This time his phone didn't ring.

Instead there was a loud knock on his door and it didn't stop. It really wasn't fair; it might only be eleven o'clock but Will had been watching an Andrew Lloyd Webber marathon and while marking the latest load of Spanish pop quizzes. Students may think they were evil but teachers believe pop quizzes are a necessity spat out of hell.

"All right, all right, I'm coming," Will shouted at the door as he threw down his red pen, finally giving up marking Puck's terrible answers and heading towards the front door. He was surprised at the person who was standing there; he half expected it to be Terri (who never stops harassing him for more money) or Sue (who never stops harassing him full stop). Instead there stood..."Sam?"

"Sorry Mr Chu," Sam mumbled his words thick and slurred. "I don't have a phone anymore."

He was then promptly sick all over Will's bare feet.

Honestly, he doesn't get paid enough for this job.

GLEEGLEEGLEEGLEE

After spending two hours holding Sam's hair back as the boy vomited in his toilet it was a sudden relieve to go back to marking again. Sam was curled up on the sofa nursing a hot cup of coffee to sober him up again. It was quiet now, the sound of Christine and the Phantom hitting high notes was giving Sam a headache and Will couldn't appreciate the classical musical with a teenage boy groaning and moaning beside him.

"I really am sorry," Sam repeated himself again. "I just...I didn't have anywhere else to go to. And I no longer have a cell phone so I just...I didn't mean to puke on you. I just...well I was mixing drinks to get drunk quicker..."

"Why though Sam?" Will asked quietly. "You're a good kid."

"I...it's those rumours. I'm sick and tired of people trying to decide if I'm sleeping with Quinn or Kurt. I haven't touched either of them, they're just helping me. It's not fair, Mr Schue, can't someone be nice to someone else without there being any sex?"

"Of course they can Sam...But what on earth could they be helping you with in a motel room?"

Will had listened to the rumours as well and while he was sure that there was a perfectly reasonable and innocent explanation to it all. His main theory was it was simply Sue just making it all up. Despite his certainty that it was all innocent even he couldn't help but wonder what on earth Sam was doing in a motel room.

Sam mumbled something but Will was so caught up in his thoughts that he missed it completely. "I'm sorry, I didn't quite catch that."

"I live there! All right, happy now? I love in a small motel room with my parents, little sister and little brother. Kurt has been giving me clothes and Quinn has been helping me with the babysitting."

"Oh..."

"And now I just blew the rest of the money I had left on getting pissed so I can just forget the whole fucking thing for one bloody moment. My parents are going to kill me."

"Alcohol isn't the answer to everything Sam. Trust me, I've been drowning my sorrows and all it accomplished was creating more problems," Will said sternly falling into his teacher mode. "I would also lay of the foul language, I may be off duty but I'm still your teacher."

"Sorry Mr Schue," Sam mumbled looking ashamed of himself.

"I'm sorry about your home life Sam," Will said gently. "It's gotta be tough but you know you have us to rely on. We might not be able to help with much but we're here if you need someone to lean on."

"Thanks," Sam smiled a small shy smile and looked a little embarrassed.

"Stay here for the night. I assume your parents still have a cell, I could phone one of them for you and explain you had a little time to blow some steam off."

"Yeah they do...and thanks again Mr Schue."

Within half an hour Will had reassured Mr and Mrs Evans that their son was completely safe and he would take Sam to school in the morning. He then let Sam speak to them for a while and then sorted out some bedding for the boy. By the time Sam was settled to go to sleep Will finally, finally, finished his marking.

"Goodnight Sam."

"Night, Mr Schue...and...Mr Schue?"

"Yes Sam?"

"You totally rock as a teacher."

He went to sleep with a smile on his face and the next day he slipped some money to cover the costs of Sam's binge drinking and a bag of leftovers for the whole family. He spent most of the day cheerful and happy with himself because finally a success with one of his kids. His day got worse when the whole Glee club is obviously still believed in those stupid rumours.

He could not stop them interrogating Sam.

He could not stop them from pushing and pushing.

And he simply stood there while Sam spilled everything he was trying so hard to hide and he just done nothing to prevent him being questioned.

Sam was wrong. He didn't rock. He just totally sucked at being a teacher.