"Maybe it's true
That I can't live without you
Maybe two is better than one
But there's so much time
To figure out the rest of my life
And you've already got me coming undone
And I'm thinking
I can't live without you
'Cause, baby, two is better than one
But there's so much time
To figure out the rest of my life
But I'll figure it out
When all is said and done
Two is better than one
Two is better than one…"
As the two voices slowly faded out the rest of the room quickly erupted into applause, causing the pair to blush.
"Wow, that was great you guys. Really, amazing job." Will said happily as he took his spot near the front of the room by the piano. Tina and Artie each mumbled a quiet 'thanks' from their seats, both wanting to be out of the spotlight as quickly as possible.
"Okay, moving right along to our last performance we have Finn and Rachel." Will clapped his hands again and moved back to his seat among Emma and the students.
The pairs had drawn numbers randomly out of a hat and for the past hour the kids had been singing their hearts out. Kurt and Mercedes had gone first with a crazy performance of 'Take Me for What I Am' from RENT, dancing around the room like fools and making the entire room bust into fits of laughter with their bright and tacky costumes. Matt and Santana had gone next, singing 'I've Had The Time of My Life' from Dirty Dancing and even managed to learn the complicated lift made famous by Johnny and Baby in the original movie. Going along with the music Brittany had hummed just days prior, Mike and his partner had sang 'A Whole New World' from the Disney movie Aladdin and Tina and Artie had just finished 'Two Is Better Than One' by Boys Like Girls and Taylor Swift. Now, as Finn and Rachel took their places at the head of the room the group went silent as Brad began to play their song. Finn took the first verse.
"I can take the rain on the roof of this empty house
That don't bother me
I can take a few tears now and then and just let them out
I'm not afraid to cry every once in a while
Even though going on with you gone still upsets me
There are days every now and again I pretend I'm ok
But that's not what gets me…"
Turning to face each other the pair continued to sing to each other in harmony.
"What hurts the most
Was being so close
And having so much to say
And watching you walk away
And never knowing
What could have been
And not seeing that loving you
Is what I was tryin' to do…"
"It's hard to deal with the pain of losing you everywhere I go
But I'm doin' it," Rachel sang, the regular passion in her voice amplified to a new level.
"It's hard to force that smile when I see our old friends and I'm alone
Still Harder-"
"Getting up, getting dressed, livin' with this regret
But I know if I could do it over
I would trade give away all the words that I saved in my heart
That I left unspoken," Finn joined in as they joined hands and began to circle around, putting all the power and energy into the song. His eyes remained focused solely on the petit girl in front of him, the rest of the world barely registering in his mind.
"What hurts the most
Is being so close
And having so much to say
And watching you walk away
And never knowing
What could have been
And not seeing that loving you
Is what I was trying to do
Not seeing that loving you
That's what I was trying to do
Ooohhh..."
They continued to stare at each other for a moment, breathing heavily now, as the rest of the room applauded them before snapping out of their bubble and moving back to their seats. The rest of the room paid no attention as they shared a quick kiss and, instead of her own chair, Rachel was pulled instead to sit on Finn's lap.
"Wow. That was impressive." Will said as he once again stood at the front of the room. "Ms. Pillsbury and I are going to go deliberate in the hallway and then we'll announce the winners and what they won." With a small nod to the group he ushered Emma out of the choir room and down the hallway.
"Is anybody else feeling the ANTM elimination vibe in here or is it just me?" Kurt spoke up after a moment of silence.
Santana laughed. "Oh my god, I was thinking the exact same thing."
"I love that show!" Rachel smiled. "Tyra is so versatile with her image and talents. She's an icon!"
Mercedes grinned. "She's fabulous!"
"What does ANTM spell?" Brittany whispered glancing over to her best friend with curiosity.
Santana let out a small sigh. "They mean Top Model, Brit. We watch it every Wednesday remember?"
The blonde's face lit up with realization. "I can catwalk!"
"Ohh! Let's play!" Kurt grabbed a stack of lyric sheets next to him and stood at the front of the room, his face turning somber as the four girls giddily stood in a line before him.
"Four beautiful ladies stand before me, but I only have three photos in my hands." Kurt said seriously. "And these photos represent the three girls who will still be in the running to become America's Next Top Model. The first name I'm going to call is…. Santana."
Santana let out a huge sigh of relief and walked up to take the lyric sheet he held out.
"Congratulations Santana. You're still in the running to become America's Next Top Model."
"Thank you for believing in me!" Santana said breathlessly, imitating one of the contestants from season six.
After Santana moved off to the side, Kurt's gaze returned to the other girls.
"The next name I'm going to call is…. Brittany."
Across the room Finn leaned over to the other two boys. "What the hell is going on?"
Matt shrugged. "No idea."
"Absolutely none." Mike agreed watching as Brittany clapped and took her "photograph" from Kurt and stepped aside.
Kurt frowned. "Will Rachel and Mercedes please step forward?"
The two girls remaining did as instructed, both of their heads hung in mock shame.
"Mercedes, we'll start with you. At the beginning of this competition you started off strong. Those pictures of you lit on fire were amazing, and the shoot inside of a live whale made us see your potential. But each week you've been falling farther and farther behind. And we're not sure if you can keep up anymore." He turned. "And Rachel, You started off with decent pictures, but lately, you've been doing better. That photo of you eating grass was stunning and you rocked the shoot where you were wearing nothing but Spaghetti-O's. But your diva attitude has overshadowed your performance, and Mr. Jay even said himself that he wasn't sure if you could handle it." Kurt shrugged. "So who goes home? The girl who can rock anything flammable or sea-bound, but isn't able to keep up the pace? Or the girl who loves lawn care and Italian food, but has an issue with her people skills? The last name I'm going to call is…."
Back in their seats the boys found themselves holding their breath as Kurt paused to let the suspense rise.
"Rachel. Congratulations. You're still in the running towards becoming America's Next Top Model."
"Oh thank you! Thank you so much!" Rachel cried happily as she took the last lyric sheet from Kurt's hands. "I promise I won't let you down!"
Kurt smiled softly as she moved over with the other girls, heading slowly over to Mercedes who was now bawling.
"I WANTED TO WIN!" she sobbed. "I DID EVERYTHING I COULD AND LEFT MY HOME AND SHAVED MY HEAD."
"You did good." Kurt said as he hugged her comfortingly. "Go home and practice and work on your smise. With a little more time I think you can make it."
"Thank you Tyra." Mercedes sniffed as she pulled away and made her way to hug the other girls. "Y'all better kick some major ass okay?"
They all stared intensely at each other for a minute, no one in the room daring to make a sound, when suddenly Rachel began to giggle and the rest of the girls and Kurt burst into hysterical laughter.
"Oh my god, my stomach hurts." Rachel said clutching her stomach.
Mercedes was doubled over with giggles and Santana and Brittany were wiping tears from their eyes while Kurt held on to a chair nearby for support.
"Oh good lord," he panted, trying to catch his breath. "That was great."
It was then that Will and Emma walked back into the room, both with content smiles on their faces.
"We've reached a decision." Will stated obviously. "And before we announce the winners we just want to say that each of you blew us away. But there was one pair that stood out the most for us and that team will get to decide on the next number we perform as a group during the school assembly in two weeks." The ten student's eyes went wide.
"They get to pick on their own?" Rachel asked.
Will nodded. "Yep. It's completely up to them- as long as it's school appropriate. So, without further ado…" he glanced at Emma and nodded.
"The winners are…." She paused briefly to let the tension build before grinning. "Santana and Matt! Congratulations!"
The entire room erupted into cheers as Matt and Santana were hugged and high-fived and patted on the back by their peers. Even Rachel smiled at the two warmly and offered her own words of encouragement.
"I must admit, as much as I hate to lose, you two did a very admirable job. That lift was unbelievable."
Matt smiled and wrapped an arm around his partner. "Thanks Rachel."
Santana nodded. "Yeah, I guess." And then when he nudged her she added, "Thanks."
"Do you two have any ideas of what you might choose for our number at the assembly?" Rachel tried to sound as nonchalant as possible, but it was obvious that she was dying to know.
Matt shrugged. "We have a few things in mind but we'll have to think it over a little. We'll let you guys know by Monday, cool?"
"Sounds great." Will answered for the group. "Alright guys, you all did an excellent job today, keep up the good work. I'll see you all Monday."
"So I guess this means we have to get together again and decide on a song." Santana said casually as she followed her partner out the door.
"I guess so." Matt smiled as their fingers intertwined. "How about tonight?"
"I don't know, it might take a long time." She grinned. "You should probably plan on coming over tomorrow too. We have to put a lot of thought into this."
He nodded, mock seriousness on his face. "Oh yeah, lots of thought. For the club."
"Absolutely. But there's a few things that the club probably shouldn't be involved in."
Matt raised his eyebrows. "Really? Like what?"
Standing on the tips of her toes to reach his ear, she whispered, "You'll just have to wait and see." She pressed a quick kiss to his cheek and sauntered off towards her car, calling behind her. "Be there by seven!"
Matt watched her go with a grin on his face. Glee was turning out better than he'd ever imagined.
-GLEE-
A/N: Just a quick note. In case you don't watch America's Next Top Model, a "smise" is the signature look Tyra is famous for- AKA smiling with her eyes. Google it! Who did you think would win the contest? Were you surprised? What song do YOU think they should sing next? Let me knowin the comments!