AN: A fluffy Samcedes meet. Including the purchase of Quinn's promise ring Sam gives to her in season two. Also including the scene where Quinn helps out Sam. Meh!
Note: I don't own Glee or its' characters. (obvi)
Day Three
Notably one of the most insane, although it was his first, practices of All. Time. Sam could not believe the trouble that Finn Hudson had gone through to get his friend to join the football team. What the hell was the issue with it? Sure, Sam had agreed with Bieste at the time… but silently he lamented his guilt. He just agreed so that he could become the quarterback. There's no way that he would usually do that, but he decided it was for his own best interest.
Taking Finn's spot as Quarterback gnawed at Sam like no other thing ever has. Sure he was sort of competitive, but this just wasn't him. Finn was honestly, genuinely trying to help one of his Glee club friends with a dream of theirs. Did Sam honestly forget about the fact he had his own dream? Surely not. But who was he becoming to achieve it?
It made no sense to Sam why he would want this after seeing the look on Finn's face when he got kicked off. He wasn't told yet who would be replacing him, but Coach Beiste pulled him aside to tell Sam the "good news" before anyone else found out. His heart swelled— for a moment. Then crippling reality came.
He came to the conclusion a brave face will do, for now. There's no need for Finn to hate him. He'll understand… hopefully. It was all so confusing. Clearly he's never given a shit about his classmates before… but these people were different. Not the shitheads that ran around the school, but specifically the Glee club. They were the good kind of different. They stuck together, and unlike the football team they could be of any capability, size or shape. He was frankly, embarrassed to be a part of a team that was so egotistical they wouldn't consider letting a handicapped student on.
But— it was high school, right?
Sam knew exactly why all of this was happening. It was too much perfect. He had already made friends, made the team, and found something fun for him to do when he wasn't focusing on his dreams. With all of this going on, something bad was bound to happen.
Walking down the hallway to his next class, he felt the something bad slam against him with a powerful force. He tried to move, but he couldn't. He felt so embarrassed for something he didn't even do, and yet suddenly he was the one with a red face and nothing but ice trickling down his neck. He felt a slight pull and he was in the girls bathroom a moment after, or so it seemed. He finally snapped out of his daze to see Quinn, a girl he met briefly with once or two times, mumbling about slushies while trying to clean his face. He wasn't fully listening until she mentioned the movie Avatar, which he embarrassingly knew the entire made-up language from.
His green eyes grew wide, smiling into hers and confessing, "I've seen that movie six times." He was so proud to admit it to a fellow fan, until she looked at him confused. She muttered "Oh." and he stood there chuckling to himself to hide his embarrassment. He stumbled again, slipping out "Lor manari," sweetly trying to charm his way out of the embarrassing thing he just said. She stopped wiping his face and suddenly looked down, confused. He reassured her, "It means you have pretty eyes, in Na'vi." He tried to stifle and hide his smile, but he wanted her to know he was being nice. She still looked at him like he had spoken in three tongues. "The avatar language." He stopped smiling suddenly and took the towel from her hands gently as she rolled her eyes at him. Is this girl serious? He was unsure why, but Quinn gave him a bad vibe. He was being genuine, and she was very annoyed with him. He reassured himself she was just having a bad day, and he cleaned up himself as she stood there for what he assumed was moral support, while texting some other person.
So Sam Evans had survived his first slushie attack with the help of Quinn. For some reason, it made him feel as though they would be good together. He pondered it, not too long before he changed his mind, that he wanted her to be his first girlfriend. She was popular, she said she saw Avatar, and she was newly single. It seemed like a good match, sort of.
Day Sixteen
It was a hard few weeks being the Quarterback of a team who obviously had no idea who you are. Finn was a natural born leader, and honestly, Sam sucked at it. It was obvious that his potential destiny was pointing him somewhere else in life. But where to?
Would Sam honestly change his course yet again for a destiny he was unsure about? There's one thing he knew: He loved to sing. He had never felt more at home than with a guitar singing with those three Glee kids. Although it was a test to see how well he would do, something he almost always failed, he passed with flying colors. Without those Glee kids pushing him onto the stage, what would he be doing with his time now besides sneaking guitar breaks between classes and singing when he's not even showering. Sam liked the musical side to him, almost like it was a piece that was missing from his puzzle of a life.
Trying to put together all the variables and options of high school is the hardest thing Sam has ever had to do. He even considered making a pros and cons list (but didn't, obviously). He felt like he had no direction without New Directions.
Sam had many doubts about Glee club, even after the Billionaire jam session with Puck, Mike, Finn and Artie. He came to his senses, not too long after the whole ordeal of Finn getting kicked from the team, which he still felt a tinge of regret for every time he thinks about it. No way in hell was he staying a Quarterback the entire year.
This was the Glee meeting that was supposed to change everything. Everyone was performing their duet assignments and he was paired with Kurt.
When it came time for the duets he saw a fiery Latina by the name of Santana Lopez was paired with the girl he remembered singing beautifully during Empire State of Mind, who he found out was named Mercedes Jones. She had a killer vocal range and as soon as he saw her, he knew she was special. He didn't know much about her, but he knew Quinn was great friends with her and she even was there when she delivered Beth, her daughter.
He was excited to hear her sing again, and this time there was only one other voice with her.
As he walked hand into the choir room, Santana and Mercedes were standing up in center stage warming their vocal chords. Sam flashed her a quick smile which she returned, and then after nodded at Santana. Because she kind of scares him if he's perfectly honest. He tries not to make eye contact. He sat down with Quinn at the top row ready to see what they served. And if he was being honest with himself, there's no way he could top the vocals of Mercedes.
When they started their rendition of River Deep Mountain High, the entire room was dancing. After the first chorus, the drum-line began. Santana and Mercedes then began to… shake. those. things. Although he was with Quinn now, his head jerked suddenly, inadvertently, accidentally to see this happening. Quinn was too busy laughing to notice, which he thanked God for.
And Sam got chills when Mercedes hit those high notes. He tried, he really did, not to love their performance. It was inevitable. Sam clapped first, and the loudest, earning him a side-eye from Quinn that quickly turned into a smile due to the fact she wanted to remain a good sport. Sam quickly shrugged at her, as if to say he couldn't help it.
The competition for the duet was steep. He was so nervous for his performance with Kurt, he could barely breathe. Getting up in front of the entire Glee club now. He couldn't handle the pressure of the choir room for another second, and opted for a quick shower as they all took a break. Nearly running to the locker rooms, he found his iPod wasn't with him. Although that would've been an awesome place to rehearse, he settled for a shower in silence.
Looking up at the sound of someones throat clearing, he was shocked to see his duet partner Kurt. Confusedly wiping the water from his eyes, he couldn't really hear over the water running. He simply interrupted Kurt, "This is weird…" Sam said, attempting not to make eye contact. The words came louder than ever when Kurt mentioned that Sam should do their duets with other people. Sam wondered if he offended Kurt, but suddenly forgot about it when Kurt mentioned something about having a special shampoo for his color treated hair. Sam shouted over the loud shower to a persistent Kurt,
"I DON'T DYE MY HAIR." Kurt was already gone so Sam could skulk by himself. How the hell could he know about the lemon incident.
Fantastic. Well, there goes his chances of winning… if he had any to begin with. There was no way in hell he was going to do the duet alone, considering Kurt had picked out something from Wicked which he knew had to do with the Wizard of Oz, and that seemed a bit outlandish for him.
It came as a shock to Sam eventually paired with Quinn Fabray for the duet. He tried to smile slightly, but Quinn's voice was even less powerful than Kurt's. His only chance of winning would've been to snatch up Mercedes when he had the chance. Of course Santana already knew that, hence why she grabbed her.
Here goes nothing.
The duet with Quinn was shockingly great. He knew that he heard Mr. Schuester right when he announced their victory, but he still didn't feel like he had won. He didn't deserve it. Quinn's voice was lovely, but it had no power whatsoever. She certainly was no Santana or Mercedes. He tried not to think about it, and decided to instead focus on the date but not a date with Quinn at BreadstiX. He was very excited, and kind of stumped as he didn't know what to wear.
On his way home from school, he decided to stop at some clothing outlet to look for an outfit. He had a few hours before the early 5pm dinner Quinn had planned, obviously trying to make it as least romantic as possible. He could respect that, because he had no idea what he was doing. A popular girl like Quinn was probably used to fancy dates every other weekend. This would be his first date (but not a date)!
On his way into the store, he had an idea for an outfit he wanted. A classy vest, not too much, but definitely enough to push him right out of the friend-zone. He wanted this to go well.
Skulking past the bargain isles and the hideously matching shoe racks, he made his way to the middle where business casual was situated. He noticed a rack of pretty dresses right near the vests, and wondered if Quinn was picking out an outfit too at some other store. He gulped loudly noticing the low-cut, short dresses and wondered if she would ever wear something like that. He wasn't sure if he wanted her to… or not.
Quinn was nice enough, and she was pretty, but she didn't really give him a spark. They were just… very good together on paper. Which he was down with. Maybe eventually, a spark would start between them.
Picking through almost every rack, he found nothing suitable. Everything was too fancy. He slumped his shoulders and blew air out in a long, drawn out way to show his annoyance. He turned suddenly to head for the door, not noticing the small girl who was inches behind him trying to scoot past without bothering him.
She was holding about three dresses and a pair of shoes that were suddenly bumped from her overflowing arms, along with her phone he held in the other hand. "I am so—," he scanned for a face in this stranger and once he found it, he blushed a deep red. It was Mercedes Jones, the member of his Glee club that he admired from a far. Very, very far. In fact, he had never talked to her before now. Her face seemed flushed too, putting a hand up to stop his already halted apology. He stood there dumbfounded as she tried to stifle a laugh, looking at the mess of clothes on the floor she just dropped. She put her hands on her hips, looking at her now broken phone case lying next to the mess.
"Mercedes, I'm really sorry. I didn't even see you. That's your name right?" He tried to play it cool pretending he didn't already know her name. Looking her square in the face, he wanted her to look up and make sure she wasn't mad. She didn't answer, or even acknowledge his eyes burning into her face. "I guess I'm gonna have to make a trip out to Best Buy today," she said lightly, finally looking up to meet his glare. She noticed the flush of his face and the smirk that appeared at the corners of his large lips. "Yes that's my name, don't wear it out." She added as an afterthought.
"You're Sam, right? I do believe you were the one who killed the duet with Quinn. Congratulations." she added with a smile. There was no questioning the disappointment in her voice. He could tell she wanted the win, and she sure as hell didn't want to deal with Santana now that they had lost. He bore into her eyes, not hiding the smile that formed on his lips.
"That would be me. Thanks." He added, disappointment also stinging his voice because he knew she deserved to win. He stood there staring for a moment, smiling at her until she quickly ducked down to retrieve the items she dropped. "No, no. Let me." He quickly dove in front of her to pick them up. He knelt on the floor at her feet folding the clothes she dropped as she examined her phone. He noticed her feet were just about as small as she was. She was wearing a black pair of high tops with skinny jeans, and a baggy sweatshirt. He pondered for a moment why she would need all of these dresses considering her outfits didn't really consist of those, but decided it was out of line to ask.
A twang of interest gnawed at him, and he tried to bite his tongue but let the words slide out as he was sliding her folded clothes back into her arms. "Going somewhere special?" He asked as he met her eyes again. Her eyes grew wide as her lips twitched slightly, hinting he probably didn't want to tell this perfect stranger her business. He went to apologize for asking, but she answered before he could—" Obviously I have a lot of dates. You know, one tomorrow, one Saturday, one next Friday. Gotta switch up the game." He felt a weird feeling in his stomach over her response. He sort of wished he had never asked, but ultimately, why should he care? He was going after Quinn after all.
As he stood there sulking, she butt in quickly, "Kidding. I'm a church going girl and I have to keep my outfits fresh for that occasion. But it does seem like you are shopping for a certain date." She added, trying to break the awkward silence he created. He visibly became less tense at that new answer for some reason, and a smile lit his face up though his stomach churned.
"Oh sure, my date.. but not actually a date… with one of the most popular girls at McKinley. I'm totally not freaking out about it, if thats what you were wondering." He suddenly didn't care about the date, he just wanted to make her laugh for unknown reasons. She met his eyes, realizing she was staring at his fidgeting hands the entire time he spoke. He kept wiping his palms on his jeans and tying and un-tying his hoodie string. "I can totally tell. You seem cool, calm, and collected." She added sarcastically.
She thought he was laughing at her joke, but he was really laughing nervously to refrain from freaking out of being in this small girl's presence. The date seemed like the last on his very long list of things to freak out about right now.
He noticed her small hands trying desperately to cling to the piled fabrics he handed to her, but her arms were no help because they were also short. Without question, he grabbed the fabrics from her—explaining as he did so, "Here, let me carry that for you. It's the least I can do since I made you break your phone case with my clumsiness. I really am sorry, Mercedes." He added again.
He smiled up at him in response, "Thank you Sam. That southern hospitality is showingggg." She rang on the last note. He would let her think that, but honestly he probably wouldn't have cared to hang around if he bumped into anyone else from school. Once her arms were free, she looked around in search of a shopping cart she could use instead of having him carry it for her. She looked up at him with no luck in her eyes, "I don't see any shopping carts around this area, but let me go find one so you can get back to your shopping." She abruptly turned but heard loud clumsy thumps that caught up with her and were suddenly walking beside her.
"No, it's completely fine. I don't mind carrying them." the tall blond tried to meet her eyes, but she kept walking scanning for an empty basket. "Sam don't be ridiculous," she started to chuckle. Maybe he was being ridiculous. Why was he so drawn to this girl? Carrying around her clothes like a personal shopper— imagine if Quinn had seen this. He gulped, keeping the volume low, and helped her in her search for a basket. He was silently praying that this wouldn't come up when Mercedes and Quinn hung out next.
Walking in their quest, Sam tried his best not to make small talk. He didn't want to freak her out by being too eager to talk to her. He failed miserably. "That was a nice phone case— I'm sorry it broke in the fall." He couldn't stop apologizing. It was just the way his mom raised him. She laughed a low laugh that flowed naturally from her mouth into his ears. "Sam, it's fine. Seriously. I know it wasn't on purpose." She quickly stopped him before he could apologize again. Since it was his only topic of discussion, he started again hoping to hear her talk some more.
"So you and Quinn. You two are close, right?" he asked, trying to get her to look at him. She kept looking for a cart in the crowded department store. Her brown eyes scanned quickly, not noticing his green ones burning into her. "We are," she finally answered in a huff,"She's been my best friend since last year when she was pregnant with Beth. She really was a sweetheart to me when I was… dealing with my own issues." He could sense the hesitation in her voice, but he wanted to know more. What issues could she possibly be talking about? Without a second thought, his big mouth opened again. "Issues? I thought Quinn was the only one with issues. Being 16 and pregnant, and all."
Open mouth, insert foot. Good job Sam. Mercedes stopped walking, looking up at him for the first time since they had began looking for a cart. "You don't really have to judge her. That part of her life is over. She's gotten her act together since, and she's a better person for going through that." He could taste the acid her words entailed, and he immediately felt regret. He stood there, face as red as a tomato, as he tried to think of what to say back. "If you say sorry again Sam, I swear." She laughed, and as a reaction he laughed back nervously.
"That was messed up for me to say. I do care about Quinn, I guess I just don't understand that part of her life. It seems like before I met her, she was a different person." Mercedes nodded silently, still unwilling to share what issues plagued her in the past year. "Everyone changes throughout high school." She said in agreeing to his last statement. He slowly nodded, trying hard to stop staring at her beautiful features. He hadn't noticed she was literally glowing, maybe due to makeup, despite being under the fluorescents of a department store. She smiled lightly at him, noticing he was staring for a good minute as they continued their quest for a basket.
It wasn't long before Mercedes inevitably passed the jewelry counter. She felt bad for stopping and eyeing the rings in the display. There was a new three studded diamond-gold ring, that looked like an engagement ring but was surprisingly cheap. She grabbed the attention of the jeweler, completely forgetting the tall blond lugging her clothes. Honestly, he didn't mind at all.
"Excuse me ma'am, why is this ring so cheap?" she asked the jeweler, curiosity spiking her eyes like stars. The jeweler eyed the piece Mercedes pointed to. "Oh, that is a promise ring. It's fairly old and collecting dust. We've marked it down a few times, but it doesn't seem to appeal to any of the kids." The jeweler answered quickly, turning up to see the charmed look on Mercedes face as she eyed the ring. "Would you like to try it on? I'm sure your boyfriend wouldn't mind. It's a bargain."
Mercedes was cut loose from her starstruck state to acknowledge the jeweler just called Sam her boyfriend. She blushed lightly, not nearly as hard as he was, and quickly stumbled to get the words out, "Oh no. No, no. We're just two friends." she attempted to persuade the woman who was looking skeptical. "He actually has an, um, amazing girlfriend." Mercedes quickly defined his relationship with Quinn for this stranger to hear.
His lip twitched unknowingly and his stomach dropped low. He tried not to react to the sudden realization that Mercedes thought he and Quinn were an item. He wanted to correct her, but didn't want the stranger to get any ideas and embarrass her. In fact, it was almost painful to let this go on another moment, until the stranger suggested he find his girlfriends ring size and maybe bring her in to try it on. Reality hit him like a truck when this suggestion was brought to light.
Mercedes glanced up quickly to a pale faced sam with his lips tucked in, almost like a wave of annoyance was hitting him. She attempted to ignore it. "Sam, that sounds like an amazing idea. That ring is gorgeous, and Quinn would totally love it." Even though Mercedes was completely in love with the ring, she would let it out of her grasp so that Sam could give it to Quinn. He stifled trying to resist the offer— "I-I don't know Mercedes. Quinn has been pretty clear about our relationship. She wants to take things slow." He thought back at all of the times Quinn would cringe when he tried to hold her hand or even tell her compliments. She certainly wouldn't want a ring from him when she didn't even want to call their Breadstix meet-up a date.
"Oh Sam, you have to! She will absolutely love it. C'mon." She turned to the jeweler ignoring the sullen shake of Sam's head. "She's a size 8." She said excitedly as the jeweler pulled the ring from under the glass. It was still glistening even as it came out of the light.
Not as bright as Mercedes, though.
The woman showed Sam the ring, and he gawked at it over the clothes still in his arms. Mercedes was practically squealing, enchanted by the beauty of the ring. It really was beautiful, Sam thought to himself. The price wasn't too bad either. He dumped the pile of clothes on the counter next to him to get a closer look, taking the ring from the woman's hands. He turned it a few times watching the light dance on the stones, and noticeably eyeing the smile on Mercedes face as they danced.
While she was oozing, the woman was telling them about how she would discount it even further if he took it home today. Without a second thought, Sam gently grabbed Mercedes' hand, spreading her finger apart. She looked up, almost ghostly white. "Sam—-," he stopped her by looking up and starting, "I just want to see how it looks on a human hand." He lied. He wanted to see the stones dance on her.
She couldn't argue with that, and besides, his hands felt nice. They were oddly warm and rough, most likely from playing guitar. They were also noticeably two sizes larger than hers, which didn't take much considering hers were tiny. Still, it felt nice. Once he slipped the ring on, noticing it was about a size too big, she suddenly assured him, "I'm a size seven. Quinn is an eight, so it's perfect." She smiled at him brightly, flashing her pearly whites. He hadn't seen her smile like this before, but it was something he could get used to. He held her hand for a second more, pretending he wanted to see the light shift a few more times, until he unhooked his and slid the ring off. She made the decision for him, nodding to the jeweler stating "He'll take it. Do you gift wrap?"
"Woah Mercedes, I don't think I can afford that. I mean I do have some money saved, but…" She held her small hand up again to stop him. "I'll help you out," she started with a smile, "I think you're good for Quinn, and she is a great girl. She deserves it." He didn't want to protest with that smile, so he put in all of the money he had in his pocket and Mercedes paid the rest. But she promised him no gift-wrap.
His date with Quinn was uneventful. She reminded him that it wasn't an actual date. He did an impression where she stared blankly at him. More and more, he thought about his reputation. He would have a great one with Quinn, and there's no doubt she wanted to be with the Quarterback for her image. He wouldn't mind this, and he tried desperately to imagine a day when he didn't have to force his feelings with Quinn. He wanted to like her so badly, and he did care for her… but never saw a future with her. If anyone asked him this, he'd lie through his teeth. There was only one girl Sam had an interest for, and she was oblivious.
AN: Woop, there it is. I loved this chapter. SO much Sam and Mercedes fluff.
The purchase of Quinn's promise ring surely was something I wanted to see in the show. We can just pretend this is canon.
