It's All Over
A Problem shared, is a problem halved
Mercedes was laying on her bed fighting sleep, fading between trying to watch the new episode of Ozark and being forced to close her eyes, it was a struggle. It was all she could manage these past few days after a full day at school, and no matter how much sleep she got, she just felt even more sleep deprived when she woke up
"Mercedes Jones, get your ass down here" her dad shouted it must have been about the fourth time if he was calling her by her full name, and this time she'd heard him, but she was protesting, the man could walk across the dining room and pick the damn remote up himself she was busy
"Yes dad" she whispered determined not to respond physically
"Girl" her mom burst into her bedroom "I know you can hear your father, give me that damn phone"
"Mom" she quickly locked it before passing it over "This is childish"
"And you're a 15 year old acting like a 5 year old, your dad's calling you"
"I'm on my way" she huffed sitting up on the bed to make a move
"And when dad's finished with you, get back up here and get this place cleaned up"
"What's wrong with it?"
"Lady you need to get rid of those rose coloured glasses and own your shit, it's a pit in here, we've lived here what…three months"
"It's my room surely I can…"
"If you're going to try justifying this mess, let me remind you lady, everything even the ceiling belongs to your father and I, you just live here rent free" she grinned "For now"
"Did you enjoy that mother?"
"Get your cheeky ass downstairs" she laughed at her daughter
Three Months Earlier
They'd just moved onto a brand new estate along with a lot of other people, at first she wasn't too keen on leaving everything she knew, her friends Tina, Rachel and Kurt had promised to visit, but at 15 she didn't hold much hope of them travelling to California.
They were surrounded by old people, her parents were having a field day, but then on day three another new family moved in two doors away from them, their son was a dream to look at, and of course they got talking. They'd sat on her front porch talking long enough to find out he'd come from Nashville, he was shy just like her, he was kind and thoughtful fetching her a drink and some ice cream.
On day five their neighbours turned up, they were two sisters who were like chalk and cheese, Brittany was a blond, thoughtful kind of person, while Quinn always had a book in her hand. it was a couple of days in before they learned the girls had different parents and had been thrown together because Quinn's dad and Brittany's mom had gotten together.
A week later a new family with a couple of feisty children landed across the road. Santana was less than a year younger than her brother Puck, and on day one we got the vibe that they really didn't like each other. The day after our getting to know you conversation everything just went up a notch, Puck and Santana were dare devils, and everyone loved it.
It didn't take long for the chat group to get set up and if they weren't out doing something they were on their phone planning what the next things should be, it made the summer fun and going to a new school not so daunting.
So, the new crew had formed, and Mercedes wouldn't have said she'd forgotten Rachel, Tina, and Kurt, but life without them being with her everyday hadn't turned out as bad as she'd thought it was going to be
"Hey" a personal message popped up on her phone one evening
"Hay Sam" she replied wondering why he wasn't talking on the page
"Question" he wrote
"What's up?" she smiled remembering their first conversation when they'd agreed to be friends that could talk to each other about anything
"Will we still be friends when we start school?"
"Of course, why wouldn't we be?"
"What about maybe something more than friends"
"Turn your camera on" she tapped in curious to know what he was talking about
"Super shy about this" he wrote "But okay"
"There you are" she smiled at him "So, what's more than friends?"
"We never see each other just us anymore, but I just wanted to know if you'll be my… dad calls it person"
"Really?" she grinned
"Really" he rolled his eyes smiling
"Wait" she sat up "Define person"
"Like a girlfriend without the label" he laughed "What do they call it where you're from?"
"We called it hanging out" she laughed
"You don't kiss the people you hand out with do you?" he looked at her suspiciously
"Definitely not" she laughed "So you want us to kiss as well?"
"I hoped we would" he smiled at her "Can we meet in the morning, talk about it some more?"
"I guess" she shrugged her shoulders agreeing "I mean it's kind of a sad time for my mom, but if it's early in the morning I can make it"
"Why's it sad for your mom?"
"Grandma passed away a year ago tomorrow, getting away from all those memories is the main reason we moved here"
"You never told me that before"
"You weren't my person before"
"Perks of the job"
"Being my person is a job?"
"No" he laughed "It's an honour"
"Thanks" she giggled "My mom's coming I got to go"
"Goodnight person"
"Goodnight person" she giggled before closing the call
Over the rest of the summer everyone gravitated to someone, Santana and Brittany got close, they were always in each other's bedrooms, Quinn and Puck seemed more than close, the park cross the road from the estate, became their favourite place, and Sam and Mercedes tended to sit in the bandstand where it was more private, their evenings always ending with a hot drink at the café just outside the estate.
School started and just as they'd imagined there were a lot of other kids they hadn't met during the summer, they laughed after the first day at someone referring to them as the Cullen's because they moved around together, but they felt better together. The one thing they found out pretty quick about each other was that they loved music, so they were happy to join the school choir Puck opted to play the drums, while Sam took on the guitar as well.
Two Months Ago
Their interest peaked when sectionals came up and they had to spend a night away from home, that made it their favourite lesson. By the time they got there they didn't know if they were staying in the competition for the singing or the fun they were having after lights out, but whichever one it was they were good.
It was no secret Quinn and Puck had already done the dirty that first week in the summer, Santana and Brittany had told them they were dating and experimenting with sex, and Sam and Mercedes had admitted to being each other's person and kissing a lot. So, by the time sectionals was on the arisen Sam was putting the pressure on for them to take the next step in their relationship
"What's the problem?" he sat up asking, frustration on his face "Don't you trust me?"
"Yeah" she sat up ready to cry again "I just don't feel.. I don't know.. ready I guess"
"Mercy" he rolled his eyes fed up with hearing the same thing for the past month "I really don't know what else I can do to put your mind at ease"
"Maybe don't ask, just do it"
"What?" he asked shocked
"I think it's when you ask, I think about it, and I just can't say yes, even though I want to" she huffed "Sounds stupid doesn't it?"
"Not really" he turned to look at her "You want me to lead?"
"Yeah" she smiled "I really don't know what I'm doing, or saying yes to" she leant on his shoulder
"Okay" he smiled "How about we wait till regionals, take away some of this pressure, give us both time to be ready?"
"I don't know if I can wait that long, but I'll give it a try, for you" she leaned up and kissed him
"You are killing me" he laughed
Two weeks later at regionals, the night before their performance, Quinn and Puck swopped rooms and Sam and Mercedes took their relationship to the next level. They were all so tired the next day they could barely keep up with the steps, they stood smiling at each other at the announcements wondering how the hell they got through to nationals. Now even more unsure as to whether they were happier to be getting another opportunity like last night or for the actual win because sex in a fresh bed, was a rarity they were looking forward to again already.
"I don't want you to leave me" Mercedes sat on the coach cuddled into him, watching home get nearer
"I don't want to leave you either" he kissed her forehead "It's been the best weekend"
"Coming first feels good doesn't it?"
"Coming feels good" he smiled at her giggling, that wouldn't have been a comfortable conversation for them a weekend ago, now it was the most natural thing in the world "At least we'll get some sleep tonight"
"I guess"
The journey home ended with them all in the café, as usual, having drinks and saying goodbye before they went back to their just good friends routines for their families
"Is that a party going on?" Santana asked as they passed Mercedes house hearing music and laughter
"Party" Puck yelled grabbing Quinn's hand to dance to the lively music "Come on" he told the others encouraging them to join in
"Come on" Santana grabbed Brittany's hand
"I don't dance" Sam frowned
"You'll dance by the time I've finished with you, I'm sure" Mercedes pulled him close and started rocking with him until he was comfortable to move on his own, his MJ moves making everyone laugh, because they were totally out of sync to the music "You do play that guitar?" she asked trying to find which beat he was at.
"I'm trying" he laughed pulling her closer "Our first dance" he smiled "That has to be our song"
"It's old" Mercedes laughed
"It's romantic" he looked around before kissing her nose "Dream about me" he let her go and watched her walk to the door, turning to blow him a kiss before turning the handle
One Month Ago
A week in and the bandstand had cushions, old blankets and candles stashed in the small chest that housed sheet music and small instruments, there wasn't a night when sex wasn't on the menu for the three couples, the fact that they were all underage didn't seem to bother them in the slightest
A week ago, Mercedes had fell asleep in class, and lucky for her Santana sitting next to her, nudged her to wake up before she got a detention "Slow down on the night activities, you've got a lifetime of that stuff" Santana smiled at her
"Sure" she smiled taking a sip of her water to wake herself up
After that the oil seemed to be separating from the water for the group, a few days ago Puck had kissed some girl behind Quinn's back, he came off with all this bullshit, even got the girl to confess to Quinn she'd led on everything. Quinn was sore about it, rightfully so, if she let him get off too easy, Puck was the kind of guy to take advantage of such weakness. In the middle of Quinn's drama, there was the pending threat of Santana's parents finding out about her relationship with Brittany, and the condom Brittany's dad had found in their room
Yesterday
"What?" Brittany went to ask Mercedes for advice, she ended up tapping her to wake up
"Girl" Santana jumped up startling Mercedes out her sleep "Come with me" she grabbed her arm and led her to the bathroom "I've had my suspicions for a couple of days now" she held a box up at her
"What's that?" Mercedes asked
"A test"
"A test for what?"
"Pregnancy test" Santana rolled her eyes
"What would I want one of those for?"
"Are you and Sam using protection?"
"Protection?" she shook her head
"Didn't you do sex ed in your other school?"
"Have you met my parents?"
"Take the test" Santana rolled her eyes and handed her the box "Just pee on the stick" she watched her go into the cubicle looking just as scared as she was
"I've done it" Mercedes came out holding the box, her eyes wide with fear
"We'll sort it" Santana hugged her
"I just want Sam to be here, will you get him?"
"Sure" Santana rushed out to get him
"Mercy" Sam poked his head round the bathroom door a few minutes later "Mercy" he called again when he didn't see her
"I'm in here" her voice came at him from one of the cubicles, he rushed over wondering what could have happened
"What's up, Santana said you were upset?"
"I was, but now I'm just scared"
"What happened?" he stood at the cubicle door asking, his eyes checking to see if anyone else was in the bathroom
"This" she held the test up "And it says I'm pregnant"
"What?" he stood stunned "How" came out after a while "I…" he looked into her eyes just as scared as she was "Shit Mercedes, we're 15"
"I think I know that Sam" she snapped
"I can't…" he got out before she slammed him against the door and walked past him and out the door "Mercy" he called after her, he was in too much shock to think about her right now, all he could hear was his parents blasting into him, maybe a slap or two from his dad, and then the 'we'll take care of it' conversation his dad always had with his mom when the big, unexpected, bills came in. "Santana" he looked up to see her standing there "Did she tell you?"
"No, she took the test and asked me to get you, was it positive?"
"I need to speak to her" he rushed past Santana and down the hall towards her classroom "Mercy" he called watching her about to enter her next class "We need to talk"
"I think I know what the conversations going to be Sam" she cut her eye at him and walked into her class
"You don't" he shouted after her punching the wall for leaving things the way they were
Sam
He went off to his class, not that there was anything being said he wanted to hear right now, he was going through a whirl of emotions, he loved her, he knew that, and although Puck kept telling him it was a first love and it always hits that way, he was hoping for it to last. This was as much his fault as it was hers, he'd never asked the question about the pill, it was as the teacher had warned, your mind gets blown and everything else goes out the window, this was the last thing he'd expected. He sat going over their short conversation in his head maybe he'd rushed ahead, he should have been asking her how she felt about it, what she wanted to do, what she wanted from him all of those might have been questions someone with logic might have asked, or even just a hug to let her know everything would be alright, but did he really know that.
"You alright?" Quinn asked him
"Yeah" he offered a small smile
"The answer's 65" Quinn told him
"65?" Sam looked up answering
"You're actually listening Mr Evans" the teacher smiled at him
After class he searched the building for her, eventually giving up knowing she's gone home. There was no point in him knocking her door, she'd refuse to speak to him and that would alert her parents to something being wrong, he couldn't chance it
"Where's Mercedes tonight?" Puck asked as they sat in the café
"Homework" he nodded, smiling at Santana for keeping their secret "You know how her parents are when it's not done on time"
"So, you both get punished?" Puck laughed
"I guess" Sam rolled his eyes for sounding like her "I might just go over to the park, see if they've taken her phone" he got up, pulled his phone out, and crossed the road into the park "Babe" he started to talk thinking she'd answered, stopping when he got her message box "Mercy just pick the phone up" he walked far into the park agitated
He felt like crap, he'd spent three months telling her he'd never leave her no matter what, that she was the one for him, that they'd be together forever, and the first sign of trouble and he turns into freaking road runner. He tried to call her several times sitting on their bandstand before his temper started to show "She supposed to know me" he kicked out at the small chest, damning the blankets that fell out of it.
He was punching a tree when he heard someone walking "Hello?" he looked into the darkness "Mercy?"
"No dude it's me" Puck made himself known "Sis told me what you two might be going through when we got home, I thought you could do with someone to talk to"
"I messed up big time" Sam held his head in his hands and sat on the grass
"It's the shock" Puck told him "You're both going through this"
"She won't even talk to me"
"She will when she's processed everything, this is happening for the two of you, but she's got a whole bunch of other stuff happening, some of it's not even about you, so just give her some space, she'll talk when she's ready"
"Which is really easy to say but…"
"I know it is" Puck tapped his shoulder "And believe me when I say I know how you feel" he sat next to him "But you need to deal with your shit before you can even begin to start thinking about hers"
"My shit?" Sam looked at him puzzled
"What's life going to look like if she's pregnant and decides to have the baby" Puck searched his face for the answer "How are your parents going to take that, dude your 15, they might move away"
"I wouldn't want that" Sam looked at him worried
"And what if she is pregnant and decides to get rid of it, where does that leave you two, would you be able to forgive her, is it something you want her to talk to you about first, would you go with her?"
"I don't know" Sam sat looking into the darkness with no clue "I just need to talk to her, once I know what's what I'll know what to do" he raked his hand through his hair "This is a bitch"
"Life's a bitch" Puck told him getting up "Go home, think about it, your near curfew"
"I won't sleep" Sam held his hand out for Puck to help him up "But thanks"
"If it's any consolation I don't think she will either" they made their way back in silence, Sam had a lot to think about.
Mercedes
She'd known the relationship was too good to be true from the start, so that fact that he'd been ready to tell her to get rid of their child was just the confirmation she needed, but it was too hurtful to hear so she walked away. Halfway through the lesson she'd had enough, English was one of her strong subjects, so she didn't think it would hurt anything to just leave, she got up and walked out the class despite the teacher asking questions.
Earlier that morning all she really wanted to do was sleep, but it felt like as soon as she knew the reason she was feeling the way she was, all she wanted to do was vomit, she wasn't ready to be a mother.
Sam's reaction, as far as she was concerned, should have been 'babe that's brilliant are we happy or…' waiting for the nod, that was how it happened on TV, why didn't she get that ending, why didn't he want to give her that ending, not 'I can't' like she'd asked for this on her own.
When she got home the house was empty her parents were still at work, she felt such a mess, she made herself a bath and went for a soak. She found the time to ask all the questions she needed to of herself, did she want a child, how would she support a child, how would she cope with single parenthood, where would this take their relationship, if there was still a relationship. She was fearful that Sam might have seen it as some sort of entrapment and that was why he'd run the other way, there was so much going on in her head.
Eventually she got out the bath, dried off and lay on her bed listening to music, taking the time to read Sam's messages and listen to his voicemails
"Santana" she answered the call
"Sam's freaking out"
"So am I" Mercedes snapped
"Was it positive?"
"We're still talking" she evaded the answer
"That's not an answer" Santana laughed "Are you alright?"
"I'm fine" Mercedes rolled her eyes at the silly question "Listen" she got her attention "I'm not in the mood for that song tomorrow, will you do it with Quinn?"
"Sure" Santana breathed out heavy "Must be serious if you're not in the mood to sing"
"I've got to get some sleep" Mercedes cut the call off without saying bye and rested her head on her pillow, she was out like a light. She heard her dad calling but decided sleep was more enticing than grabbing him the remote, until her mom burst through her bedroom door
"Dad?" she got downstairs, looking around for the remote
"I got a call from Mrs Sylvester, apparently you left class early today, why?"
I had the last day of my period it was kind of heavy, messy I ran out of class to get home and have a shower" she stood wondering where that bunch of crap came from
"You need to apologise to that teacher tomorrow sweetheart"
"Yes daddy" she smiled at him, turning to go back to her room
"Baby girl" he called after her "Pass me the remote will you?"
"Daddy" she rolled her eyes picking it up of the coffee table and handing it to him, making her mind up at that second what she wanted to do about her baby
Today
"Mercy" Sam walked into her classroom before lessons "Are you going to talk to me?"
"Sam" she looked around the class embarrassed
"I'm not moving till you agree to talk to me"
"We've got choir next, we can talk then, go" she shooed him off "Sorry Miss" she smiled at the teacher sat watching
Choir practice came around fast for Mercedes, she was dreading it, but knew Sam was a man of his word on things like this, so if she didn't turn up, this wouldn't be his last attempt "Sir" Sam held his hand up and jumped off his chair as she walked into the room "Before we start I have something I want to say, well sing really" he looked at Mercedes "To remind someone of something I said a while back and show them that I still mean it"
"Go ahead"
"Puck" he looked at him, knowing he had some apologies to make too
"There" Puck got up smiling, those who knew understood as he sang a rendition of the song that had marked the first weekend they'd shared 'Baby Can I Hold You Tonight' by Ronan Keating smiling when she mouthed her sorry
Sam with Puck: Sorry, it's all that you can say, years gone by and still, words don't come easily, like sorry, like sorry
Forgive me, is all that you can say, years gone by and still, words don't come easily, like forgive me, forgive me
But you can say, baby, baby can I hold you tonight, and baby, if I told you the right words, oh, at the right time, you'll be mine
I love you, is all that you can say, years gone by and still, words don't come easily, like I love you, I love you
But you can say, baby…
"That version, by you, trumps Sanchez every time, and can definitely be our song" she clapped watching him come towards her
"I'm sorry" he hugged her "I did this all wrong"
"So did I" her face threatening a cry as she spoke
"Excuse us" Sam told the teacher leading her out "I'm here for you, whatever you choose to do" he hugged her when they got outside the classroom
"Whatever?"
"What do you want to do?" he asked
"I want to keep our baby"
"Okay" he breathed heavily unaware he'd be relieved about that until she said it, hugging her tighter "I've been reading all through the night, we need to set things up pretty early, let's speak to our parents, tonight"
"Okay" she widened her eyes at him
"Before anything else, can you officially be my girlfriend?"
"Baby mama" she giggled
"Baby's mom" he looked at her smiling
"We're going to have to sync our language before this baby arrives" she laughed
"The list gets longer" he laughed
"You know as soon as my parents here this news it's all over before anything can get started for us?"
"You do know that it's our baby not theirs, and I'm ready to fight for our family"
"Me too" she pulled his face to hers for a kiss