"Mr. Evans?" Josh asked, trying to get Sam's attention.
"Yeah." Sam said, snapping out of his flashback.
"Have you ever been through something like this?" Josh asked.
"I have been through the exact same situation, actually." Sam said.
"What?" Josh asked, a little confused.
"Yeah, my high school girlfriend cheated on me with one of my best friends. She never really admitted it." Sam said, some feelings of hurt rushing back.
"Wow. So, what did you do?" Josh asked.
" For a while, I tried to pretend that none of it was happening. I just kept telling myself that I couldn't lose her, so I started singing songs dedicated to her. I guess it was my way of trying to win her back. But eventually, I couldn't pretend anymore and I broke up with her." Sam said, looking down at his hands. The memory of Quinn standing in front of him, in her red sweater as he broke up with her, flashed before his eyes.
"How did you get yourself to pretend it wasn't happening?" Josh asked.
Quinn stood next to the door, still listening. Tears were beginning to form in her eyes. She was finally realising, how much she had really hurt Sam.
"I think… I think I just loved her way too much. I would've told myself anything to make sure I could still be with her." Sam said. It was funny how easily he could be transported back to those days, as if none of the past few years had ever happened.
"So, when did you decide to break with her?" Josh asked.
"When I realised, I couldn't be in love enough for the both of us. I was trying my level best to just keep telling myself that we were okay. That people were wrong, she hadn't kissed him. But I guess, I just realised, you can't make someone love you. When I was breaking up with her, she told me, she wanted to be with me. But.." Sam said.
"If she picked you, why didn't you just stay with her? Isn't that what you wanted?" Josh asked.
"Because I knew she still loved the other guy. You can't be in love with two people, at the same time. She loved him enough to throw away, everything we had. I could've stayed with her but it was only a matter of time, before she went back to him." Sam said.
"So you think, Kate will still love Alex? Even if she says she won't?" Josh asked.
"Look, you don't have to do what I did. You have to do what you think is right. Stop trying to telling yourself, what you want to hear. You know in your heart, what is going on and how you feel about it. " Sam said.
Josh took a deep breath. "I know she's cheating on me, I know that but I just.. I can't."
"You don't have to break up with her. If you think that you guys can work through this, then you should." Sam said.
"What if she keeps cheating on me?" Josh asked.
"You need to take a decision that's fair for you. It's okay, if you decide that you love yourself more than you love her." Sam said.
Quinn put her hand on her mouth, trying to stop the sounds of her sobbing from escaping. She couldn't believe how selfish, she had been. Sam had been so wonderful to her, in ways she had always wanted but she had decided to throw it, all for a plastic crown.
"I just, I always thought we would end up together. You know? Like I would marry her." Josh said.
"I know, I did too. And maybe you still will, life is long and you never know what may happen." Sam said.
Quinn smiled at the thought that Sam might still want to be with her.
"What about the guy? Did you end up staying friends?" Josh asked, after a while.
"Yeah, he was and always will be my best friend. That's what I meant, when I said you guys are a family. No matter what happens, you will rise above all of this high school drama and find your way back to each other. Some things will always be bigger than who stole whose girlfriend and who got to be captain of the football team." Sam said, putting a hand on Josh's shoulder.
"Thanks, Mr. Evans. I'm not sure what I want to do but I think no matter what I decide, I'll be okay." Josh said, with a smile as he picked up his bag and left the room.
Quinn began walking, as she saw Josh coming out of the room. She ran as fast as she could and wentinto the first room that she saw open. She began to cry again, all the feelings she had spent so long suppressing, were rushing to the surface. She tried to calm herself down, but she couldn't.
Sam collected his things and got ready to leave. His conversation with Josh was a lot heavier than he had expected and he needed some time to think. As he was walking down the hall, he could hear the sound of someone crying. He followed the sound and found that it was coming from the astronomy room.
"Quinn?" Sam asked, walking into the room.
Quinn looked up, tears streaming down her face.
Sam dropped his stuff and rushed over to Quinn.
"What's wrong?" Sam asked, wrapping his arms around her.
Quinn didn't say anything, she just continued to cry. Sam didn't push Quinn to talk, he just sat with her, holding her. He looked around the room, looking up at the planets and then at the girl in his arms, who was once his universe. He wondered how they always found their way back to this room and to each other.
Quinn wanted to be able to stop crying; to just look up at Sam and tell him, how sorry she was. How if she could go back, she would do it all so much better. But here they were again, Sam holding her, fixing her, as she fell apart.