Revised Chapter (3)
Sam and Mike sat in the backseat of the auditorium which held so many memories: good and bad. Most of the new directions members chose to stay behind after Sue's announcement: the members were now on stage hugging and laughing. Sam opted to stay on the sidelines and observe their interactions with the Asian man, with whom he had developed a good friendship with, next to him. Besides Blaine (and by extension Kurt), Mike, Artie and Tina were the only ex-glee members he actively tried keeping contact with. He and Mike's friendship deepened due to the fact that the man now lived in Miami, thus he would see him often when he visited Mercedes or if he could not get hold of Mercedes he would ask him if all was well with her. The rest of the group of people on stage were nothing but acquaintances now that would comment (or insult in Santana's case) on his Facebook statuses.
Both Mike and Sam's gazes fell on Mercedes and Tina conversing with Unique. They stood huddled together in a corner laughing. Sam felt his pulse quicken by merely looking in her direction. Mike noticed Sam's lingering gaze but said nothing.
"Not that I'm not happy for Tina and Artie but I always thought you two were endgame. You both seemed so well-rounded."
Mike shrugged.
"I thought so too but after high school people change, you know. You really find yourself and sometimes the person who you find is not the same person that your partner fell in love with. We just grew apart but she was my first love and she will always have a special place in my heart."
Sam nodded understanding where he was coming from.
"So, what about Samcedes? What's happening with that ship?" Mike asked with a grin.
Sam, not wanting to give too much away, gave a coy smile but said nothing to him. This prompted Mike to say something that caused the blonde man to raise an eyebrow.
"You know every time I hung out in her room and tour bus she would just speak about you."
"What were you doing in her room?!" Sam did little to try masking his jealousy.
Mike rolled his eyes.
"You know we've been on tour together for months since I am her choreographer. We spent many nights together and grew closer since we reminded each other of home."
Sam treasured his friendships but he would strangle and unfriend Mike if he did not elaborate on that statement. Mike noticing the waves of murder coming from Sam, raised his arms in surrender.
"It's not what you think. We're just friends. Mikecedes never happened. And you and I both know Mercedes has been all single ladyish since dating that rapper."
Sam sighed deciding to let it go: he trusted Mike and he trusted 'Cedes; if anything serious happened between the two of them, they would have told him. Mike was right about Mercedes being all single ladyish since her last relationship, he had read about online, with the Chicago rapper and singer named All Grey Skies (birth name Conner Allan Grey). He and Mercedes never spoke of their dating lives as it was an awkward topic, thus Sam got all his news regarding Mercedes' dating life online.
"So, no Samcedes in the future?" He asked again. "I really think you two are, as you say, 'endgame'."
"Really?" Sam asked. Honestly, his friends never fully supported their relationship before thus hearing those words leave his friend's mouth was surprising. "Everybody said we never had any chemistry when we started dating again in New York and Sue also called our sexual tension 'implausible' in high school."
"Yeah, out of all the Glee relationships yours seemed the most mature. Just because you two weren't constantly sucking face in public like every other high school students did not mean that there was no chemistry between you two."
"Yeah?"
"Yeah. I mean you guys broke up over distance and the whole celibacy thing; unlike all the other relationships that mainly were about social hierarchy and making other people jealous."
Sam ran a hand through his hair keeping his gaze on the woman who was now standing with a four-month pregnant Santana who was speaking with Rachel.
"She wants to settle down: get married and have kids. We are best friends at the moment even with all our history but I want to be more; I've always wanted to be more. But I can't just grab Mercedes, kiss her senseless and be like 'so, Mercedes, want me to impregnate you? 'Cause I'm totally okay with that' and then proceed to throw her over my shoulder and take her to a bedroom.
"I don't think Mercedes would go for that," a disembodied voice said.
The two men turned around to find Blaine sitting in the aisle behind them
"How much did you hear?" Sam asked rubbing the back of his neck in embarrassment.
"Everything," his smartly dressed friend said."So you really wanna try things with Mercedes again?"
Sam nodded.
"Yeah man, she's the one for me."
"Look, I just want you to be happy and if Mercedes makes you happy then go for it," Blaine said shrugging. "Plus Nick needs some friends and in all honesty, I want to see what the Samcedes babies will look like."
Sam smiled looking over his shoulder.
"So what's the plan?" Blaine asked. "How are you going to get her back?"
Sam sighed.
"I don't know guys. I don't know but it has to be spectacular, guys.
They were nestled around the small crackling fire of the Hummel's fireplace outside. The couples were all snuggled together under blankets trying to keep warm in the midst of the cool night air. As luck would have it, Sam and Mercedes ended up sharing a blanket much to his delight. He silently watched her pulling faces at the tired toddler perched on Blaine's lap. The Nicholas giggled and stuck his small tongue out at her.
The fire bathed her chocolate skin under its glow; transforming her into an ethereal being right in front of his eyes. Al he could do was stare at her in awe and relish in how good her body felt gently pressed against his side. So lost in her beauty and presence he failed to notice the look shared between Blaine and Mike
Mercedes stretched next to Sam. "Guys, it is 12 am so I'm gonna call it a night, I had a late night last night."
"Ooh hot date?" Tina asked.
Mercedes grinned shyly but said nothing.
"Puck and I have to go too; we have brunch with my mother later," Quinn said taking her fiancé's hand in hers.
"I'm tired too," Sam said. "I had a hot date last night," he said with a grin directed Mercedes' way for a few seconds, too fast for their friends to see. Mercedes responded by rolling her eyes.
Kurt commented on the statement.
"I thought you and Jamba Juice girl broke up or is this a new girl? Heaven knows Sam Evans you go through girls like Bruce Willis through guns in those primitive Die Hard movies I have no idea people can swallow watching. You have a new girlfriend every second week. It's hard keeping track-"
Blaine, noticing the annoyance radiating from his best friend, chose to stop Kurt from finishing that sentence.
"Thank you for that piece of information, Kurt."
Sam's gaze travelled to Mercedes' face in search of a reaction- she looked crestfallen. Before more could be said about Sam's love life, Mercedes asked Puck and Quinn to take her home since she drove with her friends. Before they could respond Sam spoke:
"I'll take you." Noticing that he spoke too soon and sounded frantic Sam cleared his throat. "Yeah, I'll take you. Your place is on my way home anyway...so I might as well take you…to your house, I mean." He shrugged trying to play it cool as the guys failed at swallowing laughs at Sam's expense.
Mercedes would rather not share a car with Sam after the piece of information revealed by Kurt, but she could not argue against Sam's logic.
"Okay, if you're sure," Mercedes said her voice seasoned with uncertainty. She hugged her friends and wished them all a good night until she saw them again tomorrow two left the group sitting around the fire. She followed behind Sam who was leading her down the narrow pathway leading to the front of the house where Sam's car stood parked. They drove to her house with a suffocating cloud of awkwardness engulfing them. Sam could not help but glance at Mercedes repeatedly to find her playing with her fingers and biting her lips; a telltale that she wanted to say something but was uncertain of how to approach him. He pulled a hand through his blonde hair, that was in need of a cut soon, as he drove down the deserted streets of Lima.
"I didn't know you were seeing someone…I don't want to cause problems for you and your girlfriend. I wouldn't be happy at all if my boyfriend was spending time with his ex-girlfriend and one of his best friends. I don't want to be the reason-"
"I'm not dating anybody," Sam interrupted. "If I were, we would not have been serious- I haven't been in a serious relationship for a while and I don't care for one."
Once the words left his mouth and found his ear Sam realized like how big of a jerk he sounded. He clenched his jaw irritated with himself.
"I-I don't mean it like that. I-I-I would never cheat if I had a girlfriend- which I don't have. And I-I didn't mean it when I said I don't care for serious relationships..."He paused before correcting himself. "Okay, I meant it..." Damn it, Sam you were just in the clear. "I-I meant-"
Mercedes raised a hand giving him a tight-lipped smile.
"Sam, you don't have to explain anything to me." She said. "You're your own person and your love life has nothing to do with me."
Sam stopped the car in front of her home.
"Mercedes, that came out wrong-"
"Sam, you don't have to explain anything. I wasn't sure if you still had a girlfriend who would be upset about last night. But you don't so, I guess all is well." Mercedes said opening her door and placing a foot on the gravel ready to get out. Sam grabbed her arm to stop her. Her exposed skin felt so soft against his palms. Sam gentle shook his head trying to shake his distracting thoughts away; now was not the time to think about Mercedes' soft skin. He had to convince the girl he loved her and that he did not have commitment issues.
"Sam-"
"No, I'm not going to let you walk away with your 'I'm-Judging-You'-face until I clear everything up-"
"I don't have an 'I'm judging you'- face. This is just my face." Mercedes defended crossing her arms over her chest.
"Oh, so you mean to tell me you walk around like you are constantly judging people?"
Mercedes rolled her eyes.
"Whatever. Look I have to go-"
"Did you not hear me say you're not leaving until I'm done talking?" Sam said.
"Excuse me?" She asked raising a brow. "You did not just-"
"Okay, Mercedes the whole 'confident diva thing' it's totally hot ninety percent of the time but the other 10 it's annoying. So I need you sit and listen now like a good girl."
Mercedes closed her mouth and closed her door in obedience. Bossy, in control Sam was extremely hot, a bit annoying but super hot nonetheless.
"Thank you," Sam said ignoring her glare. "You don't have to act like what people say or think about things concerning you does not bother you when you're with me, Mercedes. You don't have to put on the facade around me." Sam said. "I saw the look you had on your face when Kurt asked about my relationship status. What was that?"
"That was nothing-"
"It wasn't 'nothing'." Sam cried. "You know you can tell me anything, 'Cedes. Anything-"
"Sam, please stop," Mercedes whispered embarrassed over the fact that she was jealous about the Jamba Juice girl when she could not fully understand it herself. They broke up years ago thus she had no valid reasons for feeling the way she did.
"No." He said stubbornly. "If I'm right then it means that you were jealous and disappointed."
"Sam-"
"-And if I'm right about that then it means that I would be right if I presumed you still have feelings for me?"
"Goodnight, Sam." She said throwing the door open before he could lock it. "I'll see you tomorrow at the barbeque."
She ran towards her front door before Sam could say anything. Sam sighed as he looked at the woman who held his heart in her hands. Once she was safely inside her home he drove away.
staggered towards Mercedes' window in the dark: unfortunately, the full moon could only do so much to help him see what obstacles stood in his path, but nothing would stop him from his grand gesture of love. He could not fall asleep choosing rather spend his time thinking of Mercedes: at first, his thoughts regarding her had been innocent but they soon turned risqué. Realizing that as delicious as his unsavoury thoughts regarding her was, he needed to stop. He chose to go watch TV: during his channel surfing, he found an old movie. A specific scene in Say Anything in which the guy held a boombox in the air as his beloved looked down at him from the window, gave him inspiration on how to ask Mercedes to be his girlfriend. Sam Evans always had a thing for grand romantic gestures.
So here Sam stood under a cloak of darkness as dogs from the neighbouring houses barked at him while he hurled stones at her window armed with a banner with her name and the words 'Will you be my girlfriend' written in glow in the dark paint he found laying around his apartment. He waited but no response came from the other side of the closed window, so he hurled pebble after pebble whisper-shouting her name.
"Mercedes!"
The time the window opened and a figure leaned out of a window. The pebble was already in motion continuing with its mission until it hit its new target who happened to be Mercedes' father. Sam stared frozen in shock as the pebble hit her father against the forehead.
"Shit," he whispered to himself as Mr Jones rubbed the aching spot.
"Wrong window, son," he said leaning out into the cool early morning air.
"Uhm, hey Doctor Jones," Sam said followed by a nervous laugh. "Sorry about that."
He wished the earth would swallow him whole. He had not been to Mercedes' home in such a long time that he had forgotten where her room was. He and Mercedes' parents had grown close over the years, therefore on the few occasions, his parents came for a visit they would come to the Jones home to catch up. Even though Mercedes' parents opened the doors to their home to him on many occasions Sam felt weird spending time with his ex-girlfriend's parents.
Before the Jones patriarch could say anything another figure popped out of the window with a large grin directed at him.
"Hey, Sam!"
"Hi, Mrs Jones."
"How are your parents doing?" The woman asked.
"Uhm, good they are actually planning on visiting for my birthday next month," he said rubbing the back of his head.
"That's nice to hear." She said. A look of pure genius overtook the features of her face as an idea took root in her mind. "You haven't been here in such a long time, how about breakfast later?"
Sam could not decline the invite from his future mother in law (yes, she was going to be his future mother in law- he would make damn sure about that) so he said: "Sure Mrs Jones."
He watched the scandalous look Mr Jones gave his wife, his features betraying the playfulness behind his words, before saying:
"This man comes to seduce our daughter under the veil of darkness and you invite him into our home."
"This is Sam, David." Mrs Jones sad rolling her eyes as she shoved her muttering husband out of the window frame as he pretended to be annoyed.
"Her room is on the other side of the house second-floor third window."
"Thanks, ma'am," Sam said giving the woman the largest smile he could muster. Mr Jones' head popped up on her shoulder
"Don't break my windows."
"I won't, Sir," Sam said picking up the banner that fell on the ground amidst his shock and embarrassment. As Sam left he heard the playful bickering of the married couple of 30 years.
"Why don't you do such romantic things for me?"
"Why would I hurl boulders at my own windows when I have a key?"
"You're so unromantic."
Sam repeated the same process of throwing pebbles at a window and whispering her name amidst the sound of barking dogs coming from her backyard. History nearly repeated itself as a very disgruntled Mercedes ducked with a shriek narrowly avoiding the angry rock seeking its target. Much to Sam's surprise Mr Jones popped his head out of her window too.
"I told her to duck but she never listens."
Mercedes rolled her sleepy eyes before settling on glaring at her father who so rudely awoke from her deep sleep to tell her that Sam was going to break his windows.
"Okay, Dad, you can leave now."
"I want to see how this unfolds, I have good money bet on the two of you," he joked just to get under her skin. Seeing that his daughter was too tired to appreciate his sense of humour he thought it best to leave her room,
"No concept of personal space," Mercedes muttered under her breath. She focused her attention on Sam who was struggling to unfold a large piece of paper.
"Sam, what are you doing?"
"Being romantic," he explains lifting the banner over his head. "I'm not dating anybody at the moment, 'Cedes and even if I were things would not have been serious because they aren't you."
They stared at each other in silence, a soft smile painted on her lips.
"You spelt girlfriend wrong."
Sam stood frozen blinking rapidly as that was not the response he was expecting.
"What?"
"It's supposed to be one word, not two words. According to the rules of the English language, you're asking me to be your female friend but we are already friends."
Sam chose to ignore her grammar nazi ways choosing rather to reply to a specific part of her smart reply
"Are we really just friends, Mercedes? Were we ever just friends? Will we ever be just friends?" He asked truthfully ignoring the burning sensation slowly spreading to his arms from holding them upright for too long.
Before Mercedes could answer, the window next to hers opened as her parents, who also wanted to be part of the conversation, leaned out of the bathroom window.
"Stop being a smart ass and go down there," her father said prompting a nod from his wife.
"You're ruining his romantic gesture, Mercedes," Mrs Jones said saddened by her daughter's response.
"Please go to bed," Mercedes cried out exasperation in the darkness rubbing her temples.
They listened and slid the window closed. Seconds later Sam saw the light coming from the bathroom die.
"I'm coming down," she said before closing the window. A minute later she emerged at the door at the wood fencing around their backyard, telling Sam to come in. He did as he was told. Chester and Shakespeare that was more bark than bite jumped him seeking attention from him. Sam gave them what they wanted before shooing them away and joining her on the swings her parents installed for her when she was a child. They sat in silence, both staring at the illuminated water of the pool a few metres away from them.
"It's been nearly five years, Sam" Mercedes said playing with her fingers nervously. He took the opportunity to take her hand and rest it on his lap. "A lot can change in five years."
Sam pressed the palm of his free hand against her cheek forcing her to look at him. The familiar warmth of her presence spread through his body- he only got that feeling with Mercedes.
"Mercedes, I love you," he whispered as he rested his forehead against hers. "I have tried getting over you many times before but I can't."
She closed her eyes allowing his voice to wash over her senses as he gently rocked them back and forth under the glow of the slow disappearing moon.
"It's not the same when I'm with someone else. Physically those relationships are fulfilling but they don't hold a candle to what we had. I have shared myself with you in ways I could never with another person," he whispered against her lips; closing his eyes as he did so.
To outsiders, their relationship had always seemed unconventional but they were perfect for each other. They had spent many nights sharing their dreams and fears under the glow in the dark stars he had stuck on the walls and roof of their New York bedroom. Under the glow of paper stars, they could be vulnerable with each other in ways the world could not imagine. They spoke about many things: race, religion, wars, poverty and other things that would shock their friends who always believed the only knowledge Sam had was Star Wars or Justin Bieber related. Sam might not be as political or socially conscious as his friends but he knew the world was an ugly place which he usually filtered through his optimistic, sometimes badly informed views. Mercedes was the science of his faith, the realism to his idealism, but just as much as he needed her to ground him and share with him things that would make him uncomfortable and ruin his bubble of positivity at time, she also needed him to help her look beyond the injustice and opinions of others and cling onto hope and love.
"You see me for who I am and not what I pretend to be. You make me feel smart, wanted and needed."
Mercedes opened her eyes pulling away from him in the process. His body immediately mourned hers so he tightened his hold on her hand resting in his lap.
"It's been five years, Sam," she repeats staring at the fluorescent water of the pool. "A lot has changed…a lot has happened.
"I know but in those five years one thing has remained the same- my feelings for you," Sam said as he pulled her closer to him again. This time he wrapped his free arm around her waist to stop her from swinging away again.
"We always have forces working against us, Sam. First, it was distance, and then it was the sex thing that is still a problem-"
"Mercedes, I am no longer a hormonal 19 –year old boy," Sam interrupted. "Do I want to kiss you senseless and do R-rated things to you, yeah sure-"
Mercedes' heart quickened at the images triggered by his words. During these past few years, she had become more…uhm …aware of her body's desires. She would be lying if she said she had not imagined her body sweaty and panting underneath Sam but those thoughts were usually quickly pushed aside as she reminded herself that her body and mind was a temple. It was hard as it was forbidden fruit that tasted the sweetest but thus far she had conquered the wants of the flesh.
"-but I understand and respect your choice, that's why I'm willing to wait for you. And if we're honest, you never gave us the opportunity to weather the storm as you always broke up with me before we ever had the chance to test things and see if we could make it work."
He gently tightened the hold he had on her waist as he spoke into the night air.
"Please, 'Cedes, let me love you again. Let me in."
Mercedes rested her forehead against his shoulder as a stream of tears rolled down her beautiful face.
"I've been hurt, Sam" she admits against his warm collarbone. "I know you're not him, Sam, but I was broken and vulnerable for a while. It's hard trusting and its' scary feeling this way because I know I won't be able to recover if things don't work between us."
Sam could fell anger slowly making its way through his bloodstream at the thought of some man hurting his 'Cedes.
"Who hurt you, Mercedes? What did he do to you?" Sam asked gently holding her face in both his hands. She closed her eyes as she lost herself in his touch.
"I don't want to talk about it now, Sam. But I do want to be with you."
She did not want to revisit those heartbreaking memories tonight, especially after such a nice day with her friends. She opened her eyes when she felt his lips touch her forehead. Immediately warmth spread through her being. Electricity ran through her veins. Her heart drummed in her chest.
He pulled away to look into her eyes.
"I'll be patient but we will have this conversation again. Got it?" He said seriously. The look in his eyes was as solid as steel.
She nodded.
Sam gave her a small smile and pressed his lip to her cheeks. He would banish the wild thoughts his head constructed and ask her for clarity some other day because today he would celebrate his victory- his baby was resting safely in his arms and had not rejected him.
"I love you," he whispered against her temple. The words tasted so familiar yet so satisfying on his tongue.
"I don't think I ever stopped loving you," she said back.
He tightened his hold on her as the skies grew lighter by the second, a revelation that the sun was in the process of making its daily debut. They sat in silence enjoying each other's presence and catching up on lost time.
Please tell me what you all think of this thus far :)