Mercedes woke up to the smell of bacon and the sound of her daughter screaming between giggles. She could hear her mother instructing Samyra on how to properly cook the bacon. The giggles brought a smile to her face, and for that mere second she almost forgot what she was about to do. She felt something heavy down in the bottom of her belly as she got up and made her way to the bathroom. She took a long shower as she tried to figure out what she would say to her daughter about leaving her father. She debated on what she would tell her parents. Once she was done with her shower, she decided that she would lead the conversation with the news of her music career. She slowly got dressed then made her way to the dining room where everyone was seated and eating.

"Good morning sleepyhead." her father said with a smile. Mercedes smiled and gave him a kiss on his forehead before sitting down next to him and reaching for a biscuit.

"Good morning, Dad." she looked over to her mother and smiled as well. "Morning mama...hey baby girl." she added before looking over to her daughter who was stuffing her face with pancakes.

"I told you my mom was here." Samyra said with a prideful smile.

"You're right."

"Yeah...I got in last night. I didn't want to wake you guys." Mercedes explained before taking a bite out of her biscuit. "I, uh, am happy you're all here. I have some thing I wanted to talk to you guys about."

"Oh, would you like for Samyra to eat in the living room while we talk?" her father asked.

"No...I need to speak with her as well. It's about my trip to Memphis." Mercedes replied as she forced a smile on her face and gave a comforting nod. She looked around the table as everyone stared back at her with anticipation. "It's a bit of good news so you can relax."

"We're relaxed baby, you, you seem a bit uneasy." her mother said as she put her fork down. "Whatever it is, you know you can tell us." her mother added. Something about the way her mother said it made her feel as if her mother already knew. It was almost as if she was giving Mercedes permission to confess that she was with Sam in Memphis.

"I know, mom." she smiled then took a deep breath as she tried to remember what she planned during her shower. "So, you all remember when I used to want to be a singer, right?" she looked around and waited as they all nodded then waited. "Well, the main reason I went to Memphis was to meet up with a music exec that shown some interest in me. And they are interested in giving me a chance." she smiled nervously and waited to see their reaction.

"Seriously, mom? That's amazing!" Samyra exclaimed before running towards her mother and hugging her. She held her daughter tight and closed her eyes wondering if this would be the last time that she would be happy to hug her mother. She opened her eyes and noticed her parents looking at her with concern.

"Mom? Dad?"

"We're just in shock." her father said as he looked over to her mother.

"How did this music exec find you?" she asked. Samyra made her way back to her seat and looked at all the adults on the table. Mercedes could tell that her mother wanted her to mention Sam. Mercedes wasn't sure how to bring him up before talking more with Samyra.

"They received a video of me performing at The Shack." Mercedes replied. She wasn't exactly lying but she wasn't telling the whole truth and she knew she had to tell them.

"Okay, well, we're really happy for you baby girl. What did Noah say about all of this? He's always been a bit apprehensive of you following that career path."

"I know, Dad. And for a while I allowed him to stand between my dream of becoming a singer. I haven't told him but I will after I drop Myra to school tomorrow." she replied then looked over to Samyra and took another deep breath. "Baby, can you let me talk to Nana and Pop for a second?"

"Why can't I stay, mom? You're going to talk about me and Dad, right? I should be here for that, right?"

"Wrong." Mercedes responded then pointed to the living room. "Give us a minute and I will talk with you about all this. I promise." Mercedes frowned as she watched Samyra reluctantly step out of the room. She was not looking forward to this conversation but she could tell by the look on her mother's face that she needed to talk to her parents first.

"You went to Memphis with Sam Evans, didn't you?" her mother asked once Samyra was out of ear shot. "He's the same Sam Evans that teaches her art class that she won't stop talking about, isn't it?"

"Mom, let me explain..."

"If you're going to explain, give it to us straight. What's going on?" her father interjected. Mercedes looked between her parents and nodded before finally taking a deep breath again.

"Okay, yes mom, I did go to Memphis with Sam. Yes, he's her teacher." Mercedes responded. "He's the same Sam, that took me to prom..."

"And took your virginity nine years ago." her mother said shocking both Mercedes and her father. Mercedes never knew that her mother knew anything about her losing her virginity to Sam. "I saw when he left your room that morning. He didn't know or see me but I saw him. I had planned to say something to the both of you about it but I didn't." her mother sighed before focusing on Mercedes. "You just looked so sad after he left, I didn't know what to say to console you."

"And no one told me any of this?" her father asked as he looked a the both of them in shock.

"I didn't know what to say. And then she started dating Puck and she just kind of lost yourself in him. I didn't know what to say." her voice broke as she took Mercedes by the hand. "If singing brings back our happy singing Princess back to us...then you have my support but I need you to never keep things from me again."

"I promise, mom. I'm sorry." Mercedes said as she hugged her mother as tears fell from her eyes. She felt her father slowly join them in the hug before finally parting from them and wiping her eyes. "I won't keep anything from you anymore. I promise."

"Okay...well then is there anything else you want to tell us?" her mother asked.

"Well, I do plan on breaking things off with Noah. So I am going to need more of your support with everything. Especially when I start recording and have to travel to Memphis." she replied. She noticed her mother looked a bit annoyed by her response but before she could ask her about it her mother asked a different question.

"Do you want us to pick Samyra up from school tomorrow so that you can talk to Noah privately? Do you want us there when you break up with him?" her mother asked.

"No, he won't do anything crazy. He's not the brightest but he ain't suicidal." Mercedes said before smiling at her parents. The conversation with them went by better than she expected and now she had to talk to her daughter. "I'm going to go talk to Myra now." she stood before walking over to the living room where she could hear Samyra trying to run back to the sofa. Mercedes shook her head as she watched her pretend to draw. "How much did you hear?" she asked then sat next to her.

"Huh?" Samyra said as she continued to act like she didn't notice her mother was there. "Oh hey mom."

"Forget drawing, you need to be in some drama club with all of that." Mercedes said as she took her drawing book from her and closed it. "I need to talk to you."

"About Dad?" she asked before looking at her mother. "You're getting a divorce, huh?" she asked causing Mercedes to laugh.

"Not a divorce, baby, but things are going to change. I want you to know that your dad and I love you and will continue to love you. We just won't live together anymore." she explained then watched as Samyra tried to make sense of it all.

"Will I still go to my school?" she asked confusing Mercedes.

"Why would you not go to your school?"

"I heard you say that you would be going to Memphis." Samyra responded. "Which means I won't go to my school and I won't get to show Mr. Evans when I finish the comic book he gave me."

"Don't worry baby. No matter what happens, we will make sure Mr. Evans sees your finished product." Mercedes smiled in shock as she hugged her daughter. Here she thought she would be mad about losing her father but instead she was just mad that she wouldn't see Sam anymore. If only she knew, that soon Sam would be around more than she knew.

The next day, Mercedes went home after dropping Samyra off to school. She began packing all of her things and Samyra's things and cleaned to calm her nerves. She wondered if Sam got her message and if he was upset that she left him the way she did. She hadn't heard from him so she assumed he was upset. She checked his Facebook and Instagram account but he hadn't post anything at all. She was minutes from contacting Santana when she heard the sound of keys at the door. She took a deep breath then walked back out to the living room. Every thing was different now and things were only going to change more. She hadn't seen Puck in days and now she was about to confess about being with Sam and pursuing her career. She couldn't believe that between the two, she was going to be the person that caused the relationship to end. She'd always suspected Puck had affairs but she never had proof and now he was going to have the upper hand.

"Hey." Puck said as he opened the door and brought in his luggage then stopped when he noticed her luggage near the door. "I didn't expect you to be home."

"Isn't that where you want me to stay? At home doing nothing but waiting for you to return?" Mercedes asked as she crossed her arms. He looked at her then allowed a smile to appear on his face before nudging his head towards her luggage near the door.

"You just getting back in?" he asked as he kicked the door shut before setting his stuff down.

"We need to talk."

"Is this about the past due bills?" he asked before sighing real loud. "I will take care of it all. You don't have to worry your pretty little head about none of it, babe." he responded before leaning over to kiss her head. Mercedes leaned away and glared at him. "What? I promise. No need to continue being all mad at me." he said as he pulled her by her waist. "I've missed you." Puck said as he placed a kiss on her neck.

"I went to Memphis and met with a music exec about pursuing my music career." Mercedes said. Puck paused before slowly stepping away from her then looking at her as if she suddenly looked unrecognizable.

"Memphis?"

"Yes."

"Sam's Memphis?"

"Sam doesn't own Memphis, Puck." Mercedes replied as she rolled her eyes.

"But he put those ideas in your head didn't he? You were perfectly happy then all of a sudden he comes back in town and you're all ready to lose it all for music."

"Lose it all?" Mercedes asked. "And how would you know if I was perfectly happy?"

"I take care of you, Mercedes. I take of our family. What more do you want to make you happy?" Puck asked.

"Puck we have past due notices on more than one bill. You refuse to let me get a job to help out around here and that lifestyle, Puckerman, would never make me happy." she walked away from him and turned to face him again. "I have a chance at a real contract and I'm not letting you get in the way of that. Not anymore!"

"Sam got you that contract so he can sleep with you?" Puck asked.

"Oh hell to the no, Puckerman! I got the contract with my talent. Sure, Sam believed in me and my singing career, unlike you."

"So you fucked him?"

"Did you fuck Lauren?"

"Don't turn this on me, Mercedes!" Puck shouted back. "Did you fuck Sam for that contract?" he asked again.

"Puck, I don't care what you believe and it is irrelevant. I am taking the contract and I have spoke to my parents about helping with Samyra. We're going to move back to my parents house till I can get my own place." Mercedes said as she walked over to grab her bags.

"You're not leaving." Puck said as he snatched the bag from her hands. "Just..." he paused as she glared at him then sighed. "Just stay. We can work it all out." he said causing Mercedes to soften her glare. He looked as if he was really afraid of losing her but it was all too late.

"Puck...sorry, I have to do this." she replied then stepped away from him. "I am not happy here."

"And you think you'll be happy with him?" he asked. "He left you before and he'll do it again."

"I don't care, Puck. I am not doing this for Sam. I am doing this for me."she replied as she grabbed her bags and opened the front door. The minute she took a step outside of the door Puck stopped her.

"If you leave, I will file for full custody of Nora."

"You wouldn't?"

"I already lost Beth, you think I'm just going to let you take Nora too?" he asked. "I will tell them that you would rather sing around the world instead of being there for your daughter. So, go have your singing career but just remember she will be with me and you will only have visitation rights." he threatened. Mercedes felt her heart drop to the pit of her stomach as she slowly stepped back into the house.

"Don't..." Mercedes said as she dropped the bag down.

"Don't make me do it." Puck said as he grabbed his keys then made his way towards the door.

"Where are you going? We're not done talking."

"We are done talking! You're not leaving me and I'm going to pick up our daughter from school." he said as he stepped outside. Mercedes quickly followed behind him and got into the car. She wasn't about to let him pick Samyra up without her. The conversation definitely didn't go the way she planned. She knew he would be upset but she never thought he would threaten to file full custody. Mercedes wanted her music career but not at the cost of losing her daughter. He drove in complete silence then came to a screeching halt when he got to the school. He was glaring and Mercedes could see that he was looking right at Sam. Before she could stop him, Puck had jumped out of the car and charging towards Sam.

Sam's Sunday and Monday were filled with questions and scenarios that kept running through his mind. He couldn't get the thought that Samyra was his daughter out of his head. How did he not figure it out before? The signs were all there but he never saw them. She really did look like Stacy and he should have noticed it since the first time he saw her at the grocery store with Mercedes. But he was distracted by seeing that she was with Puck that he ignored it all. Aside from the hazel eyes she was practically Stacy's twin. It was all there and he ignored before and now it was all he thought about. He waited for Mercedes at the Lima Bean but she never showed up. He wanted to ask her if she ever thought there was a possibility that he was the father or if she was clueless like his mother thought. He still didn't have a phone as he learned when he returned that he had spent way too much money trying to impress Mercedes. He had to sacrifice his cellphone for the time being. As much as he couldn't wait to see Mercedes again, he really couldn't wait to see Samyra. So when the bell rang for his art class to arrive he felt his heart begin to increase in speed.

"Hey everybody." he smiled as they all entered in one by one. He kept searching for Samyra and smiled when she finally appeared clutching the comic book he gave her. The smile on his face disappeared when he noticed the apparent frown on her face. He immediately felt as if he needed to console her. "Hey Samyra, are you okay?" he asked. She didn't look at him but she shook her head then shrugged as if she wasn't sure. He looked to his class and advised them to draw what they did over the weekend then stepped outside with her. "What's going on?"

"I don't know." she replied as tears fell from her eyes. Sam fought everything in him to pull her in and hug her tight. He wanted to be a father to her. He wanted to tell her that he was always going to be there for her.

"So, you're crying for...nothing?" Sam asked as he forced a smile on his face hoping it would make her smile. "Come on, you can tell me."

"My mom and dad are divorcing or something like that." she finally said. To Sam this was all great news but as a new father he didn't want to see his daughter hurt even if it was because she thought some other man was her dad. He also hated that he was partially if not completely the cause of the break up.

"Why would you say that?"

"She told me that we were moving." she sobbed for a bit. "I don't want to move." she admitted. "What if I don't have a cool teacher like you or friends that I have here?" she asked. Sam wasn't sure if Mercedes told Samyra about moving to Memphis and it was obvious she had no clue about him. So he tried to console her in the best way he could.

"I will always be here for you. No matter where you go." Sam stated meaning more as a parent than a teacher. She looked at him and smiled before handing him the comic book. "Did you draw more?" he asked as he flipped through it and smiled at her progress. "These are amazing." There was no doubt to him now that she was definitely his daughter. All he had to do was talk to Mercedes about what they would do about this going forward. "Come on let's get back to the class and we'll talk to your mother more about keeping in touch if you have to move, okay?"

"Thank you, Mr. Evans." she replied with a smile. Sam sighed as he wondered when or if she would ever call him, dad. He knew things were going to be complicated and he was praying for patience. He knew he was going to need it.

At the end of the school day, Sam joined the other teachers outside so that they can monitor the dismissals. He normally shot out of there like a bat out of hell so that he could spend time in his studio, but not today. He wanted to be there when Mercedes picked up Samyra. He couldn't wait to see her again. To tell her that although it hurt that she left the way she did, he got over it. He wanted her to know that he couldn't wait to kiss her again and hold her tight but he knew he would have to settle with communicating silently as they had done so many times back at McKinley. Oddly, the two of them were known to have numerous conversations by simply staring at each other. Today was going to be the same way as the focus was going to be on consoling Samyra.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Sam asked as he approached Samyra standing by herself at the farther end of the entrance of the school. She looked up to him and shrugged once more. It was obvious that she had a lot on her mind.

"Are your parents divorced?" She asked. "Melissa told me that when her parents got a divorce, they made her go to court and she had to pick between her parents." she added. Sam wanted to tell her how much he wished his parents would divorce but he knew that this was neither the time nor the place.

"Well, I am sure your mom and dad will make sure you never have to pick between them. They will always think of your well-being first." Sam responded. He was thinking of himself instead of Puck which was an issue in itself. He automatically forgot completely when it came to Puckerman. Sam was minutes away from saying something else to comfort her when he noticed Puckerman coming their way. He could tell from the look in his eyes that Mercedes told him about going to Memphis.

"GET AWAY FROM MY DAUGHTER!" Puck shouted before pulling Samyra to him. Sam stepped back and looked around as everyone started looking in their direction. "You're lucky you're on school grounds." he said with clenched teeth.

"Daddy!" Samyra shouted causing Sam to look her way. He knew she was talking to Puck but he felt as if he should have said something. Instead he tried to calm himself down.

"It's okay Samyra."

"Her name is Nora."

"Her name is Samyra." Sam challenged and prepared to say more but stopped when he noticed Mercedes coming towards him. Just seeing her again was enough to calm him down a bit more as he stepped back. They locked eyes and he could tell she wanted to apologize but she couldn't say it with Puck there.

"You stay away from Mercedes. Stop putting all these crazy ideas in her head." Puck said as Mercedes stepped back with Samyra. Sam could tell that Mercedes and Puck had most likely just had a fight and he was the top subject. He could also tell that she told Samyra the diluted version and didn't want her to hear their conversation. She made sure Samyra wasn't too close to hear Sam and Puck talking. "I know you had a little fun with her in Memphis. Let that be the last time." he added before turning to walk away with Mercedes. Mercedes turned to look at Sam once more causing Puck to turn once again and charge back at Sam. "And stay away from my daughter!" he added before turning to walk away.

"She's not your daughter." Sam said causing Puck to stop mid-step before continuing to walk back to his car with Samyra. Mercedes glared at him as if he had said the worse thing in the world. She looked around at everyone that was staring then shook her head before turning to follow Puck. Sam hated that he said it there on school grounds but he just couldn't hold it in any longer. Now he may have ruin things with Mercedes and he might have also lost his job with the school. Everyone was still staring at him and from the way Puck was acting, it was as if Sam had done something inappropriate. He shoved his hands in his pockets and quickly made his way to the car. He needed to talk to Mercedes and he didn't care how Puckerman felt about it.

So the cats out of the bag...well kind of out of the bag. Where the hell has Puck been? What else does Mama Jones know? Will Mercedes give up her music career for real?

Mowatts: So Puck did not let her go...dun dun dunnnnn

Sadhappy: So Puckcedes had the talk lol but we still don't know where Puck has been...guess we will know soon

Storm Carson: I was wondering if you all wanted to see different POVs been debating it since the 2nd chapter

whoknowstv: Well Mercedes tried to kick him to the curb...but u got the Spuck confrontation lol

Zini: Well Sam sees it now