'Ello! Hope you like the update, it's quite fluffy. This chapter takes place five years after the last one, but it's easy to follow, as not that much has happened. Sorry for any mistakes I missed!

Mercedes stood in front of the full-length mirror in her bedroom, wearing nothing but the lingerie set she bought on her way home from the café she worked at. She wasn't sure what made her do it; well, she was half-sure. She hadn't thought about the incident with the psychic in five years, but when Quinn called her to catch up during her lunch break that day (part of her plan to soul-search and reconnect with the important people in her life), she couldn't help but think back to it. The red flag was when Quinn admitted to calling Sam before Mercedes but only getting his voicemail. She calmed down a little when she told her about the guy she liked up in New England, but after the phone call, Mercedes was having an ugly day.

So the lingerie was to try and lift her spirits, but it wasn't working. As she stared in the mirror, all she saw was huge boobs and excess stomach fat. She blew out a breath and turned to look at her butt only to feel disappointed again. Yeah, it was an ugly day.

"Whoa, hey there Sexy, is it my birthday?" She shook her head when she heard the deep voice with a slight Southern twang calling out from their bedroom door. He was behind her in seconds, wrapping his arms around her shoulders and biting his lip.

"Hi Sam," she greeted, looking at him through the mirror. He was looking back, but not at her eyes.

"Fuck me," he murmured, his emerald eyes dancing over her figure. They were getting darker by the moment and even though she'd been with him for going on six years, she still blushed immensely when he looked at her like that.

"You buy this for me?" he asked, aware that this was a new set, for he'd committed every piece of underwear she owned to memory. "I mean either way, I benefit."

"I really turn you on?" she asked, tilting her head and looking at herself. He seemingly snapped out of his trance for a moment and looked into her eyes.

"Did you hit your head today?"

"No…I just…I don't know. I'm not feeling very sexy lately. I just feel like Jabba the Hut, honestly," she told him. He looked at her like she was insane.

"We're not looking at the same mirror…" he said, moving his hands so they settled on her ample hips. She sighed.

"Maybe it's living out here in Orange County. Everywhere I go, I see ads or these flawless girls walking their Chihuahuas…" She didn't mention feeling inferior to Quinn. Sam chuckled.

"The girls out here are hilarious," he said. "They make me feel really intelligent." She turned around and faced him, reaching up to touch his face.

"You are intelligent," she told him, narrowing her eyes. He smiled.

"And you are the sexiest woman I've ever laid eyes on," he replied in a whisper, his hands traveling to cup her ass. She dipped her head and blushed.

"I guess I'm just having an off day," she said. He scooped her up and walked over to the bed, tossing her down and removing his clothes in record time.

"Then I guess I'll have to fix that."

"I think you two have broken a record," Puck said, leaning on the kitchen counter with a beer in hand. Sam had just emerged from the bedroom he shared with his girlfriend to find that his roommate was already home.

"What?" the blond asked, opening the fridge to search for a snack.

"I got home…" Puck checked his watch. "Two hours ago, and immediately heard the bed creaking and you two…making noises. That was TWO hours ago. There were small breaks, but your guys just stopped ten minutes ago."

"Sorry…we thought you were going out tonight," Sam replied, closing the fridge to reveal his crimson cheeks.

"She must be a monster in bed. She sounds like one," the self-proclaimed badass said, taking another swig of beer. Sam suppressed a smirk and grabbed a box of Cheez-Its from the cabinet before cutting his eyes at his friend.

"That's for me to know and you to never, ever find out." He kept his glare until Puck threw a hand up in surrender.

"I get it! It's amazing you don't trust me after we've lived together for so long. We're practically family!"

"It's because you say things like that," Sam pointed out, leaning against the fridge and stuffing his face.

"But don't I get to make comments like that since you guys insist on fucking each other's brains out while I'm in the apartment?" Puck asked.

"We thought you weren't home!"

"Please. You've done it when I was home."

"We thought you were asleep."

"Mercedes is a screamer. If I was asleep, you two woke me right up."

Sam was about to respond, but didn't when he saw his bedroom door open and Mercedes step out in a pair of leggings and a baseball tee that belonged to him. The cut of those shirts made her chest look fantastic, and Puck seemed to notice as well, earning a punch in the arm from the blond.

"Hey Puck, I didn't hear you come in," she said, walking up to Sam and dipping her hand in the box he held to get a handful of Cheez-Its.

"I bet you didn't," he replied, sipping his beer. Knowing what he meant, she blushed and bit her lip as Sam wrapped an arm around her.

"Well how was your day?" she asked in an attempt to change the subject.

"Pretty good. I got laid. In this insane mansion, too."

"Did you ever actually clean the pool?" Sam asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Yeah, I did that first. What kind of businessman do you think I am?"

"Was she un-married and legal?" Mercedes asked.

"Yes. She was the owner's hot twenty year old daughter." Puck answered, rolling his eyes. His friends were looking out for him, only asking to make sure he didn't end up in jail or at the end of an angry husband's shotgun.

"Okay, well congrats," the other guy said, popping more Cheez-Its into his mouth before feeding his girlfriend. Puck shook his head.

"To think I witnessed a day in history with you two." Mercedes raised an eyebrow.

"What?" she said, looking between the two men.

"Yeah, what?" Sam repeated.

"I was there when you were still a virgin trying to figure out what condoms to buy," he replied, smiling smugly.

"You invited Puck to pick out condoms?" she asked, looking to Sam.

"What? No! I ran into him at the store," he told her.

"Back when no one knew you were dating and you were both so innocent," Puck said, wiping away an imaginary tear and gaining eye rolls from both his roommates.

Even though he bleached his hair in high school to convince girls he was a hot surfer, Sam never saw himself working in a surf shop. He still knew little about the sport, but the owner took one look at him and he was hired, being referred to as a "Blond Teen Dream' guaranteed to pull more customers. He had to go shirtless for the job, but he didn't care. It was better than being groped at by middle-aged women in a dark bar.

"I say we go home," Derrick, his co-worker said, leaning on the counter next to the blond.

"In the middle of the day?" Sam inquired, raising his eyebrow.

"It's not like we're super busy," he muttered. He was also without a shirt, referred to by their boss as Delicious Chocolate. Teen girls were currently standing outside the entrance of the shop, their faces pressed against the glass as they ogled the two as they worked their shift.

"They could at least buy something," Sam mumbled, clicking a pen that was left on the counter.

"You'd think they'd have stuff to do." Sam was about to respond, but his open mouth was replaced with a grin when he saw Mercedes walk up on the sidewalk. She side-eyed the girls looking in and opened the door, the bell ringing as she entered with a smile on her face.

"Damn," Derrick mumbled, straightening. "I'll help her."

"No, I got it," Sam said, hopping over the counter and walking over to her. He wrapped his arms around her waist after looking her up and down. The black pumps she had on made her legs look fantastic. "What are you all dressed up for?" he asked her.

"There's just a rumor that a record exec is coming to the café this afternoon. It's just a rumor and I don't wanna get my hopes up, but I figured it wouldn't hurt to dress up for my set," she said, wrapping her arms around his neck.

"You're on your break right now?" She nodded and he leaned down to kiss her but was interrupted by Derrick loudly clearing his throat. He turned and looked at his co-worker who had his arms crossed and an intrigued look on his face.

"Oh. 'Cedes this is Derrick, Derrick, this is my girlfriend Mercedes," he introduced. She smiled at him and he winked, prompting Sam to roll his eyes.

"Wow, big lips," the dark skin guy said, obviously approving.

"Anyway, I go for lunch in like two minutes, so we can go pick up something down the street before you go back?"

"Sounds good," she replied, removing her arms and taking his hand. "You don't wanna put a shirt on?" He shrugged.

"We're by a beach. And I don't want to disappoint my fans," he told her. She laughed and looked at the front window to realize she was being glared at by teen girls. If looks could kill, she'd be long gone.

"Let's go, Crazy," she said, pulling him out of the store.

When they made it down the street, they settled on hot dogs from a cart and sat on a bench overlooking the water. They were silent for several minutes, occasionally exchanging small kisses and smiles as she leaned on his shoulder with his arm around her.

"I hope an exec does show up. He'd sign you in a second," he told her after a while.

"I'm trying not to get my hopes up. If comes, great. If he doesn't, oh well. I make pretty good money as it is," she responded.

"Yeah, but we didn't come to LA and piss off both our families for pretty good."

"True…" she said with a faint smile. "But at least we have a roof over our heads. And if he does come, then you best believe I'm bringing my A-game." He grinned and kissed her forehead.

"Speaking of which, I have to call Stevie back," he mentioned.

"Me too."

"What do you mean you too? He called you?"

"Yep. Said he wanted to catch up," she said, suppressing a giggle.

"That little con artist. He's using me to get to you, you know," he told her. She laughed loudly and got a few looks from passersby.

"I doubt it. How's Stacey?"

"Still as innocent as ever, thank God. You never know, especially being out here seeing these twelve year olds with their hair dyed and ten pounds of make-up and bronzer on. It's nice to know she's in her right mind," he said. She nodded.

"Speaking of family stuff, my parents want us home for Thanksgiving. It's a while away, but they called to 'put it in the universe'. They want your family there too and they want to fly us back for a week. Even Puck."

"That'll be interesting," he mumbled, subconsciously tightening his arm around her.

Back when they first moved to LA, without telling either of their families, naturally there was some backlash. Papa Jones nearly had a heart attack when they finally phoned them after getting settled. They'd been ignoring their parents' calls over the whole trip to California, even though it killed them to lie like they did. However, even though they were angry with Sam and Mercedes, the Jones's still cared about their well-being and wired them money on a regular basis. They were angry with their daughter, but they wanted to make sure he was safe.

The Evans weren't quite as livid upon first hearing of Sam's whereabouts. They cursed him out for not telling them where he was of if he was okay, but once they found out he was, they were calm. Sam had already transferred schools in the middle of the year to go be with this girl, so the idea of him following her to Los Angeles wasn't too far off. He kept them updated through phone and Skype, letting them know he and his girlfriend were eating, had jobs, and were getting along fine.

It had been five years since they'd all seen each other face to face, but the tension died down since they were sustaining themselves. Sam still thought Thanksgiving dinner was a big opportunity for disaster though.

"I guess I should tell you Quinn called me," he said out of the blue. He felt her tense a little.

"Yeah, I know. She called me after saying she wanted to catch up with the important people in her life."

"Yeah…honestly I didn't know I was that important to her." He looked out at the water and she sighed.

"How does that make you feel?" she asked. He rolled his eyes.

"Fine I guess. But that's it. I didn't even answer the call because I was working."

"What if she calls again?"

"I might answer it," he said. "If I'm not busy with my job or the woman I love." She smiled and sighed, leaning back on him.

"Sorry."

"I know you still think about what that psychic bitch said."

"Sam!"

"What? She was a bitch! She messed us up for a whole month. You wouldn't sleep with me for a whole month because of her. And you know what I think?" he asked. She shook her head.

"What do you think?"

"I think okay, maybe she was really psychic," he told her.

"Go on…" she replied, raising her eyebrow.

"Maybe she was, and she was able to see people that we knew. I buy that. But in order to make more money, she says ominous shit like 'this person's gonna cause trouble in your marriage' so people will be all sad, asking her to tell them more. So I think maybe she was half legit and the rest was bullshit."

"Interesting theory," she said.

"Because really, every day I spend with you, the more I know how bad I wanna spend my life with you. So to throw it away would be really dumb. I'm not a genius, but I'm not a glutton for pain either," he finished. She was beaming up at him and she didn't even realize it.

"You're something else."

Sam came home that evening and was almost tackled to the ground by Mercedes in an intense hug. He laughed and hugged back even though he was thoroughly confused. When she pulled away, she bounced and clasped her hands together.

"What's going on?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows and closing the door of the apartment.

"The record exec came! And I know I said I didn't want to get my hopes up, but he approached me after my set and asked for my contact information. He's from LaFace, Sam! It was the real deal! He said he'll contact me within the week and I keep telling myself to calm down but I MIGHT GET SIGNED!" she squealed.

Sam just stood there with his mouth open, completely overwhelmed by the news. He had no idea what to say, so he did the next best thing, scooping her up in his arms and spinning her around before crashing his lips to hers excitedly. They parted for air and he set her down, still grinning as he brushed hair out of her face.

"You're going to get signed," he told her.

"It's not final…" she said, unable to stop smiling.

"It might as well be. You're a star, baby. And soon everyone's gonna know and Mr. Shue will have to wallow in his tears of mediocrity as he weeps over never giving you a competition solo," he told her. Her jaw dropped, surprised by that statement for several reasons before she broke out into a giggle.

"You think so?" she asked. He laughed and nodded, leaning in to kiss her again. She cupped his chin and pulled away, looking into his eyes. "I don't want to celebrate yet."

"No?"

"No, we'll celebrate if I get the call."

"Fine. We'll celebrate when you get the call."

Puck came home hours later covered in paint splotches and smelling like smoke. He also had two gallons of grape juice on hand. Mercedes and Sam stared at him from their spot on the couch in front of their small TV. They'd been watching Seinfeld before he came in and Sam was drawing on her jeans with a Sharpie as her thighs went across his lap.

"Do we even want to know?" she asked Puck, leaning on Sam's shoulder.

"Probably not. Good news though; I got some dudes to work for me. Business is going insane lately. Chicks love topless guys cleaning their pools and I'm top notch."

"That's awesome man," Sam said with a genuine smile. "Mercedes met a record executive today and she might get signed."

Puck's eyes bulged and he looked up at them with a grin.

"No fucking way! We have to go out and celebrate tomorrow night!" he said.

"Well…she doesn't want to celebrate until they call. And we have plans tomorrow."

"It's Saturday," the pool cleaner said, looking confused.

"It's also kind of our anniversary," Mercedes replied, absently tangling her fingers in Sam's hair. "Actually we were wondering…"

"If I could go out tomorrow night," Puck finished with a shrug. "I had plans anyway. Go crazy."

"Love you!" she called. He smiled and shook his head.

"Yeah, yeah."

"Hey…" Sam whined, poking his bottom lip out at her.

"Please, you know how much I love you," she said, grinning before kissing his poked out lip. He leaned in and returned it, tossing the Sharpie on the table so he could squeeze her thigh. He slipped his tongue in and she put her hand on his neck, tilting her head for a deeper angle.

"Still here…" Puck mumbled, opening one of the grape juice containers and taking a swig. The couple didn't seem to hear him until he plopped next to them on the couch, startling them away from each other's lips. She smiled at her boyfriend and wiped lip gloss off of his lip with her thumb. She then got up, saying she had to pee and headed for the bathroom.

"So…" Sam began when it was just he and Puck on the couch.

"So?"

"I think I'm gonna do it tomorrow," he said. Puck turned down the volume on the TV.

"Do what?"

"Pop the question?" Sam bit his lip and gaged a response from his friend as his palms grew sweaty.

"Whoa, seriously?" Puck turned toward him with his mouth open slightly.

"Yeah, seriously. I bought a ring yesterday."

"But…"

"I know it's early," Sam said, cutting him off. "But we've been together for years and I wanna make her my wife. I mean, right now we don't have the means for a big wedding and a place of our own, but I want to remind her how serious I am about us."

"Well…" he said, scratching his mohawk. "You have my blessing."

"Awesome. I think she'll love the ring. It's her birthstone," the blond said with a smug smile, staring at the television.

The next evening, Sam was a wreck. He wasn't sure why, but he was and the ring was burning a hole in his jeans pocket. She didn't want to celebrate their anniversary with a fancy dinner, so he took her to the beach. It was the middle of the weekend and all the vendors were out as well as people and their families to see the random acts such as fire-eaters and a man and his monkey. Her hand was linked with his as they walked down the dock and onto the beach itself. She took her shoes off and carried them in one hand as he did the same.

"I really love it here," she said, looking out at the water. They were close to it and the small foamy waves crawled up the sand and hit their feet, making her smile more.

"It's definitely not Lima," he replied, squeezing her hand. He held a towel under his other arm and they stopped soon to sit down on it. He laid it out and got down, spreading his legs for her to get between them and she did, sinking into him while he wrapped his arms around her.

"Do you still dream about our kids?" he asked. He felt her sigh against him.

"Of course I do. I still remember their faces, even." He laughed and nodded.

"Me too. Sometimes I just wanna fast forward to all that, where I have you and my kids and a house and everything is just…perfect," he told her.

"Nothing's ever perfect," she said.

"Once I have you three, it won't matter. All the imperfections will be perfect too because we have each other."

"How touching," she replied, grinning up at him. He placed a soft kiss on her lips and smirked.

"I'm a touching person. I say touching things, I like touching…" he said, letting his hand wander around her body. She laughed because he hit a ticklish spot and he beamed down at her, her laugh still having the same effect on him as it did at the Lima Bean when he first asked her to hang out. He'd still jump off cliffs to hear it.

Soon they were back on their feet, checking out more vendors and even stopping in a photo booth because Sam vowed they would have photos of themselves for every anniversary since they did so far in prom photos.

"Ready to go home?" she asked, when a breeze picked up. He looked down at her and the carnival games on the pier behind her illuminated her face so she seemed like she was glowing. It didn't help his nerves.

"Not yet," he responded, taking her hands. Her eyebrows went up at his sudden serious demeanor, but she kept quiet because he looked like he wanted to continue. "We've been together six years." She laughed.

"Yes, I'm aware. And I haven't killed you yet."

"That's a pretty long time, right?" he asked. She smiled and shook her head at him.

"It's a really long time," she replied.

"Right, and I don't feel the same way about you as I did when you graduated high school," he told her. Her eyebrows drew together in confusion as he went on. "I thought I was crazy about you then and the feeling couldn't get any more intense, but surprise, it did."

She visibly relaxed and then blushed; glad he couldn't tell behind her skin tone and the dim carnival lights. He hooked his finger under her chin so she could look at him and smiled down at her.

"I've been thinking about what to say to you all night and by now I still haven't come up with the right words to explain to you how much you mean to me, Mercedes. I wish I was smarter and I could have written you a deep poem or something…" He stopped when she gave him a look and smile. "See? You do things like that. Like if I ever say something negative about myself you remind me how great you think I am and make me feel like I don't need to be anything more than just me for you. No one other than my family has ever made me feel that way. Ever. It was at a point where I was pretty sure no one would ever love me for just…me, and I was trying to accept that but then you screwed it all up.

"We've been together so long now, and I still wake up in the morning to see you lying next to me and I can't believe how lucky I am, especially when you open your eyes and smile at me. Or scowl, depending on the time of month." She laughed. "But the point is, just seeing your face reminds me of how happy I am to have found someone so…awesome. When that guy showed me the future and I saw you, there was no way I could have predicted how strongly I'd feel about you. I didn't think I'd ever feel this way about anyone. It's like full on romance novel stuff in my head, 'Cedes. I wanna spend my whole life with you. And I know you might think it's too soon or we're not ready, but I know we are deep down."

"Ready for…" Hey eyes widened in realization before she finished the question and he blushed, looking around before getting on one knee, fishing the ring box out of his pocket and opening it. He wasn't sure whether or not he would when he was planning in his head, but he wanted to do this right, and he figured this was a huge part of it. People walking by had stopped in their tracks. Little kids pointed and aspiring photographers snapped shots of them, worsening Sam's nerves. If she told him no; that he was jumping the gun again, he wasn't sure he'd be able to take it well right away.

"I want you to know that there is no one else for me. You've spoiled me and now every other girl pales in comparison and you're the only one I want to be with until I die. So…marry me?" He bit his lip, cursing himself on the inside and thinking he could have asked in a smoother fashion.

Mercedes' hands were covering her mouth and she could feel the eyes of a growing crowd on her. Sam was on one knee, his green eyes twinkling as he waited her for answer, but she was frozen. She wanted to pause this moment and stay like this, even as a few tears spilled over. The feeling was indescribable.

"Yes," she whispered finally, through her hands. Sam stood to his feet and leaned in, and she swore she felt the crowd lean in as well.

"What'd you say?" Sam could have sworn she said yes, but he couldn't be sure. She broke, pulling him forward by his shirt collar and kissing him passionately, throwing her arms around his neck. He held her waist and melted into her embrace, chasing the kiss when they parted with small pecks, each lingering as he stared into her eyes.

"So yes?" he asked.

"Yes," she confirmed, wiping a tear away. There were some whispers within the crowd; things like 'She said yes?' 'Well they kissed, so…' 'I think she said yes!'

Sam pulled away from her to slip the ring on her finger, and it was then the people erupted in applause, hoots and hollers, making Sam grin and blush more than he already was. She kissed him again and pulled him down to press her forehead against his.

"Like Christmas morning?" she asked. He pulled her close as humanly possible and nodded.

"Like Christmas morning."