saturday on a budget.
"Hey Marley." Sam beamed at the younger girl, flopping down into the free seat next to her.
"Hey Sam." Marley's voice was quiet, reserved. Her gaze kept flitting to the left, and it only took a second for Sam to realise what- or rather, who she was looking at.
"Still thinking about Jake, huh?"
"Is it that obvious?" Marley winced.
"Nah," Sam said. "It takes a trained eye." He winked.
Marley had to smile. "Have you done your fair share of moping then?"
"More than you know." Sam confirmed threw a mouthful of pasta salad. "He's an idiot."
"I know."
"I know that doesn't change anything, but I had to say it." Sam shrugged.
"Tina and Unique just keep saying I should have listened to them," Marley sighed, absent-mindedly twirling her pasta around the plate.
"The heart wants what the heart wants." Sam quipped. "But don't let them see its getting to you. That just means Kitty's won."
"I thought she'd already won?"
"Not if you're the bigger person." Sam grinned. "You have to show Jake exactly what he's missing out on."
"How do I do that?"
"Continue being your awesome self."
"I'm not awesome-"
"Don't argue with me Marley Rose." Sam interrupted. "I know awesome when I see it."
Marley couldn't help but flush slightly, internally screaming for the pink tinge in her cheeks to go away. "Thanks Sam."
"What are friends for?" Sam said, and suddenly, his face lit up. "Marley, have you got plans for Saturday?"
"What?"
"Have you got plans for Saturday?" Sam repeated his question.
"No, but I don't-"
"Have any money, I know." Sam said. "Neither do I, thats irrelevant. Do you want to do something extremely fun on Saturday?"
"Like what?"
Sma tapped his nose. "You'll find out if you say yes."
"I guess I'll have to say yes then, wont I?" Marley laughed.
"Awesome!" Sam beamed. "Meet me at the front entrance of the mall at two o'clock on Saturday."
"The mall, Sam, I don't-"
"Marley," Sam gave her a lopsided smile. "I get you, remember?"
"Right." Marley had forgotten that Sam too was in the same financial position as her and her mom.
"It'll be fun, I promise!" Sam said, standing up.
"What are we going to be doing?"
"Turn up and you'll find out." Sam grinned, grabbing his tray. "See you in glee. Oh, and Marley?"
"Yeah?"
"Jake's an idiot." Sam said, his eyes twinkling. "Thought you should know."
"I've heard that a few times," Marley laughed, shaking her head as Sam practically bounded away, moving to return his lunch tray. His seemingly endless energy and bright smiles were infectious, and she felt a thousand times better than she had done ten minutes previously as she turned her attentio back to her lunch, shoving a giant forkful of pasta salad into her mouth.
"Oh God." Marley grimanced, spitting out globs of mushy pasta and sweetcorn. "That is awful."
She grabbed her bottle of water, downing almost all of it in one gulp. How did Sam manage to eat an entire plateful without so much as a grumble? Marley looked across the room, bile rising in her throat as she saw Kitty pretty much shoving her tongue down Jake's throat.
"He's an idiot." Marley muttered under her breath, trying her hardest to believe the sentiment. She returned her gaze to the mess on her lunch tray, forcing herself to turn her thoughts to Saturday.
What on earth could Sam be up to?
/
Marley tucked a stray strand of hair behind her ear, pulling her earbuds (only one of which actually worked properly) out of her ears as she saw Sam sprawled out on a bench, his long legs stretched out in front of him.
"Sorry I'm late, my mom's working so I had to walk-"
"Its okay, I understand." Sam said. "Though, you could have asked me for a lift."
"I don't have your number."
"Ah." Sam said, holding out his hand. "Phone please."
Marley handed over her crappy cellphone, watching as Sam typed in his number quickly.
"If you ever need a lift again, just call." Sam said. "Kurt's dad- you know Blaine's boyfriend?- yeah, well he helped me fix up an old truck I bought for like two hundred bucks. It runs great, most of the time anyway."
"Thanks Sam." Marley smiled gratefully. "So, what are we doing today?"
Sam stood up, reaching into his pocket. "I, Marley Rose, am about to introduce you to the art of five dollar days out."
"Thats a ten dollar bill Sam."
Sam looked down at the bill in his hand. "Yeah, well, there's two of us. I'm bad at math, but I'm pretty sure five and five adds to ten."
"Sam, you don't have to pay for me-"
"Think of it as a glee club initiation." Sam said. "Okay?"
"You're not going to let me argue anyway, are you?"
"Nope." Sam grinned. "Shall we?"
"Lead on." Marley laughed at his expression.
Sam nodded, and they started to walk toward the entrance of the mall. "So, how are you finding life at McKinley?"
"Its good." Marley said. "I mean, everyone knows my mom's the lunchlady and I haven't been forced to eat lunch in the toliets alone yet, so thats a good sign, right?"
"Glee club is probably the best thing about McKinley." Sam said. "I know we didn't make a great first impression, but they really are the most accepting people in the whole school."
"I can see that now." Marley nodded.
"So, we're forgiven for the horrible first impression we made?"
Marley found herself nodding. "Just don't do it again." She warned jokingly.
"Don't worry, I think we've well and truly lost our place at the popular table." Sam rolled his eyes.
"You don't seem too upset about it." Marley commented.
"I'm not." Sam said. "I spent all of my sophmore year trying to be the most popular kid in school, and it wasn't until I met Mercy that I realised I was way happier being the nerdy singing kid."
"Mercy?"
"Yeah, I forgot you're new." Sam said. "She was in glee, she graduated last year. She's out in LA on a recording contract. She's pretty awesome."
"Wow, a recording contract?"
"Yup." Sam looked proud. "She's a backup singer now, but she's going to be a superstar someday."
"Is she your girlfriend?" Marley inquired suddenly. "Oh God, sorry! I shouldn't-"
"Marley." Sam interrupted, laughing slightly. "You worry too much."
"I just thought I was being too nosey.."
"She used to be my girlfriend." Sam responded. "We broke up in June."
"Do you miss her?"
"Yeah." Sam said. "She was my best friend, not just my girlfriend. But relationships end, and I guess you have to move on. It sucks, but what can you do?"
A silence fell over the two friends.
"Okay, we're here." Sam said, stopping in the middle of the mall.
"You dragged me all the way to the mall so we could stand by the fountain?" Marley raised an eyebrow.
"No. I just don't know what shops you like."
"What?"
"Just name a store you like Marley."
"Uh, a music store I guess?" Marley tried. "I haven't done much shopping since we moved here."
"Who say's we're going shopping?" Sam grinned, pulling her toward the nearest music store. They stepped into the store, getting hit by a blast of cold air straight away.
"Holy crap its cold in here." Marley shivered.
"It always is for some reason." Sam said, offering her the salmon coloured hoodie she hadn't noticed he'd been carrying.
Marley looked hesitant.
"Its not a marriage proposal Marley." Sam laughed. "Its not even my sweater anyway. I can't remember who owned it originally, but I'm pretty sure I've seen at least three or four people in the glee club wearing it at some point."
"A weird initiation then?" Marley said, shrugging the sweater on. It was soft, and cosy, and she tugged the overly long sleeves down over her hands, zipping it up as she watched Sam start to flip through racks of CD cases.
"If you want to look at it that way." Sam said, holding up a CD. "Important question here Marley- whats your opinion on the Biebs?"
"I don't know." Marley said. "I don't like him, or hate him. I'm neutral?"
"It'll do, I guess." Sam heaved a fake sigh.
"Why?"
"I have a weird liking for the guy." Sam said. "I went through a phase of dressing like Justin Bieber actually."
Marley laughed. "Any praticular reason as to why?"
"I was trying to impress a girl."
"Mercedes?"
"The head cheerleader."
Marley grimanced. "How did that work out for you?"
"The trainwreck that was my love life during sophmore year isn't something you want to hear about." Sam said. "Seriously."
"That bad?"
"Worse." Sam laughed.
"Ouch." Marley caught sight of a CD. "Oh, I love them!"
"Who?"
Marley held up the CD. "Fleetwood Mac Sam, obviously."
"Good choice." Sam said. "I love Fleetwood Mac."
"Or.." Marley spun around. "Kelly Clarkson."
Sam made a face, grabbing a different CD. "The All American Rejects."
"I can live with them." Marley ran her fingers lightly over the racks of CD's. "Oh! Demi Lovato. You have to like her."
"I can live with her." Sam echoed her earlier statement with a grin. "Gareth Brooks?"
"No." Marley shook her head. "No way."
"Do you even like country music?"
"Sometimes. I'm guessing you do?"
"I was raised on country music." Sam grinned. "Whats not to like about it?"
Marley didn't answer. "The Black Keys?"
"Yup." Sam nodded. "I love them."
"Something we can agree on." Marley laughed. "So, if you were raised on country, you were born in.. the South somewhere?"
"I'm actually from Alaska."
"Really?"
"No." Sam laughed. "I'm from Tennesse."
"I thought I heard a Southern drawl in there somewhere." Marley nodded, her attention half on their conversation, half on the CD's in front of her.
"So, where are you from?"
"Originally? Minnesota." Marley said. "But I've lived in a ton of places."
"Favourite placed you've ever lived?"
"I don't know.." Marley said.
"I think mine is probably Nashville." Sam said thoughtfully. "I grew up there."
"I'd love to visit Nashville someday." Marley said. "On the subject of Tennesse, Taylor Swift?" She held up an album.
Sam wrinkled his nose. "Sometimes?"
"Yeah, I only like some of her songs." Marley admitted. "She's just the first singer I thought of when you said Tennesse."
"I really need to educate you when it comes to artists from Tennesse."
"Feel free." Marley said, and grinned. "Doesn't mean I'll like them though."
"They're impossible not to like." Sam said. "They're from Tennesse, they're automatically great."
"Are you including yourself in that one?"
"Of course." Sam beamed. "Come on, I have somewhere I have to take you."
"Lets go then."
/
"Sam, where are we?" Marley laughed, looking around the store Sam had dragged her in to. It was kind of messy, the rails of clothes, bags, shoes and other odds and ends disorganised.
"A thrift store." Sam said. "Best places in the universe."
"Really?" Marley raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, completely." Sam said. "You find way better stuff here than you do in Walmart."
"Hey, don't diss Walmart." Marley joked. "Everything I'm wearing is Walmart. Fake J-Crew Walmart."
"Marley, I'm pretty much dressed head to toe in Walmart." Sam pointed out.
"Fair point." Marley laughed.
"I always find really cool t-shirts in here." Sam said, absent-mindedly tugging at the hangers.
"What t-shirts like this?" Marley grinned, holding an oversized pink t-shirt up to herself. The phrase 'save the drama for ya mama' emblazoned across the chest.
Sam grabbed another t-shirt from a pile on a table. It was green, the phrase 'life aint nothing but bitches and hoes' written across the front in bold, yellow writing. "I think this one is better." He smirked.
Marley burst out laughing. "That has to be one of the worst t-shirts I've ever seen."
"I don't know, I think we should get the entire glee club to wear them for Sectionals."
"Mr Shue would really go for that," Marley said, looking around for something to top Sam's find. She spotted a hat on top of one of the tables, with what looked like stuffed fox attached to the front.
"Now this," Marley said, putting it on. "Is a cool hat."
"I like this one." Sam said, looking at her from beneath the brim of a hat that looked like it was made entirely of feathers.
"You wouldn't want to have allergies wearing a hat like that." Marley commented, looking around for something to make her outfit even more ridiculous. She spotted a giant feather boa, and wrapped it around her neck, chattering away as she did so.
"What do you-" Marley cut herself off as she looked around the store. Sam was nowhere to be found. "Sam?" She said nervously, turning around. "Sam, where- ARGH!"
She couldn't help but scream as she turned around, and came face to face with the most terrifying looking mask she had ever seen.
"Gotcha." Sam grinned, lifting the mask up.
"Sam!" Marley shoved him half-heartedly, her heart racing. "Don't do that!"
"I told you thrift stores were fun." Sam said, letting the mask drop back down over his face again, growling at Marley as he did so.
Taking advantage of the fact Sam couldn't see with the mask on, Marley gave him a light shove, sending him stumbling into a clothes rack. Sam fell, bringing the entire clothes rack down with him.
"Oh my god!" Marley dropped to her hands and knees, pulling the hat off. "We're going to be in so much trouble Sam."
Sam, who was still laughing shook his head. "You don't stay friends with Noah Puckerman for as long as I have without learning a thing or two."
"Like what?"
Sam pulled the mask off, scrambling to his feet. A store attendant was heading their way. "Thief!" He yelled, pointing wildly in the opposite direction to where they were standing. "Look, a thief!"
This made the store attendant turn around.
"Come on!" Sam urged, barely holding in his laughter as Marley attempted to detangle herself from the feather boa.
Marley the the feather boa aside, and started to run, stumbling over a cardboard box as she did so.
Sam grabbed her hand, pulling her out of the store, and out into the busy shopping centre.
"Oh my god." Marley was out of breath. "That was insane."
"Fun though." Sam grinned, not letting go of Marley's hand as they quickly walked away from the thrift store.
"Yeah." Marley admitted, beginning to laugh. "It was."
Sam smiled, satisfised.
"So, where are we going now?"
"Ice cream." Sam said, as if it were obvious. "What do you think the five dollars is for?"
/
"Okay, today has been really fun." Marley said as she and Sam walked through the mall, eaitng ice-cream. She dug her spoon into the half melted chocolate, looking at Sam with a smile as she did so. "Thanks Sam."
"Todays not over yet." Sam said, scraping the last of his ice cream out of the tub, tossing it into the bin.
"It isn't?" Marley looked around her. The mall had quietened down, the stores getting ready to shut up shop.
"The five dollar Saturdays are perfectly budgeted to leave you with a nickel." Sam said, holding up two coins.
"And?"
"Make a wish." Sam said, holding one out to her. He nodded toward the fountain, which was full of coins.
"Every time you do this five dollar Saturday thing, you make a wish?" Marley looked doubtful.
Sam nodded. "I started doing this with Stevie and Stacy. I'd get them ice-cream, and there would be a nickel left over. One day, Stacy was really bummed out about everything really, and I told her if she tossed this into the fountain, and made a wish, it'd come true someday."
"So we're making wishes?"
"You're never too old to make a wish Marley Rose." Sam beamed. "Ready?"
Marley tossed her now empty ice-cream tub into the bin, and nodded. "Yup." She closed her eyes, squeezing them tightly shut as she thought about what she wanted to wish for.
"You have a wish?" Sam inquired.
"Yeah."
"On three then." Sam said. "One, two, three.."
They both tossed their coins into the fountain, the coins landing with a small splash.
"So when do these wishes come true?" Marley inquired.
"When they're supposed to." Sam said. "Come on. I better get you home."
Marley couldn't help but feel relucant. She didn't want to go back to reality, not after today.
/
"I better give you back your jumper-"
"Keep it." Sam said. "Its about time it moved onto someone new."
"Thanks Sam." Marley said, glad she didn't have to take the warm sweater off.
A silence fell between them as Sam drove the last few metres of the hourney, pulling up at the kerb outside Marley's apartment block, where she lived with her mom.
"Thanks for today Sam." Marley said, moving to leave.
"I'm going to walk you to your door." Sam said.
"You don't need to-"
"Its dark Marley." Sam said. "I'm going to walk you to your door."
"Okay." Marley found herself saying.
Sam nodded, unbuckling his seatbelt. Marley got out of the car, Sam's presence beside her comforting in the dark.
"Seriously though Sam, thanks for today." Marley said. "I had a really great time."
"I'm glad." Sam said. "I know how it feels Marley, to avoid going out with your friends because your mom can't afford to give you any money. I guess I just wanted to show you that its possible to have an awesome time with your friends without spending too much money. Or any at all. The ice-cream is optional."
"You're a really nice guy Sam, you know that?" Marley commented.
Sam's ears turned red. "Uh, thanks." He said, rubbing the back of his neck. "Did I keep your mind off Jake?"
"What?"
"I figure the best way to get over an idiot is to not let them take up all of your thoughts." Sam explained. "Did it work?"
"Yeah." Marley said, realising she didn't once think about Jake for the entire day. "It did."
"Mission acomplished." Sam said, smiling goofily.
"You know how you were asking what my favourite place I've lived in was?" Marley said suddenly. "Earlier in the mall I mean."
"Yeah?" Sam looked confused.
"Lima's shaping up to be pretty good." Marley said, smiling softly. "I'll see you Monday Sam."
"I'll see you Monday." Sam nodded, and started to walk back toward his truck. About halfway there, he stopped, and turned around.
"Oh, and Marley Rose?" He said, grinning at her. "There's five dollar dates as well. Just so you know!"
/
Author's Note; Having spent the last year going between emotional meltdowns and general fangirling when it came to Sam and Mercedes, its been weird to admit that I actually ship Sam and Marley. Quite a lot, in actual fact. So here's me attempting to write something Marley/Sam-ish.
Also, its been absolutely ages since I uploaded anything to , so I'm probably really behind here, but I am not liking the book covers.
Anyway, feedback is always much appreciated.