Thanking you all again for the reviews! Hope you enjoy the chapter!
Devon Jones- Jerrika Hinton
Next Monday, just under 3 weeks until Mercedes' departure
Sam shot Mercedes a text message letting her know that the assembly footage was on its way to her as soon as he finished editing it. At the hospital, Marvin was sent home, said only to be experiencing indigestion. But Mercedes, being the cautious person she was, had been reluctant to leave his side and didn't make it to the students' last rehearsal or the assembly. As he expected, the kids were incredibly understanding and excited to work hard so that Sam could tape the assembly performance, show it to her, and impress her even more. He was sending her the footage when he felt someone enter the room.
"Knock, knock," said a familiar voice.
Sam looked up to see her. "Coach Baker, hey."
She frowned, stopping midway in the doorway. "Coach Baker?"
He gave her an awkward smile. "Dani," he corrected.
Daniella resumed her entrance into the office, closing the door behind her. "That's not the voice of my favorite coworker who's excited to see me. Especially not after that amazing assembly performance. You should be over the moon right now," She teased as she sat down in one of the chairs across from his desk. "You said you wanted to talk to me?"
"Yeah, I did. Thanks for the compliment. The kids worked really hard. I was going to tell you to have a seat, but you already did that." He tried to laugh. "I needed to talk to you about a couple of things. First off, I think our relationship has become too much pleasure and not enough business."
"Well, I don't see how that's possible." She smiled, laughing. "We've only seen each other at work for the past month. Even less than usual because it's not been glee related lately."
"I know that and it actually brings me to my second thing." He said, trying to figure out how to let her down easily. "I'm going to be removing you as Head Advisor for the Troubletones. Actually, I was hoping that you would take it upon yourself to step down."
Her smile faltered. "What?"
He cursed himself, realizing he probably went about that wrong. "You remember when you were at my house a few days back?"
"I do."
"And you met Mercedes?"
"I did. She's a charming little thing, isn't she?"
Sam stopped himself from frowning at her calling his fiancée a 'thing'. "Yeah, she's great. Anyways—"
"You know, I have to admit, after all this time, I did not see you two getting back together. But go, love, right?"
"You know we're back together?" He tilted his head in confusion.
"Of course. Only someone who's head over heels in love with you would smile like that when I mention you," She responded.
"Okay, great! We're still keeping it pretty private, but I needed you to know." Sam nodded.
"Plus, that explains why you canceled our little 'outing' after she came back."
"Dani…" Sam went to call her out, but he moved on. "So, you know why I need for us to take a step back and re-examine our relationship, right?"
"I don't, actually." She sat for a moment and looked at him. "Sam, I'm failing to see how this has anything to do with me. And why it involves me stepping down from the Troubletones, a group that you put me in limited charge of in the first place." She reminded him. "Is my job performance no longer satisfactory?" She joked.
"Not at all. You know the girls love you."
"And you?" Seeing his face start to turn red, she smiled and shrugged at him. "Sam, what's this?" She gestured to his blushing face. "I can't joke around with you anymore?"
"Me having a relationship with you outside of work makes Mercedes uncomfortable, so we just need to establish more of a work balance between us," Sam said quickly. "And glee is work and you've been doing a great job, but it's also a much less professional setting and—"
"Work balance?" Hands clasped and legs crossed, she sat back in the chair, signaling her piqued interest.
Sam was starting to get a little frustrated. "Yeah, focusing more on being coworkers and not friends. All the joking, the flirting, and all that other stuff has to stop."
"And what about you wanting to kiss me and take me out?" She asked coolly. "Does that have to stop now, too?"
He sucked his teeth. "We talked about that."
"We sure did. Multiple times. And for you to want to forget about it so badly, you sure do bring it up a whole lot."
He shook his head. "That's not—"
"Listen, Sam." She stood up, getting ready to leave. "If you want to play boyfriend to the stars and go be one of The Real Househusbands of L.A. for a while, go right ahead. But you expect for our relationship to be reduced to nothing but work just because your ex from five years ago plopped into town for a bit? Seriously?"
"You know what, that's actually a great way to put it." Sam stood up as well. "I'm with Mercedes now," He said sternly. "You and I are over, not that we ever started anything to begin with. Our relationship is strictly business. Nothing more."
Daniella chuckled mirthlessly as she got into his personal space. "Let's just cut the bullshit and call a spade a spade, Samuel," She whispered. "I still have feelings for you. And I know you still have feelings for me, otherwise, there wouldn't have been a date for you to cancel all those weeks ago. Because we both know it was, in fact, a date." She walked over to the door. "Don't worry, I'm not going to tell anyone that you and Mercedes are dating, nor am I going to tell her about our history." She smirked at him. "But don't think I'm going down without a fight."
When she left, Sam bent over and perched his elbows on his desk, clenching his jaw and trying not to scream out of frustration. He knew right away Dani was going to be a tough nut to crack, but this wasn't what he anticipated.
He just hoped that she would keep her word about not telling Mercedes.
Two days later
Mercedes touched up her lip gloss one more time before walking down the hallway into the choir room. Sam asked her if she could come to help with the lessons this week since she was still going to be in town for a little longer. Entering the room, she smiled at him sitting in front of one of the music stands, jotting something down. "You know, I've never actually seen you at work in person before. Not while school was in session."
Smiling, he looked up. "Oh really?" He stood up and gave her a spin. "Liking what you see?"
"Um…" She shot him her thinking face before going and (unnecessarily) straightening up his tie. "Now I do."
"I hate these things." He pouted. A few years back, he decided to dress more business than casual for the first week of classes. This attire usually included a tie of some sort. "They make me feel like somebody's got a vice on my neck. And don't even get me started on the bow ties. I have no idea how Blaine wears those things every day."
She shook her head, laughing at him. "The Troubletones are up first, right?"
"Yup. Your instruction will be a much-welcomed change to the way things are usually done around here. Since, you know, you're a woman."
She frowned at him. "You don't even have a female co-director for them or anything?"
"I did, but not anymore."
"Why not anymore?"
He hesitated. "It was Dani."
She sighed. "Sam, you don't have to cut off all contact with her like that."
He stopped her. "No, I do. And it's okay."
"Are you sure? I don't want our relationship to negatively affect the students' experience."
"Mercedes, the students aren't my top priority right now. You are. I mean, they're my family and they're extremely close, but still. Plus, any advice you can give them in the next couple of weeks will top what Dani would give them over an entire year. I'll figure it out. And until I do," He smiled knowingly at her, "I've got you here to help. For the next few weeks at least."
She smiled back at him. "I love you."
"I love you, too." He noticed her smile looked a little half-hearted. "You still thinking about your dad?" He asked.
Mercedes had been staying in close contact with her dad (even closer than usual) since his ER visit but she couldn't shake the feeling that it was something more. "My dad's in his fifties. He knows what indigestion feels like. For it to all of a sudden send him to the hospital?" She shook her head. "I don't know. I can't call the office and ask about him again because they'll just say—"
"Yes, Mercedes," Sam assumed a polite high-pitched voice "he's doing the same as the last time you called thirty minutes ago." Returning to his regular voice, he smiled at her. "Female dental assistant impression."
"Yep, nope, I got that, thanks." She grinned at his teasing.
He laughed and squeezed her shoulder. "Look, Babe. If he says he's better, then he's better. And even if he wasn't, we're 20 something minutes away from him, so it's not like there's really anything we could do about it. Let's just focus on the here and now and get ready to settle the argument these girls are about to have over who gets to sing first."
When the girls came in and were settled, Sam began the meeting.
"For starters, I'd like for us all to thank Mercedes for coming in again." He led them in a round of applause for her. "Also, if it's okay with her, I'd like for her to give us her take on this week's lesson."
A little surprised, Mercedes eyed him. She didn't expect to be doing that on her first day back. Not only that, but she didn't even know what the lesson was. "Yeah, sure." She got up from her seat and went to the whiteboard. "So," She revealed the whiteboard to display the week's lesson, "bare." She smiled, knowing that Sam had snuck a peek at her notes and used them to construct the lesson. "All of your performances have been amazing. But I can tell that sometimes, you tend to depend on elements other than just your voice and the music to propel your performance forward." She walked to the center of the room, surveying the girls' faces. "Props and costumes and stuff are nice, but people are there to hear you sing. To become better performers, you need to learn to have a certain confidence in the power of just your voice and the music working together to give a performance of the same quality as the big flashy ones. From what your coach has told me, your assignment this week is to give us a classic toned-down performance. Just you and an instrument or two. I'm excited to see how you all have applied the lesson." She smiled. "Yes, Christina?" She saw her hand up.
"So, Sam didn't actually give us a demonstration, he just gave us examples. Could you maybe give us one?"
Mercedes, once again not expecting to be put on the spot, looked at Sam.
"Or maybe you guys could do it together?" She asked.
Mercedes nodded. Why not? "Okay, sure. Any suggestions?"
"Don't sweat it." Sam was already up, bringing two stools to the center of the room. "I've got a song in mind." He went to get his guitar and sat on one of the stools. "Mercedes and I both know this song, but we've never sung it together before. What that means is we have to depend not only on our voices and the music but also on our trust for one another. So really, you get two lessons in one with this. Thank me later." He smiled as everyone but Mercedes laughed.
Sitting on the stool, Mercedes eyed him confusedly. She had no idea what he was up to. But once he started singing, she knew. The grin showed up on her face before she could even think to stop it.
Sam: I found a love for me
Oh darling, just dive right in and follow my lead
Well, I found a girl, beautiful and sweet
Oh, I never knew you were the someone waiting for me
'Cause we were just kids when we fell in love
Not knowing what it was
I will not give you up this time
But darling, just kiss me slow, your heart is all I own
And in your eyes, you're holding mine
Baby, I'm dancing in the dark with you between my arms
Barefoot on the grass, listening to our favorite song
When you said you looked a mess, I whispered underneath my breath
But you heard it, darling, you look perfect tonight
Smiling, Joelle leaned over to Christina and whispered. "Is it just me or is this like, really romantic?"
Christina shushed her.
Mercedes had been trying (and failing) to look everywhere but at Sam while he sang, but she couldn't resist when it was her turn. She had no idea what made him choose this song, but she had more than a feeling that it was intentional.
Mercedes: Well I found a man, stronger than anyone I know
He shares my dreams, I hope that someday we'll share a home
I found a love, to carry more than just my secrets
To carry love, to carry children of our own
We are still kids, but we're so in love
Fighting against all odds
I know we'll be alright this time
Darling, just hold my hand
Be your girl, you'll be my man
And I see my future in your eyes
Well, baby, I'm dancing in the dark, with you between my arms
Barefoot on the grass
They were locked onto one another as they harmonized.
S&M: While listening to our favorite song
S: When I saw you in that dress,
Looking so beautiful
I don't deserve this, darling, you look perfect tonight
"Are y'all seeing this chemistry?" Riley asked.
Macy chimed in. "It's like they're the only two people in the room right now."
"More like in the world," Janelle said.
Christina shot everyone around her daggers. "Will all of you just shut up and enjoy this adorable ass moment?"
They were right. Sam and Mercedes were lost in one another, barely breaking eye contact as they continued to sing together. Sam didn't write the song, but he sure felt like it was written for them. For them to go through all they went through and to finally be together? And now she was wearing his ring? Sure, technically, it wasn't the ring he wanted her to have and she was wearing it on her neck, but it was all the same to him. He was so happy to spend the rest of his life with her.
Baby, I'm dancing in the dark, with you between my arms
Barefoot on the grass, while listening to our favorite song
I have faith in what I see
Now I know I have met
M: an angel in person
And s/he looks perfect
S: No I don't deserve this
You look perfect tonight
Once Sam finished playing, the applause from the girls brought the couple back to reality.
"Okay," he let out a breath. "Who wants to go first?"
After glee, some of the Troubletones met back up for lunch in the choir room. Sam and Mercedes were the sole topic of conversation.
"Wasn't it the most amazing thing?" Joelle swooned.
"I don't know," Riley said. "It was cute at first, but eventually, I felt like I was in a remedial eye contact class. Did they have to stare at one another like that?"
"I thought it was romantic." Janelle smiled. "But Christina, I'm still trying to figure out how you made that happen in the first place."
Christina shrugged. "I just suggested that they give us a demonstration. I didn't know they were going to profess their love for one another through song. But you're welcome."
They all laughed.
"Profess their love? You don't think that's a bit of a stretch?" Macy gave Christina a look.
Christina shot her a look back. "Uh, no. Do you guys not remember what Santana said?"
The empty looks on the girls' faces answered her question.
"When the UT came back to mentor the Troubletones for our Sectionals routine last year?"
They all shook their heads.
"They were talking about how so many of them ended up together and were married and stuff and how Sam and Mercedes were the last of them left that tried being together but never really worked it out? No one?"
"Okay, now you've really lost me," Riley said.
Christina groaned. "Basically, Santana said that couples in the New Directions came and went but Sam and Mercedes always had that 'will they, won't they?' thing going on. And when they got back together, it never lasted, but they still always got back together."
"So what, you think they're going to get back together now?" Asked Joelle.
"You don't think they already are?" Christina replied.
Macy chuckled. "You've got to be kidding me. You're kidding me, right?"
"Actually, that may not be the craziest thing." Janelle defended her friend. "I mean, think about it. Mercedes went off and became a multi-award winning singer-songwriter. Sam came back to his second home and successfully maintained the glee clubs that helped him get through his lowest points and now we're going to Internationals. All of their dreams are coming true. If there were any time for them to get back together, it would be now."
"Thank you!" Christina exclaimed. "Somebody's got some sense in here. Plus, she's been back in Lima on vacation for over a whole month, she's still got a few weeks left to go, and she's using her time off to come and work with the glee clubs that Sam's coaching. If you ask me, combine that with the cute ass performance, and all signs point to them already being together."
"I believe it." Janelle shrugged.
"Not only do I believe it," Riley said. "I think I freaking love it. And knowing Sam, he's probably going all the way in for them to get back together."
Christina nodded. "Oh, definitely. Not that any of you remember what Santana said, but he's a total grand gesture guy. He shouted out to her in the hallway, put her name in lights, lit candles all over their apartment. It's a whole thing." She stuck a french fry in her mouth. "I can't believe none of you remember this."
Riley frowned as she got up to throw something in the trash. "Was Santana the only one who talked about it?"
"Yeah, because I have trouble sometimes listening to her. She really scares me," Dara said. "Like a lot."
"This all sounds great," Macy re-entered the conversation. "But it doesn't make any sense. If they've tried and tried to make things work every time they get back together and it never works out, why try again when they've both got totally different lives in totally different places?"
Riley ran back to her seat, pressing her index finger to her lips. "Shh! Mercedes is coming. Talk about something else."
"Something else like what?" Janelle asked.
"I don't know. The Amazing Race or something."
"The Amazing Race?"
"Oh, my gosh. I just said I don't know. Why don't you—"
Christina interrupted them by laughing loudly, gesturing for them to join her. They joined along just as Mercedes reached the door.
Upon seeing the students sitting together, Mercedes stopped walking for a second. She smiled. "Hi, ladies. I'm sorry. I didn't know you were in here."
"Oh, that's fine." Janelle waved her off. "We eat lunch here sometimes."
Surprised, Mercedes gave them a look of approval. "Well, that's great. Don't mind me, just coming to eat lunch myself." She held up a container. She walked closer to them and whispered as if she was letting them in on a secret. "It still doesn't feel right eating in the teacher's lounge."
"Do you want to eat with us?" Joelle asked.
The girls shot her an accusatory look.
"You don't have to do that," Janelle said while still looking at her sister. "We know you probably have better things to do than eat with us."
"Are you crazy?" Mercedes walked over to them and sat down. "I'd love nothing more. So, what were we all laughing about when I walked in?"
The students all eyed one another nervously.
"The Amazing Race," Janelle said. "Riley was just telling us all about it, weren't you, Riley?"
Riley feigned confidence. "Why, yes, Janelle, I was."
That evening
Sam kissed Mercedes on the forehead as he hopped onto the couch with her. He slipped in under her and wrapped his arms around her. "I'm really glad you agreed to come with me today."
Mercedes leaned back into him, breathing him in. She had taken it upon herself to invest in a new scent set for him and she was enjoying it very much. No more Mahogany Teakwood. "I am too."
"So you had a good day?"
"Actually, a great day," She said. "Even though you totally stole that lesson from my notes."
"I just got a quick glance into all of the potential lessons you had written down. No big deal. Besides, they were amazing and I plan to steal even more. You've really got a knack for this whole mentoring thing."
"Whatever. I had lunch with some of the Troubletones today. They're quite the clique."
"They loved our song. Christina came back and told me so herself after school."
"I bet they did." She gave him a look. "I know what you were doing. You thought you were slick, but I know."
He shrugged, feigning innocence. "I'm not sure what you're talking about."
"Trying to surprise me by singing such a romantic song in front of them. You're trying to get us found out." She poked him, laughing.
"I just had to, Babe. You don't understand. We're engaged to be engaged. We needed a moment to consecrate it."
"I don't think you're using that word right, but okay." She chuckled. "We would've had that moment if my dad hadn't eaten too much Taco Rita's for lunch on Friday."
"You know what, though? I'm kinda glad we got interrupted." He admitted. "I know I told you to let me know when you were ready, but I don't know, I wanted it to be a little bit more special for us, you know? I wanted to put more effort into it."
"Oh, yeah? What were you thinking?"
He shrugged again. "I don't know. Home-cooked candle-lit dinner with some of your favorite foods. Balsamic bruschetta, then creamy butter salmon over brown rice. Throw in with that those homemade cheddar bay biscuits. Add some grilled asparagus and some good wine. "
"You know, for someone who doesn't know what they're thinking, you've obviously put a lot of thought into the food portion of the night alone," She said amusedly.
"Oh, so I guess that's a pass on the chocolate lava cake with coffee ice cream on top, then?"
"You've brought me this far just to leave out dessert? Absolutely not." She laughed with him. "But you've got to get a hold of whatever has you feeding me like you've been feeding me these past couple of months."
"We both like to eat. What's wrong with that?"
"I'm barely able to fit into some of my clothes I have here. By the time I get back to L.A., I'll need a whole new wardrobe. And my team will not be happy with me."
He frowned, almost rolling his eyes and dismissing her nonsense. "Your clothes will be fine. And who cares about your team?"
"You do realize I have entire dietitians, nutritionists, and trainers making sure I don't gain too much weight, right? Ever since the tour ended, they haven't been as hard on me, but I'm about to go back to L.A. now and that's life in the public eye. I've got to maintain my figure."
Hearing this, Sam started to get a little irritated. "Mercedes, you look amazing. You always have. You don't need nutritionists and trainers."
"You just don't understand," She said.
"Do you mind explaining it to me? Because I want to know that I'm not throwing my fiancée-to-be to the wolves when I'm hundreds of miles away. I don't want you thinking that you have to look like anything for anyone."
Looking up at him, she asked, "What did I do to deserve you?"
"Is that rhetorical?" He smirked. "Because I've made a list."
In the middle of her laughter, Mercedes' phone vibrated. It was a text from her brother
Need Catchphrase partners. Come over and bring the white boy.
Smiling hard, she said, "Mase wants us to come over for a game night."
Sam examined her expression. "He called me 'the white boy' again, didn't he?"
Her face cracked as she bowed her head and laughed.
"Why does he always do that?" He asked, now smiling as well. "He only calls me that with you, you know."
Mercedes looked up at him. "Why do you ask questions you already know the answer to?" She got up and kissed him on the cheek. "Come on, get yourself together so Dev and I can school you two."
"Oh, that's never going to happen, and you know it." He got up and started getting ready.
The couple had arrived at Mason and Devon's and were getting settled in when Devon suspiciously beckoned Mercedes to the kitchen.
Slowly and cautiously entering the room, Mercedes raised her brow at her sister-in-law. "What's up?"
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" She stared at her for a moment.
Mercedes' look of confusion intensified.
Devon shifted her gaze to her chest. "I've seen you 3 times in the past 5 days and each and every time you've had that ring around your neck." She looked back up at her.
Avoiding her gaze, Mercedes shrugged. "I like jewelry. I wear rings around my neck. So what?"
Devon pursed her lips. "Merce," She said knowingly.
Mercedes sighed. "Okay, look, you can't tell anyone—"
"Oh, my god. So it does mean something?" She asked. She moved closer to whisper to her with a sick smile on her face. "Is it an engagement ring?"
"Well, not exactly. It's sort of like an engaged-to-be-engaged ring."
"So like a promise ring?"
She shook her head. "No, it's more than that. He did propose and we are getting married. But I'm not exactly trying to rock anything on my ring finger right now. Plus, he wants to have this huge romantic proposal in front of everybody we know and that's not a great idea considering no one really knows about us yet."
Devon hadn't stopped smiling. She picked the ring up to examine it. "Merce, this is beautiful. It's pear-shaped but it's" She looked closer and gasped, "it's filled with round cuts. And round cuts on the band? Wow. What is this, like, 1/2 carat? How much did he pay for this?" Her questions became more and more frantic.
Mercedes gently grabbed the ring from her, holding it against her chest and chuckling a little. "Will you stop? I don't know and I don't care. I just took it."
"Still," Devon beamed, impressed, "he must've paid a pretty penny for that. Really pretty. Lupita Nyong'o pretty."
"I didn't ask what it was or what he paid for it. I'm just happy to be marrying him."
"Well, I'm happy for you and I'm happy that you're happy." She stepped back, crossing her arms. "I'm also going to be there for you when Michelle loses every ounce of her shit once she finds out. I know you haven't told her yet," She said knowingly.
"She doesn't even know we're together." Mercedes shook her head pitifully. "We were going to tell her at dinner on Friday, but then that whole thing with Dad happened."
"Oh, yeah. That." Devon laughed.
Now on the topic of her dad, Mercedes' smile had vanished. "Something about that still doesn't feel right to me."
The married Jones woman shifted her weight to lean up against the counter. "What do you mean?"
"The doctor said it was indigestion, right? But he's been taking his meds and throwing back Tums every other hour and still having issues. Shouldn't one or both of those things be working by now?"
"Well, you know Marvin, his diet isn't the best. Maybe it's just taking him a little extra time to adjust, you know?"
"Maybe." Mercedes' words agreed, but her tone didn't.
"Come on." Devon threw her arm over her shoulder. "Kicking these guys' asses will help take your mind off of it."
Chuckling, she began walking with her. "They do know they're going down right?"
"You know, I think that their egos prevent them from realizing that our winning streak has always been unbreakable," She said as if she made a scientific discovery. "So I don't think they do, no."
The women laughed loudly and went to join their men in the living room.
Another chapter down! I'd love to hear y'all's thoughts as always. How do we feel about this Dani situation? Do you think she's going to prove to be an obstacle for our couple? And those TTs! Guess Samcedes isn't as good at hiding their relationship as they think, hmm? I hope everyone has a nice week. The next chapter will be up soon!
