Sam Evans smiled to himself as he strolled down the McKinley hallways. In his hand he carried a list of the new members of the New Directions and he was happy to say that after a successful audition, this year's group definitely had a good chance of winning Nationals. It had been six years since he came back to McKinley from New York and restarted the glee club. It was seriously hard at first but eventually, with Mr. Shue's help, they got the hang of things. In fact, they were just coming off back to back wins and with that, the group of people auditioning to be part of the glee club this year was record setting. Sam and Mr. Shue wanted to take everyone in but Sue Sylvester said they had to cap the number at twenty.
As he pinned the paper to the board he watched a small line form behind him. He felt bad for the kids who didn't make the cut but hopefully it didn't discourage them for trying again next year when they have more openings. Currently, they had ten seniors so after this year the glee club was going to go through a serious drain of talent. When Sam had just returned, they only had Ryder, Kitty, Unique and Jake as members of the club, however, some students still remembered Sam and were impressed with his success as a model and they ended up rounding up enough kids to perform at sectionals – even Bree joined. Though Sam suspected sometimes that she wasn't really there for the right reasons. That first year they won sectionals but didn't make it past regionals. It was definitely hard, especially since this was the first time Sam didn't go to Nationals at all since being in the glee club but he worked through it.
They almost lost glee again that year but Sam and Will convinced Sue that making it to Sectionals was an accomplishment especially because ever since they won the first place trophy at regionals their school was getting mentioned more on the show choir circuit. Since the arts were on the rise again across the country, Mr. Hummel was able to secure an arts grant from the government through his job to help the school fund clubs like art and glee, at least for a while. The next year, everyone seemed more focused and even though they hadn't won people were starting to see glee a little bit differently – it didn't mean that kids stopped getting slushied, it's just a few more kids were willing to get picked on if it meant they could express themselves more. They made it to Nationals that year and even placed in the top ten but unfortunately they didn't win.
The third year Sam pulled all the stops, it was senior year for Marley, Unique, Ryder, Kitty and Jake and he really wanted them to win a Nationals trophy as a group at least once before they graduated so he called in as many favors as he could. It was hard but he managed to get Mike, Tina, Santana, Brittany, Blaine and Kurt down at least three times to help the kids reach their full potential unfortunately, Rachel, Puck, Quinn and Mercedes weren't able to make it that year. Sam still talked to them on the phone and face messaged so he knew that they tried their best but their schedules were thrown all out of whack with Rachel's show wrapping up its final season, Quinn's final year before moving onto law school, Puck's final tour of duty before coming home and starting school himself and Mercedes finishing up her classes at UCLA so she get that degree in Music Business/Management. They ended up placing second at Nationals, which was great but still a little disheartening. However, even though they didn't leave high school with a Nationals' trophy, Marley, Kitty, Unique, Ryder and Jake graduated proudly and left McKinley on good paths.
"Mr. Evans?!"
"What?" Sam looked around to see who was calling him and was faced with a room of adolescent singers.
"You've been sitting at that piano for like ten minutes," Jacquline, a senior who joined the glee club three years ago, pointed out. "Are you going to play something, or what?" The blond twenty-four year old smiled and shook his head.
"You know I don't play piano," he claimed. "I was just thinking about something." He got up to grab his guitar when he noticed a hand go up in one of the back rows. "Yeah?"
A young freshman girl –Michelle, was it?—looked at her friend for a minute as if she was working up the nerve to ask her question.
"Um, is it true that you personallyknow the Rachel Berry? I just love her show!" she squealed.
"Sure," Sam shrugged.
"And Blaine Anderson? Do you know him? He's always guest starring on Rachel's show! He and Kurt are totally adorable!"
"Yea, we were in this glee club together and we hung out in New York for a while after graduation," Sam explained. This answer was enough for Michelle was grinning from ear to ear as her friend forced her to sit down. Sam was amazed at how many times the kids at this school asked him about his friends and what they were up to. He guessed it didn't hit him just how famous they all had become especially—
"What about Mercedes Jones?" Michelle had shot back up out of her seat and was staring at Sam, who in turn was a little bit caught off guard.
"What?"
"Mercedes Jones?" she repeated. "Do you know her?"
"Um…"
"Oh, he knows her alright," Jacquline joked, causing a few older glee club members to laugh. The senior turned around to face the excitable freshman before speaking. "Just wait a few days and you'll notice how Mr. Evans is obsessed with Mrs. Jones," she winked.
"I am not obsessed," Sam tried to assure his class. "I just think she's a great singer. I respect her as an artist and that's all."
The young teacher knew it wasn't true and so did most of his students. He kept telling himself that going separate ways all those years ago was the best thing for their careers and being a teacher definitely made him happy but he couldn't help but wonder. She was constantly running through his mind and when he finally got the thoughts to subside she would come out with a new album or appear on another TV show and it would start all over again. He had tried getting into a new relationship but the women kept breaking it off because they claimed he was "distracted" or that the relationship "wasn't going anywhere". It was usually because Sam never let the relationships go anywhere, a few years ago when he talked to Blaine about it, the brunette had claimed that Sam was still holding out hope that Mercedes would return. The blond had retorted saying that it wasn't true, it was just that relationships he was in weren't fulfilling.
"Mr. Evans?!" yelled Damon, another senior who was sitting next to Jacquline.
"What?" he asked, a little distracted.
"You see?" the boy said to his club mates. "Every time someone mentions her, he gets lost in his own head," he laughed. "Now are we going to start or are we going to spend all day figuring out who Mr. Evans is and isn't in love with. By the way, where's Mr. Shue?"
"He took his family to go visit his parents, so he won't be back for two weeks," answered the young teacher, trying to regain control of his class.
"But we have Sectionals coming up," insisted Jacquline. "How could he just abandon us?"
"Whoa," Sam interjected. "I'm still here and Sectionals isn't for months, so chill. Besides, you guys are all great singers, you just need to find a way to make your voices blend well together and I have the perfect lesson for that. Let's go to the auditorium!"
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~xxxxxx~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
As they walked over to the auditorium, Sam couldn't help but notice Jacquline whispering to the other students. They were trying their best to keep quiet but he couldn't ignore how they kept looking back at him.
"Is there something you guys want to tell me?" the blond teacher asked but it just set off laughter among the teens. Looking at them reminded him of what it used to be like to walk through the hallways of McKinley, especially when you were in glee. Every corner caused your heart rate to increase and every football player was a potential threat. No matter what you did or where you were there was always a chance that-
"Mr. Evans!" a familiar voice barked from behind him.
-Sue Sylvester was going find and torment you. Sam closed his eyes and took a deep breath before turning around.
"Yea, Sue?" he asked politely. The former cheerleading coach and current principal scowled at him and signaled him to follow her to her office. Sam signaled to his students that they should go ahead, he'd catch up with them soon. They nodded and ran off towards the auditorium. As he followed Sue, Sam couldn't shake the feeling that something was up. Usually when Sue came to yell at him or Mr. Shue, the kids would look worried even if it wasn't serious. This time, they looked fine, excited even. He didn't have much time to ponder this before he felt something –scratch that, someone—slam into him and then someone else and someone else before he couldn't stand up and ended up falling into the ground. Opening his eyes after his impact with the floor, he was ecstatic to see his vision filled with his friends dogpiled on top of him. Blaine, Rachel, Mike and Tina were laughing as they helped the blond teacher up while Kurt and Artie stood nearby.
"What's up, man?" Artie asked when Sam finally stood on his own two feet again.
"I'm good," the blond laughed. "It's really awesome to see you guys," he claimed, giving Blaine a hug.
"You too," smiled Rachel. "We haven't seen you since Glee club won Nationals last year."
"Second year in a row," nodded Kurt. "Pretty impressive."
"You going for a hat trick?" laughed Mike.
"You know it," Sam agreed. "And not that I'm not super stoked to see you guys, cause I am, but what are y'all doing here?"
"Well, we heard that Mr. Shue was gone for a little bit and we all finally have some time off so we came to help out," explained Tina and the rest of his friends nodded in agreement.
"Unfortunately, not everyone could make it," Rachel continued. "But Quinn, Puck, Santana and Britney send their regards and hope they can make it to the actual Sectional's performance."
"Oh it's cool," Sam shrugged. He chuckled nervously and ran his fingers through his hair wondering how to ask if someone else was coming without causing a scene.
"The Kentucky Fried Stripper wants to know if Aretha is going to show up!" Sue called out from behind Kurt causing Sam to freeze up a little but he regained his composure.
"I told you to stop calling me that," he shot back coolly but it was too late. Rachel already had that look on her face and Blaine and Kurt were sharing knowing smiles. Sam rolled his eyes.
"It's not wrong to want to know about a friend," the blond claimed.
"Yea," agreed Kurt. "If you really see her as a 'friend'," he laughed and so did the rest of the group. Thankfully after years of being tormented about the same thing with his students, Sam had mastered the art of not blushing.
"Whatever," he brushed off. "Come on, the kids are waiting for me in the cafeteria."
"Did you really think I wasn't going to show up, Trouty Mouth?" a voice quipped from behind him.
"Hi Santana," Sam replied knowingly as he turned around to face the sassy Latina. She stood there in professional clothing with her arms crossed, with a smirk that would make you think that she just took over the world.
"Hey," she answered quickly, giving him a quick hug before saying hi to the rest of her friends.
"I thought you said you weren't coming?" Rachel asked.
"I changed my mind," she shrugged. "So what are we talking about?"
"Sam's still in love with Mercedes," Tina said bluntly.
"Really?" asked Santana mischievously as she faced Sam. "You're still hung up on 'Cedes," she cooed. "How sweet."
"Like I said before, 'whatever'," he repeated before turning to walk towards the auditorium and his friends followed him, chuckling to themselves.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~xxxxxxxx~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Jake?" Sam asked incredulously as he saw two of his former students standing in front of the auditorium doors. "And Marley?"
"Hi Mr. Evans," the young woman smiled before giving him a quick hug.
"Sup," nodded Jake.
"What are you guys doing here?"
"Um," Marley paused for a second to look at Jake.
"Sectionals?" he offered.
"Yea, that's right," she agreed. "We heard that Mr. Shue wasn't here so we wanted to lend a hand."
"Seems a lot of you guys had the same idea," the blond noticed suspiciously. "Well, we better get in there," he said, nodding at the door closed behind Jake.
"Oh there?" asked the young man asked, pointing to the door behind him. "Um no. You can't go in there."
"What?"
"Yea," Rachel said, walking up towards them. "Let's go through the back." Everyone agreed and started to move to the other entrance but Sam just stood there confused.
"But I signed out the auditorium, we don't need to sneak in," he explained.
"It's not 'sneaking in'," claimed Mike. "Right, Artie?"
"Right, we're just taking this in a New Direction," Artie joked. Everyone groaned at the joke but Artie looked pretty proud of himself. Just to stop the useless argument, Sam agreed to use the different entrance that put them backstage. There he saw his students whispering excitedly about something.
"Alright, what is going on?" he demanded.
"Whatever do you mean?" Santana asked innocently.
"You guys are clearly hiding something from me!"
"Told you he'd get it," Blaine whispered to Kurt.
"You were right," his husband smiled, rolling his eyes.
"So what is it?" asked Sam but everyone stayed silent. He stared at them for a while before walking past the group to the stage; the curtains were down. "Why are the curtains down? Is someone here?" he asked the group. Rachel couldn't hold it in anymore.
"She's here," she squealed.
"Really Rachel?" asked Kurt.
"Couldn't just let it be a secret, could ya?" added Santana.
"He was going to find out eventually," she retorted.
"She? Who's s-" he began but he realized and his friends watched as he slowly walked over to the curtain. Gently, he brushed the fabric slightly out of his way so he could see without making it obvious to whoever was on the other side that someone was moving the curtain. There she was. Sitting in the middle of the third row, looking into what look liked a compact mirror. She was brushing a few hairs out of her face but Sam thought she looked perfect. He wanted to burst through the curtain, jump off stage and sit next to her, well he wanted to do more than just sit next to her. He hadn't realized how much he had missed her, it was like his whole body had gone through with withdrawal and was being reintroduced all over again. He almost walked forward when he felt a hand pull him back.
"No, you can't just walk out there," Rachel claimed as she dragged him back stage.
"Wow, you're strong," Sam realized as she held an ironclad grasp on him.
"She's right," agreed Kurt. "You need to do something special."
"You mean sing?" the blond claimed as Rachel let go of him.
"Well it is what we do," laughed Blaine.
"How'd you guys even get her here?" the young teacher asked.
"Sectionals," his friends laughed. Sam stared at them.
"I'm kind of offended that you guys would think I'd need so much help," he joked. "You know I did just help Mr. Shue win two Nationals trophies."
"Yea, yea," waved off Santana. "Now, you pick a song, we're-"she said as she pointed to Sam's older friends. "Going to go sit with your Mercy Mae and see how you do."
"Wait, what are you going to say to her?" Sam asked a little anxiously.
"My," smirked Santana. "You really are nervous. We're going to come to the front and say that the team is going to put on a performance or something so we can all see what we're working with."
"That's actually pretty good," acknowledge Kurt.
"Yea, I'd buy it," agreed Blaine.
"Alright," nodded Sam. As his friends headed out, he asked Mike and Jake to stay behind.
"Sure man," Mike smiled.
"Whatever you need," Jake added.
"So what are you going to do?" asked Damon. Sam looked at the current New Directions and sighed.
"I have no idea," he conceded.
"Wait, you've never thought about this?" Michelle asked.
"About what?" Sam replied.
"What you would do if this situation came up?"
"You're asking me," the teacher asked slowly. "If I ever wondered what I would sing if my friends tricked me into performing for a woman that I've had feelings for since high school? Like if I've prepared for this?"
"Yes," Michelle nodded. "Have you never read fan fiction? You've got to be ready for anything!" Her friend –Chelsea- was nodding along with her.
"Yea," laughed Sam, a little weirded out. "I'll take that into account next time." He turned to Mike, who was just shaking his head, and Jake, who stood there expressionless. "But seriously, I need a song," the teacher claimed.
"I think I've got one," smirked Jacquline as she showed her iPod to Sam. He glanced at the screen and smiled.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~xxxxxxx~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Wow, I can't believe so many of you guys came to help out," smiled Mercedes to her friends. "This is going to be awesome!"
"You bet your bottom it is," agreed Santana. "There was no way I was going to miss this!"
"Okay," Mercedes chuckled a little uncomfortably to her friend's enthusiasm. "But can you explain why you guys won't sit next to me?" Her friends left the two seats right next to her empty and if she tried to move closer, they shifted away. "I promise I don't bite," she explained. The diva hadn't seen her friends in quite sometime but even she could see that they were acting really weird.
"That seat is taken," shrugged Rachel, as if that explained everything.
"By who?"
"Him!" smiled Tina as she pointed to the stage as the curtains separated. Mercedes turned to face the stage and gasped a little. There was Sam. It was amazing how one glimpse of him made her feel her heart beat through her fingers. He was standing on the stage with Mike and Jake positioned behind him. They were dressed in party clothes that made them look they were heading out to a club. Then the music started to play and she recognized it immediately, it was by Hot Chelle Rae, a band Sam had introduced her to when they were dating. They sang with the same type of care free/ party anthem theme that Sam liked and sometimes, when she missed him, she'd listen to their songs.
Legend: Sam, Jake, Mike, Jake and Mike, ALL
I'm not usually the type of guy to call twice, and leave a message every time (It's me again)
That's quite alright
And most days I just dust them off like that
Girls text me, you're the only one I text back
Cause you know where the party's at
Sam really hoped that he didn't look to dorky on stage and made sure that he didn't look at Mercedes in the audience because he would fall and that would be the end of everything.
And I'm like, yeaaah
Everything you heard is true
Everybody knows I'm hung up on you (oh oh oh)
And I'm like, yeaaah
Telling other girls I'm through
Everybody knows I'm hung up on you (oh oh oh)
Mercedes couldn't help but smile. The words weren't Shakespeare material but when Sam looked at her, those words felt like the only thing that mattered.
So big, this thing that we got going on
Riding round downtown where you take the top off, yeah
It turns me on
And I'm like, woah
Girl, how'd you get me hooked like this?
One look, one touch, one kiss, one chick
And then I can't resist
And I'm like, yeah
Everything you heard is true
Everybody knows I'm hung up on you (oh oh oh)
And I'm like, yeah
Telling other girls I'm through
Everybody knows I'm hung up on you (oh oh oh)
You got the style, you got the flavor
I want you now, I want you later
I'm hung up, so let's get down tonight
Floating around, a couple of gypsies
Shaking it up, we're getting tipsy
You show me yours
Cause Imma show you mine
On the last line, he looked up at her and winked. He caught her smiling at him and it literally made him happy to no end. He decided to back flip off the stage onto the auditorium floor.
And I'm like, yeah
Everything you heard is true
Everybody knows I'm hung up on you (oh oh oh)
And I'm like, yeah
Telling other girls I'm through
Everybody knows I'm hung up on you (oh oh oh)
Sam kept singing even though that back flip was probably not the best decision. He hadn't done one since he was like twenty and that's the sort of thing you should practice. No one seemed to notice since Mike and Jake did the same thing moments after him.
And I'm like, yeah
Everything you heard is true
Everybody knows I'm hung up on you (oh oh oh)
And I'm like, yeah
Telling other girls I'm through
Everybody knows I'm hung up on you (oh oh oh)
Mercedes couldn't help but laugh as Sam moved closer to her. Laughter was the only way to avoid her either passing out from nervousness or simply screaming. It was Sam. So close. Singing to her. She couldn't have imagined this amazing if she tried – and she had tried, many times.
You got the style, you got the flavor
I want you now, I want you later
I'm hung up, so let's get down tonight...hung up on you!
On the last line, he sat down in one of the empty chairs next to her while everyone else in the auditorium fell completely silent.
"Hey," Sam smiled.
"Hi," Mercedes smiled back.
"Yep," Kurt confirmed. "We're officially back in high school."
"Oh hush," Rachel shushed. "Sam, don't you have something you want to say to Mercedes?"
"I thought the song pretty much-" Santana started to point out but Rachel quieted her down too.
"Um, could you guys give us a little privacy?" asked Mercedes, as she noticed Sam freezing up.
"Of course," agreed Blaine. "Come on guys." Everyone shuffled out of the auditorium, well almost everyone.
"Michelle," Sam noticed. "Shouldn't you be heading out?"
"No, I'm fine right here," the teen smiled, sitting in the row right behind them. Sam rolled his eyes but Mercedes simply laughed.
"You can have your teacher back in a few minutes, I promise," she offered but Michelle shook her head.
"I see him every day, you're the star! I love all your work!"
"Aw," Mercedes cooed. "I'm always happy to meet a fan."
"No, you don't understand," Michelle explained. "When I grow up, I'm going to be just like you! Move out to LA, get signed, sell an album, get famous and be amazing!"
"I'm sure you will," the seasoned diva nodded. "And I would love to talk about your plans but do you know who you should probably talk to first?"
"Who?"
"Rachel Berry, that woman has the exact same amount of talent and passion as I do, maybe even more but don't tell her, it'll go to her head," Mercedes explained. Michelle considered this but didn't seem convinced, so the diva added. "And I promise to come back tomorrow and spend as much time as you want talking about your plans."
"Okay," the young girl agreed before finally leaving the auditorium. Mercedes watched her go and then turned to Sam.
"So you're coming back tomorrow?" he asked.
"Looks like it," she shrugged. Sam grabbed her hand lightly and brought her on stage and Mercedes couldn't help but flash back to the time they sang Human Nature on that stage. As if the universe was reading her mind, the song started to play in the background but it wasn't Michael Jackson. She stood silently as she recognized her voice and then Sam's playing.
"You recorded us?" she asked incredulously. "How is that even possible?"
"Magic," he smiled before twirling her around and starting to dance. Mercedes listened for a few more moments before wincing.
"We sound kind of rough," she realized. Sam listened in silence for moment and nodded.
"Maybe we should re record it," he suggested as he twirled her again.
"I'd like that," she agreed, realizing how true that was.
"Good," he smiled before pulling her into a hug. "I've missed you."
Mercedes rested her head on his chest.
"I've missed you too."
A/N: I've always imagined Sam singing a song by Hot Chelle Rae, since Chord Overstreet's brother, Nash, is the lead guitarist. Since it never happened on the show, I wrote it out instead. Please tell me what you think and thanks for reading!