School's Out!

Most teenagers slept away their summer vacation. Not Robbie. It was rare for the teenage boy to sleep past 9am… Well, it used to be. With Beth in the house, both Robbie and Shelby found themselves getting up in the middle of the night and losing sleep. To Shelby's shock, though, Robbie never seemed too irritable about it. Sometimes, he was even by the crib before she was and Beth stayed in her bedroom. Robbie seemed to like taking care of the small child, though his summer days were typically busy.

Tonight, Robbie was first to Beth's crib, having heard the tell-tale signs of his sister's crying. He picked up Beth just as his mother was preparing to get out of bed. He rocked the petite child, bringing her cries to a whimper. He shushed her quietly, patting her back gently. Shelby watched in the darkness as her son comforted the newest member of their small family.

"Shh, it's okay. I've got you," he whispered. "You were wailing louder than Christina Aguilera. You can't do that to my future wife." Beth made a sound that almost sounded like she was mocking him. Robbie chuckled. "Okay, maybe I'll just stick to Demi Lovato. I think someone needs another lullaby. How about that, huh?" Beth whimpered again. "Mmkay. Well, the lovely Ms. Aguilera sings this to her son. Should work on you."

Robbie began to softly sing in his sister's ear. Shelby smiled, hearing Stay Awake. She had sung it to him when he was a child, too. Mary Poppins had been one of his favorite films. It always seemed to work its magic and it was doing so with Beth. After the second verse, Beth was fast asleep again and Robbie's voice was slowly fading. He laid the baby down in her crib and rubbed her back gently to ensure she remained asleep. He smiled before exiting his mother's room and crashing in his bed again.

It was his phone that awoke him the following morning. He groaned, dragging it off his bedside table. He hit talk and pressed it to his ear.

"Hello," he mumbled almost incoherently.

"Dude, where are you? Jay and I have been calling all morning. You were supposed to meet us at my place an hour ago. Remember?" Andre's voice came over the speaker. Robbie opened his eyes, but kept them squinted and narrow.

"Wha- What time is it?" Robbie asked, managing to sit up. He leaned back against the wall, blinking rapidly to get rid of his exhaustion.

"Bro, it's eleven in the morning."

Robbie's eyes widened. He looked at his alarm clock. There was no way his best friend was telling him the truth. But behold, the clock conveyed the time was indeed eleven. He pushed his covers off of himself, nearly tripping out of bed with a low growl.

"Ugh! No way! I'll be at the festival in a half an hour!" He hung up his phone, going to grab a clean pair of jeans. He pulled them on and then stripped off his tank top, putting on a fresh one. A black shirt with several small holes followed. "Mom, I gotta get to the festival!" he shouted, grabbing his jacket. He rushed out of his room, going into the den and then the bathroom that was between the two bedrooms. He quickly went through his morning routine before coming out again, the taste of mint awash in his mouth.

"I thought you were gone hours ago," Shelby said, looking up from the car seat she was putting Beth in. The baby whimpered softly, not liking the confinement before Shelby handed her a soft stuffed tiger.

"I was supposed to. I slept in."

"Well, let's get going. Don't want you to be late."


Robbie pushed his way through the semi-large crowd of people. He needed to get to the stage. It was 11:20. He was up in ten minutes. Andre was going to kill him. Robbie had no idea how he'd managed to ignore his alarm clock or shut it off without remembering doing so. It didn't matter now. The fact of the matter was that he was late. Period. End of story. He just needed to be on that stage.

His shoulder bumped roughly into a man in front of him. He turned quickly, walking backwards, but slowing his pace.

"I'm sorry," he said before realizing he knew the person. "Mr. Shue?"

"Hey, Robbie. What are you doing here?" the teacher asked, rubbing his shoulder blade. He turned fully to the teenage boy. He'd obviously been headed in a different direction. Robbie took a moment to catch his breath, looking around the event. Seemed that Mr. Shue wasn't the only one here from McKinley. He could see his sister, Finn, Quinn, Mercedes, and Kurt working at a booth. He looked back at Mr. Shue.

"Um, I'm volunteering. You, sir?" Robbie said quickly. He glanced behind him for a panicked moment. The stage was only a few yards behind him. He had a little bit.

"Volunteering as well. I got some of the glee kids to come help out, too," Mr. Shue said with a smile. He looked at Robbie, giving an impressed nod. "Is this a personal choice or did your mother-"

"Nah, my choice. My friend and I usually help out at community centers and stuff, working with kids. One of the administrators signed us up. We've been coming for the last two years or so." He paused, hearing Lupe Fiasco's Coming Up start up. He checked his watch. They were starting early. What the- "Excuse me, Mr. Shue. I gotta go. I'm late. I'll be sure to come by and say hi to you guys later, though," Robbie said in a rush, turning to run again. He just managed to hear Mr. Shue say his good-bye.

Robbie ran behind the high rise platform and grabbed a mic from a tech.

"Sorry, I'm late, man," Robbie said.

"Dre's already up there," the tech said.

"I hear him!" Robbie said, running up the stairs. He turned on his microphone.

"If you're feeling good let me hear you say 'Alright, alright!'" Robbie heard from the speakers. There was a short repeat from the crowd, but nothing too big. "I'm feeling good, so I'mma say it myself. Alright, alright."

Robbie came up onstage, walking past the band, seeing Andre out of the corner of his eye.

"Alright," Robbie said, catching his best friend's attention. He gave him a look, asking what took him so long. Robbie smiled, listening to the music play. "So, how we gon' do this one?" Andre shook his head, withholding a laugh before going into the song and simple dance routine he and Robbie had come up with.

Down in the audience, the New Directions kids' heads shot up, hearing Robbie's voice. Mr. Shue looked up at the stage, shocked to see the teenager as well. He'd figured that the boy was volunteering at a booth like the rest of them. He hadn't expected him to be one of the performing acts. None of them had ever seen Robbie ever perform in an individualist way. Sure, he was with another person, but they could focus much better on him. He hadn't auditioned for New Directions; they just knew he could sing. This just proved it. His friend was rapping, leaving the chorus and bridge to Robbie's voice.

The two young men had such different stage presences. Robbie was very calm, able to convey excitement in his cool attitude and movements. His dance moves were smooth and fluid, moving into one another with no indication where one began and the other ended. His friend was hyped. He jumped around and ran around the stage while Robbie walked. He gestured a lot as if to get his point across. Neither presence was better than the other. The fact of the matter was that the audience was engaged and Robbie had a natural stage presence. He belonged there.

"He's amazing," Rachel said as the two boys started up their rendition of The Show Goes On. The other students nodded their heads in agreement, watching as Robbie interacted with the crowd and occasionally backed Andre's lyrics.


"I can't believe how late you were," Andre said, jumping on his best friend's back and rubbing his knuckles roughly against Robbie's scalp. He wrapped his arm around his neck for a headlock. Robbie laughed, shoving his friend off his back.

"I am sorry, dude. I dunno what happened," he said, still laughing.

"I thought I was gon' have to get up there and sing your part," Andre laughed as another young man came out of the crowd. "Yo, Jay. You get that on camera?"

"Yeah. Robbie's lateness and all," their friend said as Andre fell back to walk with him. Robbie led them towards a few of the booths. Jay was the tallest of the group. His skin was tanned by his recent time spent in the sun. In his hand was a camera that Andre and Robbie were certain he never left home without. Robbie and Andre had met the lanky white boy that year and found that his eye for film came in handy.

"Yo, I'm sorry! How many times can I apologize?" Robbie laughed.

"As many times as you want. You're never living this down," Andre said distractedly, watching Jay's video of them on stage. Robbie reached a booth and knocked on the counter. He leaned on top of it, looking at the back side of the person attending it. Andre and Jay stopped behind him.

"I'll take a Coke with a side of hot teenage blonde if that's not too much to ask," Robbie said with a smirk. Quinn turned to him, smacking his bicep. Mercedes and Kurt simply laughed.

"Ha ha," Quinn said sarcastically, going to grab him a soda.

"I haven't seen you in a few weeks. How ya doin'?" Robbie asked. Quinn placed his soda on the counter in between them and leaned on it as well.

"I'm well. Losing this stupid baby weight," she answered. "And you? What have you been up to, fresh meat?"

"Ah, ah, ah. I am now a sophomore, thank you. And for your information, I've been preparing for this."

"You mean your incessant flirting?"

Robbie lifted his hand from the counter and shook it out. He hissed as if he'd just been hurt.

"Ouch. That was a burn. Sorry to break your heart, but no. I've been preparing for that performance." He heard someone clear their throat behind him and glanced back. Andre shook his head, cocking an eyebrow. Robbie chuckled nervously. "Right." He looked back at the New Directions kids. "Quinn, Mercedes, Kurt, these are my boys, Andre and Jay. Andre, Jay, these are some of my friends from McKinley, Quinn, Mercedes, and Kurt."

"Nice to meet you," Quinn said, standing up straight. Robbie did the same, noting that this round of their game was over.

"Nice to meet you guys, too," Jay said.

"Yeah. We've heard so much about you," Andre said, giving a look to his best friend. Robbie knew that the statement was aimed mainly at Quinn. Robbie kicked his leg back, managing to hit Andre's ankle. The dark-skinned boy merely smiled.

"Robbie!" an excited voice called. Robbie turned his head, finding his half-sister. Rachel hugged him, having a running start. Robbie squeezed her, lifting her a bit.

"Rachel!" Robbie mocked. He put her down.

"You guys were amazing," she complimented, looking up at her younger brother. Robbie smiled and nodded. He was finding that his sister's compliments were almost as great as his mother's. Over the last few weeks, he had been spending time with Finn and Rachel. He sometimes went to lunch with them or went to Rachel's house when his mom didn't need help with Beth. Robbie and Rachel were becoming thick as thieves.

"Thanks. I'm glad you liked it. I didn't know you guys would be here today," Robbie said. He quickly added, "I meant to invite you guys."

"You need community service hours to graduate. Mr. Shue suggested this," Finn explained. "How'd you get involved?"

"Andre's mom," Robbie said. He introduced Rachel, Finn, and Mr. Shue to Andre and Jay before continuing. "They used to be heavily involved in the organization, highly against domestic abuse. Wanted to help in the aftermath. Me and Dre are all about helping the kids, inspiring them, ya know." Robbie shrugged.

"That's great of you guys," Mr. Shue said, looking back and forth between the three boys.

"Yo, it was nice meeting you all. Robbie, I gotta get back to my mom's booth, help her out," Andre said, patting his friend on the back. Robbie looked back at him.

"A'ight. I'mma stay for a bit. Just tell my mom I'm over here," Robbie said.

"You got it," Andre said, holding out a hand. Robbie slapped it with his, initiating their personal handshake from childhood. Andre and Jay gave a short wave before disappearing into the crowd. Robbie turned back to the McKinley folk.

"So, y'all need any more help? I am the expert around these parts."


Another part of Robbie's summer regime was early weekday workouts with Andre. Jay never participated, feeling he was too weak for the activity. Andre and Robbie swore to themselves that they would get him to join them one day. But, for now, the duo was on their own as they often were. Andre and Robbie might as well have been attached at the hip. It was rare to see them apart. They worked out together, they volunteered together, they did dance together (well, except ballet), a third of Robbie's performances were with Andre. It had been this way for everything since they were three.

Robbie curled his arm, pulling up the dumbbell, bicep showing off its healthy bulge. Andre was nearby working on his calve muscles. It was now eleven in the morning and they'd been at the gym for an hour and fifteen minutes. They had gotten up at nine and met up at 10:25, the walk to the gym a twenty minute workout in itself. The two were used to it after two summers. They pretty much walked around the city by themselves all the time.

Robbie took a deep inhale through his nose, lifting the weight, and sharply exhaled as his arm slowly descended, a burn in his muscle flaring. No pain, no gain, right? He wasn't an athlete. Robbie just liked to look good. Although he was still pretty much rocker boy, his musical dreams had slightly shifted. For the most part, he imagined himself being an eclectic music artist, a bit like Christina Aguilera or Michael Jackson. He sometimes stated he wanted to be Thomas Dutton, Jason Mraz, Justin Timberlake, and Chris Brown rolled up in one package. He wasn't sure how that would work out, but that would come in due time.

The teenager looked around the rather empty gym. Most people were either at work or finding something else to do with their summer time. Or they were just sleep. But Robbie observed those around him anyway. There were two overly buff men at the bench press. Body builders, Robbie assumed. A couple of others were working out their legs by Andre. The list could go on. There were even a few people on treadmills. His eyes stopped there. Someone he knew was on one of those treadmills.

He placed the dumbbells on their shelf in the correct place before pulling his sweat rag from the pocket of his basketball shorts. He wiped the sweat from his forehead, smoothing his raven hair back from his forehead. He stuffed it back in, letting some of the rag hang out, before jogging over to the treadmills. He stepped onto one and set it to a steady pace. Nothing too fast. He didn't want to bust his ass and be one of those "America's Funniest Home Video" videos or the next sensation on YouTube (instead of for his singing, of course).

Robbie started up the jog, growing accustomed to its pacing. He frequently glanced at his nearby acquaintance, but they didn't seem to notice him. In fact, they had headphones in and there was a small book placed on top of the display screen. After a few minutes of observation, Robbie, still jogging in place, leaned over and tapped on their treadmill.

Quinn looked up in shock. Robbie simply smiled.

"Oh, no. Robbie, are you following me? Stalking is simply not tolerable," she teased. Robbie couldn't help the laugh that escaped his throat and fell from his lips. He looked straight ahead again before giving her his attention again.

"Me? Stalking you? I think it's the other way around. I've been coming here the last two years," he replied. He gave her half a nod. "What are you doing here?"

"I told you at the festival. Losing all this baby fat. I need to be in shape for cheerleading this year. My mom recommended this gym. What are you doing here?"

"Your mother has great taste in gyms. I'm just here to work out, strengthen up, ya know? I'm kinda into my fitness. I wanna look good."

"Aww. Little man wants to get rid of his bird chest," Quinn mocked. Robbie shook his head, laughing with her. He had to admit, she hit him with some good one liners sometimes.

"Sweetheart," he lifted his shirt with one hand, turning his upper body toward her, "this is not a bird chest. This is like Taylor Lautner, pre-Twilight status. He was still pretty muscular back then."

Quinn looked away after a quick moment. Not quick enough. She still got a good enough look to know that Robbie was indeed fit. Probably more fit than some of the football players at McKinley. It was rather shocking to her, to be honest. Robbie had never struck her as the fitness type. Apparently, she had been incorrect.

"Doing a good job there."

"Thank you. You're doing really great at getting rid of the baby weight. In fact, you look really good," Robbie complimented sincerely. He knew girls could be very sensitive about their looks. Quinn seemed to be pretty high on that list despite probably being the most beautiful girl he'd ever seen.

Eventually, they joined Andre in their workout. Over those next few weeks, Robbie and Andre became like personal trainers to her, helping get rid of what little belly she had left from the pregnancy. The three seemed to get along rather well, constantly encouraging one another and singing songs that they liked. And after their time at the gym, Quinn was generous enough to give them a ride home. She always dropped Andre off first. By dropping off Robbie, she learned the location of her daughter's residence. She always felt the urge to ask Robbie about her, but figured it was probably best she didn't. So, she kept her mouth shut.

So, on weekdays, Quinn spent her mornings with Robbie and his best friend. Some weekends, she saw Robbie when some of the McKinley kids hung out. One Sunday, he even performed for her church's worship session, which was a shock to her. Apparently, a few teens at the church had seen him perform at a weekly Christian gathering and had suggested him to their pastor. He'd insisted on not being paid, because he was doing God's work. Quinn's mom had especially liked that.

And then one day at the gym, Robbie had suggested the two of them hang out. Go get some food at a diner near his place. Quinn had agreed, finding that she rather enjoyed his company. She felt comfortable with herself when she was with him, knowing he wouldn't judge her.

So, that afternoon, at around four, Quinn showed up in front of his apartment building. She dialed his number and he answered on the second ring.

"Hey, I'm here," she informed him.

"Oh, cool. Um, I need a few minutes. Come on up. Floor 4, apartment 419. I'll buzz you up," he replied, sounding rather distracted. Quinn got out of her car and went to the door. A few moments later, the intercom buzzed and the door unlocked for her. She was finally going to the home of her daughter. She took the elevator up and walked nervously to the apartment. Robbie only took a few moments to answer when she knocked. "Sorry. I'm totally rushing to get ready. I didn't think I'd be in the shower so long."

As she stepped in, Quinn could hear rock music coming from one of the bedrooms. She assumed it was his room. Her eyes roamed the living room to her left, seeing the back of the couch, the coffee table in front of it, and the medium sized TV. To the side of the couch was a play pen that looked similar to a very deep crib. It was surrounded by baby toys, not to mention filled with them.

Robbie passed by her, moving in front of her. He picked up a stuffed baby tiger. He ran his fingers through his damp wavy hair.

"Sorry about the mess. I was playing with Beth earlier," he told her. He did a hook shot, hoping the stuffed animal would land in the play pen. It was then that Quinn realized he was shirtless.

"Where is Beth?" Quinn asked, hoping that she was here. Robbie went to his room, gesturing for her to follow him.

"My mom took her out to the park and to run some errands, so they're not home," he answered with disinterest. "I just need a shirt and my wallet and stuff and we can go." He went to his drawer which was set under his window. He bent down, pulling out a v-neck black shirt. He put it on.

Quinn found herself drawn to his rather messy desk, her eyes trailing over the shelves of CDs above his computer. Her fingers traced over each title and artist.

"Huge Christina Aguilera fan?" she asked sarcastically, looking at all six of her albums, including one in Spanish and her holiday one. Robbie looked over his shoulder and smiled.

"Oh, yeah. That's my dream wife. I don't care if she's married. I like Demi Lovato, too."

"And Panic! at the Disco and Fall Out Boy and AC/DC and Led Zeppelin and Robin Thicke and Justin Timberlake and Michael Jackson. Lots of the Jackson family actually. Interesting collection. Usher, Chris Brown along with Breaking Benjamin and Nickelback. Who are Trip Lee and Jimmy Needham?" She looked back at Robbie who was connecting his wallet chain to his belt loop. He glanced up at her through his eyelashes.

"Christian artists. Two of my favorites actually. Jimmy Needham is the one who sings the songs I did at your church."

"Oh, cool. And what is Razia's Shadow?" she asked, pulling the album off the shelf. She looked at it, front and back. Robbie's smile grew. As he placed his wallet in his back pocket, he walked over to her.

"I figured you wouldn't know what that is. Razia's Shadow is only one of the greatest musicals and albums ever. At least, it is in my opinion," he said. "You should take a listen to it. I'll let you borrow it." Quinn turned around, sitting on the edge of his desk. She looked up at him.

"What's it about?" she asked.

"Um, it's about an angel and his descent into darkness," Robbie said simply.

"Sounds depressing."

"It's also about redemption. It's kind of hard to explain. You just need to listen to it. You'll enjoy it."

"Mmm. Well, how about this? I listen to a CD you recommend, you do the same for me," she suggested. Robbie nodded and shrugged all at once.

"Bring it on. Whatcha got?"

"I take it you're not a Justin Bieber fan," she said with a devious smirk.

"You know I don't like him. Why would you- no. No, Quinn."

"We had a deal," she pointed out. Robbie sighed. He tilted his head back and forth, thinking over his options. She was right. They had agreed. How had he not seen that coming, though?

"Alright, fine. I will listen to a Justin Bieber album and try to keep an open mind. We'll grab it from your house later." He picked up his military-style jacket and put it on. "Come on. Let's get out of here. I'm starving." He grabbed his house key off his desk and turned off his computer, silencing his music.

Robbie led her out to her car and gave her directions to the diner. It was only a couple blocks away, the same place where he had told his father to walk out of his life. It was a favorite place of his and his mother's. They'd been coming to that diner since he was six and even knew the owner of the establishment.

He took her to a table close to the counter and held out her seat for her.

"Ooh, aren't you a gentleman?" she teased.

"I was brought up that way," he said with a smile as she sat down. He sat in the seat across from her, moving it a bit closer to hers so they could talk a bit easier.

Now, of course, Robbie had intended this to be a friendly hang out. Just two friends. But when you brought a female friend to a restaurant where every employee knew you and had never once seen you on a date, people were bound to assume otherwise. At several points, Robbie had even pinched the bridge of his nose and gave a force smile, conveying his utter embarrassment.

Halfway through their meal, Robbie said, "I am so sorry. I didn't think they would react like that." Quinn simply laughed.

"They seem to know you really well," she said, not knowing how else to reply.

"Yeah. Well enough to the point where they all know I've never been on a real date before. So this is kind of embarrassing. And I know my mom's going to hear some gossip about this," he replied. Quinn gave another small laugh before looking at her food. They both went silent, Robbie continuing eating, Quinn simply moving her food with her fork. Finally, she spoke again, catching his attention. He looked up, still chewing.

"You do know that this isn't a date, right? Like," she paused, trying to find the words. "Me and you aren't-" She stopped again, still stumbling over her words. Robbie stared at her, but he did know what she meant. He leaned back in his seat, swallowing.

"I know this isn't a date. Wasn't meant to be," he replied. He rubbed his chin with two fingers and his thumb for a moment before continuing. He leaned forward toward her, grabbing the arm of her chair. "I'll be completely honest with you, though, Quinn. I do like you."

The blonde stared at him for a long moment and Robbie was sure she had just gotten short of breath. Was that a good thing?

"Robbie, we- we can't," she said. She looked down at the table before meeting his bright eyes. "I mean, nothing against you. You are an awesome guy. It's just," she paused, "I'm not ready to be in a relationship again. After Beth, I just feel like I need to find myself and I-" Robbie raised a finger to stop her.

"I understand. You need time. But let it be known, when you are ready, I will be standing by, waiting for the green light," he said seriously. And Quinn knew that he was not kidding. He gave her a boyish smile, one that she'd grown so used to. "But that doesn't mean we still can't hang out for these next two weeks. Before school starts. Like tonight at Kurt's."

Quinn smiled and nodded. He was certainly taking this better than most.

"Of course, we can still hang out."

"Great. Plus, me and Dre are running the worship gathering this Wednesday. I want you to come again. Some of the other teens really liked you."

"I'll be there."

Robbie smiled and Quinn returned it. And so, their next two weeks came and went quickly and, despite their "Only friends" rule, the two occasionally found themselves physically closer than most friends and hugs tended to linger. And they weren't the only ones that summer to notice.

A/N: When I pictured this chapter in my head, most of those descriptions of what happened over weeks and weeks were actually detailed parts. Glad I shortened them to paragraphs and short descriptions. I kinda feel like I spent too much time on Robbie and Quinn, but it was definitely the fun part to write, so whatever. Hope you enjoyed this chapter. Leave your comments, questions, predictions. I love reading them. Season 2 will probably take a while to write.