Even If The Skies Get Rough,

Written by WickedSong.

Disclaimer/Note : I do not own Glee. It is owned by FOX. If you don't want spoilers for 3x12 or 3x13 you should really turn away now even if most of this is my speculation it is based off spoilers! So there's your spoiler warning and you can't complain if I've ruined anything for you! Haha. Please enjoy. This is basically speculation for what I think could happen in the V-day episode, Heart, but this is probably not going to happen. I've sort of drawn inspiration from a few different theories as well as my own mind. More in my note at the end.

"Guys, she isn't going to show up," Sam said, looking towards the doors of the gym in the hope that his statement was wrong but he was proven right when Mercedes didn't appear. Every time the doors opened he had the same hope in his heart and every time someone else walked through the door that hope was dashed.

Rory sighed deeply. "Look, Sam, you have to wait. The dance only started an hour ago."

Puck nodded in agreement. "She said she'd think about it," he agreed. "She's probably just stuck in traffic or something."

"Yeah, Trouty," said a curious Santana as she also looked to the door with the guys. "Any second now she's gonna walk in that door and you two are going to have some sappy reunion reserved for those romantic comedies." She gave a smirk. "Trust Auntie 'Tana."

Sam just shook his head. "I'm going to get something to drink. You haven't spiked the punch have you?" he asked Puck with a small smile, to which his friend put his hands up in mock surrender.

"Wouldn't dream of it dude," replied the mohawked teen but the way he winked when he said this made Sam wary about going near the punch and also caused a confused Rory to look down at his own plastic red cup.

"You haven't, have you?" the innocent Irish boy asked but Puck only responded with a playful slap on his back and another smirk.

Sam laughed, but only slightly, his mind on other things as he assured Rory. "If you feel the slightest bit drunk at least you'll know why."

Rory gave a cautious look to the cup but then shrugged and continued drinking.

Looking around Sam saw that everyone was having a great time. Finn and Rachel were laughing by the refreshments table, Santana had went to rejoin Brittany and they were now dancing intimately not caring who could see them, Quinn and Artie were talking animately, Tina and Mike were, naturally, making out, looking very much in love, while twirling around in the middle of the dance floor, even though the song was upbeat while Kurt and, to everyone's surprise, a recovered Blaine, were doing their own dance moves.

Sam stood with Puck and Rory and the three boys discussed nothing in particular, Rory and Puck trying to keep Sam's mind off the fact that there was the chance Mercedes could not show up. Rory was quickly pulled away for a dance by Sugar however and it left the two friends standing, looking at everyone else in the room, silently drinking their punch.

Puck took the reins of the conversation. "Are you seriously considering going back to Kentucky?"

Everyone in the glee club had been wondering about this since the news of his ultimatum had reached them.

Sam nodded. "If she doesn't show up."

"But why?"

"I came here for Sectionals and to help you guys, but you all know the reason why I stayed," was the simple reply Sam gave and Puck nodded in understanding. "When I left, leaving her was the worst part and staying here and seeing her with another guy? Well that sucks more. I left my family in Kentucky and my heart is here. But if I have to find a way to fix my heart it has to be in Kentucky."

Sam put his drink down and sat on one of the benches.

"Look, she will show up, you just gotta have faith. Isn't that what Valentine's Day is about? Putting yourself out there, on the line?" Puck sat beside him.

"Isn't that what I've done? I've joined synchronised swimming, taken slushies, put her name in lights, trended a tweet, sung a song to her...What else is there to do?"

"Wait," answered Puck with a small chuckle. "Give her a chance to catch up with that." He shrugged his shoulders and then sat beside his friend. "Dude, everyone can see that you two are going to be together. I know it doesn't seem like it right now but you just have to. Shane isn't a factor in this anymore, even if she still's still dating him." Sam gave his friend a questioning look and Puck smirked. "Just because we tolerate him doesn't mean we have to like him. I don't think I've said two words to the guy."

Sam smiled, looking down. "Well, I said ten at the latest so we'll see, I guess." Somewhat sadly he stood up and walked away, leaving Puck to sigh deeply as he watched his friend go off, looking down at his own watch, hoping against hope that he and the entire glee club had called this correctly.

Mercedes looked at her phone as her ringtone played, that Tuesday morning to see that it was a message from Sam. She sighed deeply. She had been hoping to avoid a conversation with him for as long as possible since his grand gesture in the courtyard, another one of his attempts to woo her which she had replied to with her usual rebuttal of 'Shane.' It seemed like the time for their discussion was coming closer however.

The text said to meet 'at their place' and she knew immediately where he was talking about.

As much as she didn't want to go she knew she had to.

The day seemed to go longer from that point onwards until finally it was the end of the day and she was in her car, taking the familiar route to the lake where they had spent many days that summer together. That was what stood out to her the most. It wasn't what they did at the lake, it was just that they were there together.

As she turned the corner and parked her car, getting out and making her way along the familiar path, which led down to the water, where she could see Sam sitting skipping rocks, gazing intently.

She took a deep breath, steeled herself and went to sit beside him. As she sat down on the grass, he didn't acknowlege her immediately, only continued with what he had been doing previously until he was finished. Then he turned to her.

"What do I mean to you?"

Her mind went into panic, what kind of question was that to spring on her? That wasn't fair.

She told him as much. Or at least tried. "Sam, please, why-"

"Please," he sounded desperate, tired, sad, "I need to know."

What was her reaction to that meant to be? Was she meant to admit everything she felt, was she meant to spill her entire heart out to him like she probably should have many weeks ago? Did she have to face reality right now?

"You know that you'll always have-"

He looked a little fed up now. "-A special place in your heart," he finished for her, turning directly to face her. "I know. You'll always love me. But you can't be with me?" This looked like it confused him.

She thought back to her performance in glee club the previous day when Mr. Schue had assigned the greatest love songs. She had known instantly without any doubt what she had to sing and she had made that clear by taking the floor quickly.

She shook her head. "Why are you bringing this up now?"

"Because I need to know now!" Sam exclaimed and he stood up, obviously feeling agitated.

She stood up as well. Sam wasn't facing her, instead focusing on a tree right beside the old tyre swing which looked to be on its last legs. She knew exactly what he was staring at.

"I'm with Shane-"

"Yeah, I know. The whole freaking world knows about you and Shane. But, but," he snapped, turning around and looking at her, leaning on the tree now, "we're lookin' at each other as if we're all the other ever needed, we're singin' duets, we kissed, and you sang that song to me in glee club last week! What am I meant to think, Mercedes? How am I meant to know who or what you really want!"

She looked down, shaking her head. "I...I...I..." She rarely stumbled over her words but she was also an expert at not facing her feelings and the minute that someone found a way to make her do it words failed her. She had found that out with Sam this past summer.

"What do you want? Because I'm getting mixed signals over here!" He put his arms up in surrender.

"I just don't want to hurt-"

"You don't want to hurt him. I get it. But what about you? I'm not thinking about me here, I'm not thinking about Shane either. I'm thinking about you. The girl that I love, the person I would do, and have done, anything for. What about you? What in the hell do you feel about this!"

"I don't want to hurt anyone!" she retorted back at him. "For five months you weren't here. Shane was. I know you didn't mean to leave and I know you would've stayed if you could but you couldn't. I can't just leave him now that you're back."

Sam shook his head at her. "Don't you think I understand that? But I've given you time. I've done everything I can, I've told you how I feel, I've shown you how I feel. I've been back in Lima for nearly two months. You were about to tell me last week and then Shane came along and you just walked away with him."

"What if that was my decision?"

Sam shook his head again. "You sang that song to me, about me, and then went back to your boyfriend? Just admit that you're scared. You're scared because with me you can't run away from your feelings. Because what's really there with Shane? If things don't work out how upset will you actually be?" She knew he was calling her bluff and his words only emphasised this. But she refused to give him the satisfaction of replying. Instead he took a deep breath. "Look, the Valentine's dance is on Friday. I know Shane can't go because he has a dinner with the Ohio State guys-"

"How do you know that?"

"Mike told me," he answered, knowing she was stalling from the important part of his words. "I'm going to be there. I was even part of the group trying to get the dance to go ahead." He laughed, a self-depricating laugh, as he turned his head downward slightly before continuing again, looking straight up at her this time, "If you're not there by ten, I'll take it that you've chosen Shane for good. And if that's the case, then I'm going back."

"Back? Where? Back to," the realisation dawned on her, "Kentucky?" Now she was angry and her voice was quiet when he nodded in reply to this. "So emotional blackmail, huh? Is that how we're playing it? Be with me or you'll never see me again? What a low blow, Sam Evans, what a low blow."

"I'll keep in touch. I'll still come back to Ohio sometimes. I'll come to see you singing at Regionals and I'll definitely try to make it down some weekends. But I came here for two reasons. For Sectionals," he replied, "and you. And you were definitely ninety percent in that decision. I stayed because I know what we had is worth fighting for. But if it's making you unhappy I have to back off. And I have to think about how I can move on, like you claim you have. And if that's being four hours away where I don't have to see you holding hands with or kissing Shane at your locker, I think that would be so much better for me. Even if not seeing you would kill me."

"But...but what about everyone else? You're just going to up and leave?"

"You have enough people for glee now. No one really seemed to give a shit about me before they realised they were one person short so why would they care now?" He shrugged his shoulders. "Friday. I'll be praying that I'll see you."

"I'll...I'll think about it."

With that Sam walked away, a silent hope in his eye at her words, and she watched him, as he went up the path and around the corner until he was out of sight.

Mercedes let out the breath she didn't know she was holding and felt the tears that had been in the corner of her eyes during their confrontation fall down her face. She walked over to the tree and tenderly touched the bark, looking at their initials which rested there.

She had called it corny and had laughed when Sam had suggested it but he had insisted and she wanted to humour him. But she had to admit, when they had finished carving them, the SE + MJ didn't look quite as tacky as she'd thought it would. It cemeted their summer, their love. People would come out to this spot by the lake in ten years time with their own summer romance and see that. It was imprinted forever on the world, on this one tree beside a secluded lake that the two of them had found by chance.

She knelt beside the tree, just thinking. Thinking about how she could finally make this decision, how she could make sure she didn't hurt anybody but there was no easy way and if she didn't act fast there was going to be more than one heart broken.

And the last time when it had been hers, it had hurt like hell.

Finn looked down at his watch as the glee club nervously stood with him by the gym doors. "9:57." He anxiously looked towards the door with the rest of the group. "Three minutes and Sam's going back to Kentucky."

"You don't think he'll really go, do you?" asked Rachel, sounding mildly concerned. "We could talk him out of it."

"He sounded pretty damn serious when I was talking to him."

"Oh he is serious, trust me."

The group turned to find their former member, Lauren Zizes, standing there, arms folded.

"What do you know, Lauren?" Puck asked, and the venom that came off his tongue when saying her name was unmistakeable.

She looked visibly shaken by it for just a split second but that changed. "I'm in the AV club, Puckerman," she answered back with the same tone and she folded her arms again, as she had unfolded them when he had caught her by surprise with his tone. "Since he came back he's been trying to convince me to help him put her name in lights. I said no initially because I didn't have the time and it would've been quite a project to take on. It took him almost a month but he finally wore me down. He's not going to back down. He's apparently said his piece. If he wants to leave, he'll leave."

"Well thank you for that," Puck said with a fake smile to his ex girlfriend before turning back to the group. Obviously some wounds were still fresh.

"I just thought you should know. Sometimes we all make mistakes and we all wish we could have done things differently. Personally, I'm rooting for them too. Everyone should have a second chance." Her moment of sincerity and insight was over as she looked like she wanted to say something extra to Puck. She obviously decided against it and left the group to their own problem.

"And that's ten."

The gravity of what Finn said weighed on the group, as they turned their heads from where Lauren now stood with her friends to the tall boy in front of them.

"Maybe he's still here. If we can stall him-"

"And Trouty Mouth has just left the building," Santana commented, interrupting Tina, with a hint of sadness as she saw Sam slip out of the side door of the gym, obviously so he could go unnoticed. She shook her head. "Why in the hell was no one watching that exit? I knew we should have put Irish there!

"Oh no he doesn't!" Everyone turned to see Mercedes, arms folded over her chest, shaking her head. "I did not...he better...That's it..."

She walked in the direction that Sam had gone in and out the same door, barely noticing her friends crowding round her at that moment and more focused on Sam and making sure he didn't think that just because her stupid car had broken down that she hadn't chosen him.

Because she had.

She had realised.

And it hadn't even been an ephiany she'd had an hour ago, or a calculated decision she came to immediately the day before the dance, it was a gradual build up, realising that no matter where she was, what she was doing, whatever happened, that Sam was there. It had been like all those days at the lake. It didn't matter what they were doing just as long as he was beside her.

And that was probably why she had never visited their place ever since he had gone.

She had realised that all of a sudden on the Tuesday and while it had been hard she had called Shane and asked him to come over the same night. She told him everything, about how much Sam meant to her, about the kiss in the auditorium and while she'd always be thankful to him, she couldn't keep being in a relationship when her heart was elsewhere.

For the next three days she had been trying to reach out to Sam but he was keeping his word when it came to giving her space and waiting until that night. And she hadn't told anyone, apart from Tina, who she had sworn to secrecy about the break up. She had confided in Santana and Quinn about the ultimatum he had given her by the lake as well but she did that in an attempt to make the New Directions help him see sense. Obviously that hadn't worked either.

Slamming the door she felt the cold air on her face, the wind messing up her hair but it didn't matter. She hadn't missed Sam by much as he was still trudging down the parking lot.

"Samuel Evans, you'd better look at me!"

Sam whipped his head around and as soon as he saw her, his face broke out into a grin. He turned around fully and ran up to her.

"I thought...I thought you'd chosen..."

"I know what you thought," she replied looking downward, feeling tears prickling the corners of her eyes. When she looked up she swore she could see the same in his.

"What about Shane? What about us?"

"I broke up with Shane. I had to stop using him as a way to get over the fact that I'm scared you'll leave again," she replied, honestly. That had been her genuine concern and probably, along with her loyalty to Shane, who had been there, the main reason why she had been so hesitant. Shane was safe, there was no possibility of Shane having to up and leave for Kentucky.

Finally saying it out loud took a huge weight off her shoulders, as if she was slowly but not completely shedding that guilt.

"I'm not leaving. I may be broke, I may be sleeping on my friend's couch, I may be unsure where the hell my life is going right now, and trust me, I'm scared out of my mind, but wherever you are, they'll always be a reason for me to be there too."

"Can we do this again? Be us?"

"Hey, it's you and me," he said with that crooked, charming smile. "If anyone can do it it's us."

She wanted to say something about how cheesy and corny that line was, coupled with that smile but it charmed her and she was hardly aware Sam was leaning in to kiss her until a second before their lips touched. She closed her eyes anticipating the kiss that never came. She opened one eye to see him smiling at her.

"What?"

"I'm just...just trying to remember this moment. What it feels like to know that we can be that again."

She laughed happily and just wrapped her arms around his waist in a tight embrace until they pulled away from each other reluctantly.

"I guess we should go back inside," she said, and finally she felt the chill of the air around her. She took his hand quickly and remembered all the times they done that. It was such a simple action, but it was so much. It was her way of saying she was holding on to him now, no matter what.

He gripped her hand even tighter and they were about to walk in when they saw the glee club standing at the parking lot door, all smiling at them.

"Or we could just...you know...stay out here."

"It's freezing!"

But there seemed to be an ulterior motive to the glee clubbers opening the door to them when the slow music wafted in from the gym. The song seemed to be nearing an end but that didn't stop Mercedes.

"I won't give up on us, even if the skies get rough, I'm giving you all of my love, I'm still looking up, still looking up."

"I just wanted to tell you that you look handsome, would you like to dance?"

Sam just grinned and took her hand, like he had many times before as they comfortably moved around to the melody. He wouldn't be surprised if the glee club had been responsible for this song. In fact he was sure of it. They were meddlers but sometimes it was for the best.

"I won't give up on us, God knows I'm tough, He knows, we got a lot to learn, God knows we're worth it."

"It is freezing," Sam commented, obviously now feeling the chill in the air.

"I don't care," replied Mercedes with a satisfied grin.

The song drew to a comfortable close and both Sam and Mercedes leaned in and this time their lips touched, and it was a more passionate one that the one in the auditorium. This one was every feeling they had held back from the other. He was saying that he was sorry for leaving and that he'd turn back time and change it if they could only have more time like this while she was saying she didn't care, that they had the time now to make up for what had been lost.

Because they had each other now and in the end, that was all that really mattered.

"I won't give up on us, even if the skies get rough, I'm giving you all of my love, I'm still looking up."

Well, that was quite angsty at the beginning wasn't it? The conversation between Samcedes at the lake was inspired by The Notebook and the 'what do you want?' scene. I was getting all excited about the similarities this afternoon on tumblr and it wouldn't leave me alone. Also, I don't own I Won't Give Up by Jason Mraz but it's kinda the perfect Samcedes song and I was listening to it all day and there was an opening in my fic for a song to be used so there we go.

And the glee club shipping Samcedes. I will never let go of this. OK, I will forever believe that they ship it hardcore and will do anything to get those two lovebirds back together. It's a recurring theme in my stories and I ain't even sorry.

You all know dramatic last minute reunions are the best in the world! Don't lie, you love them really, haha! Or maybe it's just me.

Ok, so I gave everything into this so I hope you enjoyed!

Please, please, please review if you liked!

Till next time,

WickedSong x