CHAPTER 3

After school had finished for the day, Sam had been searching everywhere for Tina. He had planned to tell her that he gotten a new job that paid handsomely, so he could help her take care of the baby. However, she had not shown up to the choir room, and she wasn't answering his texts, so he had gotten more and more worried for her. Eventually, he went to her house and knocked on the door, and her mother answered.

"Hi, Mrs. Cohen-Chang. I'm looking for Tina. Is she here?"

"Yes, she's here. Who are you?"

"Oh, I'm Sam Evans. I'm in Glee Club with her."

"Oh, very nice to meet you, Sam. Please, come in."

"Thank you", said Sam, and as he entered he was impressed by how much better the house looked when the lights were on. He took a quick look around to see a staircase leading to the second floor, a door to the living room, one to the kitchen and dining area, and one to the garage. A small chandelier hung from the ceiling, and most of what he saw was a deep mahogany or light pine color. Family photos led up the stairs, the steps of which were rose-red.

"You like what you see?" came a voice from above, and Sam looked up to see Tina watching him. She was dressed in a black nightgown with indigo lining, and her hair was somewhat messy.

"Yeah, so far, it's pretty impressive. Can I talk to you, please?"

"Sure, come on up", said Tina, and Sam rushed up the stairs to her, noticing the doors to Tina's bedroom, her parents' master bedroom, two bathrooms, a closet, and a trapdoor to the attic, but stopped short of her when he smelled the stench of alcohol.

"Tina, have you been drinking again?" asked Sam, trying to stay as quiet as possible.

"Just a couple of flasks. Why?" said Tina, and Sam could hear a strong slur in her voice.

"Tina, I'm really starting to worry about you. I've been trying to get ahold of you all day, but you were nowhere around."

"Hey, Clam-Face, shut up a second, all right? Just because I'm skipping out on stuff lately doesn't mean that I've lost touch. I've hit a rough patch, and I'm trying to work through it."

"By drinking?"

"Duh", said Tina, hitting herself on the head to mock him, "That hurt. Anyway, I'm fine. If I need you, I'll let you know."

"Tina, I should let you know that I got a job, one that pays really well. I think that my income can help you and the baby."

"Will you keep it down, please? My father's not home yet, and my mom's got some kind of super-hearing going on."

"Look, I really think you should stop drinking. Like, right now. I read about this thing, this Fetal Alcohol Syndrome, and from what I've seen, it's pretty bad. Those who suffer from it end up being mentally retarded, or the likelihood of dying at a young age increases significantly…"

"Sam, I'm aware of the problems, and I'm telling you, I'm handling it."

"You're not handling it. You're making it worse."

"Who are you to tell me that what I'm doing is wrong?"

"I'm the father of your baby, and I do have a say in what you do when it comes to this."

"If you honestly think that being a single parent is going to be easy, then you're being an idiot."

"I never said anything about you or me raising this baby alone."

"Look, I'm drowning my sorrows the best way I know how. I don't know what to tell my parents. They've already said that I need to go on a diet."

Before Sam could respond, Tina's mother came up the stairs.

"Is everything okay?" she asked.

"Yeah, Mom, everything's fine."

"I heard raised voices, so something's wrong."

"Really, Mom, we're good."

"Okay, well, let me know if you need anything."

"Sure thing", said Tina, and her mother went back downstairs. As soon as Sam heard dishes clanking, he turned back to Tina.

"This isn't over. I'm trying not to make it a demand that you stop drinking. Think about what it will do the baby, and to you. I know what it's like to take care of kids and to be the guy to depend on, so don't consider for a second that what you're doing won't affect me either."

"You know what? Maybe after I give birth to this baby, you can have it. I'm not ready to be a mother, but since you're such an expert, maybe you're better off being responsible for it."

"You'd really be that cold?"

"No, I'd really be that reasonable. I don't think you'd make the world's greatest father, but I guess the baby will have to make do."

Sam was gripping the stair banister very tightly, trying not to explode on Tina. He did not know if what she was saying was coming from drunkenness, but he was certain that she was wrong about everything. Without saying another word, Sam stormed out of the house to go back to the Hudson-Hummel household. After he left, Tina went to her room, closed the door, and flopped onto her bed to cry into her pillow.

INTERLUDE

The next day was harshly humid, causing everyone major discomfort. Mr. Schuester was trying hard to look as neat as possible, though sweat was clear on his clothes, and his hair was matted. He entered the choir room, which was refreshingly being air-conditioned, to greet the New Directions, who all applauded his return.

"Thanks, guys. It's great to be back. Even greater is having back two of our most powerful talents, Brittany Pierce and Amanda Packard."

The others eagerly welcomed back Brittany more so than Amanda, though she got her fair share of welcome. Amanda looked back at Alexander, who was clapping half-heartedly at their return.

"Okay, guys, it's been a rough few days, but it's time to get ready for Regionals. Emma has informed me that you've chosen two Elvis Presley songs to wow the crowd, so let's get to rehearsing. We need to be up and fresh for what's ahead."

Just as they got up to start, there was a knock on the door, and they all looked to see Kurt standing in the doorway with a big smile on his face.

"Hey, you guys. Just dropping in", he said, and Tina, Artie, Sam, Rory, Joe, Sugar, Matt and Brittany all rushed forward to greet and hug him, followed by Mr. Schuester.

"Kurt, it's great to see you again. Come and meet the new guys", said Mr. Schuester, and Kurt happily greeted the newcomers, eager to get to know them, though he stopped when he met Abigail, trying to stay friendly while fighting the temptation to laugh.

"So, what are you doing here? What happened in New York?" asked Artie.

"Well, uh, we're on break for now, so I came back to meet with Blaine, but I found out that he transferred. Does anyone know why?"

"Honestly, even we don't know", said Joe.

"He gave a reason, but it wasn't really that sound", said Sugar.

"Well, Kurt, we were just about to start preparing for Regionals, so if you'd like to sit in and watch, you can", said Mr. Schuester.

"Well, yeah, I wish I could, but I need to go and find Blaine over at Delphos. But maybe I'll see you at the competition."

"Okay, sounds good, and seriously, it's great to see you again", said Sam.

"It's great to see you guys, too. And it is great to meet you new guys. And Matt, when did you get back?"

"Oh, Brittany got me back here at the start of the school year."

"Well, it's great seeing you back. I've got to get going, and I don't want to keep you guys from rehearsal, so good luck to you."

"Take care, Kurt", said Mr. Schuester, and Kurt took a last look at Abigail before leaving, trying to stifle his laughter.

"All right, guys, let's get this show on the road", said Alexander, and everyone stepped forward to go through the routine for the competition. Tina made sure to stay as far away from Sam as possible, not intending to engage him in conversation. As Sam took his spot, he looked at Tina's open bag and saw a half-drained whiskey bottle inside. He looked back at her, trying to make eye contact, but he knew that it was futile, and he considered that staging an intervention would be required.