Annie was late. For her own auditioning process! She'd been attempting to deal with a couple of boys from her class before lunch, who had decided it was an absolutely brilliant idea to mess around with the hot-glue gun. She had had to cut that poor girl's hair just to get her free... In the end she just gave them a detention and sent them to Figgins, simply not having enough time to indulge in their childish behaviour. Annie had then managed to spill coffee all over her printed copy of the sign-up sheet. She could hardly read the names that were written on the splattered page now. She sighed at her own bad luck, maybe she wasn't meant to run this club. Fate kept intervening... No, she
thought to herself, that's paranoid thinking, it'll be fine.

By the time Annie reached the auditorium, she was already fifteen minutes late. Some of the candidates looked about ready to up and leave. "Hey!" She called, a tremor of nervousness slinking into her voice. It was difficult to get them to notice her. For all of her bright, eye-catching clothes, she was a bit on the short side, and was often mistaken for one of her students. "Hello?" Still nothing. Annie sighed and put her fingers inside her mouth, emitting a piercing whistle that caused the students to clutch their ears and fall silent. "That's better. Hey everyone, I'm Miss Clark. Maybe you know that already..." She faltered slightly under her student's gaze, but soldiered on. "I'm looking to restart the New Directions, that's why you're all here today. The auditioning process is simple: I'll call your name, and then you'll step up on the stage and sing some of a song. I hope you're prepared. Good luck to you all."

Annie sat down at the long desk in front of the stage, switched on the little lamp and dropped all her paper work down in front of her. "Okay, first up is-" She squinted at her paper, trying to read the inky blur, "- Eleanor Books."

"That's Brookes, ma'am." A girl amended, standing up and making her way
towards the stage. Her hair was long and black and she had a pair of
industrial sized headphones around her neck.

"Well, I'm Ellie. And I'm gonna sing Don't Jump by Tokio Hotel." She said in a confident voice. Eleanor cleared her throat and began:

On top of the roof
The air is so cold and so calm
I say your name in silence
You don't wanna hear it right now
The eyes of the city
Are counting the tears falling down
Each one a promise
Of everything you never found
I scream into the night for you
Don't make it true
Don't jump
The lights will not guide you through
They're deceiving you
Don't jump
Don't let memories go
Of me and you
The world is down there out of view
Please don't jump!

Eleanor's performance was very expressive, her face pleading as she finished
the first chorus. Needless to say, Annie was very impressed. "Thank you, Ellie. Great job."

"Next, I'd like to hear Parker O'Brian."

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

Parker was ready. He brushed his long hair out of his eyes and made his way towards the stage. This is my shot. I've gotta make it count.

"I'm Parker. I'm singing Home by Michael Buble." He told the crowd, his voice confident. As the music started up, Parker began to touch his hair again. It was becoming a nervous habit and he mentally shook himself and put his hands on the microphone stand instead.

Another summer day
Has come and gone away
In Paris and Rome
But I wanna go home

Mmmmmmmm

May be surrounded by
A million people I
Still feel all alone
I just wanna go home
Oh, I miss you, you know

And I've been keeping all the letters that I wrote to you
Each one a line or two
"I'm fine baby, how are you?"
Well I would send them but I know that it's just not enough
My words were cold and flat
And you deserve more than that

Another aeroplane
Another sunny place
I'm lucky, I know
But I wanna go home
Mmmm, I've got to go home

Let me go home
I'm just too far from where you are
I wanna come home...

The last verse was filled with such passion, that his voice reverberated
around the room. Parker thought he saw Miss Clark wipe a tear from her face
and when she spoke; her voice was a little strained.

"That was wonderful. Have you sung competitively before?"

"No ma'am, my singing has been strictly reserved for the shower." Parker said,
laughing quietly and hopping down from the stage.

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

"Okay, next up is Mark-"

"Markus Wright. Mark." A tall boy with spiky black hair had already begun to pull himself up onto the stage. Annie couldn't understand why he didn't just take the stairs like everyone else.

Mark went backstage and returned with a borrowed electric guitar. "I'm singing Green Day's When I Come Around." He didn't wait for anyone to tell him to start and immediately began strumming the guitar and singing a low husky voice.

I heard you crying loud,
all the way across town
You've been searching for that someone,
and it's me out on the prowl
As you sit around feeling sorry for yourself
Well, don't get lonely now
And dry your whining eyes
I'm just roaming for the moment
Sleazin' my back yard so don't get so uptight
you been thinking about ditching me

No time to search the world around
Cause you know where I'll be found
When I come around.

When Markus had finished, he knocked over the microphone stand, jumped off the stage and left the auditorium, the electric guitar in the middle of the stage was the only thing that suggested his audition had taken place at all.

The group was momentarily shocked into silence. That had to have been the strangest audition Annie had ever seen. But he was good, there was no denying that.

"Theodore Peters?" She called.

"Yes ma'am." Theodore sloped up onto the stage and smiled widely. He seemed a confident and charismatic guy, but Annie didn't think she'd ever seen him before in her life. She thought she knew all the students at McKinley, at least by face if not by name.

"Well, I'm Teddy and I'm going to sing a song by another Teddy. It's called For You I Will or "Confidence"."

Wandering the streets, in a world underneath it all
Nothing seems to be, nothing tastes as sweet
As what I can't have
Like you and the way that you're twisting your hair
round your finger
Tonight I'm not afraid to tell you
What I feel about you.

I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have
and cannon ball into the water
I'm gonna muster every ounce of confidence I have
For you I will,
For you I will.

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

Cori looked intently at the boy on the stage; his eyes were such an intense shade of blue, she felt captivated. His voice was husky and sweet, she felt like she could sit and listen to him fo-

"Cori Rosenwood?" Miss Carter's voice snapped Cori from her thoughts. It was time for her audition.

Cori saw Miss Carter frown as she took in her dyed-blue hair and quickly told her it was from a slushie and that it would definitely come out. She wasn't sure if it would, but it seemed to placate the art teacher.

"Hey! I'm gonna sing I Will Follow You into the Dark by Death Cab for Cutie. Oh, and I'm Cori." She said, smiling and giving a little wave.

Love of mine some day you will die
But I'll be close behind
I'll follow you into the dark

No blinding light or tunnels to gates of white
Just our hands clasped so tight
Waiting for the hint of a spark
If Heaven and Hell decide
That they both are satisfied
Illuminate the NOs on their vacancy signs

If there's no one beside you
When your soul embarks
Then I'll follow you into the dark!

Cori's voice was strong, and she increased in both confidence and volume as the song went on. When she had finished she smiled happily, as Diana whistled loudly and clapped.

"Thanks Cori, really well done. Next up is Thomas... Ellis?"

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

"It's pronounced "Allay". Alais." Thomas muttered, his face going completely red. He crept up onto the stage and stood behind the piano, using as it as a shield between him and the crowd. He began to press the keys, but Miss Clark called out:

"Hold on Thomas, what are you singing?"

Thomas faltered; his mind had gone completely blank.

"He's doing a Beatles song!" Diana shouted helpfully.

"Uh, yeah. Penny Lane." Thomas said, nodding thankfully. He then started to press the piano keys again, plunking out the cheerful chords to the classic song.

In Penny Lane there is a barber showing photographs
Of every head he's had the pleasure to know
And all the people that come and go
Stop and say hello

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

Thomas sang very quietly, he was tuneful but painfully shy. Annie didn't know if he could be in glee if he wasn't confident in his abilities. She then heard a loud whistle from the back of the room. She turned around to see a group of three girls, two clapping and offering reasonably quiet support, the other was cheering wildly, trying to encourage her friend. Annie was surprised that it seemed to be working. Thomas lit up, smiling, though he was still bright pink.

On the corner is a banker with a motorcar
The little children laugh at him behind his back
And the banker never wears a mac in the pouring rain
Very strange

Penny Lane is in my ears and in my eyes
There beneath the blue suburban skies
I sit and meanwhile back...

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

"Go Mouse!" Diana shouted, ruffling her friend's hair as he sat back down.

"I swear to god, I'm going to kill you." Thomas murmured, pushing her arm away. He was still smiling though.

"My go next, wish me luck!" Diana said, getting out of her seat and heading towards the stage.

"Luck!" Cori called after her.

"Diana Marie Falcon, I'm singing Anthem of the Angels by Breaking Benjamin. They're awesome, look them up." She told Miss Clark, flexing her fingers and rocking back and forth on the balls of her feet.

White walls surround us
No light will touch your face again
Rain taps the window
As we sleep among the dead

Days go on forever
But I have not left your side
We can chase the dark together
If you go then so will I

There is nothing left of you
I can see it in your eyes
Sing the anthem of the angels
And say the last goodbye.

Diana shook out her hair and grinned. She was a born performer and she knew it.

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

"Well done Diana, just great. Next we've got..."

Molly stood up and smoothed out her dress, gliding gracefully forwards. "Molly Elizabeth Woods-Dupont." She said kindly. The teacher seemed to be having trouble reading her list of names.

"Right, go ahead Molly." Miss Carter said, nodding and smiling.

We-hell-I see them every night in tight blue jeans-
In the pages of a blue boy magazine
Hey I've been thinking of a new sensation
I'm picking up-good vibration-
Oop-she bop—

Annie spat her coffee out over the table, but was too horrified to speak. Her mouth hung open and her eyes became as wide as dinner plates as the song went on.

Do I wanna go out with a lion's roar
Huh, yea, I wanna go south 'n get me some more
Hey, they say that a stitch in time saves nine
They say I better stop-or I'll go blind
Oop-she bop-she bop

"Is she singing about-?" Cori asked, her eyebrows shooting up to her hairline.

"Yes." Thomas choked out over Diana's raucous laughter. Of course she found the whole thing hilarious.

She bop-he bop-a-we bop
I bop-you bop-as-they bop
Be bop-be bop-a-lu-she bop,
I hope He will understand
She bop-he bop-a-we bop
I bop-you bop-as-they bop
Be bop-be bop-a-lu-she bop,
Oo-oo-she-do-she bop-she bop...

When the song drew to a close, Molly stood still, smiling hopefully.

"Miss Woods, might I ask why you picked this uh- particular song?" Annie asked in a strangled voice.

"It has a really catchy beat! Why?"

"It's nothing. Perhaps talk to your friends about it later. Alexander Lightwood!" She called hurriedly, eager to put the lyrics to Cyndi Lauper's She-Bop out of her mind.

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

Alec nearly missed his name being called; he had been too busy staring at the boy with long blonde hair. He sighed to himself, Dream on Lightwood, he's probably straight. Now get up on stage and sing your song!

"Hey, I'm Alec. And I'm singing Humanoid by Tokio Hotel." He told the others, fumbling around with the microphone stand.

Against the love,
Against the fight,
Against the sun,
Against the night,
Against the rules
Against the force
Against the wall
Against it all

Oh no

I'm Humanoid
Whoa oh oh oh
I'm Humanoid
Whoa oh oh

Alec stood very stiffly, obviously nervous about singing in front of people, and kept accidentally making eye contact with the blonde boy called Parker. He really was gorgeous...

"Thank you Alec, can we have Nathaniel Tanser up now please?"

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

Annie watched the boy named Nathaniel take the stage, he was a tall boy with wild curly hair and crooked half smile.

"I'm Nate, enchanté." The boy said, his eyes sparkling with mischief as he waved at the girls in the crowd. "I'm singing Animals for you today."

I, I'm driving black on black
Just got my license back
I got this feeling in my veins this train is coming off the track
I'll ask polite if the devil needs a ride
Because the angel on my right ain't hanging out with me tonight
I'm driving past your house while you were sneaking out
I got the car door opened up so you can jump in on the run
Your mom don't know that you were missing
She'd be mad if she could see the parts of you that I've been kissing

Screamin'

No, we're never gonna quit
Ain't nothing wrong with it
Just acting like we're animals
No, no matter where we go
'Cause everybody knows
We're just a couple of animals
.

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

Annie leant forward and buried her face in her hands. What is it with kids nowadays and sex? "Thank you Nate- uh, that was great."

"You are most welcome Miss Carter." Nate chuckled, throwing a cheeky wink at the teacher as he hopped down from the stage.

Annie went a little pink in the face and muttered something about how deeply
inappropriate that was. "Next on my list is Jenna. Come on up."

A girl with long brown hair and stylish rectangular glasses stepped onto the stage. She looked extremely nervous but quickly stuttered out her introduction. Her name was Jenna (obviously) and she was going to sing Adele's Rolling in the Deep. Annie tried not to look concerned. It was a big song and she wasn't entirely sure that this girl could pull it off...

There's a fire starting in my heart,
Reaching a fever pitch and it's bringing me out the dark.
Finally, I can see you crystal clear,
Go ahead and sell me out and I'll lay your ship bare,
See how I'll leave with every piece of you,
Don't underestimate the things that I will do.

There's a fire starting in my heart,
Reaching a fever pitch and it's bringing me out the dark.

The scars of your love remind me of us,
They keep me thinking that we almost had it all.
The scars of your love, they leave me breathless,
I can't help feeling,

We could have had it all,
Rolling in the deep,
You had my heart inside of your hand,
And you played it to the beat

.
...and she couldn't have been more wrong. The voice that tore from Jenna's throat was amazing. Annie felt a little choked up. "Wow. I have no words. Thanks Jenna. Now last, but of course not least, we've got Lisa Counts."

Lisa was a tall, thin black girl that Annie recognised from the Cheerios, although she wasn't wearing the uniform. She made her way gracefully to the front of the auditorium and announced that she would be singing Marry You by Bruno Mars. She tossed her long black hair over her shoulder and began.

It's a beautiful night;
We're looking for something dumb to do.
Hey baby,
I think I wanna marry you.

Is it the look in your eyes,
Or is it this dancing juice?
Who cares baby,
I think I wanna marry you.

Lisa twirled around the stage, dancing to the fast beat of the song. She was another natural performer, Annie noted.

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

"Thank you for coming everyone, I loved each and every one of your auditions and will gladly welcome you all to the Glee Club." Miss Carter said, smiling widely, her face flushed with happiness.

Thomas could scarcely believe he'd made it after the slip up he had made. Diana clapped him on the shoulder and smiled. "See Mouse? Nothing to worry about!" She laughed.

Diana then linked her arms through his left arm and Cori's right one and dragged them out of the auditorium. Thomas looked apologetically over his shoulder at Molly, who had been left in the dust.

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

Molly looked on sadly as Diana, Cori and Thomas left the auditorium. She had hoped that they would stick together after the audition. She sighed and resumed packing her bag, noting that only a few of the others had remained. She wondered about approaching the cheerleader, Lisa, but she seemed busy talking to Parker and Alec. Molly was just about to leave when-

"Hey buttercup."

Molly was faced with the curly-haired Nathaniel. He was leaning against the wall and grinning like the Cheshire cat.

"Hello Nathaniel." Molly replied politely.

"Nate, please." He laughed, "I just wanted to congratulate you on your choice of song. Very risqué."

"I haven't the faintest idea what you're talking about. Now if you'll excuse me." Molly said, elbowing her way past him as two red spots appeared on her pale cheeks.

Suddenly, the doors to the auditorium slammed shut and loud laughter could be heard from the other side of the wall.

Molly watched as Parker charged over to the doors, making a vain attempt to open them again.

"What are you doing? Open the doors assholes!" He shouted.

The laughing only decreased in volume, as the perpetrators walked down the hall.

*Glee*Glee*Glee*

"Well that's just great. Freaking footballers." Parker muttered as he peered through the crack in the door.

"Hate to break it to you champ, but you're one of those "freaking footballers"." Lisa said, looking pointedly at his letterman jacket.

"You know what I meant." He huffed, settling himself on the floor.

"How are we going to get out?" Molly asked quietly, her voice nervous.

"Don't you worry, I'll look after you!" Nate declared, throwing an arm around her small shoulders. Molly stepped away from him, going pink.

The boy called Alec didn't seem too concerned. Parker thought he was actually kind of cute... but then again, that Teddy guy was pretty cute too, didn't mean he was gay.

"What now then?" Parker asked irritably.

"Well... anyone got some cards?" Nate asked, a glint in his eye.

A/N: Hello everyone! Chapter three has arrived and I'd like to offer you my congratulations if you actually made it to the end! Next chapter will be more exciting for you I hope. I'd like to issue a disclaimer this chapter actually, as I haven't done one yet:

DISCLAIMER: I do not own the fictional property McKinley High School or any characters from the television programme "Glee". They are the property of Brad Falchuck and Ryan Murphy.

Also, any of the people in this fanfic have a chance of acting a bit out of
character. I'm really sorry, but we can't have too many shy characters! Also,
I made Lisa a Cheerio, I hope you don't mind, Posidion'sDaughter.

As always, thank you to my beta Gleeksupport. See you next chapter all!

- Emily (StarsOutlineOurStory) xo

P.S. If you don't understand the joke about Molly's song ... I don't want to corrupt your innocent mind. Google it.