A/N: This picks up right where Chapter 1 left off… Sam's explaining to his new friends why he is so young. I hope you guys can follow the trappings of my mind!

Thank you Anni…I just realized that I sent you three chapters at one time like a psycho. I'm so sorry for the homework assignment! WOO WOO WOO *said in the voice of Sinclaire from Living Single* Does that make it any better? I'll think before clicking send, next time lol.

Disclaimer: I don't own the Glee franchise or any of the things that the owners of the Glee franchise own.


The Same Evening…

Over cannoli and gelato, Sam explained to Tina and Mike just how he came to end up student-teaching at McKinley High as a teenager. First, he described the day in his Nashville, Tennessee second grade class, when he'd been paged to the guidance counselor's office in order to complete an intelligence test. His teachers were becoming frustrated with the 6-year-old's poor academic performance, and had requested that his parents consent to the school finding out whether he qualified for "special circumstances." At the time, Sam knew he wasn't as good a reader as most of his classmates…after all; he'd been in the "slow reading" group since the year before. But Sam made sure to perform as well as possible on the alphabet, counting, and comprehension exercises that'd been placed before him.

The next day, Sam was flanked by his parents in the counselor's office for a review of what the testing had uncovered…and the aforementioned guidance counselor suggested softly, but firmly, that the Evanses allow Sam to be included in the "Special Education" program at school. Melissa Evans, Sam's mom, who'd been a professor at the collegiate level for most of her adult life; had been shocked. When the counselors had requested the "testing," they'd alluded to Melissa that Sam would be given a series of batteries to determine whether or not Sam belonged in the school's "gifted" programs…they'd allowed her think that those were the "special circumstances" mentioned in the permission forms. Melissa knew her son didn't exactly bring home the best grades…but she also knew that his problems could very well have been the product of boredom. Melissa was livid that she'd been purposefully misled by vague wording, and demanded that her husband dis-enroll their son from the school. Daniel Evans, Sam's father, agreed with his wife…He was also aware that his son hadn't been purporting himself in a manner that the school could brag about, exactly. But he also knew that oftentimes, educators jumped the gun on matters such as these. How, Daniel questioned, was the school to know that their son couldn't do the work with more help? In his opinion, the counselors were taking the easy way out. So the decision was made, and the elder Evanses immediately took measures to ensure that their son no longer attended Graham Elementary.

After the trio returned to their home, Sam was sent outside to play while the adults discussed their next move. Eventually it was decided that Melissa would resign from her job and devote herself to helping her son develop academically. Melissa's first call of duty had been to have her son tested by actual doctors; physicians who took detailed scans of her son's brain to seek out any potential abnormalities, and gave him complete workups that would alert them to any physical symptoms of developmental problems. Sam was proven to be physiologically healthy. Next, Melissa and Sam began visiting a psychiatric pediatrician, who probed the young boy for clues about his emotional and mental growth. Sam, explained the doctor, could very well be having emotional issues that manifested themselves as inattention during school lessons. Yet again, Sam was deemed stable and well-adjusted.

A concrete reason however, was found for Sam's stunted ability to learn and retain schoolwork when Melissa had the boy meet with one of her former colleagues. Jeremiah Bentley was a Psychology professor who'd spent years teaching at a home for the disabled. He was familiar with learning disabilities, and often found himself suggesting that his friends get their children tested for autism, attention deficit disorder, and in one particular instance, a mild form of Tourette's…because he recognized certain symptoms early on. They were the kind of disorders that Dr. Bentley had become very astute at seeing the signs for, and more times than not…he was proven correct. Following an exercise where Sam was instructed to draw pictures of his favorite things; Dr Bentley got inkling that the boy might be an undiagnosed dyslexic. You see, Sam had struggled to make an extremely accurate drawing of a bicycle, but had inverted the placement of the handlebars, despite all of his attention. After that, the man asked the young boy to take as much time as he wanted; while forming the letters of the alphabet. Most of the letters were, in fact, made perfectly. However, Sam had painstakingly drawn other ones backwards. After discussing this with Melissa and Daniel, they specifically sought a counselor whose specialty was dyslexic children, for a proper "official" diagnosis.

After the boy was diagnosed, Melissa made contact with a local school whose curriculum included hiring out tutors for the dyslexic, and got her son enrolled in the "home-school" version of the program. She bought teaching tools, class itineraries, and lesson plans…all so she could teach her son how to cope with his disorder at home. And teach she did…for the next several years, Sam learned a new way to learn, in the most structured, yet enjoyable home school ever taught.

Sam had been required everyday to get up at the pre-prescribed time, just like a regular school day, and get dressed for his studies like any other student. His days were mapped out to the minute, and he was expected to attend all his classes as religiously as any child in the local Elementary school. He was allowed an hour for lunch and an hour for music lessons, as well as an hour of playtime outside everyday…and at the end of every month Sam was given a variety of tests that gauged his advancement.

Sam enjoyed spending his days with his mother, who was nicer than any teacher he'd ever encountered. And he quickly learned that the "tricks" he was being taught to help him learn, worked. He used them to fool his mind into absorbing information in a way that he could fully comprehend it; and as a result, the boy who was once thought to be "slow," was ahead of his own classmates! As a matter of fact, by the time Sam's twin siblings were born, he was ten years old and could easily complete a tenth-grader's school assignments.

Tina had tears in her eyes by the time Sam finished his portion of his story, and her boyfriend visibly welled up in righteous indignation for the small child being picked on by his school administrators. Sam thanked them silently for their commiseration and continued his story.

When Sam's siblings were less than a year old, he explained, Daniel lost his job as a result of a post-Reagan Trickle Down Economics-era National economy. The family of five subsequently lapsed on the mortgage to their home, and were cast out onto the street. The Evans family, who'd always had more than enough money as a result of Daniel's job as a successful and sought-after architect, was now destitute and forced to live with Melissa's parents. Sam, who had been looking forward to being home-schooled his whole academic life, was now required to enroll in public school so that his mom could look for work. When the school system tested the boy to ascertain his academic abilities; Sam had scored completely off the charts! There was a healthy debate among the school administrators and Sam's parents; concerning what the young boy was capable of academically, versus what he was ready for emotionally. But when all was said and done it was decided that the ten-year old would be attending ninth grade at the start of the new school year.

Sam whizzed through his classes; and quickly impressed his teachers with his ability to conquer concepts well beyond the limitations of most children his age. He worked hard, and studied religiously; thereby completing all four years of high school in only three. It has to be said that a huge portion of why he was so dogged about his studies lay in the fact that Sam had no friends. His classmates had social lives that he had little to nothing to do with; and quite frankly, the boy had nothing in common with even the nicest and most accepting high schooler. Aside from study sessions organized by various cramming overachievers -to which Sam had only been invited in order for grade-hungry climbers to pick his brain and get higher grades- Sam rarely spent any time after school with his peers. And he spent nearly all his free time studying...which was proven evident in his graduating class standing.

His parents, who had initially felt guilty for not being able to provide at least a private school education for their gifted son, were overjoyed when Sam was named Class Valedictorian. They were giddy when counselors brought them in to discuss his options for higher education. Happily, the family sent for and received applications for entrance to some of the most prestigious secondary schools in the country. When the acceptance letters started to roll in, the family came to terms with the fact that a newly teenaged Sam was bound for college… during a time when most kids have only puberty to worry about.

"What made you come to Lima University?" interrupted Mike, fascinated by the young man's story.

"Yeah," sniffed Tina. She was still feeling very sympathetic towards a younger Sam, and the tears wouldn't stop for anything. "You could have gone to any school you wanted to!"

While the rest of the New Directions left the restaurant, exhausted and full of food…Sam explained to his two new friends that his father had located a job in Lima. The position paid well enough that the family would finally be able to own their own home again, and Sam had briefly toyed with the idea of leaving his family to roam the halls of one Ivy League school or another. But a heartfelt discussion with his parents –in which they tried to encourage him to take up one of the many scholarships he'd been offered to attend famous institutions and establish himself forever- was what finally convinced Sam otherwise. Sam knew that, ultimately, he wanted to live with his family. Besides, he went on, any genius can go to Harvard and be recognized as a genius… Sam was being given a rare opportunity to have a normal experience; i.e., his college years spent at an accredited State University...and the chance to continue living with his parents for a few more seasons. Sam was excited to enroll at LU.

While most quote/unquote "geniuses" took a lot of pleasure in majoring in courses of study that would ensure them a lifetime of money and recognition…Sam was very different. He had no desire to be a doctor, although he could identify, chart, and name the bones and muscles of the body as well as any surgeon by the age of twelve. Neither could he stomach the thought of making a living as a famous and well-paid attorney; although he'd taken and passed the bar exams for six different states for fun as an undergrad. To Sam's way of thinking, the best and most satisfying way for a person to make him-or-herself useful in this world was to teach children, and teach them well. He remembered how his old school system had given up on him early on. Sam also remembered the dedication his own mother had shown in taking up where they'd left off. He wanted his opportunity to show another child, somewhere, that same kind of care.

So he majored in his favorite subjects, and supplemented them with several courses taken purely for enjoyment. He neither concentrated on graduating early, nor did he honestly care if he got academic accolades…the man was there to take in everything under the sun. He was older now; and even though Sam was still younger than his peers, he had more in common with them than he had as a high-schooler. Sam didn't join a fraternity or try out for school drama productions; he'd never been good at seeking out or belonging to any "cliques." But he played various intramural sports, and loved to exercise. He spent the majority of his free time in the school gym, and managed to enjoy himself while enriching his mind.

Five years after enrolling, Sam was a semester away from graduation; hence his new appointment with Lima City Schools. Sam looked forward to doing his job well…but it must also be said that this chance represented the first time in Sam's life that he'd be surrounded by people his own age. Sure, he was an educator of sorts, and was expected to teach the people he also wanted to befriend; but he looked forward to becoming a full-fledged member of the group as well...for once in his life, Sam Evans was in right place at the right age.

"Do you have your own place?" Tina asked…she knew there was no way on Earth that Mercedes' parents would ever let her date a guy who had his own apartment, and she wanted to make sure that particular roadblock wouldn't be an issue. She was getting more and more excited about the possible match, and wanted to see Samcedes together already!

"How cool would that be?" Mike pondered. "To live alone without parents around…it would be awesome!"

"Maybe," Sam allowed. "But I wouldn't know. I still live at home; and I plan to until I graduate and find a real teaching job…Trust me, I'm not that different from you guys." He wanted these cool kids to identify with him, not stand in awe…

"Wow…" Mike breathed. "…Dude, I gotta say; you're like, the coolest person on Earth!" Sam preened; this was the first time a boy his own age had ever called him 'Dude!' "And you'll definitely fit in with us Glee Clubbers," Mike continued. "None of us are what people would call "normal kids."

"He's right, Sam…" Tina added, taking up where her boyfriend left off in trying to make Sam feel included. "…we're all a bunch of freaks, but that's what makes us family. And the way you broke with convention and did your own thing? You're like…my hero!" Sam blushed. "A freaking rock star!"

The trio stood up and started making their way to the door. "So, are you guys going to tell everybody, or just let them all come to me?" He could tell Miss Cohen-Chang lived for gossip, and couldn't wait to dish the dirt to her friends. "Because if you did you'd be doin' me a big favor…that story takes a long time to tell." Sam gestured to the almost empty parking lot that indicated the restaurant was nearly closed.

"Well…" Tina pretended to think about it. "…I honestly was only going to tell Mercedes; like I said, she and I were both curious. But now that I know it won't bother you…"

"Don't worry, dude…" Mike cut in. It was getting late, and he and Tina had curfew to consider. "…my girl is all over it!" he reassured Sam. Then the couple said goodbye and they all went their separate ways.


A/N: My goodness, this is fun…