A/N: First of all, I know it's been awhile, but I can promise that the next chapter will come soon. I will have it up by Monday, I swear.
I needed to get some things off my chest before I get back into regular updates though, so please excuse the mini rant.
First of all, 2016 has majorly sucked for me so far. So sucky has it been, in fact, that the suckitude started in 2015 without my realizing it. Trust me, ninja-suckage is the worst kind.
Obviously, I'm not happy that the KKK is currently staging its world comeback tour.
I hate that Black people are getting brutalized in the streets by boys in blue for fun.
Prince is dead, and I literally can't rest easy till somebody goes and finds all my other surviving musical heroes to make sure their asses are alright. Like seriously, y'all...is Tina Turner good? Can somebody confirm for me that Gladys Knight is okay? Can somebody check on Anita Baker and Patti Labelle and Chaka Khan for me so I can sleep at night?
I lost my grandma back in December, which broke my soul in two. Well, it made me sad, but it broke my mama in two. But that's the recipe for fucking up all my inner peace, so you could say I haven't been myself since it happened.
I hate both my jobs.
My kids and husband have always been my one-stop shopping center for a quick burst of joy; but lately even that has been infiltrated because we got custody of two of my hubby's other kids. Needless to say, I can't quit working anytime soon with six mouths to feed, so I sometimes feel like I can't call my soul my own.
Add all that to the fact that I haven't written a damn thing in over a year because all of the above, and I feel like a boat with no engine, no oars and a leaky bottom. I still owe my beta's an apology for completely ignoring their requests to keep in touch. I have no good excuse, other than fanfic (reading it, writing it, and proofing it) started feeling like homework to me this past year...and it was the only source of stress in my life that I felt like I could put down. I felt guilty about breaking up the team, so basically a bitch just played dead. Surprisingly enough, rebuking the fandom and losing my online friends didn't help my stress levels; it actually made me feel worse.
DUH!
But I'm trying to push through and updating is my way proving that to myself.
So please enjoy, and thank you all for keeping this thing on your mind...I love your reviews asking me to update, and all the requests I get for more. It makes me feel really great to know that somewhere out there people are re-reading my fics and wondering what's next.
Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or the characters of Glee.
The Aftermath...
Mercedes spent the majority of Tuesday evening worried for and curious about her boyfriend...wondering how he was, as well as what had been decided about Glee. Sam rushed away following their brief meeting in the auditorium that afternoon, presumably in order to confer with Figgins about Will Schuester's replacement...and she hadn't heard from her boyfriend until around ten o'clock when he'd texted her good night. As she dressed for school Wednesday morning, the young woman mulled over the many different scenarios under which her boo might not fill her in on what went on after that.
Had Sam gone back to Figgins' office only to find that Schuester had somehow changed the principal's mind? Was her boyfriend now being reassigned to a teacher at some other school in the district, per Will's request?
That was a possibility...
Had Rachel somehow infiltrated the meeting, screeched about catching Sam and Mercedes on their date, and demanded Sam's resignation in order to once again get her own way?
Who knew?
And if any of this had happened, why didn't Sam call to tell her last night? It didn't make sense; as far as Mercedes could tell, the most important part of any relationship was sharing. And whether or not Sam's job was in jeopardy seemed like the kind of thing he would share with his girl! Not that she had any frame of reference...but to Mercedes' way of thinking, she should have known the outcome of yesterday's little powwow before anyone else. Truth be told, it frustrated her to no end that she was still in the dark.
Mercedes Jones tended to be a pretty consistent person. Generally speaking, when frustrated, her natural instinct was to react emotionally: by seeking out the source of said frustration, then taking them down. As she sat down at the kitchen table in order to eat the breakfast made lovingly for her by Geraldine, Mercedes envisioned a scenario in which she stormed into school, found Sam Evans, and noisily demanded answers...relationship secret be damned. The thought was definitely satisfying, however she knew it wasn't the right thing to do.
Mercedes debated what would be the the right thing to do over her favorite meal...Belgian waffles topped with whipped cream and served with a slice of country ham and two eggs over-medium. After chewing thoughtfully for several minutes, Mercedes concluded that the biggest problem going, was the fact that her feelings were hurt...Sam was guilty of upsetting his girlfriend, simply because she hadn't been kept in the loop. This was a bitter pill to swallow, so Mercedes spent a few minutes indulging in self-pity.
Then she calmed down.
After pondering the situation awhile longer, Mercedes recognized that she and Sam were simply new to the boyfriend/girlfriend thing, and just starting the process learning how to be a couple. For all she knew, Sam was unaware that Mercedes expected to hear from him the night before, at all. Mercedes thought about it, and remembered that he hadn't offered to call as he pecked her on the cheek before rushing away. Mercedes then admitted to herself that she hadn't asked him to do so, either. Therefore, Mercedes concluded as she finished up her breakfast, the right thing to do was wait for her boyfriend to share what had happened with her, then explain to him how the lapse in communication had made her feel.
As she grabbed her backpack and keys, now ready to head off to school, Mercedes chuckled to herself. Wouldn't it be a hot mess if she'd worked herself into an angry snit right before calming her own self down, only to find out that Sam had a reason for keeping what happened the afternoon before a secret? Like some sort of goofy surprise? It was the kind of thing Sam would do, after all. Mercedes shook her head and left home in good spirits, feeling as though she'd somehow passed the first real test of her girlfriend skills.
His Turn...
Sam Evans arrived at McKinley High an hour before the first bell on Wednesday morning, and immediately made tracks for the Spanish classroom. He'd gotten up early, grabbed a pop tart, then rushed to school in an attempt to find Will Schuester before first period began. If it was at all possible, Sam was determined not to let the fallout of Tuesday afternoon's meeting affect how he and Will would work together for the rest of the school year.
Glee, he reasoned, was one thing...Evans and Schuester could agree to disagree on how that should and would be overseen going forward. As far as Sam was concerned, their differences of opinion were a moot point, anyway. Will, Sam, Principal Figgins, and several special guests had remained in the principal's office long after school ended on Tuesday afternoon. If everyone adhered to what they agreed to the day before, Will and Sam would never run into each other during fourth period again.
But Spanish was another thing entirely; Sam was still Will's student teacher, and would continue to rely on him as a mentor while they taught the foreign language class together. Schuester was definitely a wild card, Sam knew; Will could totally make Sam's life difficult on that front. And if the two educators were destined to butt heads...Sam preferred to do so before any pupils arrived to bear witness. He reached the class, sighed heavily, then pushed the door open. There he found Will Schuester sitting at his desk poring over a Spanish I textbook, mouthing to himself. Will looked up and greeted Sam as if nothing untoward had happened the day before. Sam decided to react accordingly.
"Bonin' up, Mr. Schuester?" he asked, smiling warily.
Sam already had questions about what he saw before him; like why was Will there when he usually spent first period in the guidance office? Why would he sit in the teacher's desk anyway? Schuester'd gladly handed that particular piece of real estate over to Sam during his first week at McKinley...And why was Will studying Spanish at all?
"You could say that," Will replied as though he did this every day. "So I've been thinking..." he stated, obviously having rehearsed what he was about to say in anticipation of Sam's arrival. "...and I really feel like we should try to split class instruction duties up more equally going forward."
He allowed Sam a moment of wonder, before continuing.
"When you first arrived here, I figured that throwing you into teaching headfirst was the best way to help you acclimate to your own preferred style..." This was Schue's way of excusing the fact that the student teacher was currently doing his job. "But now I realize you should be learning by example as well."
Sam's smile, already painted on as an afterthought, faltered a little more.
"What do you say," continued Will, "to my taking over instruction duties during first and sixth period, while you handle the reins second and third?" He tilted his head expectantly. "Would that be okay? We can observe one another, then get together at the end of each week to share feedback..."
On the surface, Sam continued to grin and threw in a nod so that Will would think he was fine with this extreme change in attitude. But inside, his mind worked over the new plan furiously to figure out where the loophole was.
Because why would Will agree to teach two classes every day without any input from Sam all of a sudden, when before he'd taken advantage of every opportunity to shirk his duties? Why was Will so anxious to remain in the classroom while Sam taught, when only yesterday he'd spent the same time goofing off? Granted, Will had conveniently chosen the two Spanish I class periods as his own, and Sam knew Will would basically be teaching himself rudimentary Spanish while confusing the students along the way. But still...on the surface it looked like growth. Obviously Will hadn't mentioned anything about fourth period Glee class because it was now a non-issue, and fifth period was earmarked as a planning period.
Call it intuition, but Sam knew something was brewing, and he suspected that Will was planning something sinister, something likely to occur during those moments when he wasn't busy Peggy-Hilling the Spanish students at McKinley. Sam decided that he was likely to be frustrated by whatever Will was plotting, but the student teacher made up his mind to play along until the other shoe dropped. He walked over, shook Will's hand, and proceeded to an unused desk in the back of the classroom in order to "observe" from a safe distance.
As he unpacked his own textbook, Sam was reminded by the buzzing of his phone that he still hadn't told Mercedes what went on after they parted ways in the auditorium. For the first time since Will had outlined the new class structure, Sam grinned his most lopsided happy grin. Shaking his head, he let out a chuckle, causing to Will to raise his head before resuming his studies. Sam was already tickled pink about what was about to go down, and he couldn't WAIT for fourth period.
Sue World Order...
As Mercedes walked into McKinley, she tried to appear nonchalant while simultaneously peering right to left in an attempt to find her man. He'd immediately texted her back this morning, when she sent him a cute message inviting him to have great day and promising to see him at school. However, he hadn't called her back like she hoped he would. Sam was already in Schuester's class when he replied that he missed her face and couldn't wait to see her, so Mercedes sighed in relief upon realizing that her boyfriend would at the very least be in school today. Still, curiosity dictated that she try her best to find him soon and get some answers.
She noticed during her first period English class that the school gossip mill was vibrating on a very odd frequency. People whispered across the classroom, gestured in order to get the attention of friends who passed by open hallway doors, and sent surreptitious text messages every time the teacher turned her back. The odd part was that instead of the usual "who's sleeping with whom" and "did you hear about so-and-so getting their ass whooped" rumors that generally bounced off the walls, Mercedes noticed that the majority of her classmates' conversations were centered around Schuester.
The scoop, from what she could tell, was that things were a-changing in first period Spanish class. According to class buzz, Schuester had taken it upon himself to adopt Sam's method of repetition exercises this morning, to astounding success. He seemed to have been working on his own comprehension of the language as well, because the dimple-chinned man actually managed to hold his own while overseeing the rest of the lesson. He'd certainly impressed the Spanish student who'd originally conveyed the gossip via text to friends outside the class...and the student couldn't have been Tina, because Mercedes was lacking in knowledge of exactly how Schuester had impressed them. But because of the scuttlebutt, every Spanish student in the school was looking forward to seeing the spectacle for themselves.
Mercedes was obviously intrigued and more than a little suspicious about Schuester's motives, of course. She was also curious as to how the change had happened overnight. However, she refused to promote the gossip by requesting more details. Besides, the young woman would be attending her own Spanish II class shortly, not to mention the fact that her man was a fly on the wall. Sam would tell her all about it in due time, she reasoned, whenever they finally spoke. Still though, the situation was becoming curiouser and curiouser...
The morning dragged on, second period Spanish bearing no discernible difference to class the day before, other than Will asking questions from the back row while Sam taught instead of dipping to the left as per usual. The high point of the class period occurred when Mercedes managed to shoot her boyfriend a flirty text from the second row while he taught. She giggled internally when Sam turned bright red upon checking the message. She put her phone completely away once he had, then played the part of model student for the remainder of class.
Fourth period Glee class finally came, and as Mercedes walked into the class, she again cast her eyes around looking for Sam. He sat near Brad's piano, waving everyone into the room enthusiastically, managing to shoot his girl a wink for good measure. In front of the whiteboard stood Emma Pillsbury, Shannon Beiste, and Sue Sylvester, each obviously ready to address the class. Curious, Mercedes slipped into a seat directly in front of Mike and Tina and waited to see what was up.
"Good morning losers," boomed Coach Sylvester, with absolutely no prelude, "And welcome to Hell!"
Sue Sylvester, known statewide for her signature tracksuit ensembles, chose today to wear one in the most glaring shade of red known to man. Opting out of the usual leg-and-sleeve stripes...
-which tended to make her style somewhat less intimidating-
...and choosing an undershirt in the exact same cherry color, the cheer coach stood before them, sneering with flushed skin and bloodshot eyes. Mercedes shook her head and muttered to herself that the woman was positively vermilion all over. Indeed, all of the Gleeks took the time to analyze Sue's florid complexion and her less than friendly welcome; the kind ones deciding that the coach resembled some form mythological cardinal, rising from the flames of the damned. Those who were not as kind compared Coach Sue to Satan himself and wondered where she'd stashed her pitchfork.
"Today," Sue continued, stepping forward so as to overshadow her colleagues "marks the beginning of a new world order, nee...a Sue World Order."
She took the opportunity to glare at each of the Glee kids in turn.
"Will Schuester has finally revealed himself as the ineffective, unprofessional, and unnecessary boil on the butt of this school that I have always known him to be," Coach Sue crowed without preamble. "Obviously, I always knew this day would eventually come. I mean..."
Sue gestured to her surroundings.
"...The man was given dominion over primo classroom acreage, space that could have otherwise been used for something vital..."
She walked paced the area immediately between herself and the risers.
"...like a championship cheering squad trophy room," she spat out, then rallied. "Schuester's wasted two years, and untold thousands attempting to teach you lazy wastes of space how to sing and dance in competitions that you never manage to win..."
She pointed out the Glee kids.
"...and due to some miracle, Principal Figgins has been forced to accept that he made a mistake in letting Will run what could otherwise be a less-than-awful addition to McKinley High's roster."
Sue resumed pacing, every student's eyes on her.
"Our slow-on-the-uptake leader has finally realized that it takes pressure to cast diamonds from nasty lumps of coal."
Again, Sue gestured to the students in the room.
"So now Will has now been ousted, cast away in a hail of shame and ridicule...and I've been asked to take over molding you all into something less hate-worthy."
Sue's sneer turned into the Joker's grimace, and several class members visibly quaked in fear. "Now...Thank God, you all belong to me!"
"Ahem," coughed Emma Pillsbury, making an attempt to interrupt Sue as politely as possible, "If I may interject, Coach Sylvester, I think that perhaps you, Shannon and I should discuss after class how much the children should be told about the circumstances surrounding the fact that Mr. Schuester won't be returning to New Directions this year."
Emma took a step forward and arranged herself beside Sue, standing straight with hands clasped in front and smiling briefly at each child in turn, in attempt to undo the damage done by Coach Sylvester's tirade. Unlike Sue, the only red on Miss Pillsbury's person was her nicely coiffed hair, which she'd worn down, with slightly swoopy bangs and a beige hair clip securing a neat side part. That morning she'd donned a simple pale green shirt dress, perfectly tailored to her exact proportions, buttoned all the way up to a freshly starched collar, and cinched neatly at the waist. A narrow cream-colored belt perfectly matched the pretty stack-heeled Mary Janes on Emma's feet, and the look was completed with opaque nude tights. Unlike her colleague's choice in clothing, many of the class members found Emma's ensemble to have a calming effect on them.
"For now, I think it would be an excellent idea for the three of us to shift the focus here by reintroducing ourselves and outlining our new objectives..." Miss Pillsbury started. "...I know it will help us all work together better if we take a little time to catch up. Also, I'd like to offer to speak privately with any student having problems adjusting to all of these changes."
She smiled beautifully again.
"I came prepared to direct the team in several trust-building exercises today," Emma beamed, "and afterward the sixteen of us can split up into groups..."
"No," Sue interrupted, rudely. "I have no desire to speak to any of you after class, nor do I have any interest in helping you run an est seminar. Start a cult on your own time. Besides, I was just about to describe all the different ways I plan to gloat to Curly Mop, after I win the whole damn thing!" she growled.
"Okay, that's enough," cut in Shannon Beiste, raising her hands to make the universal sign for "time out," while also coming forward to take position adjacent to Coach Sylvester and Miss Pillsbury. "We've got a buttload of work to do, and we ain't got time to spend all day long barkin' at the kids and doin' busy work."
Coach Beiste wore her hair in the signature brown curly crop that showed off dainty pearl stud earrings, accentuated the lipstick she wore in a deep mauve. These were Coach Shannon's daily sacrifices to the gods of conventional femininity, and she made them religiously. Her top was a standard white golf tee bearing the McKinley Athletics logo, she'd donned Umbro shorts complete with Titan insignia on the pocket. White tube socks with red stripes, and a pair of neat Nike sneakers completed the picture. Most of the class members felt safe in Shannon's presence, and were comforted by her no-nonsense approach to introducing lessons. Before addressing the class, Coach Shannon nodded in recognition at the teens, none of whom had spoken a word yet.
"As Sylvester already said, Mr. Schuester won't be your faculty advisor for Glee anymore," the coach now addressed the class. "Now, Will's my buddy, and I won't stand for any trash-talkin' behind his back," Shannon turned to glare at Coach Sue, "but suffice it to say that some changes have been made and Principal Figgins decided it would be best for everyone involved if Sam ran the Club for the rest of the year, with the help of a regular teacher."
Sam nodded and allowed the three certified teachers to continue their lecture.
"I'm sure you all call remember ," Emma picked up where Shannon left off, "that Coach Sylvester, Coach Beiste, and I all have varying degrees of experience with assisting the New Directions. When Sam approached us about finding a replacement faculty advisor, he was very adamant about wanting the three of us..." she nodded to Sue and Shannon. "... to do so as a team"
She beamed at Sam.
"I was chosen because Mr. Schuester has always used me as a sounding board when deciding on Glee class lessons," she boasted proudly, "also, I helped him put our production of The Rocky Horror Picture Show together..."
"The one that never saw the light of day..." muttered Sue.
"...and I stepped in as interim advisor during last year's Regionals." Emma continued. "I still have a lot to learn, but hopefully we can all finish out the year with a victory at Nationals!"
Most of the class buzzed with appreciation after Miss Pillsbury's speech, remembering all of the times she'd stepped in to support Glee club in the past. No one in the room could deny Miss Pillsbury's loyalty group. Mercedes even clapped a little, because she knew the ginger would bend over backwards for them.
"Evans asked me to lend a hand because I know all you Titans personally," Shannon spoke up, nodding at Finn, Mike, Puck, and Artie. "He figured I would be able to bond with you guys, and listen to you the same way Will would..." Coach Beiste threw a brief sympathetic glance toward Finn, who seemed too flabbergasted to speak. "...Plus, I'm real grateful to you girls: Mercedes, Lauren, Tina, and Rachel..."
Three of the four exchanged proud looks.
"...for steppin' in for us during the playoff game back in January. So I don't know how much help I'll be when it comes to pickin' songs and singin' em," Shannon went on, "but I'm all in on the team-buildin' and I can promise you I'll do my best!"
Mercedes, along with most of the class, nodded appreciatively. Beiste got several foot stomps from more boisterous members of Glee, and a short round of applause burst forth as well.
"That's right," Sue crowed. "throw the second string a bone. Make them feel like an integral part of the team..." She scoffed in the general direction of Coach Beiste and Miss Pillsbury. "...however, we all know who the star of this lineup is, and which one of us is ready to take this team all the way!"
Apparently Coach Sylvester was building up a head of steam. Most of the students watched warily as she cockily paced the floor.
"The simple fact here..." the coach went on, raising her arms to illustrate that she was addressing the Glee kids "...is that all of you rejects know exactly which one of us advisors is primed and ready to dominate... I'm a winner," she continued, pounding on her fist into her hand. "I've proven this time and time again, and right now?" Sue looked around. "You disgusting pigs represent what will one day be known as my greatest victory!"
"Excuse me," Rachel broke in, having heard quite enough of Coach Sylvester's rant. She addressed the most sensible-seeming faculty member in the room. "Forgive me, Coach Beiste, but there's no way on Earth that Mr. Schuester would allow you or your colleagues to take over Glee club at such an important time."
Building up her own head of steam, Rachel stood up and looked to her classmates.
"Fellow Glee members..." She adopted a reasonable tone of voice that fooled no one in the class. "...don't worry; I'll handle this. We haven't worked extremely hard all year long, persevering through immeasurable obstacles, suffering losses within our ranks, and sacrificing time and energy...just to risk it all now."
Rachel was no dummy, and knew that a great deal of her power over Glee Club was dependent on whether or not Will Schuester remained at the helm.
"We need Mr. Schuester, and we can't stand for whatever..."
She peered around dramatically.
" ...coup is being perpetrated here. We made it, all the way to New York City, and we don't have time to waste on cheer coaches with delusions of grandeur and unqualified school support staff when we need to be preparing for Nationals!"
Rachel descended the risers, and marched over to confront the least intimidating adult in the room.
"Miss Pillsbury," she began, oblivious to the fact that she'd just all but insulted the redhead. "I have it on good authority that Mr. Schuester regrets ever allowing Sam Evans to become his mentee. Mr. Schuester promised me personally that had he firm plans to neutralize whatever influence Sam may have held over the way Glee Club would be managed."
Miss Pillsbury had no idea how to respond to Rachel's tirade, so the girl decided to focus her ire on the young man in question. She turned and directed her attention to Sam.
"You," she pointed and stalked over to where he had now stood up. "I have no idea how you've done it, but this is completely unacceptable! You've been here less than a week, and have already jeopardized everything we've worked for!"
Petulance won over eloquence, and Rachel's diatribe veered into pure brattiness.
"What's more..." she kept going, "...you don't have any authority to assign faculty advisors. In fact, you have no business here at all, and I refuse to sing until Mr. Schuester arrives."
Rachel then dismissed a grinning Sam with a flip of her long brown hair.
"Class," Rachel clapped while addressing the rest of the room, having decided that the time was ripe for another patented dramatic-Berry walk-out. "I don't know how Sam managed to persuade these coaches and guidance counselors to come into our space with the intention of taking over our club, but we don't have to let him do this!" Rachel motioned for everyone to stand up. "If we refuse to sing, they have to bring Mr. Schuester back! Stand up! We have to protest, and get Mr. Schuester back...who's with me?"
As Rachel tried to physically pull Kurt and Brittany to their feet in order to walk out with her in protest, Miss Pillsbury decided to keep an eye on Rachel to make sure the girl wasn't having a breakdown. Coach Beiste started to laugh, knowing full well that she'd have strapped herself to the suicide-running back of any Titan throwing this type of tantrum in her presence. The reason for her laughter became apparent when she elbowed Sue, telling her, "That's exactly what you looked like a minute ago..." Sue simply considered Coach Shannon's words. Sam wondered whether or not he should step in yet.
Mercedes desperately wanted to take Rachel to the carpet in front of everyone in the room for challenging her man in this way. However, she was reminded by Sam via subtle shake of the head that it would blow up their secret and jeopardize his plans. She bit her tongue, and raised her eyebrow, silently asking him how would handle her raging classmate. Fortunately, the rest of the class had no such reason to remain quiet, and spoke before Sam could decide.
"Hey, Berry," Puckerman spoke first. "Why don't you calm the hell down?"
"Yeah, crazy..." his girlfriend chimed in, "...cool your jets."
"But," Rachel tried to interject. "Everything was planned! We were going to write out songs in New York City; Mr. Schuester is the only one who can ensure that everything I've worked for..."she babbled.
"Bitch, we don't even know what the hell is going on here..." Santana interrupted the girl, snarling while Brittany nodded in agreement.
"Yeah," Mike chimed in. "or how long it'll be before Mr. Schuester comes back."
Most of the club seemed to agree with this as well.
"We also have no clue whatsoever why Mr. Schuester left in the first place," offered Kurt. "School gossip will eventually clear that portion of the mystery up, but there's a very good chance that you're going all 'Norma Rae' for no reason at all."
"Yeah," Tina finally got her chance to weigh in. She faced Rachel. "So shut your trap, and we can find out what's going on!"
Mercedes sent Tina a grateful grin.
"Sam?" Artie decided to defer to the new leader. "Do you mind?"
"Not at all," he replied amicably, waving to let the faculty advisors know they were free to leave. Miss Pillsbury and the coaches left, and Sam prepared himself for whatever happened next. "I'm here to answer anything y'all wanna know. All I ask is that everyone calm down and have a seat."
"I will not calm down..." Rachel stomped her foot, while Brittany and Kurt sat back down "...and I will not have a seat!"
"Then just shut up!" Mercedes couldn't keep her mouth shut forever; she wasn't made of stone. "So we can find out what happened..."
"Fine," Rachel crossed her arms.
"Sam, what's going on here?" Artie asked as the room finally settled down.
"Just what the ladies told you," Sam shrugged. "Principal Figgins put me in charge of Glee for the rest of the year."
"Oh..." Finn seemed relieved, and put on a huge smile "...so it's just 'till after Nationals?"
Sam knew that this was the first of many hard questions, one he honestly didn't know how to answer. The student teacher had no clue whether or not Mr. Schuester would be allowed to oversee Glee Club in the coming school year, but he also no reason to tell Finn that just yet.
"Exactly," he agreed, hoping his answer satisfied the gawky teen enough to stop any guilt Finn might feel for participating in Glee without Schuester. "I graduate in June," Sam told them truthfully, "and by then you guys'll be National Show Choir champs enjoyin' your summer." He smiled kindly. "I'm not plottin' anything sinister over here, I swear...I just want to help."
"I'm happy Mr. Schue will be back next year," Brittany seemed worried. "But what will he be doing for the rest of this year?"
"Yeah," Puckerman added. "And why is he gone in the first place?"
Sam had already made up his mind not to divulge the whole story, figuring that the Glee kids already had problems keeping a lid on rumors. So he opted to put an optimistic spin on what had happened the day before.
"Long story short? Will has been put in charge of formin' a drama society here at McKinley. You all know, he did a great job of puttin' New Directions together..." he looked around his new classroom. "...and you can't deny that he's dedicated to the arts."
Several Glee kids beamed, others nodded, and one or two rolled their eyes.
"Principal Figgins wants to start stagin' plays every year," Sam continued to stretch the truth. "Musicals probably, like Grease," he improvised. "Principal Figgins says this kind of thing could really help the school in terms of revenue. Will was the natural choice for leadin' it..."
Most of the class appeared to agree here as well.
"But in order to do things the right way," Sam continued, "Mr. Schuester can't just start throwin' the production together at the beginnin' of next year; not if they want to charge people..."
Several members of Glee nodded.
"...and no competent person would try to do both at the same time. Plus, you guys seem to trust me and my input where New Directions is concerned..."
Again, Sam's assessment appeared to sit well with most of the Glee club.
"...so we figured it would be best to put me in charge of Glee right now, so Will can focus on gettin' the drama club off the ground." Sam took a moment to follow this train of thought. "That way he won't be scramblin' to get it done next year. I chose the faculty advisors for all the reasons they gave you before."
Mercedes giggled to herself, because she knew now why Sam had held back on telling her who he'd chosen to help him run Glee. The three women Sam picked basically parroted all of her own reasons for suggesting them. Before this moment, Mercedes already thought Sam was sinfully cute...But apparently respecting her input was a surefire way to make him seem cuter. No wonder Rachel was so attracted to Finn...
"So why didn't Mr. Schue just finish this school year with us in Glee club, then start 'getting drama club off the ground' this summer?" Quinn shrewdly wondered aloud. "Seems a little irresponsible to me..."
Sam did some quick thinking.
"Mr. Schuester's doin' his due diligence," he lied. "He realized right away that a lot of you would wanna be involved in the Drama Club. And he wants to plan a few workshops for the summer that would get you all prepared to shine on stage."
He had a blast of genius that prompted him to keep talking.
"Rachel?" he directly addressed the pouting ingenue. "Mr. Schuester could probably use your help...I mean, you do have an interest in the stage, right?"
Rachel refused to look Sam in the eye but visibly straightened.
"So go to him!" Sam encouraged. "You already know Will plans to make you all key members of the ensemble; and he's gonna want your input! Next year's Drama Club stars will need vocal trainin', actin' workshops, dance..."
"Booty Camp!" Rachel interjected. "We can call it Booty Camp!"
"Sure," Sam agreed, understanding that he had just given Rachel something she craved more than being in control of Glee. "So while we're finalizin' this year's Glee season..."
"Mr. Schuester and I will be focusing on making sure all my Broadway dreams come true," Rachel uncrossed her arms and relaxed without realizing she had done so. She was sure that this new turn of events would somehow benefit her greatly, but wanted to make sure this was the case. "So Mr. Schuester will no longer be charge of choosing songs and leads for New Directions as we prepare for our competition in New York City?" she inquired of Sam.
"No..." Sam was sure the tide was about to turn in his favor. "...that's true. Those decisions will now be made by the new faculty advisors and me."
"But Mr. Schuester will be in charge of organizing a new Dramatic Society," Rachel was becoming excited. "He'll be choosing the members of the club, staging amateur musicals in the tradition of Broadway, and casting them according to who he thinks auditions best?"
Sam nodded, "that's true as well."
"Okay," Rachel marched over to her abandoned seat and gathered her things. "I understand completely now and I apologize for my outburst..."
Confident in the knowledge that whatever had happened to Mr. Schuester would ultimately benefit her own interests, Rachel made up her mind to protest no more.
"This is exactly what McKinley needs..." Rachel had become excited. "...A Drama Club!"
Of course Rachel's inclination was to assume that the rest of the class found her impending rise to stardom as interesting as she herself did.
"Just think..." she sighed, still holding her belongings. "...we'll perform for our schoolmates, our friends, and families, members of the community..."
She paced happily.
"I can play Sandy if we perform Grease..."
An idea struck the girl and she stopped in her tracks.
"Or Maria!" Her jaw dropped. "I can play Maria in West Side Story...I have to find Mr. Schuester; we have so much to discuss..."
Unmistakably happy, Rachel stalked out of the room without another word.
The remaining New Directions sat their seats, having watched most of the spectacle without saying a word. They remained quiet; each teen casting his or her own gaze across the room, periodically catching the eye of a classmate, sharing a confused glance, and moving on. Eventually each of the singers had raised an eyebrow to each of his or her friends, none of whom had said a thing. If any of the Gleeks knew the correct response to the idea that they would be allowed to enjoy Glee Club without having to also deal with Rachel's tyranny, they kept it to themselves.
Finally, Sam decided to take control of his new class.
"So..."
The class, grateful to someone for saying something, gave Sam their undivided attention.
"...does anybody know where Schuester keeps the dry erase markers?"
His goofy question provided the class with much needed comic relief, causing the entire room to burst out into raucous laughter. The whole Glee Club minus Rachel stood and met on the classroom floor for an impromptu group hug. Sam and Mercedes managed to look meaningfully at one another behind Tina's back as she blubbered while hugging a still-mirthful Artie.
The smile the couple shared spoke volumes...both Sam and Mercedes knew that a huge bullet had just been dodged. As they each thought about later, anxious for when they could finally seal their victory with a kiss, each decided that they couldn't wait for the opportunity to dodge the next one together.
A/N: I hope it was clear that Mercedes started the chapter not sure whether or not Figgins had changed his mind about Sam running Glee. See, her man let her think that on purpose because he wanted to surprise her with the fact that he managed to get all three of her suggested stand-in teachers as advisors. It was actually meant to be a cliffhanger at the end of chapter ten, but I ended up blending chapters 10 and 11, condensing them down to the basic meat of the chapters, then filing all the fluff away.
I also wanted to convey that the three advisors work best as a team because they all need to be reigned in periodically. Plus, I always loved the friendship that developed between Sue, Shannon and Emma. That Wedding Bell Blues number was my favorite old-person song on the whole show.
Feel free to assume that after school Sam and Mercedes had a long talk where he told her everything about the first meeting, making her laugh hard enough to pee her pants. Then he did impressions of Shannon, Emma, and Sue agreeing help Evans run Glee. And because Sam ROCKS, he then tells Mercedes that he'd had to bite his tongue fifty-leven times the night before to stop himself from calling her and babbling the whole thing because he didn't wanna ruin the surprise. Finally, he ends the conversation by gushing about how much he loves talking to Mercedes and promising he'd never keep another secret from her because the not speaking to her was torture. After that, she was swooning too much to get in his ass for the communication gap.
This chapter is the first of about three that I have written already. I'm just trying to figure out where to break the chapters up. I've been writing nonstop for two weeks and have at least 20,000 words written. As I said, the next one will be up soon...
I hope this isn't hard to follow. The drama with Glee changing hands kinda took over my writing and I really didn't dwell much on the Rumours assignment. So everyone can just assume that the performances went off without a hitch the next day. The Prom Queen chapter is up next, and I can't wait to hear what you all think of how I spun that for this AU.
Thanxkaybai