Hello! Not going to keep you, just hope you enjoy this chapter!


Earlier that week

Mercedes sat down on Sam's couch, anxiously waiting on Santana to call her. Her phone barely rang once before she answered it. "What took you so long?"

"Oh, calm down." Santana rolled her eyes. "You just texted me five minutes ago."

"Whatever. I have a question."

"Shoot."

"Okay, so say that we were living in a time before you and Brittany got married. Say Brittany had a friend that she was really close to, but you met this friend and decided that you didn't like them. Then, say you asked Brittany to limit the closeness between her and that friend. Then, say that she—"

"Why don't I say that I can tell this is about you and Sam so that we can just get on with it? Seriously, Mercedes."

Made, she sighed. "Okay, look—"

"Hold on."

"What?" She frowned.

"If this is about Sam, I'm ringing Quinn and Tina. If something goes wrong, I'm not going to be the only one to blame."

"No, Santana, don't—"

Before she could say anything further, her friends popped up on her screen.

"Well, hello ladies," Quinn said.

Tina gasped. "Oh my gosh. Is this about Sam?"

Quinn looked surprised. "Boy troubles already?"

"She hasn't told me the full story yet, but why else would only the four of us would be on a call together?" Santana pointed out.

Mercedes narrowed her eyes. "Actually, it was just supposed to be the two of us."

"Oh, get over it and get on with it."

"Fine." Mercedes huffed. "Sam has this friend he works with who shall not be named. They were pretty close, almost like work husband and wife. So, a few weeks ago, she popped up at his house—"

"Without warning?" Quinn asked.

"Right!" Mercedes yelled, finally feeling like she was being seen. "And he wasn't here, so we had a conversation."

She proceeded to run down their conversation and what she asked of Sam afterward.

"So, wait," Tina raised her hand. "Question. How did she take that?"

"That's what I was just getting to. Sam told me on Monday that everything worked out fine and she accepted it, no problem."

"Oh, okay. That doesn't sound suspicious at all," Quinn said sarcastically.

"Exactly. So, I was calling Santana to see what I should do. Should I give her the benefit of the doubt or should I get on the offensive instead of the defensive?"

"Definitely offensive," Santana said.

Quinn agreed. "You're going to want to keep an eye on her."

So did Tina. "You need to make sure she knows her place."

That one shocked Mercedes. "Really, Tina? I would've thought you would want to play devil's advocate."

"Maybe if you didn't feel that something was off, sure. But from what you said, it sounds like maybe she's planning something."

"You know what you should do?" Santana smirked. "You should mark her."

Mercedes frowned in confusion. "Mark her?"

"Yeah, like put a trace on her. Figure out if she's got something else up her sleeve."

"But, Santana," Tina said, "How will that help anyone?"

"Oh, my god. Do I have to explain everything to you? In all the time that we've known one another, have none of my espionage skills rubbed off on any of you?" With no response, Santana groaned. "As long as you keep her at arm's length, she'll know that she has to watch the way that she moves around you. But if you come to her and pretend to genuinely make a truce, she'll take that as you being oblivious and use that to her advantage. She'll let her guard down and that's when you'll strike." She explained.

"So, like a trojan horse?" Quinn asked.

"Exactly. Just less Trojan. Get her a gift or something as a fake peace offering and keep tabs on her from there. Works like a charm."

Mercedes thought for a moment. "Actually, Santana, that's not a horrible idea. Not horrible at all."

"As great of a plan as it sounds, Mercedes, I'd be careful." Warned Quinn.

"If you're pretending to be genuine when she's actually genuine and Sam finds out, he won't be happy," Tina said.

"Probably the only thing worse than this woman coming between you two," Quinn said, "is you and Sam falling apart because you wrongfully antagonized his friend."

"But," Santana chimed in, "If you think this chick is up to something, you need to get to the bottom of it ASAP. And it sounds like this chick is up to something."

Mercedes huffed, feeling her gears turning as she approached a decision. "You guys have given me a lot to think about, that's for sure. I don't know what to do."

"Well, just think on it and let us know." Quinn shrugged. "You've still got a little bit of time left in Lima, so I wouldn't rush it."

"Yeah, I'll do that." Mercedes looked at the clock on the wall. "I should get going, Sam will be home any minute. But I'll make sure to let you know what I decide."

They exchanged goodbyes and ended the call.


Present-Day, Friday Morning, 2 weeks till Mercedes' departure

Still at the hospital, Mercedes sat beside Sam with her niece in her lap, the two of them watching some kids' show on her phone.

As he watched on from the other side of the couch, Sam's phone vibrated beside him.

"It's my mom," He said. "I'll be right back." He went downstairs to the outside of the hospital, thankful for the fresh air as it entered his nostrils. Calling his mom back, he smiled when he heard her voice. "Hey, Ma."

"How is Mercedes doing?"

"It's complicated. But she's doing as good as can be expected, I guess."

"So is it true what you said about her dad? He has cancer?"

"It's not cancer, at least not yet anyway." The update that they received last night was that Marvin's surgeons found a tumor on his pancreas. "They did a biopsy and it'll take a couple of weeks or so to come back. Until then, it's just a waiting game. They don't want to perform any surgeries until they're sure."

"Well, we're all keeping her family in our thoughts and prayers. I'm glad you were able to be there for her."

He grinned. "Yeah, me too."

"You know, when I told Dwight about you two, he was bouncing off of the walls, just like I said he would. Even Stevie and Stacey were excited. God help your sister, she thinks this means you're famous now."

He laughed. His family always loved Mercedes. His father would often tell him that she was his favorite out of all the women he ever dated… even when they had been broken up for years. "I mean I'm not quite there yet, but she's not wrong in her logic. Being the boyfriend of a successful singer is going to come with some type of fame of its own, I guess."

"You know, I always had a feeling that you would get back together," Mary said proudly, her smile evident in her voice. "There's just something about you two."

"There's something about her," He said. "I know I said this already, but she's amazing Ma. Even after all these years. She's still herself, but better. So much better. Honestly, I can't believe she would still want me after all this time."

"Well, that's what you do when you have to leave someone special to you. You patiently wait until you find your way back to them. Your father and I did it. You just may be following in our footsteps."

"I sure hope so," Sam said. He wanted so badly to tell her that he proposed, but knew that Mercedes would want to be there for that. So instead, he settled on something less newsworthy. "I really think she might be the one." His reflexes kicked in, drawing his lips into a wide smile.

"I wouldn't be surprised. I told you, people don't get back with just anyone after five years."

"Hey, I've got to go, I told Mercedes I'd be back soon, but I'm going to call you later when we have some more updates. Love you."

"Will do, Son. I love you too. Send Mercedes my love as well."


On Sam's way back upstairs, he stopped just short of being in Mercedes' eyeshot, watching her holding her niece in her arms. Scenes like this always reminded him of what he hoped for with her. Children of their own. After savoring the view, he went over to her and kissed her on the cheek. "My mom told me to send you and everyone else her love. We talked about us."

"You did?" Mercedes' eyes went wide as she sat her distracted niece to the side, out of earshot. "You told her about?" She tried to convey what she was thinking through her look.

"Oh, no!" Sam put his hand on her shoulder. "I figured it might be the wrong time. Also, I know you wanted to be there."

"Okay." She breathed a sigh of relief. "So, what'd she say? Was everyone happy? Upset?"

"They're all over the moon. Stacy in particular had some interesting thoughts. You know they love you." He caught a glimpse of the clock on the wall. It said 7:30. "Crap. I have to call Will. Be right back again." He went to get up, but her foot stopped him.

"Why are you calling him?"

"To ask if he can sub or find a sub for me at work today. Someone has to hold glee today."

"That someone is you, Sam," Mercedes said, not understanding.

"But I'm staying here with you," He said.

"Are you out of your mind? It's the last day of the first week of school. They're wrapping up the first lesson that you stole from me." She joked. "You don't want a substitute there for that."

He shook his head. "I don't know, Babe. I mean I could see if this was an in-and-out type of situation, but we're talking a potentially life-changing diagnosis here. Cancer? That's some serious stuff."

She closed her eyes, remembering what was at stake. Not that she ever forgot in the first place, but hearing it out loud hit a little harder than she expected it to. "I get that, Sam. And I love you for it, but the results will take weeks, and sitting here making butt-shaped molds in these chairs isn't going to change that or anything else. Get out of here."

He nodded reluctantly. "I've got to get going, then. I'm already running behind."

"I know."

"I'm going to call and check in every hour. Make sure you answer, okay?"

"Okay."

"And as soon as he wakes back up and you get the chance, call me, okay?"

"Okay."

"And if you need anything—"

"Sam, will you just go already?" She tried to laugh him off, even though deep down she didn't want him to leave. She hoped he didn't notice, but she felt like crying at the mere thought of him leaving.

He stared into her eyes with no discernable expression.

He noticed.

She rapidly blinked back the tears that began to form. "Go." She nodded, letting him know that she was okay.

"Go ahead, Sam." Mason came over to them. "We'll let you know if anything changes." He picked up his daughter and took her back over to his wife before making his way back to them.

While he was gone, Sam went to kiss Mercedes but stopped short. "I've officially got morning breath now." He smiled.

She gave him a quick kiss anyways and he embraced her lovingly.

"Please call me if you need anything, Mercedes."

She nodded in the hug. "I will." As he got up to leave, she squeezed his hand. "I love you."

"I love you more." He began walking out but had only taken a couple of steps when she called him back.

"Didn't you say earlier you had something you wanted to talk about?" She asked.

He shook his head. "It can wait." He knew this was not the time to bring up anything concerning Dani. He was iffy about it last night, but he felt that telling her the truth was more important than protecting her from it. That obviously wasn't the case anymore.

With him gone, Mason sat in his place, offering his sister a side hug.


As he walked down the hallway, Sam saw Dani standing at her office door. Ever since they received the update earlier that morning, all he was able to think of was what she said on Monday and whether or not to tell Mercedes. He felt horrible. He decided that in one last-ditch effort, he needed to let Dani know that he hoped she wouldn't make things harder for them than they already were. He went over to her. "Coach Baker."

"Mr. Evans." She smiled at him. "What can I do you for in our official strictly co-worker capacity?"

He sighed. "Can we talk in your office?"

She stepped aside. "Come on in."

He entered and waited until she closed the door behind her to start talking. "You don't have to do that."

"I don't know what you're talking about," She said as she sat behind her desk.

"'Our official strictly co-worker capacity'? You don't talk to any of your other colleagues like that."

"Well, none of my other colleagues' girlfriends are uncomfortable with our relationship, so I'm kind of in some uncharted territory here."

Recognizing the uniqueness of the situation, Sam put his hands up. "You know what? You're totally right. It's my relationship with both you and Mercedes that's gotten us here. The least I can do is respect how you react. Listen," He looked out of the window beside them, practically boarded up by all the trophies on the ledge, then back at her, "I just wanted to talk about our conversation Monday—"

"You haven't told Mercedes about it, have you?"

Caught, he lowered his gaze. "No, I have not."

"I see."

"Look, Dani-" He stopped himself. "Coach Baker, I didn't mean any harm by what I said or the tone I took with you. I just really needed you to understand that I'm with Mercedes and nothing is going to change that. But as far as what you said, Coach, I know you," He said earnestly. "Are you ambitious? Yes. It's one of the reasons we became such good friends. But I know that you wouldn't go that far as to continue to try to win me over when I'm telling you what it is with Mercedes and me."

"Sam," Daniella gave him a look of irritation. "You need to get a grip. We have been friends for the past three years. When have I ever done anything other than look out for you?" She asked. "Even when you've sworn I was wrong, I've been the one telling you when things are good and when they're not. Well, I'm telling you now, this thing with Mercedes is not. You told me how the only reason you two never worked out was that she wasn't willing to do the long-distance thing."

"That's not totally true. It was mutual."

"How mutual can it be when you've been tip-toeing around her for the last five years when she's had multiple boyfriends, touring the world, and having the time of her life? Did she ever once consider how you felt? How much it hurt you to see paparazzi pictures of her with some hot eye candy on her arm on Melrose?"

"I didn't—"

"You also told me about how she always wanted to keep you guys a secret when you got together. Something you're still doing now, no? And how you're only together when she wants you to be. She calls the shots. Is she not doing that again now?"

"I mean, yes, but things are different now." Sam tried to defend his fiancée

"Are they?" Dani tilted her head. "Because six weeks ago she came back into town. Then, deciding that she wanted to be with you again, she probably poured her heart out to you in a way that only you would understand so you two would get back together. Then, even after weeks of seeing one another, I would bet the farm that hardly anyone outside of your family knows because she wants to keep it a secret. And I wonder if you two have even talked about what happens when she inevitably has to return to her career?"

Sam sat in his chair, unsure of how to defend anything Dani said when all of it was true.

"Sam, I want you to be happy. I do. But you can't sit here and tell me that things with her feel any different this time around. Do they?"

He hesitated.

"Exactly. I'm just looking out for your best interest like I always have."

"No, you're not. Being with someone else isn't in my best interest. Things may look the same now but Dani, I promise you they're different. And I want to tell you about it. So can you just give it a chance? Give her a chance?" He begged.

After a moment, she gave in. "Okay. But if I feel like she's putting you in a position to get hurt again—"

"You won't. I promise." Sam smiled, seeing that everything was okay. Looking at the time, he saw that he would soon be late for glee. "I've got to get going, but thanks for this." As he approached the door, he turned back around. "Oh, I almost forgot. We've got rehearsal tomorrow, but I've got an appointment so I won't be there. Are you going to need any of the Cheerios?"

Dani shook her head. "Nope."

"You sure? I won't get a call 2 minutes before we start saying that you're keeping them for any overtime, will I?" He smirked, knowing she had a tendency to do that. "Because my phone will be off and I won't receive it."

"Don't worry, I'll make sure they're done in time." She reassured him.

"Okay, great. I'll see you later." He walked out of her office and to his own.


That afternoon

Mercedes sat in the passenger's side of her brother's car, starting a phone call.

"Cedes, what's up?"

"Hey, Tana. I just wanted to let you know that I am on my way to deliver the package."

She smirked. "You called for some last-minute moral support, didn't you?"

Mercedes nodded, slightly embarrassed. "Yeah."

"Well, look, you can always turn back and not do it. But I will say that personally, I think this is the best course of action."

Mason drew in a breath. "You're doing the trojan horse thing today? That's why we're going to McKinley?"

Ignoring her brother, Mercedes kept her eyes on her phone. "Thank you, Santana. I'll call afterward to let you know it's done."

"Yeah, do that." Santana nodded. "How's your dad, by the way?"

She shook her head. "Still no change. But I'll let you know if there is."

"I can't believe you've got me driving you around like some sort of personal chauffeur," Mason complained as Mercedes ended her call. "You're not in L.A. anymore, Toto."

"Oh, boo you." Mercedes laughed. "I'm not even going to be here that long. I told you, I'm going to see Sam and drop off the package. In and out."

"Yet another Cali reference. Not that I expected anything less from Your Royal Highness, The Queen of Hollywood Hills." He smirked.

"First of all, I don't even live in Hollywood Hills." Mercedes looked over at him. "Hey, do you remember when you had that job? The one where your boss like, hated you and told you how inadequate you were every other day? Do you still have it? How's it going?"

"That one? Or the one I'm skipping right now so that you could go home, take a shower, and go play 'glee' with your boyfriend and 'spy kids' with his coworker?" Mason wasted no time in responding, his smirk still plastered on his face. "Either way, it's going good, thanks for asking."

She sucked her teeth loudly, begrudgingly accepting defeat. "Whatever."

"How's that going by the way?" Mason asked on the come down from his winning high. "The boyfriend?"

How's what going?" She looked at him, unsure of what he wanted to know.

"I mean, he hasn't said anything to me about putting in his two weeks. And I don't see any boxes or U-Haul trucks at his place. You're not going to L.A. just to retire and come back in another week, are you?"

"Oh, absolutely not." Mercedes shook her head. "I'm not giving up my dream for any man, I don't care if he is the love of my life." She laid her head back against the headrest. "We're just taking our time in figuring out how we want to approach everything."

"You do have a plan though, right?"

Mercedes averted her gaze, directing it toward the trees that lined the road. "Not exactly."

"Mercedes," Mason cautioned.

"I know. But we don't like talking about it! Every time we do, we get all whiny and depressed."

"I get that, but it's better to be whiny and depressed in person than over FaceTime."

"I know."

"You can say you know all you want, Mercedes. But I'm telling you, the last thing you want is to go back to L.A. without an ounce of a plan."

"I understand that, Mase." Mercedes stressed. "We both do. We're going to figure it out in the time we have left."

"You mean those 14 days? Mercedes, when you go back, you'll be getting back into the swing of things, going up against pushback from the label that will without a doubt, be twice as wild as it is now. Pops' results will be in and no matter they are, you're going to be constantly worrying about and checking on him. You won't have a ton of time for anything else, you barely do now. I don't think you're realizing how much you have going on."

"Would you just—" Mercedes caught herself as she began to yell at her brother, taking a glance at her niece, who she forgot was in the backseat. She took a frustrated breath. "Why are you telling me all of this? Like I don't already know it? Like it's not my life?"

"I'm just saying." Mason pulled into McKinley's parking lot and found a spot. "Sis, I want you two to make it, for real. But you've never done this long-distance thing before."

"There are a lot of things we're doing now that we haven't done before. We've learned that there are bridges that we can't cross until we get to them and this is one of those. That's all. I know what I could be up against and I'm not a child; I can and will handle myself and my relationships." She grabbed the bag she brought with her and opened her door. "I'll be right back."

Walking into the school, Mercedes headed right where she needed to go, immediately seeing the person she needed to see. She knocked on the door and was told to come in.

Dani looked up. "Mercedes," she said, surprised.

"Hi, Coach." She paused and smiled congenially. "Daniella."

"Is there something I can help you with?" She asked.

Mercedes closed the door behind her and gestured to one of the chairs in front of her. "Can I sit?"

Daniella shrugged, nodding. "Go right ahead."

"Great." She sat down, sitting the bag beside her. "So, I won't take up too much of your time. I just wanted to say that Sam told me about your conversation on Monday."

"He did?" Daniella asked, taken aback.

Mercedes nodded. "He did. And he told me how graciously you stepped down and just overall how understanding you were."

"He did?" She asked again but in a different, more understanding tone. She knew that that wasn't what happened.

"Yeah." Mercedes paused. Time to put on the show. "And that got me to thinking, you know, maybe I judged you too soon. And maybe I judged you wrong. Sam has a habit of trying too hard to see the good in everyone and at first, I thought that that was why he was friends with you. But I realize that maybe I just got the wrong idea of you." She shrugged. "And even though I was uncomfortable with your relationship with him, I still shouldn't have brought it up to him in a way that suggested that he ax your position with the Troubletones. That was my fault, I'm taking responsibility for it, and I'm going to ask that he reinstate you as their Head Advisor."

The coach couldn't have hidden the shocked look on her face if she tried. "You are?"

"Yes. And in an effort to mend things between us, I got you something." Mercedes smiled as she held up the bag. "I remember some time before I came back, Sam was telling me about this friend he had at work that was from Nashville like he was and also liked football like he did, and they hit it off. I did some deductive reasoning, figured out that that friend was you, and used that knowledge to get you this." She placed the bag upright on her desk.

As Daniella opened her gift, Mercedes explained it.

"It's a complete record of all things NFL to celebrate 100 years," she said. "Rosters, stats, player profiles, information on stadiums, record-breaking games, anything you can think of. It's quite an exhaustive list. If it's ever happened in the League, you can find it in there. There are four books for each quarter and I put in a couple of favors to get some Titans to sign it for you."

"Wow. This is nice."

"I got Sam one, too. I figured that when you two are working a little more closely together and as you and I get to know one another better, maybe you two could talk about it sometime. This isn't me trying to buy a clean slate or anything, but it is a peace offering. I'd like for us to call a truce."

Daniella looked at her for a moment, watching her anticipatory smile. "Okay," She said simply.

Mercedes leaned in, trying to gauge her reaction. "Okay?"

"Sure." She offered her a close-lipped smile. "Thanks for this."

"I'm going to get out of your hair now, but I'm going to talk to Sam tomorrow after rehearsal, so be on the lookout for a call or something from him!" She got up and began walking toward the door.

"Do you know who's taking over for him tomorrow?"

Turning around, she nodded. "I am."

Daniella straightened up at this. "That's nice to know." As Mercedes opened the door, Daniella called out to her. "Mercedes, I hope that things between you and Sam work out exactly the way they're supposed to." She smiled.

The smile seemed more than genuine, so Mercedes returned it. "Thanks. Have a great weekend." And with that, she left. Either things were going well or Dani was an incredibly good actress. She'd just have to see sometime in two weeks.


I don't know about y'all, but I'm glad to finally see Mercedes on the offensive. This chapter was going to mostly take place in the hospital, but I figured there was no need for all of that sadness back to back. (There will be some next chapter, though!) Your reviews this week were particularly satisfying to read, possibly even prophetic, but only time will tell. I'll be eagerly awaiting your thoughts on this chapter. Next week, we'll figure out a *little* more about what's happening with Mercedes' dad, learn a little more about Dani's intentions, and there'll also be a conversation between two unexpected people that I think you all will find interesting! Until next time!