Chapter 4
Auditions
Mr. Schuester was sprinting through the hallway. He was breathing rapidly and deeply and one could not tell if his nostrils were flaring or not. He stopped at a doorway and slammed the door open.
"Sue, what is the meaning of this?"
Sue was seated at her office chair, holding her pen. Her journal was open, and the page it was open at contained the word 'Dear'.
"I wouldn't say I didn't miss you Will, but one of the things I sure did not miss about you is that pile of dust bunnies you got over your head."
"Why are you trying to humiliate these kids? It's the first time that we had 7 auditionees who really seemed to be interested to join and you're threatening them with performing in front of the whole student body!"
"Is that what you really call it, William? Threatening?"
"Well, you've been trying to remove the existence of the Glee Club ever since we started outperforming your Cheerios."
Sue sighed and closed her journal. "Are you really going to view what I did as a threat?"
"Of course!" he said, raising his hands and putting them down. He turned his back to Sue. "I can't believe that we're going to lose this much talent…"
"Giving up so easily…that's why you're not happy, Will."
Still, he was looking down on the floor.
"If you think they're going to run scared and not audition, then maybe they're not cut out for your Glee Club. But, if they don't care what the students think about them and perform with all of their might, they can be the talent that you need."
Will raises his head and turns to Sue. She, like in some previous rare occurrences, was right. If these 7 kids are great, they could carry on the New Directions with no worries. It could be a test to see if they are willing to take the risks and challenges that come with joining the club. Now that he realizes it, it's a good idea.
"You can thank me after they performed. That is, if they perform and if they are good."
Will nods to her and leaves. But still he wonders. Is Sue helping him, or is this another of her good old ploys to destroy New Directions?
Finn was hurriedly searching around the school. He had heard Coach Sylvester's announcement of the auditions in the gym with the whole school. Even if he wasn't a part of it, he was terrified. He remembers when they performed Push It at the gym, and he wasn't too proud of that. He stops walking and looks at the auditorium entrance. There he was, the guy with the dreads, looking inside. He walks towards him.
"It looks good right? The stage, I mean."
"Yeah, it does. It must be fun to perform there."
Finn nodded. "I'm Finn, by the way." He offers a handshake.
The guy accepts it. "Samuel. Samuel Larsen. Have you ever performed on that stage?"
"If you're in the Glee Club, you can practically live there, rehearsing every day."
Samuel looked at him. "You're part of the Glee Club?"
"Mm-hmm. You could be too. I heard you sing while you were walking down the hallway. You could be a great addition."
"Me? And why do you think that?"
Finn sighed and breathed in deeply. "Mr. Schuester, the director of the Club, told me that he saw something in me. Because he believed in me, I joined the Club. That became the best decision of my life so far. Well, getting to the point, I think you have something, some kind of a spark. And I think you know that too. Maybe joining the club can even make that spark larger."
Samuel looked back at the stage. He loved and missed performing. Even if he and his band only had less than 10 performances, he knew he belonged on a stage. But if he does get even little exposure, some might dig into information and find out about his past. And, performing on stage through show choir? It's the last thing on his mind.
"I can't join the club. Too busy, I guess."
Finn's bright eyes became sullen. He had failed in his plan. However, he didn't want to let it show.
"It's okay if you don't join." Finn turns toward him and smiles. "But, you have potential. I hope you use it, even if it's not for the Club."
He started walking. "I'll see you soon Samuel." Although he left smiling, he was a little disappointed. He was supposed to be a leader, supportive and encouraging. Yet the one person he tried to recruit did not want to be part of the Club. He was so sure that they would be great with him; exactly like the way he was sure that he loved Rachel. But, he didn't want to let his hopes down.
Samuel, on the other hand, was still thinking. A lot of scenarios were playing on his mind. He wanted to experience a normal life. Yet, he also wanted to make friends, especially those who he could relate to, with music and stuff. He was still looking at the stage. Would I really be content at just looking at the stage? Or could I take the risk to be in it?
It was 12:30, and the members of the New Directions, with the exception of Finn were at the choir room. The impromptu performance they planned on having at this moment was canceled, due to the announcement of Coach Sylvester. Too bad, they were supposed to be singing Last Friday Night. They were standing just around the piano, some looking down and some talking to each other. Rachel looks around and looks in front. Seated in front of them were the 7 auditionees. She assessed them one by one.
First on her left was the somewhat cute guy with brown hair. Turns out he's Irish, so his accent might be a worry to the Club. Next to him was the girl from theater club, Lindsay Pearce. She has never heard her sing or seen her perform, but she looked beautiful, especially with those blue eyes. She shuddered at the thought of her beauty matching her voice. Seated below her was a small guy, smaller than her actually, talking to a stout female redhead. She wonders if they really had nice voices. Beside the two was a guy who was tall like Finn, but had the fashion sense of Artie. She heard that he was the one who got slushied in a semi-circle pattern, and she could see why. And last but most definitely not the least were two girls seated on the top-most platform, one redhead and one brunette. They rivaled Quinn and Santana in their beauty, but if they had a voice similar to hers, they could trump them.
"So, what are you guys thinking of singing at the gym?"
All of them looked at Santana, Rachel being the one with the discerning expression.
"What? I was curious!" She said, facing to the seven. "Let us assess if the songs you choose will be good enough."
The seven of them looked at each other to see who would go first. Matheus stands up. "I was thinking of singing…Baby One More Time?"
"No, only I can do Britney. We even made a treaty," says Brittany, in her usual tone.
Kurt raises a hand. "And, we did Britney at the gym, and we caused a total riot." He giggles, but stops, noticing that their faces had turned grim. Rachel, realizing that this is turning sour, interferes.
"Okay, you guys are going to be all right. We are going to support you all the way, whatever you guys sing. But," she said turning to her fellow members and again to the auditionees, "I also think that we should expect for the worst. It most certainly isn't impossible that each one of those who are watching may be holding a slushie or two in their hands and—
Tina grabs Rachel and covers her mouth. It was bad mentioning slushies in front of them. The members looked at each other, shrugging and pointing fingers to who should speak next. They did not know how to cheer them up or support them. If only Finn were here. He usually does the pep talks in times like these.
Speaking of the devil, he enters. He looked at the members of the club, frowning at Tina holding onto Rachel. He looked at the auditionees and saw dread and horror written all over their faces. He goes in the center.
"Do you guys love to sing?"
They all looked at Finn and they all nodded. All of them, old and soon-to-be members were looking at him.
"If you do, then that's all that matters. Just focus on singing that song, like, it's the only way you're going to save yourself. Sing for your life."
Each one of them nods and looks pumped. Some of them even smile. Tina lets go of Rachel, who was also smiling. She always liked that Finn knows what to say when everybody is down.
"So, for familiarity, how about you introduce yourselves to us?" He said smiling. Damian goes first and stands up.
"I'm Damian Mc—
He stopped talking and looks at the door. All of them turned to where he was looking at. Finn turned around and smiled. It was Samuel, who slowly entered the choir room.
"What made you change your mind?"
"I just realized a lot of things. It wouldn't hurt to give this a shot, right?" He whispers something to Finn.
Finn looks behind him. "Okay, let's go guys. They're going to need some alone time to prepare."
The members were frowning, but since they trusted Finn, they all left the choir room, closing the door. It was again silent inside, with Samuel standing on the center.
"So, we can go to introductions, right? I'm Samuel." He signals Damian to continue his introduction.
"I'm Damian McGinty."
Hannah looks behind. "Wow! You have an accent! Where are you from?"
"Um, Ireland, but I'm now living here permanently…"
"Cool! I'm Hannah, by the way! It's nice to meet you all!" She said, looking around.
Matheus stands. "And I'm Matheus! Please don't let my height distract you!" He smiled as everyone chuckled.
Emily went down the platform and went where Samuel was. "Emily Vasquez here," she said, accompanied by a flip of her hair.
Marissa raises her hand. "And I'm her unwavering best friend, Marissa. Hmm, it feels weird saying that."
Emily frowns. "Unwavering?"
"Best friend."
They were giggling as Lindsay stood up. "I'm Lindsay, and judging from what is happening, I think we'll be very good friends!"
They were now looking at Cameron, who was the only one who didn't introduce himself. He smiles and stands up. "And last but certainly not the least, I'm Cameron. It's a pleasure to meet you all." He politely bows and sits on his chair.
Samuel again takes the floor. "So, guys, I was wondering…since we all are going to do this together... how about doing a group number for auditions?"
All of their faces lit up with a smile. They all look at each other, as if they were reading each others' thoughts. What went on the next minutes was a fun and loud brainstorming session. The eight seemed to unify immediately, despite their obvious differences. By the time lunch ended, their plans were concrete and in full circle.
Within classes, instead of listening to the teacher, the eight auditionees were practicing their lyrics. And by the time classes ended, they hurried to the choir room to practice as a group, along with the Jazz Ensemble. Samuel was the one leading the group, since they thought that he was the best fit for it. They were having another go with the song, singing their lines and doing their formations. Then, they all belted out their last line. When the song ended, they cheered and gave each other high fives.
"All right guys! I think we can do it!" Samuel takes a water bottle. "Let's rest up until singing time. We did awesome!"
Samuel went to talk to Damian, while Lindsay was in a corner, doing the number by herself. Hannah, Matheus, and Cameron were sitting by the piano. Emily and Marissa were seated in the platform, the former fixing her makeup and the latter practicing her lines. Emily closed her compact mirror, and looked at Cameron. It has been probably more than 10 times that she has caught him glancing at Marissa. She slid closer to her.
"Do you like him?"
"What? When did I say I liked him? What makes you say that?" She looked flustered.
"Girl, I still didn't say who."
She opened her mouth, but no words came out. She made a little gulp. "Uh, well…I…It seemed that…I just assumed…"
Emily shook her head and smiled. "I'm loving this right now! So, who is the guy you are referring to?"
"No one!" She moved farther from the Latina and continued practicing her lines. She felt her cheeks becoming red, so she fixed her hair to cover the evidence.
Unknown to them, the same topic was being discussed in the piano table.
"Seriously Cameron, the girl you have been looking for is right there, and you won't even make a move!" exclaimed Matheus. He seemed really intent in helping the guy out. "If you're not taking her, I will."
"Hey!" Hannah thrusted a finger on his back. "That is no way to cheer him up! He is thinking this out, planning for the best way, right?"
Both looked at the bespectacled guy. He shrugged. "I'm just going to go with the flow. If she talks to me, it's good. If she doesn't, then it's nobody's loss. Let's just focus on the song, okay?"
Hannah and Matheus looked at each other. They did not like how he is taking this. They needed to help him and her get together. Meanwhile, Samuel and Damian were getting to know each other a little better.
"My life in Ireland was great. I won't keep it a secret that I've drank a lot of alcohol before."
Samuel was grinning. "I would give anything for a chance to live there. Sounds like it's so much free."
"Yeah, well, it depends on how you look at it. But so far, I'm enjoying it here as much as I did there."
Both of them took a quick look at Lindsay, who seemed much focused in getting her parts right.
"Now that's what I call commitment."
Damian nodded. "She seems to take everything as a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
"But, I wonder if she's happy with what she's doing."
"She looks like she is."
Damian continued looking at Lindsay. She had that confidence about her, yet he feels that there is this other side of her, waiting to come out. However, don't they all keep a certain side of themselves?
They heard a knock on the door and Mr. Schuester entered the choir room.
"So, are you guys ready? Let's set up the gym and you'll be starting in fifteen."
Lindsay was peeking from the curtains of the stage. The school gym was packed with people. Her eyes scurried through the audience and closed the curtain immediately.
"Guys, they have slushies!"
The others looked at her, eyes widened. Suddenly, they were now pacing to and from backstage.
"I won't let even a single drop touch me!" Emily said.
Cameron looked the most panicked out of all of them. "What are we supposed to do? I cannot have another slushie hit me!"
"Me too!" Matheus sits on a stool. "I doubt that the teachers will be able to stop them, though."
"But, we cannot stop right now!" said Damian. "We've worked hard for this!"
Samuel nods. 'He's right. If we don't sing, it's like we're surrendering to them."
Marissa peeked at the other end of the curtain. A lot of students were holding slushies, as Lindsay had mentioned. But, a familiar group of faces caught her attention.
"They seem really pumped and excited to see us perform."
"Who?" Hannah peeked with her as well. "Oh…it's the club. Plus Mr. Schuester and Ms. Pillsbury."
"We know we can't let them down, right?" Marissa stops peeking and went near them. "Slushied or not, we have a song to sing."
All of them, including Cameron looked at her and smiled. As her eyes went to him, she let out a little smile and nodded politely. They all know that people were supporting them, and that they could not let a slushie stop them.
The bleachers were packed with people, and this worried the New Directions the most. They were seated nearest to the stage, on the left side. Finn was seated beside Mr. Schuester.
"Mr. Schue, some of them have slushies in their hands. Don't you think they are going to throw them?"
The Spanish teacher sighed. "I know. I'm kind of worried right now. No one can really stop them."
"Oh no, I don't think I can bear to see all of them get slushied!" Tina grasps Mike's arm.
Puck stands up. "Let's barricade the stage then. If someone's going to be slushied, it's us before these guys."
The clock exactly hits 4:00, and Puck walks up, faces the stage and extended his arms sideways. The other members of the New Directions followed him.
"I'm proud of you Will," said Ms. Pillsbury, seated next to him. "They're growing to value the more important things in life, with your guidance."
Mr. Schue smiles. "That's not exactly the case. They've been guiding me too."
Backstage, the auditionees were all lined up, their backs facing each of their microphone stands and the audience. Samuel signals for the curtains to rise. As they go up, Lindsay belts out a high note, and the Jazz Ensemble starts to play. Damian goes first.
"We're not gonna take it! No! We ain't gonna take it!"
Marissa grabs hold of her mic. "We're not gonna take it, anymore!"
She pumps her fist up as Lindsay steps in front. "We've got the right to choose it, there ain't no way we'll lose it!"
Marissa goes beside her. "This is our life, this is our song!"
Samuel then breaks their formation as they return to their first positions. "We'll fight the powers that be just; don't pick our destiny 'cause."
"You don't know us, you don't belong," sang Damian as he does an air guitar gesture.
In unison, they all sang. "We're not gonna take it! No, we ain't gonna take it! We're not gonna take it, anymore!"
As they were singing, Mr. Schuester and Ms. Pillsbury were looking at the crowd's reactions. Some were nodding with the beat of the music, while some were just demonstrating a flat affect. Or maybe, their faces were just registering that they were enjoying it, but didn't want to show it.
Matheus and Hannah now go in front. "Oh you're so condescending! Your gall is never-ending! We don't want nothing; not a thing from you!"
Cameron splits them up. "Your life is trite and jaded! Boring and confiscated!"
Emily flips her hair and pushes Cameron aside. "If that's your best, your best won't do!" Everyone now sings in chorus.
Oh…Oh…
Oh we're right! (Yeah!)
We're free! (Yeah!)
We'll fight! (Yeah!)
You'll see!
Lindsay now belts out. "Yeah! We're not gonna take it" The others now join her.
"No, we ain't gonna take it! We're not gonna take it anymore!"
Marissa does an ad-lib run during the song's instrumental, and the group sings one last time.
We're not gonna take it! No, we ain't gonna take it! We're not gonna take it anymore!
We're not gonna take it! No, we ain't gonna take it! We're not gonna take it anymore!
The music ended and the gym became silent. The auditionees were breathing deeply after singing. They looked down and saw that the members of the New Directions were ready to take the slushies for them if some were actually thrown.
"Well that sucked!" shouted one student.
"I can't believe I wasted 3 minutes of my life on this crap."
Murmurs began to fill the gym and the students left immediately to resume what they should have been doing at 4:00 PM. Mr. Schuester waved goodbye to Ms. Pillsbury as he approached the stage.
"Okay, a round of applause to the wonderful auditions we had!"
The veterans were enthusiastically cheering for the newbies. They were all beaming.
"And, I think that everyone will agree with me on this. You guys did great! For a short amount of time, you managed to pull off a great number. I am impressed."
"So, Mr. Schue? Are they in?" asked Finn.
He smiled. "Let's welcome the 8 new members of the New Directions!"
Sue was walking down the hallway. She just had come from the gym after witnessing the auditions she had assembled, as part of her plan. She entered her office and sat down her chair. She brought out a notebook and a pen. She flipped the notebook to the part where it said 'Dear'. She continued to write where she left off.
"Dear Journal…I could not believe I am writing this. I just helped the Glee Club gain new members. Although it sounds like a total abomination, I am quite happy that I helped William Schuester and his ever-growing forest of brown twigs, wrongly called his hair. Surprisingly, the audition that I helped tailor actually helped me in finding what I needed. My new set of Cheerios royalty. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw those three ladies perform in front of me. Thanks to them, I have my priorities straight. I will have the Cheerios win the Championship once again by recruiting these three stunners. And of course, that might just be the way to destroy that club of misfits called New Directions."
Author's Note:
I AM DEEPLY SORRY for the delay of this chapter! Last July 25-30, I attended a first aid and BLS-CPR training and I was completely exhausted. On a positive note, whenever I had free time, I jotted down chapter outlines and future song scenes, which made me more excited for the upcoming chapters!
By the way, the song is We're Not Gonna Take It (for those who do not know) by Twisted Sister. I decided this to be their audition song since it pretty much sums up how the Glee Club feels and I felt that it was the perfect song at the moment. And it was easier since they already sang it on the show =D. I have to share that I cringed when reading the group number. I really really don't know how to incorporate songs. Please feel free to give suggestions on how to improve it! Constructive criticism is always good criticism!
Reviews, comments, suggestions, violent reactions are much appreciated! Any suggestions on the pairings? Sure! How about song requests? I will try to put those. Anything you say will be taken into consideration! Thanks to all those who reviewed, especially those who take time to review each chapter! Shoutouts: slotes123, Mystery Morgan, KTEW, Erinlee, BelieverInLove, LilyLunaCho, asLightasDark, J-StarGleek, beyerdoubts (I am deeply flattered and honored that you made an account just to review. And yes, I have no life as well ;D), ronxhermioneftw, Iggy'sGirl15 and bebe098. You are all going to get a slushie (yes, not slushied) with a flavor of your choice! Damn, I suck at rewards.
So now after the training, I am again with nothing to do. What better use of time than to write this fanfic? I am writing Chapter 5 immediately as an apology to the delayed update. Thank you for reading and stay tuned! Much much more chapters to come, because I know I'm not done with this story yet! ^^