Marcy played with Mike's fingers as they waited for the plane to land. "This is boring!"

"Just relax. He'll be here soon."

"I can't wait for him to get to know everybody." She lifted her head from his shoulder. "He's amazing."

"I'm sure he is."

Marcy laid her head back on his shoulder & sighed. "I'm sorry you guys were caught."

Mike sighed, too. "We knew the risks when we started. We knew there was a possibility of getting caught & we did it anyway."

"But marriage is a big step. It's hard."

"You do it." He looked down at her.

"Because I had no choice."

"We have no choice."

"I feel like if you can beg enough, you'll get out of it."

"Have you met our dads?"

"By you, I meant Mercy & Q."

He chuckled. "So if you had a choice, you wouldn't have married Mal?"

"If I was going to marry anybody, it would be Mal but I don't know. I never wanted to get married. I'm just lucky it's to him & not some abhorrent individual."

"Pop would never marry you off to someone unpleasant."

"With all the heartache I caused him, I don't know why not."

"You didn't cause the problems. You were a victim."

"I hate that word." She sighed heavily.

"I know but cheer up. Your friend just got in."

Marcy wrinkled her nose. "Huh?"

Mike pointed in front of them to the lanky blonde walking towards them with luggage.

Marcy screamed with joy & popped up to run to her friend. She leaped on him & they fell to the ground in a mess of tangled limbs.

Mike laughed as people watched them hug.

"Dude!" Jude Nixon's raspy voice made itself known.

"Jude!" Marcy sat up on his lap & pushed her hair back. She slapped his chest. "I missed you!"

"I missed you, too brah."

"Come on. My brother's going to drop us off. I did your room up really nice."

"Thanks, dude." Jude sat up on his elbows.

Marcy climbed off him then offered her hand so he could get up. "You're going to love coming to school with me tomorrow."

"Why? Isn't it a school like any other?" He bent to pick up his bags.

"It's a public school. Rules are different." She took a bag from him & led him to Mike. "Mikey, meet Jude, my brother from another mother. Jude, meet my big brother, Mikey."

The guys shook hands & said hello.

Marcy smiled to herself. This was going to be amazing!

W.W.W.

"This is my first period." Marcy pointed out the room. "It's so much fun."

Jude smiled. "Whatever you say, brah."

"I do cuz it is."

"Mathematics in the a.m.?" He shook his head.

She smiled. "Math is cool!"

"You're too smart for me."

"No way." She took his hand & led him to her second period then her third before taking him to the cafeteria. "This is where we eat lunch. Or breakfast but we eat breakfast at home so…"

Jude nodded.

"So let's go meet my friends." She took him to Artie's locker. "Hey, RT. What's up, Korean Fruit?"

"Hey, Boo Thang." Artie inclined his head.

"H-hi, Marcy." Tina smiled.

"We were just talking about you."

"You were? Why?" Marcy was confused.

"We wanted to have game night & Tina wasn't sure girls should come. She thinks we'll hold back if you were there. You know I'm not gon stop doin me."

Marcy laughed. "Game night sounds awesome. Who cares what the guys think? We can smash them any day of the week. I say the more, the merrier."

"That's my girl!"

"Anyway, guys. This is my friend, Jude. Jude, this is Artie Abrams & Tina Cohen-Chang."

Jude shook each of their hands. "It's nice to meet ya, bros."

"H-hi, J-Jude." Tina smiled at him.

"What's up, man?" Artie greeted.

"He's going to be staying with us for a while so get used to seeing him." Marcy said. "But we gotta go meet other people. See you later."

"Bye!" Artie & Tina waved.

Jude waved before stuffing his hands in his pockets as they walked away. "Where to now, brah?"

"You're going to meet a lot more cheerleaders & the lacrosse team. What do you think?"

Jude shrugged. "Cool."

Marcy threaded her arm through his & smiled. "Cool."

W.W.W.

"Rehearsals are closed to outside influences!" Rachel shouted.

"I don't care about outside influences! Jude stays!" Marcy crossed her arms.

"Mr. Shue!" They both yelled as they turned to the curly haired man, who gulped.

"Marcy, practices are usually closed." He started.

"No, they're not! No one wants to come is all!" She spat.

"What's the harm in letting Jude stay, Rachel?" He looked to the Jewish songstress.

"He could be working for the enemy!" Rachel huffed.

"You mean like your boyfriend?!" Marcy rolled her neck.

"Jesse is above petty tricks!" Rachel was outraged.

"He's not above you." Marcy raised an eyebrow.

"Ooh!" The previously silent class instigated.

Rachel turns a few shades of red. "Mr. Shue! Did you hear what she just said to me?!"

"Marcy, that wasn't very nice." Mr. Shue hated being in the middle.

"She's not very nice! That's why nobody likes her!" Marcy refused to apologize.

"Maybe I could go to a library?" Jude offered.

"Sit down, Jude!"

He sat.

Marcy whipped around to Rachel & pointed a finger in her face. "I don't care what you gotta do to get over it but you better get hoppin! He's staying. You have the choice to stay or go! Any more lip & I'll kick your ass & put you out! Got it?!"

Rachel gulped. "Mr. Shue, that's not fair! She can't put me out!"

"Rachel, please take a seat." Mr. Shue begged.

Rachel started crying. "It's not fair!"

Marcy smacked her. "Shut up!"

Rachel's mouth fell open & she began to cry for real. "I can't believe you hit me."

"Keep crying & I'll keep doing it." Marcy pointed to a seat. "Go sit down!"

Rachel walked to a seat & sat down.

"Sorry, Mr. Shue." Marcy sat between Artie & Jude. "Go on. Teach."

Mr. Shue cleared his throat & shushed the snickering kids. "Settle down! Settle down! We have Regionals coming up in a few months & we need to prepare."

W.W.W.

"Why did you hit that girl?" Jude asked as they were walking to lacrosse practice.

"She pissed me off. She's so annoying." Marcy frowned. She hadn't meant to hit Rachel but she had poor impulse control & in that moment she wanted nothing more than to slap the taste out of her mouth.

"She's loud but I could have gone somewhere else, brah."

"No, you couldn't." Her brows drew together. She was sick of people getting rid of Jude just because his mere presence inconvenienced them.

Jude put his arm around her. "Thank you."

"You're welcome."

W.W.W.

"& she just hauled off & smacked her!" Santana giggled.

"Stop telling that story!" Mercedes pinched Santana's arm.

"Ow! It was awesome, Aretha! I'm never going to stop telling that story!" Santana was telling the rest of the squad what happened at glee rehearsals.

"She deserved it." Quinn added. "Jude's a nice kid. He wasn't hurting anyone by being there. Rachel just wanted to bitch."

"Even so, Marcy had no right to put her hands on her." Mercedes said.

"Weren't you laughing, too?" Santana sassed.

"& I was wrong."

"I don't care what you say, Rachel had it coming." Quinn shook her head.

"She's like a drowning fish." Brittany murmured.

The whole squad turned to face her but she didn't clarify.

"Who's like a drowning fish, Britt?" Santana asked.

"Rachel. Her scales are turning brown & everything."

"Okay…" Quinn blinked. "The point is that Rachel is a menace & Marcy finally did what we all wanted to. Even you, Merce."

Mercedes pursed her lips. "Her doing Run, Joey, Run with Noah did piss me off."

"& didn't you want to put her in her place?"

"I wanted to kill her. & him."

"Was Marcy all that wrong?"

"I guess not but I wish she didn't have to hit her."

"Your bleeding heart is going to make a mess one day." Santana warned.

Mercedes just stuck her nose in the air.

W.W.W.

"Did you have fun at the game yesterday?" Marcy asked.

Jude nodded. "Why do you play in the snow?"

"Lacrosse is like soccer; we play in all weather but a lightening storm." She lifted a shoulder.

"Seems dangerous, brah."

"They don't care about us."

He smirked. "So where are we going now?"

"To my drivers Ed class. It's my last one & I have a test. If I pass, I get my permit. If I get my permit, I get the keys to my car."

He grinned. "I can't believe you built your own car. You're my hero, brah."

"I'm my own hero." They made it to the classroom & read the sign on the door telling them to go to the parking lot. "Well let's go."

W.W.W.

Marcy & Jude walked into glee rehearsals with big smiles. They had news.

"How'd you do?" Mike wanted to know immediately.

Marcy held out a slip of paper. "I passed!"

Mike hugged her. "I'm so proud of you!"

She nearly vibrated. "I get Travis! I can't wait to get home & tell Daddy!"

"He's going to be happy, too."

"What's going on?" Mr. Shue asked as he walked in.

"I got my permit." Marcy held it up.

"Congratulations!"

"Thank you." She smiled warmly.

"How are you going to celebrate?"

"I didn't even think of that." She made a few faces before a smile broke out. "We can go for fro-yo!"

Mr. Shue laughed at her excitement level. "Just be careful."

"I will. Thank you, Mr. Shue." She pulled Jude to a seat & sat down.

W.W.W.

"Did you bring a suit?"

Jude looked up from the book he was flipping through. "Yes, I did."

"Good. I don't want you to be out of place." Marcy folded the last of the twins' clothes & started stuffing them in a suitcase. She usually would have packed sooner but she'd been so busy that week that she didn't have the time.

"Aren't they getting married on the beach?" He flipped a page.

"Yeah but we're still in formal wear." She went to the closet for shoes & brought them back to stuff into the suitcase.

"Do you want any help?"

"No thank you. You know me. I have a system." & it was true. She was OCD & had to pack a certain way. There was no "or".

Jude nodded. "Why isn't Mal helping?"

"He is. He's keeping the twins out of here. Every time I pack, they want to play in the stuff & nothing gets done."

Jude laughed. "They can make fun out of anything."

"They're a couple of weirdos."

He shook his head. "You love them."

"Which says a lot about me."

"Stop. I'd kill to have what you have, brah."

"I would have killed to have what I have now. I'm so grateful. When I think about how things used to be, I get so depressed but then I think about how things are now & I'm happy again."

"I'm glad you're happy."

She looked at him. "You're going to be happy, too. Even if I have to kill everyone to do it."

He laughed again. "Don't worry about me."

"Too late. You're on my list. I have to take care of you."

He smiled. "Thank you but I can take care of myself."

"You've been doing it long enough." She muttered.

He raised an eyebrow. "You have fierce mothering instincts."

"You think so?" She zipped up the suitcase.

"Very fierce."

She thought it over as she made sure everyone had the right toiletries. "I can live with that."

He smirked. "How are you going to take your kids growing up?"

"With grace & aplomb." She made a face as if to say "duh".

"What about when your son starts dating?"

"Oh, he's going to be gay."

"Marceline Anne!"

"He is!"

He laughed. "Is that your gaydar working?"

A sheepish expression crawled over her face. "Not exactly."

"Then how do you know?"

She pursed her lips. "I just want him to be."

He stared at her. "Dude."

"& if she was, that'd be a load off my mind, too."

He fell out laughing. "I love being around you!"

She smiled beautifully.