Chapter 28 – Here Comes The Sun
("Here Comes The Sun" by Colbie Caillat)
Disclaimer: I do not own Glee, their characters, setting, or plot. All of those belong to Ryan Murphy, FOX, and their affiliates.
As fast as I went from feeling down in the dumps to feeling confident, I fell back down. It wasn't that I thought I couldn't fix this. It was that it was such a big problem that I didn't even want to begin to tackle it. Part of me was hoping the glee club would be as quick to forgive me as Blaine was, but none of them really talked to me the next day. Mercedes caught my eye in the hallway and I think she smiled at me a little, but she looked away too fast for me to be sure. The whole day felt very lonely, even with Miss Pillsbury taking me to her office to let me talk about everything going on. I didn't really say much, but she at least made the effort. Things at home didn't get much better. My mom was visiting my dad through the weekend in Chicago and I had the house to myself. Usually I would love that, but with everything going on, I would've like some company.
When Thursday morning rolled around I decided school wasn't going to happen and spent the day in sweats and a t-shirt doing a whole lot of nothing. I kept my mind off of everything by lounging around in the living room with a Harry Potter movie marathon and jacking my body up with Captain Crunch. Friday wasn't very different except it was a Star Wars marathon and a lot of Doritos. And by Monday morning when I woke up to the doorbell ringing, I had successfully spent the entire weekend with junk food and movies, barely getting up from the living room couch, even sleeping there. I was going to hate myself later for it, but a few trips to the gym would set me back on track. And at this point, I was happy with anything that would take my mind off of having to go back to school on Tuesday when my parents were both home.
I kicked my legs off the couch and threw my comforter on the floor. As I walked across the cool hardwood floor, I rubbed my eyes and shook myself awake before unlocking the door and swinging it open.
"Oh shit," the girl said looking surprised. "Okay, let's get inside before anyone sees you." Before I knew it, Quinn was pushing me into the foyer and shut the door behind her.
"What are you doing here?" I asked. She was the last person I expected to be in my house, apart from Blaine I guess. She looked around and glanced back at me.
"Sam, we haven't seen you in days. And what's that smell? Have you been showering?" she asked with a terrified look on her face. She began running her fingers through my blonde hair trying to keep it down and I just stared at her dumbly, not really sure what to say. I still couldn't figure out why she was here. "Okay, go upstairs and get a shower and I'm going to start cleaning up down here." She took off her coat and put it on the end of the bannister before running her fingers over the hem of her navy blue blouse.
"I'm still confused," I told her. "What are you doing here?" I repeated.
"Well I noticed you weren't at school again so I snuck out at lunch to come drag you back," she said.
"Wait, what time is it?" I asked, looking around for a clock.
"A little bit after 12," she replied. "Look, shower now, talk later, okay?" Before I could object, she moved into the living room and began clearing off the coffee table of dishes and food wrappers. I stumbled up the steps and into my room, shutting the door behind me. I wasn't ready for this much craziness in my life, but I wasn't about to fight with her.
After a shower, I felt awake, my hair was somewhat cooperating, and I didn't smell like my gym bag. I walked into my room and got dressed, throwing on jeans, a long sleeve shirt and the blue t-shirt I got slushied in when I met Quinn. At the bottom of the stairs I peered into the living room which looked like it was magically clean. The sunlight came in through the open window blinds and made everything look whiter. I heard the water running in the kitchen and slid through the swinging door to see Quinn washing dishes. She turned around and gave me a small smile. "Mind drying these?" she asked, motioning with her head to a stack of clean dishes in the drying rack. I grabbed a towel and started on the dishes, standing beside her.
"So can we talk about why you're here?" I asked, my voice barely making sound. She continued washing dishes and bit on the inside of her cheek before answering me.
"We just haven't seen you or heard from you in days. You didn't even update your Facebook!" she said. I laughed a bit and I saw the edges of her lips curl up in a small smile. "Don't make fun of me!" she said, a bigger smile breaking free. "I know that sounds like a dumb white girl problem, but it's true. Did you think nobody was going to notice you were missing?"
"Missing? I knew where I was the whole time," I replied sweetly. She put the last dish on the drying rack before turning to face me.
"I came to bring you back to school," she said sitting on a stool by the island counter. "We're having this assembly this afternoon and I wanted you to come with me."
"Oh," I muttered.
"And I also wanted to say I'm sorry. I didn't react well to everything that happened and it was classless and really judgmental of me."
"Don't apologize," I said putting away the last dish and sitting next to her. "I really screwed up and you didn't deserve to be hurt like that. You responded like any girl would have. Better even," I admitted. "Most girls would've gone crazy."
"Mercedes threw a brick through Kurt's windshield when she thought he didn't like her," Quinn said matter-of-factly.
"See," I replied with a grin. "My car's totally intact," I said before stopping suddenly, my face getting serious. "Right?" I asked her. She laughed a bit.
"Yes, your car is fine." I breathed a sigh of relief and she glanced back over. "Still, I'm sorry. I uh, I know what it's like to be scared. And to lie about it," she said. "But that was then," she continued as she perked up. "And this is now. So we're going to call this one a lesson learned and move on with our lives." I smiled at her and looked into her hazel eyes.
"You really are incredible," I said.
"You are too Sam. You know, you never had to lie to me. I would've loved you just the way you are," she replied.
"Ah! Get over here," I growled, pulling her in for a hug. She laughed and hugged me back. "Thank you," I said quietly. We broke our hug and stood up, pushing the stools under the counter. "So what's this assembly about anyway?" I asked.
"You'll see," she replied with a sneaky look on her face. "It's a surprise." I grabbed my bag and we drove to school, Quinn practically racing through the streets to make it back in time. We barely made it and snuck in through the courtyard door before walking to the gym. The bleachers were already full, but we spotted two seats in the front row. I looked up and noticed hundreds of eyes facing my way. I instantly got nervous, but Quinn grabbed my hand and pulled me to our seats. "Come on Sam, don't worry," she said. We sat down just as Principal Figgins got to the microphone.
"If I could have everyone's attention," he said with his thick Indian accent. "We're going to get this assembly under way so if everyone could please be quiet." The talking died down and Figgins spoke into the microphone. "It has come to my attention from several staff and students that our school has a severe bullying problem." I glanced over to Quinn who shot me a quick, but reassuring smile before nodding to Principal Figgins. "So today we're going to be kicking off our new anti-bullying program with an assembly followed by in-class discussions in your homerooms. We've been working closely with other schools in forming this new anti-bullying policy. So we expect your full attention as we begin with a special performance from the New Directions," he said in a flat tone before stepping away from the microphone. The glee club began entering from behind a screen that was set up in the middle of the basketball court and stood in their places.
"Thanks Principal Figgins," Finn said stepping up to the mic. "Uh, hi. My name's Finn Hudson and uh, I just wanted to introduce our next number. But before I do, I have a few things I want to say, on behalf of myself and all the kids behind me," he said, turning around for a quick look at the glee club. "The bullying at this school is out of control. And we're all guilty. I would bet money that everyone in this room has bullied someone at one point or another. But we have to stop it." He spoke confidently and it was actually pretty sincere. At least, considering it was coming from Finn. "We have to stand up to bullies. We can't keep sitting back and doing nothing. I'll be the first to admit I've been a bully. I've treated people badly for no good reason. I've judged harshly. I've acted like a jerk. And I'm sorry for that. But I want to be the first one to make a change and stand up to bullying, to stand here and say that it's not going to happen again," he declared. "We all do," he continued, motioning to the kids behind him.
"Now I know that it's not always easy to put aside your differences. It's not easy to make friends out of enemies in high school. But we want to perform something for you guys that will prove it's possible," he said. "It's possible to work together and take a stand against bullying. So this song is for anyone who is different. Who feels like they can't be themselves. Who feels like no one has their back. This song is for all of those kids. Because you're not alone." The gym was dead silent, hanging on to his every word. "This one's for you buddy," he said, looking over at me. I gulped as he stared into my eyes. "We've got your back." Quinn leaned closer and grabbed my arm with one hand, using the other to run down my spine. I turned to look at her and she was beaming.
"Just wait," she said.
"And now, I'd like to introduce some guests for our performance, the Dalton Academy Warblers," Finn said turning around. Two lines of Dalton students filed out from behind the screen with their hands behind their backs wearing their uniforms. Right in the front was Blaine. I turned to Quinn with a shocked expression and I could see the excitement on her face. Even her eyes were smiling. "Without further ado, let's get out of the dark. The bad times are over. It's time for a new start for all of us," Finn said.
I heard the first few strings from Puck's guitar before the Warblers jumped in and began singing, following by the New Directions. Almost right away, Blaine broke from the Warblers and walked toward me.
Here comes the sun,
Here comes the sun and I say
It's alright.
Blaine took my hand and began his solo, singing to me and pulling me onto the court.
Little darling, it's been a long, cold lonely winter.
Little darling, it feels like years since it's been here.
As he sang to me, I was half embarrassed to be brought up in front of everyone, half euphoric he was singing to me. As if I couldn't be any happier, he put his arm on my shoulder and pulled me close to him. I could feel myself blushing, but soon, the whole group began singing again.
Here comes the sun,
Here comes the sun and I say
It's alright.
Then it was Quinn's turn. She followed us onto the stage and sang on the other side of me.
Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces.
Little darling, it seems like years since it's been here.
She put her arm behind my back, sandwiching me between her and Blaine. The group began to sing behind us again and finally I joined in.
Here comes the sun,
Here comes the sun and I say
It's alright.
The song continued and the New Directions began dancing with their Warbler partners, mixing the two groups into one mass of singers. The smile that took over my face was unstoppable. In a few moments, I thought back on everything I had been through. I had been on a free fall to destruction only to be saved by Blaine. Then I fell even deeper. And yet here I was, surrounded by friends, true friends, who saved me again. I was never so happy in my life. I knew that no matter what happened, I wouldn't let them down and they wouldn't let me down. And with their help, I was going to be a better person than I ever imagined. I pulled Quinn and Blaine closer to me and as the song ended and I was engulfed in the middle of a giant group hug from both glee clubs, I sang the last line, believing every bit of it.
It's alright.
