Summary: The continued journey of Rachel Berry, Noah Puckerman and their New Directions family as they handle new gleeks, old friendships, surprise siblings, love, a second run at Nationals and senior year. The sequel to Living for the First Time.
Pairings: Puckleberry, Bartie, Chang-squared, Samtana, Finncedes, hints of Seblaine, and one-sided Klaine. Puck/Rachel/Santana/Sam, Blamman, Faberrirtana, Puckerwilde, St. Puck friendships.
Warnings: Caution, this fic may contain crude language and discussion of sexual activities. In other words, I have a potty mouth and watch way too many cable television shows! There may be spoilers for season three but I'm trying to avoid seeming anything like that season. So yeah….
Disclaimer: I don't own this show or anything related to this show. I wish I did because seriously Season Six is already starting to sound like a train wreck and it hasn't even started yet!
Author's Note: Hello all. So sorry for the delay. I got hit by writer's block with this story and then inspiration struck for a ton of other stories. But the bright side is you get this massive chapter as a 'I'm so sorry' present. Hopefully you all will accept! Ciao for now!
Stay With Me
"Well look who finally decided to show up for practice! Welcome, Blaine Warbler. It's about damn time!" Blaine snickered softly at the words that greeted him as he strolled into the auditorium. His smile grew brighter at the look of wide eyed confusion he found on his companion's face. Jesse narrowed his eyes in exasperation. "Oh, and he bought the competition. Again. Am I seriously the only one here that actually wants to win?!"
Blaine rolled his eyes even as he threw his stuff into the pile of clothes, bags and junk at the back. He motioned for the "competition" to do the same. Sebastian gave him a confused look even as he shrugged off his Dalton blazer. Blaine noticed how easily his newfound buddy was doing that these days. They never once asked him remove the blazer. He did it all on his own. It was almost as if he couldn't wait to rid himself of the burden.
"Are you sure that it's ok for me to be here? I mean this is your practice," Sebastian muttered, casting a nervous look in a no longer concerned Jesse's direction.
"Dude, ignore St. Dictator. He just enjoys yelling at all of us. It gives him a feeling of superiority. Helps him to pretend that he's not going totally soft because he loves us."
"I heard that, dumb ass," Jesse snapped at Blaine. "And I'll have you know the only reason I'm not throwing Sebastian out is because one, I know you'll cry if you don't have your boyfriend around. And two, Brittany is giving me these looks right now and they're kind of creeping me out. I think it has to do with your latest reject."
Blaine whirled around to see that the blonde was definitely throwing a dirty look at Jesse for daring to speak out against Sebastian's presence in their practice. Puck was sitting behind her stretching out. He had a similar glare. They were not making it any less obvious that they were planning on stealing Sebastian from the Warblers. He shook his head. His friends were all sorts of adorable.
"So why were you guys late anyway? I thought you were just going to meet Sebastian and come straight here," Rachel spoke up, trying in vain to get her boyfriend and friend to stop glaring at Jesse. It was expectedly not successful.
"That was the intention. I got Seb's text and went to pick him up, only to find out that it wasn't Sebastian that sent the text. It was Hunter's psycho ass. It was yet another plot to bring me back into the fold. Again. This time through a song and dance routine. They're stepping their crazy game up. They're getting more unstable as the story goes on."
"Story?" the others minus Puck and Brittany murmured. The other two were glaring at Blaine. He smiled sheepishly.
"Sorry. I meant more insane as the days go by."
"I'm really starting to think I'm only in the group to be used as bait at this point," Sebastian added. He paused. "Actually, no, I'm pretty sure that they're just using me as bait. Especially considering the fact that I have zero solos for the competition. And I'm pretty sure that I will never have one again if I don't get Blaine to join the Warblers again."
"Guess, it's gonna be all Hunter solos from here on out," Blaine retorted, patting Sebastian on the hand. He laughed as Sebastian shook him off with exaggerated glare.
"Gag, Hunter is going to be singing One Direction?" Kitty grimaced. "I think I'm officially over One Direction."
"Still confused why you were on them to begin with," Unique muttered. Kitty mock glared at her before hissing. Unique rolled her eyes but they all saw the smiles on both girls' faces. Jake snorted from his spot between them.
"Kitty's questionable taste in music aside, this actually works. Pretty much solidifies our win," Jake grinned, exchanging high fives with Unique and dodging a blow from Kitty. "Although you have to admit it's kind of clever that they're sticking to a boy band theme given that they're a boy band."
"Jake, never compliment the competition to their face," Jesse chided. "I actually didn't hate New Directions but I never let them know that."
"We knew," all the original members of New Directions chorused together. Jesse growled and flipped them off as a response.
"Alright, let's practice vocals on Stronger again," Jesse called out. "That doesn't mean the rest of you are off the hook. I want to practice choreography for the Fly mash up. Also Blaine, we replaced you on the rap. No offense but you kinda… sucked."
Blaine shrugged. Yeah, he could accept that. He wasn't built for rapping. Besides that gave him plenty of time to enjoy Sebastian's adorably confused face. He stopped himself. Bad Blaine, no checking out Sebastian. There was nothing adorable about Sebastian. Not a damn thing…. Yeah, if he just kept telling himself that, he may actually believe it at some point. Not.
"You're not mad?" Sebastian asked as he sat down in one of the auditorium seats and watched Mercedes, Brittany and Santana practicing their parts. "I mean they just took away your one solo in the whole performance."
"There will be plenty more solos in the future. Besides, he's not wrong. I'm not exactly the best rapper. I'd rather have a good solo than just a random one. You know?"
"I guess," Sebastian murmured, thoughtfully. They sat in silence for a few moments, both enjoying the three girls' vocals. "Do you miss it? You know being the star? The one that everyone is looking at?"
Blaine shook his head without hesitation. "Not even a little bit. I really am ok with not being in the lead all the time."
"Even though it's made you a bit of a loser?"
Blaine elbowed him in the stomach prompting Sebastian to laugh softly. "I'm not a loser," Blaine corrected. "How can I be a loser when I've got the most amazing friends in the world? I've got friends that didn't hesitate to emotionally blackmail someone as well as straight up lie to my parents to get me to switch schools. And not even just to join the Glee club. They just wanted me to be here with them. They don't want me for me for my voice. They want me for me."
Sebastian nodded thoughtfully, his eyes locked on the stage where the others were in various forms of rehearsals. "That… must be really nice."
Blaine nudged him before giving into the not so subtle throat clearing coming from Jesse. He stood up ready to go practice. But before he did, he turned to Sebastian with a huge grin. "Yeah, it's not bad. But don't worry. I'm sure you'll know how it feels soon enough."
"I guess I just don't understand sometimes."
"Really? I didn't think that Puck and Brittany were being that subtle."
Sebastian laughed quietly. "Yeah, subtlety is not their thing. But that's not what I meant." He gestured towards the stage where the others were working on choreography under Will and Mike's watchful eyes. "Why do any of you do this? If you're not trying to be the star, then what's the point?"
Blaine leaned forward, scanning his friends until he found the best example of the point. He smiled softly as he spotted Kitty, Jake and Unique standing slightly to the side of the stage, giggling at Finn and Puck's attempts to follow through with the choreography.
"Did you know that Kitty is a mole placed on our team by Coach Sylvester to spy on us and probably at some point in time to sabotage us as well?"
Sebastian arched an eyebrow as Kitty linked arms with Unique and rested her head against her taller friend. The two girls were watching in obvious amusement as Jake twirled around his brother laughing at his halfhearted attempts at hitting him.
"Is she planning to sabotage you guys via cuddles and hugs? Because if so, please feel free to take me down anytime."
"You're incorrigible. And no, I think you're purposely missing what I'm trying to say. Look at them. Those three are attached at the hip. They're the strangest collection of people and yet since the day they found out they were in the glee club, they have been best friends. I don't think Kitty even remembers that she's supposed to be taking us down."
"So?"
"So that's what I'm trying to say. New Directions isn't about being a star. It's about bringing together people who otherwise wouldn't bother to talk to one another in the hallways and give them something bigger to be a part of. It's about making friends and having someone to share the good and bad times with. And yeah, it's about competitions but that's a small part of it. Most of it is just being happy with your friends."
Sebastian continued to watch the madness unfolding on the stage with a too thoughtful look in his eye. Blaine was worried about the Warbler. He couldn't quite figure out what it was that was off with him lately as their friendship was still rather new. But there was a weight that had settled on Sebastian in recent weeks. He looked more stressed out than usual and spent more and more time away from the Warblers. He didn't even hit on Blaine as much as he used to. Not that Blaine missed it of course. He was simply concerned because flirting with Blaine was a second nature to Sebastian. And lately it seemed as if he had to struggle to remember that he was supposed to be doing that. It was like he was slipping away and Blaine couldn't stand the idea. He didn't want to lose Sebastian.
He really hoped that Brittany and Puck pulled whatever move they were going to do soon. He really didn't think that there would be much left to Sebastian if they didn't.
It started with Brittany and Artie. She had noticed that the couple wasn't as close as they used to be. Sure they could be found talking to one another and occasionally hugging but the lap rides down the hall seemed to be a thing of the past. It totally escalated one day when Rachel caught Artie checking out a Cheerio right in front of Brittany. Before Rachel, Quinn and Santana even opened their mouths to attack him, Brittany finally announced that Artie was free to look where he wanted because they weren't together anymore. They broke up over the summer. When asked why, Brittany explained that she was graduating that year and Artie wasn't. They could try the long distance thing but it wasn't fair. They knew they were awesome friends so they decided to dedicate this last year to going back to being just friends. If it worked out in the future, then it did but so far they were both happy with the arrangement.
Anyway, that's when it started. Because Brittany and Artie weren't the only couple that would be separated once the school year ended. Mike and Tina were already bracing themselves for the separation while it never even occurred to Santana. She would be graduating and inevitably moving to New York while Sam would be stuck in Ohio for another year. The thought of not being able to see him every day as she was able to do now made her feel sick to her stomach. The idea of breaking up with him because she was scared to lose him made her feel even worse. And it was from this place that everything went straight to hell.
Santana never wanted to be one of those girls. The girl who's whole life revolved around her boyfriend. She was reasonably sure that she loved Sam. She knew that she loved spending time with him and not just as boyfriend and girlfriend. He was one of her best friend in addition to being her boyfriend. He cared about her, flaws and all, and she couldn't ask for anything more. She trusted him. So when he started acting shady over the summer, she gave him space. He would come back around. But when it didn't seem that there was an end in sight, she started to grow concerned. When even Blaine and Puck seemed at a loss for what he was doing, she started to get suspicious. And when she saw a message from someone named 'Alison' thanking him for last night and being "pumped" about something that was happening Friday, well…. maybe she could've handled that better. But Puck didn't call her Senorita Loco without good cause and really, that message had to go.
She freely admitted that perhaps smashing Sam's phone against the wall was a bit of an overreaction but she went with her gut feelings. And her gut feeling told her to smash the hell out of the phone until she could find this Alison bitch and do the same to her. When he asked why the hell she felt that his phone needed an introduction to the wall, she may or may not (she did) have told him to find a new way to speak to his whore. In the middle of the hallway right after first period. Yeah, her timing definitely sucked.
"You went through my phone?" Sam yelled. Her jaw dropped. Really? He really thought he had any right to be upset here?
"You left your phone on my desk. I was just bringing it back when I saw a message from your friend about last night and apparently, she's really 'pumped' about Friday!"
"Santana, you don't understand! It's not what you think!"
"You're right, I don't understand," Santana replied, her voice flat. "I don't know what the hell is going on with you lately but I'm over it. I can't do this anymore, Sam."
Suddenly she didn't want to fight anymore. She didn't want to make a scene (well more than she already made) and entertain the rabid student body that was itching for a fight between the couple. She didn't want to be in a relationship with someone who didn't want to be with her. And wasn't that exactly what Sam was saying? In the past two months, they barely spent any time together. Hell, Sam was barely around any of them. And now this mess with the text message. It was clear to her what this meant and what she had to do.
"It's over," she whispered. The words felt like a knife leaving her lips. She wasn't sure who was the most surprised (or hurt) between her and Sam. She shook her head. "So if you want to be with Alison, go ahead. I won't be mad."
"You really think I would cheat on you?! You think that I want to break up with you?!" Sam asked, his voice rising again. Santana closed her eyes and was ready to walk away when she felt a firm grip on her wrist. She turned around, not at all surprised to see Puck holding on to her.
"Enough," he ordered, gently. "I don't know what's going on but I do know that you two are kind of awesome together. You're too awesome for this. I don't know what's going on with Sammy but I know that he's not cheating on you. He's shady as all hell but he's not cheating."
"It doesn't matter," Santana shook her head. "I'm so tired of this. I don't want to be the person that stays even when it's smarter to go. I don't want to be my parents. But if we end things now then at least I can walk away from this actually still liking him."
"San," Sam mumbled. She could hear the hurt in his voice but she steeled herself against it. Because she felt hurt too. She felt sad every time she watched him dozing off in class or glee club and she was left to wonder who or what was keeping him up at night because it certainly wasn't her or any of their friends. She felt hurt every time she asked him on a date but he was too busy doing 'something' to be bothered with her. Yeah, she felt hurt and she felt sad. So now it was his turn. She was not going to feel bad about that at all. Except she did because she really did love him.
"Ugh, you two are so annoying," Puck grumbled. He raked his free hand through his hair before glancing at the concerned looking Rachel, Finn, Quinn and Mike standing on the sidelines. A smirk twisted his lips as he looked back to the fighting couple. Santana knew that she was going to hate anything that came out of his mouth after that smirk appeared. She always did. "I have a way to resolve this."
"Really?" Sam asked, skeptically.
"Really, my dear Sammy," Puck repeated with a wider smirk.
"And that is?"
"Well, what do glee club kids do best?"
"Oh god no," Santana groaned. She was really regretting not walking the hell away from Puck in middle school. So many of her headaches could've been avoided.
"That's right, babe," Puck continued cheerfully. "Sing our way through pressing social issues and moral dilemmas!"
Santana sighed. She was definitely going to kick both Rachel and Jesse's asses for ever suggesting this boy be the damn lead of New Directions. It clearly was driving him past the point of the insanity he already existed in. But when he was standing in front of you with bright hazel eyes and a grin that wouldn't quit, it was hard to say no to him. Even though she really, really, really wanted to. Instead she shut her mouth and accepted the assignment.
Later that afternoon, she found herself standing opposite Sam in the choir room. The rest of the gleeks were gathered and all of them looked tense. Well, all except Jesse. He was standing off to the side muttering loudly about Sectionals being only a few days away and the whole club was worrying about a damn sing off. Sometimes (ok, honestly most of the time) she really, really liked Jesse.
"Ok, we are all gathered here today for the epic sing off between the almost but not quite broken up Sam and Santana," Puck announced, needlessly, to the gathered gleeks and Sebastian, although he was pretty much a gleek by association. For now. "They will be singing the instantly huge Adam Lambert mega 2009 hit, Whataya Want from Me."
"That's not a duet," Finn pointed out, wrinkling his brow in thought.
"Dude, we live in the age of the internet. Everything is a duet these days. Besides the song was written by Pink originally and last year she released her own rendition of the song and…" Puck trailed off as Jesse slapped his hand over his mouth and dragged him away.
"We get it, you're a music nerd and you know stuff. Just shut up, sit down and let them get this over with so we can go back to practicing for the competition which is only a few days away." There may have been more grumbling about superfluous activities but Santana tuned them out as the band started to play. Santana took a deep breath. She hated that Puck picked this song. That he was able to take one look at them and pulled this damn song out of his scary encyclopedic knowledge of music. She hated that it fit them so damn well. Stupid Puck and his brain. She exhaled and started to sing.
Hey, slow it down
Whataya want from me
Whataya want from me
Yeah, I'm afraid
Whataya want from me
Whataya want from me
There might have been a time
When I would give myself away
Oh, once upon a time
I didn't give a damn
But now... here we are
So whataya want from me
Whataya want from
Sam stepped forward as he joined her for the chorus. She couldn't read the look on his face but she always knew what he was thinking based off his eyes. The green orbs were watching her warily but with a growing understanding forming.
Just don't give up
I'm working it out
Please don't give in
I won't let you down
It messed me up, need a second to breathe
Just keep coming around
Hey, whataya want from me
Whataya want from me
Whataya want from me
He took her hand in his and lifted it as he started his part.
Yeah, it's plain to see
That baby you're beautiful
And there's nothing wrong with you
It's me, I'm a freak
But thanks for loving me
Cause you're doing it perfectly
Sam opened his mouth to finish his part but he closed it just as quick. He shook his head and made a gesture to the band to stop playing before he used their joined hands to pull her into his arms. Santana immediately relaxed in the familiar embrace. Her arms wound around his waist even as he pulled her closer.
"I'm so sorry," he whispered in her ear. She nodded, smiling softly in both apology and acceptance. She knew he could tell her intent because he placed a kiss on the side of her head. "Can we talk?"
She pulled away from him. "Yeah, I think we should."
Without another word to the rest of the glee club, the couple started out the room. She knew they wouldn't mind especially given the fact that apparently they were taking bets on how long it would take for them to make up. She was glad that Rachel thought they wouldn't make it through the whole song. The rest of them…. she shook her head and instead focused on following Sam. Santana trusted Sam to lead them somewhere that they might have some small amount of privacy. She wasn't surprised when they ended up in the gym, specifically the spot where they had their first kiss. He was such a sap. He was her sap and she was stupid for even giving into the momentary graduation induced panic.
"I'm sorry about your phone," Santana started once they stopped walking. "I shouldn't have smashed it. I was just so angry but that's not an excuse."
"No, I get it," Sam shook his head, his thumbs gently caressing her cheeks. "But I just need you to know that I would never cheat on you, Santana. I spent too long chasing my own tail about dating you. I'm not about to give you up for some random person. I love you."
She smiled bright. "I love you too."
"I'm with you for as long as you want me."
"Even when I'm in New York?" she asked, hesitantly. Sam sighed.
"Well, hopefully….." he trailed off, seemingly lost in thought. Finally, he pulled a piece of paper from out of his letterman jacket. He hesitated a moment before coming to some internal conclusion. He then handed her the paper.
She unfolded it carefully. It was a transcript for McKinley High School. She, and all of the seniors, was more than familiar with what this looked like. They all sat down with Emma at the end of the previous school year to review their credits and discuss what options they had if they were short. It was a way to ensure that they graduated on time. She, along with Rachel, Kurt, Quinn, Mercedes, Dave and Mike, was right on track. Puck was missing a few credits due to his accident but the school administration was willing to let that go since his mother didn't sue anyone for letting her son get hit by a car right outside the school building. Finn and Brittany had a few makeup classes to take but they were both on track. But Santana didn't get what Sam was trying to show her.
"So you know how my mom got that job at the Community College?"
"Yeah," she replied, warily, still staring at the paper.
"Well one day when I was driving her to work, she suggested that I take a couple of classes since I had the time over the summer, you know just so I could get a feel of what college would be like."
"You've been taking college classes?" Santana asked, jaw dropping a little. Sam ducked his head but nodded. "So that's what all the cloak and dagger secrecy was about?"
"Well partially. You see, I also talked to Ms. Pillsbury over the summer to see if I could get out of taking any introductory classes once I actually got to college. After she got done reviewing my record, she told me that because my old school was different than here, I actually have more credits than a regular junior. Then she suggested that I take some classes that would help boost my credits even more for high school. So I did. I took a few classes over the summer and now I'm taking three more. Once they're done, I won't be a junior anymore."
Santana's eyes widened as she looked down to where the credits were totaled. And sure enough Sam's credits were about even with hers. "Wait, a minute… does that mean… what does this mean?"
"It means that unless I totally messed up on the paper I handed in last night, I should officially have more than enough credits to make me an official senior. And barring some end of the world type stuff happening this school year, I should be graduating with you guys in May."
"Wait, you're graduating… with us?"
"With you, yes. I'm trying to graduate with you."
Santana let out a shaky breath and used her free hand to brush away the tears that were daring to escape her eyes. "You really did all of this… for me?"
"At first, I was ok with you guys graduating. But then I realized that as awesome as Blaine is, he's not you or Puck or Rachel. I think we may a little codependent," she laughed shakily and nodded. They so were. "I just kept thinking about you all being together everyday without me and I didn't want be left behind."
"You would never be left behind," Santana corrected with a watery smile. "But now you don't have to be."
"No, now I don't," he smiled leaning forward so that his head rested against hers. "Besides someone has to keep an eye on Puck and Brittany. You and Rachel are practically wrapped around their little fingers. And most importantly, someone needs to be there to tell you everyday that you're amazing."
"And that's going to be you?"
"That's going to be me," he promised, giving her a brief kiss. "And for the record, Alison is a girl in my class. She was panicking last night because she left her paper at home along with the flash drive. So I offered to give her a ride to her place so she could pick it up. That's why she was texting me. To thank me for running her back to pick up her paper. And she's pumped about Friday because this is it. The end of the semester and the return to me being a regular gleek."
"And now I feel really bad."
"You should," Sam chided with a teasing smile that took the sting from the words. "Alison is just a friend. I promise. She's also strictly and exclusively into girls."
"Well, I was too until I met you."
Sam raised an eyebrow. "You trying to say I give off girl vibes or something?"
"No, you're definitely all male," Santana managed to say before giving into the urge to giggle. She slid her hands up his shoulders before clasping her hands around the back of his neck. Sam tightened his hold on her hips drawing her closer. She smiled up at him, shaking her head in wonder. "I seriously can't believe you managed to hide this from us."
"I was going to tell you all but I didn't want to jinx it. I just wanted to make sure that I was actually going to be able to graduate."
Santana shook her head, pressing her lips against his. She smiled. "You're such a dork, Trouty Mouth. But you're my dork and I love you."
"I love you too."
"Alright guys, settle down, settle down."
Blaine tore his attention away from chiding Sam about his recently revealed secret to look at Will standing in the front of the room. He didn't know how Rachel's fathers pulled this one off but they managed to get Breadstix shut down for the evening so that New Directions could celebrate their win along with their families. The fact that they assumed that New Directions was going to win was kind of awesome. At any rate, that's where they were celebrating their victory as well as Sam's B+ paper that officially made him a senior. Blaine was a little sad that the blonde would be gone next year too but he knew that Sam would be miserable without Puck. Besides it's not like Blaine would be alone. He had Artie, Tina, Jake and….
He snapped out of his thoughts at the sounds of Kelly Clarkson's Dark Side playing from his shirt pocket. He and Sebastian made that their ringtone for one another following the Warbler's latest attempt at bringing Blaine back in the fold. It was a something of an in joke between them. He pulled the phone out and started talking as soon as he hit the talk button.
"Hey, Seb. Where are you? Thought you were coming by once Hunter got done berating you guys for only coming in second." There was a pause that was not immediately followed by Sebastian's smart mouth comments. Blaine felt a pit forming in his stomach. "Seb?"
"Hello, Mr. Anderson. My name is Melissa. I'm a nurse at Lima General. A Sebastian Smythe was brought in an hour ago. He was quite insistent that we inform you that he will be unable to attend your party tonight."
"Who cares about the party? What happened to him? Is he ok?"
"I'm afraid I cannot divulge that information. He wouldn't rest until one of us promised to call you. Don't worry about your friend. He's receiving the best care here. Have a great night. And also congratulations on winning."
"Where is Bas?" Mike asked once the nurse hung up. Blaine started to reply when he caught what Mike said. He was glad that he wasn't the only one giving the dancer an off look. Mike rolled his eyes. "Ok, we all know it's only a matter of time before Sebastian is one of us full time. But that doesn't really matter since he is pretty much one of us already. He's our friend and he should get the obligatory and arbitrary multiple friendly nicknames too. And that's so besides the point. What happened to him?"
"He's apparently in the hospital," Blaine replied, quietly. "And I don't know what happened. Apparently Melissa the nurse can't share that information with me."
"Wait, Melissa?" Rachel asked suddenly. A slow smirk spread across her lips. "She might not be able to tell you but she definitely had to tell the ER doctor on duty tonight who also happens to be my father."
"Having a doctor for a father comes in handy when you need to straight up violate patient confidentiality laws."
"There's a world of wrong in that," Quinn commented, shaking her head at Santana. "But let's go check on our Warbler."
"Wait, we're all going?" Blaine asked, looking around the room at the rest of the assembled teens. They were all staring blankly at him. "Guys, there are a lot of us. I mean like a lot. We might, uh, you see…."
"What Blaine is trying to say is that we cannot roll in there twenty deep," Santana translated. "We'll find out what's going on and let you know."
"Ok, I know why Blaine and obviously Rachel are going but why do you get to go?" Tina asked, crossing her arms over her chest. Puck cleared his throat. "Puck too?"
"Duh, Rachel is so my sister at this point. I go where she goes."
"I got top billing in the story," Puck chimed in. "I go where the plot goes." Brittany glared at him. "Hey, it's not my fault there aren't enough character slots."
Blaine groaned. "If you're totally done with the fourth wall gag already, can we please get going?"
"Yeah, dude, of course. Sorry. Let's get going," Sam soothed as they walked towards the entrance.
"Sam? Why are you going?"
"Do you not pay attention to the plot at all? Codependency issues. I go where they go."
Blaine sighed. His friends were idiots.
The last person Sebastian expected to see that night was Blaine Anderson. When the door to his room opened, he was expecting his father back for round two in their ongoing argument. But instead he was greeted with Blaine, Puck, Rachel, Sam and Santana. They were all wearing expressions that were a mix between amused, smug and guilty. That is until they saw his face. Then it was horror, rage and not a little sympathy.
"It's not that bad," he mumbled. Santana raised an eyebrow.
"You clearly haven't looked in a mirror," she retorted, flinging herself on the chair next to his bed. "So what the hell happened to you?"
"If you managed to sneak in here, then you already know."
"We know that you look like you went six rounds with Mike Tyson," Sam retorted. "We also know that you have a concussion and heavy bruising."
"In other words, someone beat the hell out of you," Puck finished. "And yet, you are suddenly drawing a blank on who did it."
Sebastian shrugged before wincing at the motion. "I never saw who it was. I was leaving the venue hall when someone caught from behind. Next thing I know I'm waking up in an ambulance and my dad is demanding I tell him who did this to me. I don't know who it was."
"You're lying," Blaine whispered. He tilted his head to the side. "Why are you lying? Who are you trying to protect?"
"No one," Sebastian hissed. "Why are you guys even here? Shouldn't you be celebrating your victory or something?"
"We were until we were informed that you were in the hospital," Rachel answered. "We came to check on you."
"Why?"
"Because you're our friend," Puck stated like it was obvious.
Sebastian supposed to them it was obvious. They were used to just dropping everything for one another. But people didn't do that for Sebastian. No one ever dropped everything for him. Not even his own father. He cared about his son. He loved Sebastian but he wouldn't put his work on hold for him. Unless his son turned up in the local hospital after having the crap kicked out of him. But Sebastian knew that was more to do with the gay son of the District Attorney having been assaulted. He could imagine the headlines. The nightmare this was going to cause. But he didn't care. Because there was nothing to say.
"Guys, could you give us a minute? Maybe go calm down the others. You know they're already here."
Puck snorted. "Pretty sure I saw Britt's car following us on the way here and you know she's not alone."
"Let's go before they start harassing the nurses or wheelchair racing again," Rachel rolled her eyes, even though she was smiling.
"Aw, wheelchair racing. Good times," Puck said, dreamily. Rachel shook her head and shoved her boyfriend out the room. Sam and Santana followed after them both snickering and most likely plotting how they were going to be able to race this time. Sebastian laughed despite himself. He watched out the corner of his eye as Blaine settled in Santana's now abandoned seat.
"What's going on, Seb? Who did this?"
Sebastian paused for a long moment before sighing. "You remember what we were talking about the other day? About why we do this?"
"Yeah…. wait, did the Warblers do this?"
"Can you seriously picture Wes, Jeff, or David trying to hit someone? Pretty sure they would all faint at the sight of blood." Blaine snickered in faint agreement. Sebastian shook his head minutely. "No, don't worry. It was not an impromptu Warbler performance on my face or anything like that."
"Then what? What are you hiding?"
"It doesn't matter," Sebastian said dismissively. He looked down at his hands before meeting Blaine's confused gaze. "You said before that singing was fun for you. But it doesn't feel fun to me. Why is that?"
"Maybe it's because you're not where you belong."
"And where is that?"
Blaine leaned forward covering Sebastian's hand with his own. "With your friends…. with your family."
Sebastian felt tears of frustration building. All of New Directions spoke of friendship and family like it was this absolute certainty. But he couldn't wrap his head around the concepts. He didn't understand why any of them liked each other much less liked him. It didn't make any sense. He hated when things didn't make sense. He was about to explain this to Blaine and force the other teen to help him understand when the door opened again. This time it was his father as expected. He was holding two large cups of heavenly smelling coffee and a white paper bag carrying what smelled like cinnamon rolls. No wonder he was gone so long. He definitely didn't get those in the cafeteria.
"Sorry I took so long," his father said, eyeing Blaine carefully.
"It's ok," Sebastian assured him, not liking that knowing look in his father's eyes. "Blaine, this is my dad, Landon Smythe. Dad, this is Blaine Anderson. He was in the Warblers last year but then he transferred schools."
"Ah, yes, Blaine," Landon said with a hint of a smirk. "Nice to finally place a face to the name. I've heard a lot about you and the rest of New Directions. I'm going to assume that the rather large group of teens that have turned the hallways into a wheelchair drag race are with you?"
Blaine groaned. "Seriously? I can't take them anywhere." He patted Sebastian's hand again. "I'll see you tomorrow?"
"What's tomorrow?"
"Nothing besides Saturday. Figured you might want some company if you're still here. Or even if you're not, I'll still come see you. I promise I'll leave at least fifteen of them at home. Well, I'll try. I can't promise that they won't come anyway."
Sebastian just nodded numbly. He still didn't get why any member of New Directions was here (Blaine included). Blaine gave him one final sympathetic look before saying goodbye to Landon and leaving the room. Sebastian could faintly hear him chiding the others for being public nuisances. Really he was probably just mad they were racing without him. Blaine was just as much of a spaz as the rest of them.
"So that was the Blaine and the infamous New Directions," Landon commented innocently while taking a sip from his coffee. That did nothing to hide the smugness in his tone. Sebastian raised an eyebrow. "I know it might not always seem like it but I do listen when you talk, Sebastian. And lately all you seem to talk about are those kids. I can see why. They seem like a fun bunch. No wonder you've been ditching Warbler practices."
"Yeah," Sebastian murmured, picking at imaginary lint on his sheet. He heard his father let out a deep breath before sitting heavily in the bedside chair.
"I really screwed up with you, didn't I, kiddo?" Sebastian met his father's matching green gaze in surprise. Of all the things he expected the older man to say, that was nowhere on the list. "I could tell that something wasn't right with you. It started over the summer and I knew it was bad. It got a little better when school started and I thought it was over. But then I noticed you were going downhill again. I didn't say anything because I wanted you to come to me. I wanted you to tell me what was going on with you. And now….."
"This isn't your fault, dad."
"Isn't it? If I wasn't so busy with work or whatever excuse I've used in the past, you would trust me more. You wouldn't be so closed off and defensive. You wouldn't be a carbon copy of me. If I was a better father, you would tell me what's going on and give me an idea of what I could do to help. I'm not like your mother, Seb. I can't just tell what's going on with you. She just looked at you and she knew. I can't do that, kiddo, and I'm so damn sorry."
"Dad, I don't blame you for any of that," Sebastian said, struggling to sit up so he could reach his father's hand. He groaned as his sore chest pulled. For the record, he definitely did not recommend getting kicked in the chest with male dress shoes to anyone. It really freaking hurt. Landon noticed the movements and took pity on him to meet him halfway. Sebastian squeezed his father's slightly bigger hand. "I know that you worked to help you deal. I get that. I'm not the only one that misses mom."
"No, you're not. But you are the one that I should've focused on. Instead I threw myself into my work. But I need to do better with you." He let out a breath. "I'm going to do better starting right now. What do you think about a change of scenery?"
Sebastian blinked. "Don't you have work?"
"Do you know how many vacation days I've accumulated? I'm definitely overdue for some time off. So are you. So what do you say?"
"How long were you thinking?" Sebastian asked, quiet hope in his words.
"I was thinking a little road trip. Not too long. Just long enough for the worst of those bruises to fade. You don't want to start a new school looking like you were on the losing side of a boxing match, do you?"
Sebastian gave him a tentative smile. This was the version of his father he remembered from his childhood. This was the father that saw him. The father that was seemingly lost in the same accident that took Sebastian's mother. But he couldn't fight the glimmer of hope that he was back. He also couldn't fight back the smile that formed at the mention of a new school.
"New school, huh?"
"Yeah," Landon grinned, reaching into his pocket. He pulled out a brochure for William McKinley High School. "A blonde and a kid with a Mohawk gave me this out there. They said they thought you might do better at another school. I think they might be right."
Sebastian laughed. Puck and Brittany struck again. He wasn't going to fight this either. He was truly miserable at Dalton. The only time he felt remotely like himself was when he was surrounded by the insanity and liveliness of New Directions. He remembered what Blaine was like before he transferred and compared that to who Blaine was now. They were almost different people. And that was all because Blaine found his family. Maybe it was time for Sebastian to find his as well. He looked up at his father again.
"That all sounds perfect," he closed his eyes. "Thanks, dad."
"You're very welcome, Sebastian," Landon whispered, leaning forward to press a kiss against the least bruised part of Sebastian's forehead. He settled back in his seat and a comfortable silence fell over father and son for the first time in years. Sebastian was content to enjoy it. Of course that meant his father had to ruin it.
"So that was Blaine. You're right. He is super cute."
"Shut up, dad!"
"No, seriously, he's totally dreamy. I can tell why you have a crush on him."
"I do not have a crush on Blaine! He's like my best friend."
"Yeah, he's your best friend like your mom was my best friend when we were your age."
"Wait, weren't you and mom best friends growing up?" Sebastian asked, tilting his head to the side. Landon rolled his eyes.
"Yeah, that was kind of my point, kid. Eat your cinnamon roll."
Sebastian took the offered pastry with a grin. Admittedly being beaten up was definitely not how he wanted to end his evening but he couldn't deny that he gained something from it. For the first time in six years, he had his father back. Yeah, maybe it wasn't so bad after all.
Blaine frowned as he received his fifth text message from the Warblers that day alone. They were all concerned because Sebastian hadn't been to school since being released from the hospital. They all seemed to think that Blaine would know where he was but Blaine actually didn't know. He almost went to the hospital the next day but he got a text from Sebastian saying that he checked out the night before and was currently on a road trip with his father. That was the last time he heard from him. And that was five days ago.
"Ugh, you're making a big deal out of nothing. It's seriously not even my fault!"
"Oh, so your fists just accidentally ran into Phil and Bobby's faces?"
"Your brother is going to murder you."
Blaine looked up from his phone to see Jake, Kitty and Unique approaching. He was about to ask what was going when he saw the bruise growing on Jake's cheek and the telltale redness on his knuckles. Blaine arched an eyebrow at the trio of freshmen.
"Unique is right, your brother is going to murder you," Blaine chided. "Fighting again?"
"You guys are overreacting. One, it was for a good reason. Phil and Bobby were making fun of the lunch lady. Again. They kept calling her names and stuff and no one was standing up for her. She worked at my old school and she's always catching flak because she's bigger than most people. But she's nice and doesn't deserve that. And two, it's Puck."
"What's that supposed to mean?"
"It means, Kitty Cat, that I already know," Puck replied, appearing at his brother's side. "And while I'm not exactly happy with the twerp for fighting again, I can admit it was for the right reasons. Better reasons than 95% of my fights when I was his age."
"Sometimes I really want to meet the person you used to be," Blaine commented. Puck's eyes darkened.
"No, you really don't," Puck muttered, looking away. Jake narrowed his eyes before slipping his arm around his brother in return. Puck craned his head to look at the younger Puckerman before a small smile pulled at his lips. "Anyway, I only came to tell you guys that Jesse and Mr. Schue moved practice to the auditorium today."
"Oh god, is he making us prep for Regionals already? That's not even until like March!" Unique moaned dramatically. Puck snickered and the strange tension that formed over the group faded away.
As they made their way to the auditorium, Blaine couldn't help but wonder what was going on with Sebastian. On the one hand, he was happy his friend was apparently reconnecting with his father but on the other, he was concerned that Sebastian was missing school and shutting out the Warblers entirely. Part of Blaine was scared that Sebastian was going to shut him out as well.
Blaine shook off his increasingly depressing thoughts and took a seat beside Tina and Quinn. They were also speculating about why Jesse had them in the auditorium. Apparently he had appeared, told them all to take a seat and then left to go backstage. Blaine shrugged. The former Vocal Adrenaline lead was just as bizarre as the younger teens he worked with despite all his protests to the contrary. There was no point in trying to figure out what he was up to. Unlike Brittany and Puck, Jesse wasn't one to keep them in suspense about his plans for long. And it didn't look like he was going to start changing that now.
"Alright, listen up losers. I know you're probably wondering why you're here. And no, Unique it's not so that I can make you prep for Regionals. That's not until March. It's barely November. We start prepping next week."
"Same old Jesse," Tina muttered.
"St. Tyrant you mean," Quinn corrected. Blaine snorted at the comical glare Jesse leveled at the not all affected girls.
"Anyway, Will wanted me to get you guys here because he was approached by a few students who wanted to join New Directions following your Sectionals win the other day. We went through the new applicants and selected the one we thought actually stood a chance to audition. They're a new student here and wanted to join because they felt they owed the glee club something."
Blaine felt his heart skip a beat. Sebastian? Was this why he was radio silent? But that theory went out the window as Jesse returned with a younger and female brunette. The girl was right around the same age as Jake, Kitty, and Unique. She was also clearly not Sebastian.
"Introduce yourself," Jesse prompted with a hint of kindness in his voice. Blaine smirked despite himself. So someone outside of Rachel and Puck managed to get under Jesse's skin. The girl gave him a quick nod before stepping up to the microphone.
"Um, my name is Marley, um, Marley Rose. I started here last week when my mother started working here."
"Wait, Rose!" Jake sat up straight. "Your mom is Mrs. Rose. That's the lunch lady that always sneaks me extra cookies!"
Marley beamed in Jake's direction. He seemed extra smiley in the face of that smile. Oh, yeah, that was definitely going to be a thing. Blaine could already tell.
"Yes, she's my mom she told me how you all have been so nice to her and then I heard that you were a glee club and I thought it would be nice if I could audition."
Blaine didn't mean to drift as Marley started to sing. She really was good. Really good actually. He wouldn't mind hearing Rachel and Marley duet actually. That would probably be amazing. Still he couldn't help but feel disappointed and lost in his thoughts. He stupidly let himself hope that it was Sebastian and it wasn't. Now he was back to worrying about his friend once again.
"Thanks, Marley. If you could just step backstage, we'll be with you in a minute. Also can you send the other one out?"
"Wait, other one? I thought you only had one."
"One audition," Jesse clarified. "At this point, the vote is just a formality. Pretty sure an audition would just be pointless and kind of stupid."
"Who?"
"What?"
"Huh?"
All questions were silenced as Sebastian emerged from the curtained backstage with a grin on his face. There were only faint traces of the abuse he suffered. Even the stitched cut on his forehead seemed better. Out of usual Dalton button down shirt, Sebastian looked relaxed and comfortable. Clearly his impromptu vacation with his father helped center him in a way that Blaine never saw in his fellow Warbler. Sebastian looked happy. Blaine found himself smiling.
"So," Sebastian started, scratching behind his ear before shoving his hands in his pocket. "So, uh, can I join this or what?"
Blaine was pleased to note that his 'yes' was drowned out by the resounding nearly unanimous cries of all the others. Sebastian looked at him with that bright smile in place and Blaine couldn't fight the urge to smile back.
"Welcome home, Seb. Welcome home."
*The end for now. Man, this was a long one. But there was no way I was going to break it up. It's been so long since I updated. I hope that you all enjoyed this very Seblaine/Samtana heavy chapter. Uh, Puckleberry should be back in the next one. Hope you enjoyed!