William Shuester had never believed in angels. He'd led the frustrating life of a Spanish teacher and recently, Glee club coach, his whole life. Not that he didn't love his Glee kids, but he'd had bigger dreams. He'd wanted to be famous before life got in the way…namely, his girlfriend Terri's pregnancy and the resulting shotgun wedding. It didn't help that she'd miscarried and then lied about being pregnant again years later.
Long story short, if there were angels, they weren't looking out for him. Especially when he'd swerved to avoid a Cadillac and hit a tree stump. It just wasn't his year. After hitting the tree, he didn't remember everything. Blackness was everywhere. He tried so hard to reach his kids, but couldn't. Then he saw something…a light.
But instead of him going towards the light…the light was coming towards him. He tried to squint his eyes in the dark. Suddenly he could make out a shape. It got closer and closer…was that…
"Emma?" he asked. The glowing figure, dressed all in white, smiled warmly. "Hi, Will," she said. He tried to get up. "Why can't I move? Where are my kids? Emma, where am I?" he asked. Emma adjusted her pearly sweater and took his hand. To his surprise, he was able to stand easily. "You're in limbo, Will," she informed him. "Limbo? So am I…dead?" She smiled. "Well, that depends. You have a choice," she said.
He didn't understand what was going on. "So, do I get to pick whether I live or die?" he asked. She laughed, ginger hair flying as she shook her head. "No, not really. You will die eventually…everyone does. But you can choose to fight or to travel." Will shook his head in confusion. Emma laughed. Her voice sounded like bells as she took his hand.
"I'll show you," she said, leading him up. They traveled, and Will knew he was walking, but his feet didn't touch the ground. Suddenly, the light exploded. White was everywhere. He looked down. The ground shimmered, soft and undefined. "What is this place?" he asked, looking around in amazement. Emma smiled. "It's heaven, Will. Your heaven," she replied. "My heaven?" he asked.
She nodded. "This is your life, exactly as you wanted it to be in life. All aspects are here," she said. She pointed towards a shimmering corner. He saw a woman walking towards him. It was April Rhodes. She smiled and hugged him. "Hey, cutie!" she chirped. "April?" he asked in disbelief. She nodded. "The genuine article, hot stuff," she said. "Mosey on over to my corner-we'll crank out a duet!" she yelled, disappearing.
As he watched, a glowing Shelby Chorcoran walked past. "Well, Shuester, they make a mean cup of coffee up here," she said, tossing him a wink as she disappeared. He watched her go, amazed, when his parents blindsided him. "Oh, honey, we just bought your new album-number one on iTunes!" his mother gushed. "Sold with no nudity," his father announced proudly.
They ran off, leaving him with a copy of his album. He looked at it. It had his name, and all the songs he'd spent late nights writing. "I have an album in this world?" he asked Emma. She nodded and grinned. "This heaven is all of your dreams come true, Will," she said. "All of them?" he asked.
In response, Emma pointed straight ahead. He saw his glee kids running towards him at full speed, clutching a glowing trophy. "We won Internationals, Mr. Shue!" Rachel cried. "I got a music scholarship!" Finn said with a grin. "I learned how to say the alphabet," Brittany said. Will turned to Quinn. "Beth?" he asked. Quinn smiled and lifted her shirt, revealing a tattoo of Beth's footprints and her birthdate. "Open adoption," she replied, lowering her shirt.
Will smiled. "It's everything I could have wanted," he said. "That's not all," Emma said. Tina stepped forward, holding a squirming baby. Emma took the baby and placed her in Will's arms. "Is this Beth?" he asked. Emma shook her head. "Your daughter made it to heaven too, Will," she said softly with a warm smile. Will looked at her confusedly.
Then he remembered that he and Terri had been expecting a girl.
His eyes filled with tears. "Caroline," he murmured. The name he and Terri had picked out so many years ago. Emma put her arm on his shoulder. "Will, this is what happens if you decide to travel," she said. "I'll show you what's happening now…if you decide to fight, this is where you'll be sent to."
She took Caroline and led him to a small pool. He looked at it curiously. He could see the roadside where they'd crashed. He saw Quinn laying on her back, and Tina and Artie lying down. The rest of the group was gathered around him. They looked beaten, bruised and broken. They needed a leader. He sighed.
"They need me, don't they?" he asked. Emma shrugged. "You won't be judged on your decision. Pick," she said. Will looked at the perfect world, with his family and friends. Then he looked at the kids in the pool.
He looked at his daughter.
"Can I say goodbye to my kids?" he whispered. Emma nodded. "Of course," she said. "Just step into the pool." He nodded, stepped forward, and felt himself falling. The white figures waved as he fell back into pain.
He sighed heavily and began to croak out his final words. He found it sad that his last words would never be remembered, except in the hearts of the twelve kids who surrounded him. He saw his kids cry and felt guilty about the choice he was making. Then he recalled the shining world and knew they'd understand.
Kurt had started to sing "To Sir, With Love". He'd thought about adding that to their setlist for next year. Next year…suddenly he saw Emma. She smiled and held out a hand.
"Are you ready, Will?" she asked. He nodded. "Take me home," he replied. She smiled and grabbed his hand.
And they flew up, up, away from his kids and past the stars, to where his shining heaven awaited him.
Will Shuester had regretted almost every decision he'd made in his life-except this one.
