Feb. 19, 2022 (Saturday)
Over the course of the preceding week, Mercedes and Sam had days that were anything but lax. For Mercedes, her manager and publicist filled her schedule with several interviews that surrounded her Grammy win. And Sam had been roped into the studio for a few days to make some final touches to a friend's film soundtrack. But their appearance at the Star Jones Red Ball had nearly everyone they encountered buzzing about whether or not the engagement rumors were true.
At first, they were tight-lipped, but both of them wanted to make sure that they were the ones to confirm it before the media rumors and speculations got out of hand. A simple tweet on the still-popular Twitter handled that. By the end of the week, a multitude of magazines hit the stands with different candid photos of the couple and headlines such as:
"'She said YES!' tweets her beau. R&B singer Mercedes Jones engaged after Grammy win!"
"1st time Grammy winner to wed longtime boyfriend!"
"Singer and composer confirm engagement on Twitter!"
The weekend following the Grammys, however, they put their focus on celebrating the approaching birth of the newest Chang. With their bags packed, they made an early drive on the 101 upstate, heading straight for San Francisco. During the drive, they took advantage of their alone time to discuss some of the questions Sam's mother broached on Valentine's Day.
"So have you been thinking about where the wedding should be?" Sam asked while munching on some Jack-In-The-Box curly fries.
Mercedes took one hand off the steering wheel long enough to slip her sunglasses down the bridge of her nose. She turned a very frank gaze on the blond and then said, "Please—you know I have. I've talked about my wedding fantasies with you before. But what about yours? Where do you wanna get married at?"
Sam tucked his lips in and shrugged—his cheeks turning a pale shade of pink.
"Oh don't gimme that, Evans," Mercedes snapped with a poke to his shoulder. "C'mon. I really wanna know. This is gonna be both our wedding after all."
From behind his aviator shades, Sam side-eyed his fiancée. He didn't know why he was being so secretive about hopes when it came to getting married—especially with Mercedes of all people. She was the one who should know more than anyone, shouldn't she?
"Alright," he started, sticking the empty fry box back in the bag. "You remember a while back when we went to Lexington to look at houses with my family?"
"Yeah?"
"Well when you were walking around the grove in the back with my mom…" He hesitated, feeling a bit self-conscious about his admittance but went on anyway. "I had this moment where I saw us getting married out there." In the midst of his answer, Sam's mind recalled the memory from six years ago, when his parents found their new home.
It had been a good day for everyone—especially for him, who had been so happy about finally getting his parents and siblings out of the cramped house they'd previously lived in. It was his first major expense of his life; he knew what it meant to his family. Around sunset, he was coming out of the empty barn and spotted his mom and girlfriend walking down a row of lemon trees. He cast a satisfactory smile at the sight of them and casually strolled up to lean against the wooden fence that divided the barn from the rest of the house. All of a sudden, the ranch rang in Mercedes' infectious laughs. He didn't know what was so funny then, but seeing her laugh so freely under the glow of the summer sunset…it became a memory he'd hoped he would never forget.
Mercedes' cheeks lightly dimpled as she let his sincere tone resonate with her. Where had he been at that moment? she briefly wondered. Mrs. Evans was telling her a story about when she and Sam's father had been dating and how he'd boldly embarrassed himself for her. Mercedes couldn't help herself from laughing—mostly because that seemed to be a trend in the Evans family—but she had no idea Sam had even been outside when it happened.
"Why wouldn't you want to tell me about that?" she quietly asked.
Sam shrugged again, "Partly because I've never told anyone about that, or what it meant to me. But mostly because I just want you to have the wedding of your dreams. I know weddings are usually all about the bride anyway, and there isn't much that I need to happen when the day comes."
While staring serenely out the windshield, Mercedes asked, "So what do you need to happen when the day comes?"
"Not much—a green and orange topsy-turvy cake, a pillow shaped like the Starship Enterprise for the rings, and all the groom's men to wear X-Men suits under their tuxes…"
He looked to his fiancée to see her face wiped clean of amusement, and beamed all his teeth at her.
Mercedes raised an index finger at him for a few seconds, and as she lowered it her head turned. "Okay, there is no way any of that is appearing at our wedding."
Sam's chest was trembling with noiseless laughs; he didn't vocalize them until Mercedes repeatedly poked the hell out of his side.
"A green and orange cake and a Star Wars pillow?"
"Star Trek," Sam corrected through his snickering.
"Whatever!" Mercedes spat as a grin finally leaked across her face. "Sam I'm serious—tell me."
He seized her wrist and guided her hand back on the steering wheel while settling down again, "I just need the people we love and care about to be there, celebrating with us. That's it. As for what I want, there's three things. I want Stevie to be there. He's my brother and I want him as my best man."
Mercedes' grin fell into an understanding smile. She wanted Stevie there as well; he and Stacey were going to be her siblings-in-law on paper, but they had already felt like they were her brother and sister. It wouldn't feel right to have the ceremony without him. She opened her mouth to ask him a question but Sam went on to state his other two wedding wants.
"Number two is I don't want everything to feel uptight, y'know? I like some tradition, but I really just want us to have fun."
"Same," Mercedes agreed in an instant. "We gotta get our dance on at the reception."
"And the last thing I want is to take care of the honeymoon." He looked to his dark-skinned fiancée for her reaction to that. Her face scrunched up childishly and she topped it off with a pout.
"Does that mean I don't get to know?"
"Bingo!" he answered.
Her pout lasted for only a few more seconds before she composed herself again. She wiggled in her seat to sit a little taller and sweetly, she said, "That's okay."
Sam's brows arched, "Really?"
"Yep! Because I'm sure I'll get it out of you before the wedding."
"Tsh, if you say so, Benz."
Unlike LA, the Bay Area weather resembled Lima winters—chilly and cloudy, but not unbearable. However, there was an oppressive heat inside the Chang house. Tina's final trimester had Mike and their son wandering the house in t-shirts and shorts, while she waddled about in layers. Mike did his best not to complain, mostly out of fear of getting kicked out of the bed (again), but frequent trips in the backyard to cool off helped to keep him from saying anything that might set her off. At the moment, he was in the shower while Tina and her mother were baking the last of the finger food for the afternoon.
"Mommy! The door!" exclaimed Mikey as he came running into the kitchen. He collided with his mother's leg and tugged repeatedly on her yellow cotton dress. "Someone's here!"
Tina gasped and smiled at her son, "Ooo I wonder who it is, Mikey. You wanna go see?"
The toddler nodded, beaming his tiny teeth up at his mom. His smile widened when she hoisted him off the ground and held him against her hip while they went to the door together.
"I'll get it!" Mike called from upstairs.
"Too late," Tina said back with her hand on the door.
When she pulled it open, she gasped at the same time her arrivals grinned at her.
"Kurt! Blaine!" Her gaze then fled to the sleeping girl with her fingers curled to Blaine's shirt collar. "And Lizzie—oh my God, she's getting so big!"
"Hey Tina," whispered an ever-cheerful Blaine. At the present, he had a slightly less angular face than in high school, a longer crop of neat curls on his head and a thin goatee around his mouth, making him appear slightly older than his husband. One thing that hadn't changed, however, was his signature neckwear; today it was a blue, burgundy and black plaid bowtie. Both of his arms were supporting his and Kurt's only child, Elizabeth Grace Anderson, whom they adopted at birth. She was a slender, rosy-cheeked, blue-eyed little girl with thin, wispy auburn hair and faint brown freckles sprinkled on her nose.
"And who's the handsome prince on your hip, because I know that can't be Mikey." Kurt playfully asked, eyeing the tot. The stylish male held back his shoulder bag and crouched to the boy's level at the same moment that Tina set him to his feet. "The last time I saw you, you could barely walk!"
Mikey quickly hid halfway behind her leg. The three friends quietly laughed at the little boy's shyness, but Tina scooted him out of her way so she could let the Anderson family inside. Minutes later, Sam and Mercedes arrived with a few of Tina's boutique staff trekking up the stairs behind them.
The group of friends chattered and started in on a couple of shower games. By the third game, Lizzie woke up from her nap; she rummaged through her daddy's bag to find her crayons and activity books, and talked Mikey into joining her. Mike and Sam took advantage of the kids' distracting cuteness to snag a few snacks and slip out for the basketball game. After Tina got through opening all of her gifts, her mom brought in a cake blanketed with yellow fondant.
"Tina when are you gonna stop torturing us and tell us what you're having?" asked Mercedes.
Tina heaved out of her chair to stand by her mom and the cake. "Right now! I had the bakery dye the cake batter before they baked it. So if it's pink, it's a girl and if it's blue it's a boy."
"Okay, okay cut it!"
Right away, everyone started clapping and chanting, "Cut it! Cut it! Cut it!"
Tina giggled and took hold of the knife her mother handed her. She lowered it slowly into the soft texture. Kurt leaned across Mercedes' lap to try and catch a first glimpse but the black diva spotted blue crumbs stuck to the hilt of the knife as Tina pulled it out.
"It's a boy!" she cried happily.
"Damn!"
Mercedes, Blaine, Tina, her staff friends, and her mother turned their eyes on Kurt.
"What? I was hoping for a girl! Then Lizzie would have a gal pal to boss around when we came to visit."
Blaine smiled ruefully to Tina and placed a kind but reprimanding hand on his husband's shoulder.
Kurt ignored it however and shifted his blunt spotlight. "Which reminds me—Mercedes when are you and Sam gonna have a baby?"
Mercedes' eyes bulged, "Excuse me?"
Blaine's hand tightened on Kurt's shoulder, "Kurt, maybe this is something you can talk to her about later?" His gaze flickered back to Tina, "Congratulations Tina. Did you and Mike decide on a name yet?"
Previously frowning, Tina perked up, "Oh, yeah! Sawyer Cohen Chang."
"But I thought you dropped "Cohen" from your name when you got married."
"I did," said Tina. "'Cohen' is gonna be his middle name."
"Ohhh," Blaine and Mercedes said at the same time.
"Why Sawyer?" asked Kurt.
Tina shrugged, "I dunno. I like it."
The silent response from her friends made her hyper-sensitivity leak on her face again. But soon, Blaine, Mercedes and the boutique staff made sure to give an outpour of commendation for the baby's name.
The shower attendees chatted about the games and gifts over cake until the boutique staff left. Mrs. Cohen-Chang gathered everyone's dishes to clean up in the kitchen while the topic of conversation reverted back to Mercedes—all thanks to Kurt again.
"So what have you and Sam decided on about the wedding so far, Mercedes?" he asked while settling into his husband's side.
Blaine stared up at the ceiling, giving up on any more subtleties but Tina didn't seem to mind now. She was looking at Mercedes with just as much interest as Kurt.
Speaking to all three, Mercedes said, "Well Kurt—you're planning it. Tina's my matron of honor, and Sam wants his brother Stevie to be his best man. I'll probably have Stacey and Quinn be my bridesmaids. Maybe Rachel, but I dunno yet. And speaking of Quinn and Rachel, were they invited today too?"
Tina grimaced, "Yeah. I invited them both. I don't know if it was the best idea, and thinking about it now, that's probably why neither of them came. But Quinn told me she couldn't get a flight out here right now and Rachel said she was busy."
Dubious, Mercedes looked to Blaine, "Do you see much of Rachel?"
Blaine shook his head, "No. She and I haven't been in a show together in a while. Not since Chicago closed. But ever since the divorce, it seems like she's been in overdrive with her need to perform."
"Which even I didn't think was possible for Rachel Berry," added Kurt.
Tina and Mercedes shared hollow chuckles at that, and Mercedes said, "Well I hope they can all set aside their differences for the wedding. I think we're going to have it in Kentucky."
"Kentucky?" Kurt and Tina barked in unison.
"Shhh!" interjected Blaine who pointed to Mikey and Lizzie—both of who were lying asleep on the living room's only loveseat.
Mercedes brown hues stared back and forth between her best friends. "Yeah? At Sam's parent's house—what's wrong with that?"
"Mercedes, do I need to remind you that you two live in California? And your best friends live in California and New York? Why in the world are you having your wedding in Kentucky?"
Kurt seemed to be taking it as though Mercedes told him she was getting married in a sewer. She felt a twinge of anger and had no problem in letting it show when she answered him.
"Um, maybe you forgot but Sam's family lives in Kentucky, Kurt. Like I just said. And it's not like we just threw on blindfolds, rolled out a map and picked the first place our fingers landed on."
Kurt sighed, "Yes, I know. It's just…when people think of the U.S., where are the places they think of first? New York, San Francisco, and LA-slash-Hollywood. Maybe Miami."
Another twinge of irritation pricked the diva. "So what?"
"So you're a celebrity now, Mercedes!" an exasperated Kurt threw back. "I'm planning your wedding, remember? And I would advise you and Sam to think about somewhere a little more…glamorous than Kentucky."
"No!" she snapped, rising to her feet. Everyone else grew silent. "Sam and I don't want some big, overblown Kardashian wedding, and if that's what y'all were hoping for then you're gonna be real disappointed!"
Out of the corner of her eye, Mercedes saw Mikey stir. Instantly, she checked herself and sighed out the bulk of her upset. "Look, what's important to both Sam and I, is that our family and loved ones are there. I don't wanna invite everyone under the sun and I'm sure Sam doesn't either. We've done that in the past for career-related reasons but this is our wedding. None of you had huge weddings either." Her voice was just above a whisper now as she looked from Tina, to Blaine and finally Kurt as she said, "Tina you design clothes for the knowns and the unknowns and started some bangin' trends in the past few years. Blaine, Broadway would probably give you a Tony just for coming on the stage to sneeze. And Kurt, I don't need to tell you that your party planning skills are off the hook. You guys all know what that's like to have some fame and what the costs are to have it. If Sam and I can maintain some level of intimacy for our wedding day at least…it'd mean a lot to me."
Blaine offered a compassionate gaze while an emotional Tina looked like she was about to explode with tears. Kurt opened his mouth to say something but Tina's outburst momentarily halted him. She whimpered and threw her arms around the diva, hugging her as tightly as her protruding belly would allow. "Cedes, we're gonna make sure you and Sam have the best wedding ever! I promise! It's gonna be everything you want!"
Over Tina's shoulder, Mercedes' face scrunched slightly with confusion and amusement but she returned the hug to Tina and said, "Thanks for understanding, Tina."
"Tina's right," Kurt admitted and when Mercedes looked to him he added, "And so are you Mercedes. Blaine and I didn't have nearly the stardom you or Sam have now, when we got married but I do see your point. However…"
Tina finally let go of her best friend so she could look at Kurt again. The events planner bore a stoic gaze at both women for several dramatic seconds before smirking, "Your wedding is going to be the best wedding of the year. The guests and location might be demure but I know you Mercedes. The spectacle will be anything but!"
That was something Mercedes couldn't deny and her growing grin proved it. She might have matured in some ways over the years, but she still enjoyed the finer things—one of the many reasons she held no shame in being a diva.
After they all helped Tina move the baby's presents upstairs, Kurt and Blaine gathered their things and prepared to say their farewells for the evening.
"We still haven't checked into our hotel," said Blaine as he scooped a sleepy Lizzie into his arms.
"Us either," Mercedes told them. "Sam's gonna have to get dropped off at the hotel since he rode to the game with Mike. I'm getting tired and if the game's good, they'll be there all night."
The friends all took turns hugging Tina goodbye; Mercedes followed the Andersons out the door and veered to Sam's Tahoe. As she pulled on the handle, she heard Kurt's soft-spoken speech at her shoulder. "I get why Blaine deflected the attention during the shower, but it's over now, and I still want an answer to my question Mercedes."
The diva looked up at him. "What question?"
Kurt folded his arms and leaned against the SUV, "When are you and Sam gonna have a baby?"
Mercedes clicked her tongue dismissively, followed by a sigh, "Who knows? We've only been engaged for a week!"
"I'm just saying. With Sam's paternal instincts towards his siblings and your natural mother hen-like tendencies, you two would be great parents. And I'm curious to know what the world will be like with a Mama and Mini Mercedes."
"Psh, you've met my mom, right?" Mercedes sarcastically asked.
"You still want to have kids though, right?" asked Kurt, ignoring her question.
"Of course I do. But I don't wanna be fighting morning sickness while I'm trying to say 'I do'." In spite of what she was saying, her mind got imaginative and flashed a fantastical image of her and Sam coddling a swaddled baby. The thought made her start to smile but she shook her head and muttered, "It'll happen when it's meant to."
"No pressure." Kurt shrugged himself off the car and stalked off with a smirk. "Call me tomorrow."
Hope you're all liking where this is going. LOTS more to come, I promise! I'm working on my pace, so I don't get ahead of myself out of my own excitement. PLEASE LEAVE REVIEWS!