Everyone sat in the choir room taking turns rehearsing their numbers for prom night. Right now Puck and Lauren were reheasring "Don't You Want Me Baby?" while everybody else watched.

"Santana," said Brittany. "I'm worried. If someone decides to elect us prom king and queen, they're not going to be able to decide who's the king and who's the queen and we may have to split one of the crowns in half."

"That won't happen," said Santana. "No one in this room is going to be prom queen. You, Rachel, Mercedes, and I aren't even running, Tina is barely campaigning at all, and Lauren is campaigning by shoving kids up against their lockers and saying, "Vote for us or you'll be Zized."

"Don't be so sure," said Sunshine. "I'm running with Mike."

"You're, like, a fifth his size," said Brittany.

"You and Mike are dating?" said Santana.

"We went out a couple of times," said Sunshine with a playful smile. "Plus, I like his style. I need a man who can dance around me while I sing."

"Poor Mike," Santana mumbled under her breath. "He's dating Rachel's evil twin."

"What did you say?" said Rachel.

"Nothing," said Santana.

"Screw this," mumbled Mercedes out of nowhere. She left the choir room.

"Is she okay?" said Kurt.

"I don't know," said Rachel, getting up and walking out after her. Rachel stopped Mercdes at her locker. "Hey"

"I know I talk a good game about not needing a man, and I don't," said Mercedes. "I just really wanted to take a date to the prom. I want the dress, and the guy, and the damn corsage."

"I get it," said Rachel. Then, not knowing quite what else to say, she just stood there. "Hey, I know who you can go to prom with!"

"I'm not third wheeling with you and Sam," said Mercedes. "That's even more depressing."

"Of course not," said Rachel. "You should go with Finn."

"What?" said Mercedes.

"He's the only other person with no date," said Rachel. "You and him can double date with Sam and I, it'll be fun."

"Well…" said Mercedes. "Okay." It was certainly better than not having a date at all.

"Do I look okay?" said Sam. "I had to borrow one of my Dad's work suits."

"You look great," Rachel assured him.

"I couldn't get you a corsage," said Sam rather apologetically.

"That's okay, I made one myself," said Rachel, showing him her pink wrist corsage that matched her dress.

"Are Mercedes and Finn here?" asked Sam.

"They're meeting us at Breadstix," said Rachel. She playfully took Sam's arm and he escorted her to the restaurant. Finn and Mercedes were standing outside chatting awkwardly and waiting for them. "Finn, you look amazing," said Rachel softly. Actually, he looked beyond amazing.

"You too, Mercedes," she said quickly. Shut up, Rachel, she told herself. As far as they're concerned, you're dating Sam.

"Thanks," said Mercedes.

After seating them at their table, the waitress commented on how lovely Mercedes looked. "You're a lucky man," she said to Finn with a smile.

"Oh, she's not my girlfriend," said Finn quickly.

"Really?" said the waitress playfully. "Why not?"

"Um…" said Finn. The truth was, the thought of dating Mercedes was just plain weird. They never really talked, and while she could be as fun to hang out with as Rachel, he didn't like the way she started yelling at everyone when she got mad. Rachel's condescending but constructive criticisms were somehow easier for him to deal with.

"I'll take a diet coke," Rachel cut in.

"Same here," said Finn.

"I'll take a glass of water," said Sam.

"Same here," said Mercedes. Then she started munching on a breadstick.

All four of them starred at each other awkwardly for a moment, and then Mercedes looked at her breadstick and said, "I wonder if they actually make these fresh."
"No," said Rachel. "I heard they just fly them in from some factory in the Dominican Republic."

"Well, I got some British airways down in the Dominican," said Sam, suddenly talking in a weird voice that made Rachel stare at him like he'd lost his mind and Mercedes burst out laughing. "Hey, hey, hey!" She laughed even more, and Finn and Rachel looked at each other but didn't say anything.

Mercedes nudged Rachel. "Come on, it's a Matthew McConaughey impression!"

"Ohhh," said Rachel, again exchanging glances with Finn , who didn't even know who that was.

"Wanna see what else I got?" said Sam. Then he launched into some other impression nobody else could even understand but made Mercedes laugh. "That was brilliant," she said.

"Oh, glad someone thinks so," said Sam. "Santana just rolled her eyes at pretty much everything I said. She was clearly only after one thing."

"And let me guess," said Mercedes. "It wasn't your sense of humor."

Sam and Mercedes laughed. Rachel rolled her eyes. That sounded all too familiar considering why and she and Jesse had broken up.

Once they arrived at prom, Sam and Rachel knew that for appearances sake, they had to take a picture together, even if they decided not to pay for it later. Meanwhile, Mercedes and Finn headed out to the dance floor and she tried to enjoy herself and not think about how this was nothing like she had always wanted her prom to be. It took them a while to loosen up and just have a good time dancing together, but they did, just as Rachel and Sam were heading out. Rachel couldn't help but glance at Finn with his goofy made-up dance moves once in a while, and Finn glanced back at her whenever it seemed like Mercedes wouldn't notice.

"Partying, partying, yeah!
Partying, partying, yeah!
Fun, fun fun, fun,
Looking forward to the weekend!"

Rachel laughed as Puck finished up the last words of the song. "I'm actually kind of impressed. He made that song sound…"

"Hearable?" said Sam.

"Yeah," said Rachel. She saw Blaine give her a discreet wave as he came over and took the stage. The music playing instantly changed it's tune and grew soft. Rachel casually wrapped her arms around Sam's neck loosely and he put his arms around her back. Mercedes clasped her hands around Finn's neck, and he awkwardly put one of his hands on each of her sides.

"Yellow diamonds in the light
And we're standing side by side…"

As the sound of Blaine's voice and the soft strum of Puck and Artie's guitars filled the room, Finn couldn't help but think about how much nicer it would be to be dancing with Rachel right now, and this time, it was beyond obvious when he turned and starred right at her. By the time she turned her head to look at him, he was looking back down at Mercedes and smiling amicably.

"It's the way I'm feeling I just can't deny
But I've got to let it go"

"You love him, don't you?" said Sam.

Rachel sighed.

"We found love in a hopeless place
We found love in a hopeless place"

"You aren't the only reason I can't do anything about it," said Rachel. "I can't go after him this soon after what happened with Quinn. He would have to be the one to make the move. Or I might scare him off."

"We found love in a hopeless place
We found love in a hopeless place"

"Finn," said Mercedes suddenly. "Are you in love with Rachel?"

Finn finally sighed. "Yes."

"Shine a light through an open door
Love and life I will divide"

Finn shook his head. "God, what the hell is wrong with me? She's dating my best friend. Right now the only thing that makes me any better than Puck was with Quinn is the fact that I'm not doing anything about it, but I don't know if I can keep this up much longer. I'm starting to wonder if maybe I've really loved her all along."

"It's the way I'm feeling I just can't deny
But I've got to let it go"

Mercedes couldn't take it any longer. She shoved him as hard as she could, turned around, and ran out of the room. Confused, Finn starred after her and then turned and looked at Rachel This time she looked back at him.

"We found love in a hopeless place
We found love in a hopeless place"

"Sam," said Rachel. "Mercedes just ran away." Sam and Rachel made their way over to Finn weaving their way between slow dancing couples. "Finn, what's wrong?" asked Rachel.

"We found love in a hopeless place
We found love in a hopeless place"

Crowds of people sitting at tables began to cheer, and Blaine motioned for Rachel to come up onto the stage and start singing her song. Reluctantly, she walked away from Sam and Finn and took the microphone from Blaine.

"Comparisons are easily done
Once you've had a taste of
Perfection
Like an apple hanging from a tree
I picked the ripest one
I still got the seed"

"What's wrong?" said Sam.

"I don't know," said Finn. "She just…took off."

"I'll go find her," said Sam. Finn nodded, glad not to have to be the one to go after Mercedes when he wasn't even sure what he'd done wrong. He sat down in a random chair and looked up at Rachel.

"Cause when I'm with him I am
Thinking of you
Thinking of you
What you would do if
You were the one who was
Spending the night"

Finn was looking right at Rachel while she sang, and without even realizing it, she was looking right at him, too.

"Oh I wish that I
Was looking into your
Eyes"

Sam glanced frantically around the empty hallways of the school until he realized that there was only one place Mercedes was likely to go. Sure enough, there she was sitting in front of the locked choir room. "Hey," he said. "What happened?"

"What do you care?" snapped Mercedes.

"Cause I do," said Sam. "What did Finn do?"

"Nothing, really," Mercedes admitted. "He just wasn't what I ever imagined having as a prom date. I know that makes me sound like some superficial snob or something and I'm not like that at all. I just wanted to be Cinderella, just for one night. One night where a guy would look at me under those corny crepe paper streamers and say, "You look so beautiful". And then he'd take my hand and ask me to dance. Isn't that what prom is supposed to be about? Not spending the night dancing with yet another guy who's hung up on somebody else?"

"I should've known better than to let Rachel set you two up. I know exactly what girl Finn's hung up on," Sam confessed.

"You do, huh?" said Mercedes. She sighed. "This is the way it's always been. Everybody just loves Rachel."

"Can I tell you a secret?" said Sam. He leaned over and whispered. "I'm not really dating Rachel."

Mercedes was taken aback. "Say what?"

"We just had to pretend because of all those motel room rumors," said Sam.

"But…then why didn't you just tell people the truth?" said Mercedes.

"I'll explain everything later," said Sam. "For now…" He smiled. "Mercedes, you look so beautiful tonight." He held out his hand. "Will you dance with me?"

"You were the best
And yes, I do regret
How I could let myself
Let you go, oh, oh, oh
Now, now the lesson's learned
I touched it I was burned…"

Still unable to tear her gaze away from Finn, Rachel's breakup with Jesse flashed before her eyes on the last line. She didn't even notice Sam and Mercedes entering the room hand in hand.

"Oh I
Think you
Should know
Cause when I'm with him I am
Thinking of you
Thinking of you
What you would do if
You were the one who was
Spending the night
Oh I wish that I
Was looking into your
Eyes"

"Wait...Sam and Mercedes are dating now?" said Mr. Schu. "What happened to Samchel?"

"That was so last week," said Rachel, flashing Sam and Mercedes a smile and silently praying that without Jacob gone she would still be safe to stop by and hang out with Sam and his siblings without fear of rumors.

"Um…okay," said Mr. Schu. "Well, guys, we've got a lot of work to do preparing for Nationals, and Puck and Lauren, congratulations on winning prom king and queen."

The New Directions members clapped. "Good job, you totally deserved it," said Brittany.

"I know," said Lauren.

"Now, time to start practicing our group number for Nationals," said Mr. Schu. "From the top!"