Will and Holly had been on exactly three dates. The first came after much consideration on Holly s part, after their duet, tango and kiss. After Will asked her out and she turned him down. After she had sang Landslide with Santana and Brittany and realized that she was crazy, that if a great guy asked her out, she should suck up her fears of intimacy and give it a whirl. He'd made pasta for them at his house, and they'd slow danced in his living room. That was when their third kiss took place. The second date was the night after that, they couldn't wait to see each other again. They went to see a movie, some police thriller, but neither remembered much about the movie because they had both been too interested in kissing the other and holding hands. They'd stumbled out of the theatre laughing like teenagers. Their third date had taken place two nights previous to today, and Holly had insisted on making dinner this time. She burned the chicken and the rice was anything but edible, but Will had pulled her into his arms just as she began to cry and told her how adorable he thought she was and how much he cared for her. Then he had kissed her, and for the first time in a long time, Holly felt like she was at home. She actually couldn't remember the last time she'd felt like this, as her childhood home was far from nurturing. Will knew all about that, she'd embarrassingly spilled basically her life story to him only the second time they'd been together, after she'd gotten in over her head with the glee club during his absence. But she couldn't help it, even though she was usually a closed person, he made her feel comfortable and he was very easy to talk to. She remembered how he'd asked her if she ever believed love could be true, and work out after she'd rambled on and on about her family and parents divorce. She said that maybe there was an exception somewhere, but she sure hadn't found it yet. As the days passed, and the more time she spent with him, Holly was beginning to think she'd found her exception. And his name was Will Schuester.

There was a trend in the glee club lately, Will had told Holly. He'd been having more trouble than usual with the members fighting - Mercedes and Rachel's diva catfights had become so frequent that he'd had to resort to seating them across the room from each other. Not to mention the typical high school drama that ensued. So Will had enforced the rule that if something needed to be said, if a point needed to be gotten across, the kids would do so peacefully with music. So far, it had been pretty successful and no bloodshed had occurred. When Holly learned of this, it gave her an idea. She told the kids of her plan to interrupt one of their meetings, but told them not to tell Will. Naturally, Will was quite surprised to see the blonde stroll into his choir room that afternoon with her guitar, as he thought she was working that day. He walked over and kissed her, to which the guys hooted and hollered. Will ignored them, whispering "What are you doing here?" with a smile. "Oh, I just thought I'd pay you a little visit" Holly replied, a mischevious look on her face. "I'm told that there s a new tradition you guys have started, as far as singing your feelings" she said, walking over to face the class. "So if you guys wouldn't mind, I'd like to take part" Holly said, sitting on a stool and picking up her guitar. She motioned for Will to go and sit with the kids, and she began to play and sing.

When I was younger I saw my daddy cry

And curse at the wind

He broke his own heart and I watched

As he tried to reassemble it

And my mama swore

That she would never let herself forget

And that was the day that I promised

I'd never sing of love if it does not exist

But darling,

You are the only exception

You are the only exception

You are the only exception

You are the only exception

Will smiled at hearing the first strums of Holly's guitar, immediately recognizing the tune and the meaning behind it. He'd often thought of his and Holly's conversation at his house about her parents, and he wondered if her ideas on love and relationships had changed any. He guessed that this was Holly's way of telling him that they had, indeed.

Maybe I know somewhere

Deep in my soul

That love never lasts

And we've got to find other ways to make it alone

Or keep a straight face

And I've always lived like this

Keeping a comfortable distance

And up until now I've sworn to myself

That I'm content with loneliness

Because none of it was ever worth the risk

Well you are the only exception

You are the only exception

You are the only exception

You are the only exception

You are the only exception

Tears began to fill Holly s eyes as she sang and looked into Will's hazel eyes. She laughed at herself, thinking that just a few short weeks ago, she would have never thought she'd be sitting here serenading a guy and almost crying over it! But Will had made his mark in her life, and that was something Holly wouldn't change for anything.

You are the only exception

And I'm on my way to believing

Oh, and I'm on my way to believing

Cheers erupted from the class as Holly strummed the last chord. She sat her guitar down, and before she could stand up, Will was by her side, taking her in his arms. "I can't kiss you the way I want to now because it would be highly inappropriate in front of the kids" he murmured into her ear before placing a light kiss on her lips. "But just you wait until tonight" he whispered, grinning from ear to ear. Holly laughed before snuggling into his side. Yeah, the vagabond had finally settled down and found the exception. But she wouldn't trade it for the world.