Rachel was in tears, Mercedes, Puck, and Santana were pissed, Brittany was confused, Finn was comforting Rachel, and Sam, Quinn, Kurt, Mike, and Tina were in shock. Artie and Mr. Schu entered the room last, observing the situation in silence.
Chairs were knocked over, instruments were in disarray, juvenile messages were written on the whiteboard, and music was scattered all over the floor.
"Does anybody know who did this?" Mr. Schu said quietly.
Everyone shook their heads.
"They didn't even do an artistic job. I mean, I've done better than this," Puck stated.
"Not the time, Puck," Mercedes replied.
"Guys, look at this!" Tina had found a note lying on the piano, neatly folded. Quinn snatched it out of her hands.
"Dear New Directions, Good to know you guys are still losers. A whole cabinet of Journey songs? Really? No wonder you're forced to write those dumb original songs. Here's a little taste of what's to come. Thanks for making it so easy to hate you. Sincerely, Vocal Adrenaline."
"Well, we gotta do something! What's our plan of attack?" Santana piped up. "There's the classic, like toilet paper, forks, or we could get super creative and do something to them they've never seen."
Puck nodded, and the rest of the glee club agreed, all putting in their two cents.
Sam laughed. "Guys. This is exactly what they want."
"What?" Rachel sniffled.
"They want us to get revenge. It's going to distract us, plus, they'll think it's freaking hilarious. This war against Vocal Adrenaline has got to end."
"Sam, the pacifist, who knew?" Puck chuckled.
"I'm serious! The only way to get them to stop is to kill them with kindness. Invite them out for coffee! Share music!" Sam gasped, struck with an idea. "Let's have a party!"
"Okay, she's officially lost it," Finn said.
"Yeah, I think Sam's a little under the weather. Let's get you home," Kurt grabbed Sam's arm and tried to drag her out. As usual, Sam overpowered him and pulled her arm out of his grasp.
"No, really! We can invite Vocal Adrenaline and even the Warblers! We'll have a party and get to know each other."
As the other glee club members rolled their eyes, Will Schuster perked up. "That actually sounds like a GREAT idea!"
"Thanks, Schu! Keep in mind that you're not invited," Sam added quickly. Mr. Schuster sighed. "So…who's with me?"
By Friday evening, everyone was on board. The invitation had been sent out to Vocal Adrenaline and the Warblers, and everyone agreed to come. The party was being held at Finn's, the largest, most parent free house that weekend. Finn's mom and Kurt's dad were taking a "honeymoon" at a nearby hotel, and Sam's mom was back home in Philadelphia visiting family for the week.
Sam set out some punch and snacks in the kitchen, while Mercedes, Tina, and Mike were setting up the sound system and microphones in the other room. The party invitation had come with a friendly challenge – a talent competition. Each group was going to do an impromptu performance before the end of the night. "Just some friendly competition" as Sam had said. Puck and Finn stood in the corner, watching Sam.
"This is like déjà vu of Rachel's party last year," Finn shivered at the thought.
Sam clapped her hands and gathered all of New Directions in the center of the kitchen. "Alright, guys, let's lay down some rules. No booze, no illegal substances –"
Puck groaned in defeat.
"No spin the bottle –"
"May I ask what kind of childish party this is?" Santana raised her hand.
"Listen, guys, I heard about Rachel's party last year. We're not letting this get out of control! And spin the bottle is so eighth grade…"
"How about seven minutes in heaven?" Puck raised his eyebrows suggestively at Zizes.
"JUVENILE," Sam spat. "This is going to be a nice, clean party. Okay?"
They all murmured agreement and went their separate ways. Within a few minutes, all the Warblers arrived, and the dance party began.
"See?" Sam shouted above the music to Finn. "No alcohol is fun!"
"Yeah," he chuckled. "But the party will end when Vocal Adrenaline gets here."
"You guys think they're some sort of demons, but they're probably really nice!" The front door opened as Vocal Adrenaline, in a pack, coolly strolled in. Sam smiled and waved. They smirked in return. She adjusted her Ray-Ban eyeglasses and approached them.
"Hey, I'm Sam," she extended her hand to a senior boy who looked in charge.
He took her hand and pecked it with his lips. "A pleasure."
Sam studied his sharp, handsome features, his light brown hair that fell in all the right places. She giggled and retracted her hand.
"OH-kay, that's enough," Nick appeared behind her and gently touched her shoulders.
"Maybe I'll see you later tonight," the boy whispered in her ear. She followed him like a puppy dog, with Nick close behind. They went into the family room, where all of the music and dancing was happening. Sam was oddly enthralled, not noticing only a few of the Vocal Adrenaline members followed. After about an hour of dancing, most of the New Directions went to the kitchen to get some punch and food and freshen up. Vocal Adrenaline, on the other hand, had captured the hearts of the Warblers and were chatting them up on the patio, Sam included. Blaine stayed by Kurt's side and went with him to get some punch. The boy, whose name was revealed to be Chris, wouldn't keep his eyes – or his hands – off of Sam. Sam liked it in a way, but felt a tiny bit uncomfortable at the same time. Nick was most definitely uncomfortable, and tried to keep the flirtatious talk to a minimum.
After a little while, Nick grabbed Sam's arm and dragged her inside.
"Really. Sam, what is wrong with you?"
"I'm having fun…I mean it's not like we're in some committed relationship. We've been on like, one date."
Nick looked hurt.
"No, Nick, please. I really like you -" Sam was interrupted by cheering and screaming in the other room. The members of Vocal Adrenaline as well as the Warblers slowly entered behind Sam, following her to the family room.
"Oh. My. Goodness." Sam couldn't believe what she saw.
New Directions was wasted.