad as she recalled the time they had shared their dreams with one another.

During sophomore year, Kurt Hummel was her closest friend. The two shared an appreciation for fashion, music and telling it like it is. As the self-proclaimed 'divas' of the glee club, they planned to move to a big city together in the future; Kurt aspiring to be the next Alexander McQueen and Mercedes, the next Beyonce. Soon, that dream also included Rachel when the three became close junior year. But eventually, Kurt grew distant while his bond with Rachel strengthened, edging Mercedes out of the 'Hummelberryjones' trio.

Mercedes felt a pang of sadness as she remembered all their gossip and boy talk and fashion advice. She missed hitting the outlet mall with him for retail therapy and impromptu fashion shows. She missed texting him during 'So You Think You Can Dance'. She missed their coordinated side-eyeing and mutual intolerance for bullshit. But most of all when it came down to it, she just missed him. He was her best friend. The Ivory to her Ebony. He was there from the very beginning. It hurt her to think about how much they had drifted apart, but she was happy to see that like Rachel, Kurt was also well on his way to achieving his dreams. At that, she left a quick note in his inbox:

New York looks good on you! Miss you hun! xoxo

She continued scrolling and noticed that Mike had posted a video of himself and a couple of guys doing a routine to Kanye West's Mercy in a well lit dance studio. Mike looked incredible as he popped and locked and the guys he was with were beyond fine! Scrolling further, she saw that Santana had added new photos as well. Under an image of Santana standing in front of a full body mirror decked out in a red and black cheerleading uniform was a caption that read:

New cheer outfit! Goooo Cards! : )

Like Mercedes, Santana had opted to attend traditional college. They'd skyped a few times over the summer and bonded over uncertainty about their futures. They both knew what they wanted in life, but had no real idea of how to get there. Life after high school was very unsettling. Of course there was a lot of freedom but at the same time, now everything was uncertain. High school kept the girls on a steady path but college was an entirely different ball game. There were so many options, so many paths to be explored, yet both girls felt lost. Mercedes made a mental note to call Santana later. As half of the 'undisputed top bitches' of WMHS, Mercedes wasn't feeling so hot these days. She was actually starting to feel like a small fish in a big ocean and she needed a boost. She decided she'd get in touch with Quinn later as well. A chat with her girls was just what she needed.

Before signing off, Mercedes hovered over her ex-boyfriend Sam Evan's name. He'd posted a status about New York Comic Con and she smiled as she thought about how excited he was. Despite her better judgment, Mercedes found herself clicking through his profile pictures and reading all his updates. She missed her Sammy. They'd broken up over the summer, before she left for LA. Sam had been very upset about it. He wanted to stay together and try the long distance thing, but Mercedes knew a breakup was for the best.

Mercedes' eyes welled up as she got to a picture of them at the amusement park. Thinking about the tilt-a-whirl had always made her smile, but now it made her kind of sad. That summer had been perfect. After junior prom, Sam and Mercedes became very close- emotionally and physically-very quickly. They were each other's firsts. They made each other laugh. They were like two lonely fish in a vast ocean that had finally found each other. In their own ways, they were damaged- Mercedes was lonely and insecure and Sam had been cheated on and had his heart broken time and time again. They both desperately wanted to be loved, so when they finally found each other- they were inseparable.

When Sam's dad got a new job, he was forced to move out of state and spent half of his junior year in Kentucky. In a very similar fashion, Mercedes and Sam had decided on a mutual breakup at that time too. Eventually, Sam moved back to Ohio with the Hudson-Hummels but Mercedes was already dating Shane Tinsley- The Titans' Linebacker. Although it took some time, Sam and Mercedes found their way back to each other by the end of her senior year. Now, a few months later, they were back where they were a year ago.

After a few short minutes of reminiscing, Mercedes wiped her eyes. She didn't plan on leaving him a message; they'd agreed to try doing their own thing for a while. However, although she was really trying, it was difficult to just be his friend. Mercedes knew in her heart that their bond, what they had, was the real deal and she believed that one day, they would find their way back to each other.

Closing the browser before she could change her mind, Mercedes blinked back her tears and pulled the word document back up. She got back to work, determined to at least get another page done. She was going to get her paper completed without distraction. It's what her Sammy would want after all, and she wanted to make him proud.

Sam's POV

Sam put his truck in park. Tina had suggested they head to Breadstix for lunch. The Italian restaurant had always been a favorite of the glee clubbers and they'd spent countless hours there. As the pair walked through the glass doors, they were greeted by the smell of freshly baked rolls and fried tomatoes. Tina closed her eyes and inhaled. "Mmmm...that smells heavenly". Sam smiled sheepishly at her when his stomach agreed. Tina laughed as Sam rubbed the back of his neck. "It really does", he chuckled.

A young waitress with wavy red hair approached them. She smiled warmly at the two before perkily introducing herself. "Welcome to Breadstix! I'm Laura! May I help you find your seats?". "Yes please," Tina replied, nodding emphatically. "Right this way," Laura said, leading them to a secluded area near a wide window. Handing them their menus, she took their drink orders and scurried away. When she left, Sam and Tina flipped through the pages of the menu silently.

Sam was distracted. What was he thinking coming back here? Breadstix was kinda where it all began. He could still remember how radiant she looked in that sparkly purple dress. He'd seen her dressed up before for competitions but it was nothing compared to that night. Her hair was elegantly swooped to the side. Her face was all dolled up. She was practically glowing! He was unprepared for her sheer perfection. She looked so beautiful. Sam had sat beside her several times in glee club, and yet he'd never noticed. How could he have missed it? He smiled to himself as he recalled sitting in one of the booths beside Mercedes. Rachel and Jesse were across from them. He was so nervous. Every time she brushed against him, his skin grew warm. She smelt wonderful, more so than usual and her laugh was like music to his ears.

Tina cleared her throat before speaking. "Soo, what're you getting?"

Sam looked up as he was broken out of his thoughts. Tina was smiling at him. "Uhm, the fettucine I guess."

"I think I'll get the same. I usually get the eggplant salad but today is all about changes," Tina replied as she winked at him.

Sam flashed her a grin. A moment later Laura came back to their table and took their orders. Once they'd ordered the food, Tina excused herself and headed to the bathroom, leaving Sam time to think over what she'd just said. Tina was right. It was time to accept the changes that had transpired. Of course he was still down about where he stood with Mercedes but he wouldn't let how he was feeling keep him down for good. It was nice to know that he wasn't alone in this. With all of last year's seniors off at college, Sam realized he didn't really have anyone he was close to anymore. He didn't have his boys Puck and Mike anymore. He felt the absence of Finn and Kurt when he went home every night as he was still staying with Burt and Ms. Carole. Quinn, Santana and most importantly, Mercedes were also gone. With the exception of Artie, he wasn't particularly close to any of the other kids still in the club. But even Artie didn't really have time a lot of time for his friend now that he and Sugar were an item. So it was great to have this bond with Tina. He could definitely use a friend.

Tina came back after a while and Sam decided to make small talk.

"So have you spoken to Mike recently?"

"Not recently," she replied stirring the straw in her drink to dissolve the sugar at the bottom. "We talked a few times over the summer but that was pretty much it."

Sam nodded. "Do you miss him?"

"Yea," she responded with a watery smile. "Everyday."

Sam nodded again. An awkward silence had come over them. He cleared his throat a couple times before taking a sip of his water. He wasn't sure what to say next. Tina saved him the trouble by breaking the silence.

"Thank you"

"Hmmm?"

"For earlier. I-uh, I really needed a friend. Thanks for being there for me." Her eyes were glistening.

Sam reached across the table and took her hand in his. He squeezed gently and smiled warmly. "It was nothing Tina. I'd do it again. I know what you're going through"

She smiled as she squeezed back. "I guess you do."

He retrieved his hand and folded his arms on top of the table. "I wanna thank you too. For being there for me, I mean. I've had a pretty rough start of the year."

Tina nodded, understanding. "Hey, if you ever need anything. I'd be happy to help."

"Thanks."

Laura later returned to their table with their orders. The steam rising from the food made Sam's stomach sing praises of joy again. Tina giggled as Sam groaned.

They ate in a comfortable silence and chatted idly about their plans for senior year. Tina told him that she was determined to assume her position as a main member of the club and apply to NYADA next fall. Sam told her that he just really wanted to do well in school, so he could travel out to Los Angeles, maybe with some scholarships from swimming or football. Tina bit her lip before she spoke.

"That's nice."

"What?"

"That you still have plans to follow Mercedes."

Sam nodded. He wasn't sure what she was getting at.

"I mean, I definitely was pushed beyond my comfort zone this summer and I did a lot of thinking about me and my future and I realized that I couldn't just follow Mike. Not if I really wanted to find myself and who I am without him. Are you sure you're doing this for you?"

Sam nodded. "I am. I know who I am without Mercedes and I know who I am with her and I'm better with her. She makes me feel incredible. She was the first girl to love me for who I was and not for how I looked or what I could give her. She loved me when I had nothing. I still love her. I'm still in love with her. Tina, I just know she's the one and I don't know when but I know that I will be with her again, if she'll have me."

Tina nodded as she wiped the tears that had built up in her eyes. "I really admire that. She's really lucky to have someone like you."

"I'm really lucky to have her. Well have had her."

"You'll have her again. I'm sure of it."

"I just don't when she'll forgive me"

Tina frowned slightly and looked into his sage green eyes. "Sam. I know Mercedes. We're not as close as we used to be but she was never one to change up on you. She has a big heart. No matter what she's feeling right now, she'll come around. Just give it some time." She squeezed his hand.

Sam was uncertain but he smiled. "Thanks Tina. I really hope you're right."

After they finished up their meal, Sam and Tina spent the rest of the afternoon driving around Lima. They stopped at the local outlet mall and played arcade games until it was time to head home. Together they laughed and chatted easily, forgetting their shared pain just for the afternoon.

Mercedes' POV

After putting a few more hours into her paper, Mercedes decided to take a break. She'd been holed up in her room for much of the day. When she checked the time, she realized that it was just after 7. When her stomach growled at her, she figured it was time to grab dinner, so she grabbed her keys and purse and headed out.

She returned to her room a half hour later with her dinner. She'd gotten take out, the special was chicken parmesan. She turned on the TV and got comfortable in bed before she began eating. After taking two bites, her phone began buzzing. Mercedes frowned at the unfamiliar number. She'd never seen this area code before. She ignored it and got back to her reading.

Bzzzzzz!

Looking at the phone, she saw the same number. Hesitantly, she finally clicked the call button and brought the phone to her ear.

"Hello?"

A raspy alto voice responded. "How's LA LA land treating my favorite diva?"

Mercedes' mouth dropped open into a big smile. "'TANA!"

"The one and only. Hey girl!"

"Oh my gosh girl, I was just thinking about calling you!"

"Pshh, please stop lying..."

Mercedes' brows furrowed. "Uh, 'cuse me?"

"Girl, I have not heard hide nor tail of you since the summer! And unless you lost my number, my call history and message inbox has been completely devoid of Diva Jones."

Mercedes rolled her eyes. "First of all I was really was. Second of all, rude. And third of all, I don't have this number. That's why I didn't answer at first."

"Sure hun," Santana giggled. "We'll go with that for now."

Mercedes shook her head. "You are something else. Anyways, I really was going to call you. I saw your new threads girl, you look flawless!"

Santana chuckled. "Awww thanks mami! But did you expect anything less?"

"San, you're too much!"

"I know, but you love it!" Santana giggled.

"I do." Mercedes smiled. "But seriously, how's school? Tell me everything!"

"School's good. I'm on the cheer squad as you know. Not captain yet but gimme time."

"Of course." Santana had always been a very talented cheerleader. She was bound to be named captain in no time.

"I like most of my classes, not sure what I'm gonna major in or anything yet but I've been taking some law classes and I like 'em"

"That's cool. You join any clubs other than the Cardinals?"

"Nah not yet, but some chicks did approach me the other day about joining their sorority. It'd be cool to be a part of something else but I don't know. I don't really like paddles unless I'm doing the spanking... haha wanky."

"TMI 'Tana, TMI." Mercedes groaned loudly. But she was happy that Santana hadn't changed at all.

"I feel like they just want me to be their token minority and Aunty Tana is not down with that. Plus I really don't need people telling me what to do. I may be a freshman but I'm still the HBIC!"

"I hear you girl. I'm staying away from those sorority girls myself. They are trouble with a capital T. I think my roommate is thinking about pledging though."

"Hmmm.. I can see it. Hanna would fit right in"

"Don't I know it? I'm just really not looking forward to the late night hazing. I have way too much to do this semester and I really don't have time for that nonsense!"

Santana hummed in agreement. "Amen. College is serious. McKinley had its cons but, I miss it sometimes. High school was so much easier!"

"Mhmmm.. So how's Britt?"

"She's good. We skype every now and then and I drive back home on the weekends to be with her. This long distance thing is no joke either."

"Once again, don't I know it?"

Santana chuckled. "How's Trouty? How are you two making out?"

"He's good...and we're making out just fine," Mercedes lied. Her heart clenched in her chest.

"I don't know how you do it 'Cedes," Santana continued. "I'm just a two hour drive away from Britt and I still feel like we're too far away. Isn't it hard being all the way over there?"

"Yea, it is..." Mercedes tried to play it off but got lost in her thoughts. She hadn't told Santana about their breakup. She didn't know why she was lying to her friend but she couldn't bring herself to hash up the old news. The wounds were still fresh.

"Earth to Mercedes"

"Huh?"

"I was saying, Britt told me auditions went well today. Lots of kids tried out. But only one person made it. Some new girl named Marley. Isn't that crazy?

"Hmmm, uh yea.." Mercedes couldn't focus. New Directions made her think about Sam and auditions made her think of the auditorium and her name in lights and the kiss they shared. Crap, get yourself together girl!

"Mr. Schue can pick and choose now. Remember when no one wanted to join ND. I mean NO ONE. Times sure have changed," Santana laughed.

Silence.

"Mercedes?"

Nothing.

"Mercedes?!"

"Hmm...?"

"Girl, you are completely spacing on me.

"Sorry."

Santana was growing concerned. It was not like her friend to act like this. Something was definitely wrong.

"What's up?"

"What do you mean?," Mercedes feigned ignorance.

"What's on your mind? Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong," Mercedes lied again. But her voice betrayed her.

"Seriously, after all we've been through you don't think I can detect bullshit when I hear it? Mercedes, tell me what's wrong."

"Nothing," she sniffed.

"Liar. Come on spill, you can talk to Aunty 'Tana"

Mercedes rolled her eyes, but she knew the jig was up. She took a deep breath before she spoke. "Sam and I broke up."

"Whaaaat?"

"Yea..."

"When? Why? Why didn't you tell me?"

"I don't know. I really wasn't trying to think about it, let alone talk about it"

Santana frowned. "But you'd rather lie about it? I tell you everything about me and Britt and you think I don't want to hear about you and Trouty?"

"I know, I know but it's just I don't like-

"You don't like burdening people with your problems," Santana finished. "Mercedes, we've been through this before. You're my girl therefore your problems are my problems. Now do you need me to bust his lip open?"

Mercedes chuckled lightly. "No, I broke up with him"

"Oh. Well, why? What'd he do?"

"Nothing."

"Really Mercedes?"

"Really."

"Girl, you are going to have to give me more than that."

"I know. I'm sorry. I guess I just didn't think the whole long distance thing was going to work out. I mean we tried it when he had to move back to Kentucky and that didn't work, so how in the hell would it work with me across the country? It was the right thing to do."

Santana considered that. After a moment she spoke. "And how did Sam feel about that?"

"He was angry. He didn't want to break up or take a break. He thought we could make it work. But I just, I didn't agree and we had a fight. I'm pretty sure he's still mad at me. He saw me off to the airport but we haven't really spoke since."

Santana paused again before replying. She knew Sam. She dated Sam. The boy was persistent, stubborn even, but he loved deeply and he was not one to hold onto anger for long. She knew how he felt about Mercedes. There was no way in hell he was still mad at her. Hurt maybe, but definitely not angry.

"I don't think that boy is mad at you. Sure he may have a bruised ego 'cause losing you has gotta hurt, but angry? No way."

"I don't know Santana..."

"But I do. Look, you're too close to the situation to see it for what it is and I'm telling you, even if he was mad then, he's not anymore."

"If you say so," Mercedes was unconvinced.

"I do." Santana affirmed. "And if he is, you just say the word and I'll drive on over and smack some sense into him."

Mercedes smiled. "I don't think that'll be necessary 'Tana"

"You sure? I've been meaning to do it for a while now."

"Yes. I'm sure," she shook her head.

"Okay."

"Thanks, though."

"No problem babes. I always have you."

"I know," Mercedes replied.

Mercedes and Santana chatted for about an hour longer. Santana's phone kept dropping calls and they laughed about it a couple times. They talked about the boys on their school football teams that kept hitting on them.

Mercedes could practically see the smirk on her best friend's face.

"Girl, the thirst was REAL!"

Mercedes snickered. "You're a mess!"

They got all caught up and Mercedes realized just how much she'd missed her friend. It was about 12:47am the third time Santana called.

"I'm really sorry about this. I literally JUST bought this phone. Note to self, never trust on campus salesmen."

Mercedes laughed.

"I'm sorry but, the next time this phone cuts off, I think I'll call it a night. This is really getting on my last nerve."

"Mine too," Mercedes agreed.

After about 20 minutes, the call dropped once more. Mercedes shook her head and put her phone down. She decided to get ready for bed. She grabbed her towel and toiletries before heading to the communal showers. When she came back, her phone buzzed again. Mercedes answered with a chuckle.

"Girl, I think you need a new phone pronto!"

"Mercedes?"

The voice on the other line was uncertain.

Mercedes' smile faded. Her heart rate quickened and her hands suddenly became clammy. The soft Southern drawl coming through the phone clearly wasn't Santana. It was Sam.