New Directions: Underdogs Once Again
Space
Crowds of people were pouring into the halls of Carmel High School for one of the biggest yearly attractions the school held: Vocal Adrenaline Invitationals. It was practically enough to fill the entire auditorium and then some. Antonio cautiously entered the school, for he was one of the several people there to see Vocal Adrenaline perform.
I hope I'm actually allowed here. They are technically my rivals, but I really couldn't give a shit about the majority of them. I just want to see him perform, Antonio thought, looking around the halls. He was in line to find a seat in the auditorium when a hand touched his shoulder. Antonio jumped slightly at the sudden contact and was about to shove the person away. Wait! It might be him. Antonio turned around and found himself greatly disappointed.
"Oh...hello, Mr. St. James," Antonio greeted. Of course it was Jesse St. James. The coach of Vocal Adrenaline wouldn't stay home during their Invitational. Antonio just hoped he wasn't about to get in trouble for being there.
"Well if it isn't Paranoia. I was going to avoid you, but then I remembered a little tidbit of news I'd heard from my star. If you're here to spy for your pathetic glee club, don't bother. You're no competition for us," Jesse said. Antonio faked a smile.
"Oh, I hope that's not a threat. Threatening the son of a paralegal isn't the smartest choice you could make. Now, I could tell you why I'm here, or I could let you twist in the wind"
"I'm not intimidated. Besides, you're here to see Romeo, aren't you?" Jesse asked. Antonio's smile softened a bit. He nodded.
"I thought so. He'll be glad you came. Go on and enjoy the show. Just be careful. Your brain might explode by the amazing performance my kids will be giving," Jesse commented, walking off. Antonio rolled his eyes. No matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't be scared by the likes of St. James.
Antonio quickly found himself a seat in the auditorium. He looked toward the stage which was still blocked from everyone's view with the red curtain. I hate waiting for these things to start. They advertise it for starting as six, but it's not until 6:45 that the curtain is drawn back, he ranted in his head. He looked at his watch, which read 6:17. He knew it would take a while.
"Ladies and Gentlemen! Please give a warm welcome to last year's regional state champion, Vocal Adrenaline!" the announcer finally yelled.
"It's about time," Antonio muttered as the lights started to dim. The curtains parted, and the stage lights shined to show the choir lined up five in a row. The boys were dressed in white dress shirts with the sleeves rolled up, black ties, pants and shoes, and blue suspenders. The girls were in strapless, blue polka-dot dresses with a black sash around the waist, and heels.
"Tonight, I'm gonna have myself a real good time. I feel alive! And the world – I'll turn it inside out, yeah! I'm floating around in ecstasy, so don't stop me now. Don't stop me cause I'm having a good time. Having a good time!" they all sang together. Suddenly a blonde boy burst out onto the stage.
"I'm a shooting star leaping through the sky like a tiger defying the laws of gravity! I'm a racing car passing by like Lady Godiva! I'm gonna go, go, go, there's no stopping me! I'm burning through the sky, yeah! 200 degrees, that's why they call me Mr. Fahrenheit! I'm traveling at the speed of light!" he sang.
"I'm gonna make a supersonic man out of you!" Vocal Adrenaline sang with the blonde. Antonio was already clapping, thoroughly impressed.
"Don't stop me now!" Vocal Adrenaline sang.
"I'm having such a good time! I'm having a ball!" the boy sang.
"Don't stop me now!"
"If you wanna have a good time, just give me a call!"
"Don't stop me now!"
"Cause I'm having a good time!"
"Don't stop me now!"
"Yes, I'm having a good time! I don't wanna stop at all, yeah!" The guitar solo started and the entire choir continued with the intricate dancing they had been doing around the blonde for the entirety of the song thus far. The blonde smirked.
"Oh, burning through the sky, yeah! 200 degrees, that's why they call me Mr. Fahrenheit, hey! I'm burning through the speed of light! I wanna make a supersonic man out of you!"
"Don't stop me now!"
"Yes, I'm having a good time! I don't wanna stop at all!" every member of Vocal Adrenaline then dropped to the floor except for the blonde. He slowly meandered off stage, singing the outro to the song.
"Ha da da da da...da da da da...ha da da ha ha ha! Ha da da...ha da da da da!"
"It was so amazing! I swear my heart just about to stop during their performance of 'Don't Stop Me Now'," Antonio said, talking to Mimi and Natalia in the choir room. Mr. Schuester walked into the choir room, five new faces behind him.
"Hey guys, attention here! I'd like to welcome the newest members of New Directions! From the Cheerios, we have Stella Romero and Lei Chen! We have football player Tate Dawson! Also, we have Roderick Jones and Shane Alcotte!" he introduced. An unenthusiastic round of applause emerged as the five took seats.
"Well, this is great. Maybe now we might stand a chance against Vocal Adrenaline. According to Antonio, they're phenomenal this year," Natalia said. Mr. Schuester cocked an eyebrow.
"Did you spy on them, Antonio? That's bad," he scolded.
"No! I just wanted to see their Invitational for my own reasons. It was a radical show, though. It was a space theme," Antonio explained. Mr. Schuester swiftly turned around and wrote "Space" on the white board.
"Vocal Adrenaline wants to do space? That's fine. We can, too," he announced. Natalia rolled her eyes.
"Really? That's terrible! There aren't any good songs with a space theme!" she yelled.
"You're wrong, there! In fact, for the pep assembly we will be doing 'The Final Countdown' by Europe. I was thinking we could give Alexandra a shot with it," Mr. Schuester winced slightly as he said Alexandra's name. Alexandra's eyes widened and she glanced around the room.
"You want...me...to sing it?" she squeaked.
"Of course. Are you familiar with the song?"
"Yes..."
"Then it's settled. We're doing space this week. Everyone, scour the internet for a space themed song you would like to sing for us. I'm looking forward to seeing what you all come up with," Mr. Schuester said with a smile. Antonio raised his hand.
"May I have the floor?" he asked.
"The floor's yours," Mr. Schue permitted, sitting down. Antonio walked over to the front of the classroom.
"I already have a space song in mind. There's no doubt in my mind that Def Leppard was the greatest band that ever lived. I've always wanted the perfect opportunity to sing this song. Now that I have it...prepare to be rocked by 'Rocket'," he stated, a smirk on his face. The music started. Antonio put his shutter-shades on, his smirk getting bigger.
"Guitar...drums!" A few of the Glee members that recognized the song began happily singing the back up vocals for him.
"White light...strange city...mad music! All around! Midnight...street magic...crazy people...crazy sound! Jack flash! Rocket man! Sergeant Pepper and the band! Ziggy, Benny, and the Jets! Take a rocket! We just got to fly!"
"I can take you through the center of the dark," the back up sang.
"We' gonna fly!"
"On a collision course to crash into my heart!"
"I will be your! I will be your! I'll be your! Rocket! Yeah! Satellite of love! Rocket! Yeah! Satellite of love! Rocket! Yeah! Satellite of love! Rocket, baby. C'mon. I'll be your satellite of love," Antonio sang, back up helping.
"We're gonna fly," Antonio muttered.
During the instrumental break, he walked over to Alexandra, who was seemingly having the most fun. He smiled at her and offered his hand. Flustered, she quickly shook her head. Antonio rolled his eyes, grabbing her hand anyway. He pulled her up and dragged her to the front of the room. He figured this would be the perfect opportunity to get her over her stage fright. It was platonic, friendly, and helpful to the club. Alexandra seemed to go along with it, getting a bit more comfortable. Antonio invited her to do lead for the next section.
"We just got to fly!" she sang, strongly.
"I can take you to the center of the dark," Antonio sang, dragging her around in a circle.
"We're gonna fly!"
"On a collision course to crash into my heart!" he sang, clumsily placing his hands over his chest.
"I will be your! I will be your! I'll be your! Rocket, yeah! Satellite of love! Rocket, yeah! Satellite of love! Rocket, yeah! Satellite of love!" she sang out, grinning the whole time.
"Guitar! Drums! We're gonna fly! We're gonna fly! Yeah! Rocket. Yeah," Antonio finished, Alexandra singing the background vocals. Antonio laughed.
"Now that is how you get over stage fright!" he praised. Alexandra blushed at all the applause she was hearing. I really wasn't that good...calm down, people, she thought.
Amber was outside the choir room as they performed. After being kicked off the Cheerios for the false slut rumors, she pretty much found out that it's best to stick around a classroom while waiting for the halls to clear. It's the best way to avoid the bullies. She looked longingly into the choir room from afar. Her only intent was to be safe. However, she suddenly felt a want to belong to anything. She didn't care if it was New Directions. She longed to feel like she had friends. Friends that wouldn't ditch her as soon as the Cheerio uniform came off.
Amber furrowed her eyebrows a bit. It became official. Amber Rose was going to audition for Glee club. Performing songs and dances would only be slightly different than cheer leading, and if there was one thing Amber was good at, it would be adjusting. She swiftly walked away to prepare an audition song.
After Glee club rehearsal, everyone got up to leave. Roderick grabbed his bag and headed for the door. Stella quickly followed him. She stalked him all the way to his locker before approaching. She tapped him on the shoulder, putting on her most seductive smile.
"Hello, Stella," Roderick greeted.
"You were great in Glee club today," Stella blurted.
"...but I didn't do anything in Glee club, bro"
"You didn't have to. I'm only in that gross club because I'm the new Cheerio captain, and whatever Coach Sylvester demands happens. Anyway, I was wondering something"
"Spill it, bro. I don't have all day"
"You're one of the few people in this school I have yet to bang. So, you're joining me in a threesome tonight," Stella demanded. Roderick frowned.
"But aren't you together with Shane?" he asked.
"He doesn't care. Besides, he'll be the third wheel tonight"
"Would he be okay with that, though?"
"Of course. I cleared it with him first. So will you be there?" Stella crossed her arms and smiled. Roderick nodded.
"Sure..."
"Great! Be at the Super 8 Motel tonight at ten!" Stella confirmed, walking away.
Amber slightly stumbled into the choir room that afternoon. She wasn't sure what to expect, though she knew it was damn near empty. She swept a couple locks of brown hair out of her face, peering around. She had expected to find Will Schuester in there, but it was empty. She shrugged.
"If I'm going to be spending time in here potentially, I might as well get acquainted to the place. Besides, I could give my song another rehearsal. I love killing two birds with one stone," she mumbled to herself, "Sure I have no background music at the moment, but it's all in my head. That's all that matters". She began humming the beginning tune of it as it started to play out in her head.
"Only came outside to watch the nightfall with the rain. I heard you making patterns rhyme like some new romantic looking for the TV sound. You'll see I'm right some other time. Look now, look all around, there's no sign of life. Voices, another sound, can you hear me now? This is planet earth, you're looking at planet earth! This is planet earth!" she sang loudly. She acquainted herself with various different parts of the room as she sang, as well as putting in her own dancing here and there.
"My head is stuck on something precious. Let me know if you're coming down to land. Is there anybody out there trying to get through? My eyes are so cloudy I can't see you! Look now, look all around. There's no sign of life. Voices, another sound, can you hear me now? This is planet earth. You're looking at planet earth. This is planet earth!"
Amber squinted at the door as Mr. Schuester came in. He smiled at her and encouraged her to continue with the song. She smiled and nodded as he joined her.
"Look now, look all around. There's no sign of life. Voices, another sound, can you hear me now? This is planet earth. You're looking at planet earth. This is planet earth! Bop bop bop bop bop bop bop bop! This is planet earth! Bop bop bop bop bop bop bop bop! Calling planet earth! Bop bop bop bop bop bop bop bop! Looking at planet earth! Bop bop bop bop bop bop bop bop! This is planet earth!" they both sang, smiling. Mr. Schuester chuckled.
"Duran Duran? I'm surprised to see that," he commented. Amber shrugged.
"They rock. Besides, I heard about your Space Week. I deemed it appropriate to audition for this club with a spacey song, even if it is just about the earth," she explained.
"Well, I approve of your choice"
"You better. So, speaking of auditioning...when can I audition? Can I even audition? It better not be too late. I'm not scared to take a Snapple bottle to someone," Amber threatened. Mr. Schue shook his head, grinning.
"That was the audition. I think you'd make a great addition. Could I get your name?" he asked.
"Amber Rose. You've probably heard of me"
"Aren't you the head cheerleader?" Mr. Schuester asked, writing her name down. Amber winced, looking down.
"I was. I'm no longer on the squad. I'd rather not talk about it," she stammered.
"Alright then, Amber. I guess I'll see you in Glee club tomorrow. I'm looking forward to it," Mr. Schuester approved. She smiled softly.
"Thank you, sir"
"Alright guys, we have another new member. Please welcome Amber Rose," Mr. Schuester announced. Amber smiled and took a seat next to Roderick. To her surprise, he quickly shifted to the chair next to him. She shrugged. He was probably just shy since she used to be the head cheerleader.
"Who here has a song planned for Space week?" Mr. Schue asked. Glen stood up, going to the piano. He shooed the accompanist away, sitting on the piano bench.
"I decided to pay a visit to Elton John's library for this one. It's more mellow than yesterday's, but it still rocks in it's own way," Glen said, smiling. He began playing and singing.
"She packed my bags last night pre-flight. Zero hour nine a.m. And I'm gonna be high as a kite by then. I miss the earth so much; I miss my wife. It's lonely out in space. On such a timeless flight...And I think it's gonna be a long, long time till touch down brings me round again to find I'm not the man they think I am at home. Oh no, no, no! I'm a rocket man. Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone"
"Mars ain't the kind of place to raise your kids. In fact, it's cold as hell, and there's no one there to raise them if you did," Glen stood up, moving to the front of the room.
"And all this science I don't understand. It's just my job five days a week. A rocket man. A rocket man," he grinned, going into the audience to random Glee club members here and there.
"And I think it's gonna be a long, long time till touch down brings me back round again to find I'm not the man they think I am at home. Oh no, no, no! I'm a rocket man. Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone," he had reached the far back of the choir room. He looked at at Lei, making his way over to her. He took her by the hands, pulling her out of her chair, and sat in it's place. He kept his hands clasped around hers.
"And I think it's gonna be a long, long time till touch down brings me back round again to find I'm not the man they think I am at home. Oh no, no, no! I'm a rocket man. Rocket man burning out his fuse up here alone. And I think it's gonna be a long, long time," he stood back up, allowing Lei to sit back in her spot. She ran a hand through her hair, staring at him in awe.
"And I think it's gonna be a long, long time. And I think it's gonna be a long, long time. And I think it's gonna be a long, long time. And I think it's gonna be a long, long time. And I think it's gonna be a long, long time. And I think it's gonna be a long, long time," he finished. The rest of the class clapped as he took a seat beside Lei. She blushed slightly. Mr. Schuester walked back to the front of the class.
"Well, if no one else has a song, let's go rehearse Europe in the auditorium," he suggested, leading the way. Most of the class stood up to follow the curly-haired teacher. Glen stalled a bit, briefly looking back. Lei piled everything into her book bag before standing up to join everyone. Glen walked a bit slowly, making sure he was the only one around for her to talk to on the walk to the auditorium. Almost as if his wish had been granted, he felt Lei tap him on the shoulder.
"Hey, uh, Glen. I really liked that song you did," she blurted. Glen smiled.
"Thanks. I noticed you were into it the most, which is why you became my amazing prop," he commented. She giggled.
"Yeah, well...to be fair, I was mainly staring because I think I know you. I was wondering...did you tutor me last year?"
"I don't know. I tutored a lot of middle school kids to make some spending money. Were you the Asian?"
"Guilty as charged. So you tutored me. I have to say I enjoyed it," she said. Glen rolled his eyes.
"It was only one session, though. Your mother hated me! You didn't need my help, anyway. You were smart enough. I usually help failing students, but you had a solid 3.5 GPA," he added.
"Yeah, well...my mom believes that my race should define my ability. An Asian 3.5 is like an American 1.5. It's pretty harsh," she muttered. Glen nodded.
"Hey, do you wanna skip the rest of Glee club today? Hang out just you and me? I never got to know you, which is a shame," he asked. Lei avoided eye contact.
"Won't we get in trouble?" she stammered. Glen shook his head.
"Nah. Schuester doesn't care, as long as we get the choreography. It's not even that hard since we're just background ornaments," he explained.
"Alright, then. Will we be back after school? I have Cheerio practice, which I really can't miss"
"Of course. I can't miss football, either. Our coaches would mind if we missed that. Trust me. There's no worries," he reassured. Lei muttered an okay, and the two of them headed toward the outside of the building. Lei rubbed her arm nervously, looking up at him. She admired the confident look on his face. It captivated her more than anything else in the world should have.
"You're so hypnotizing. Could you be the devil? Could you be an angel? Your touch magnetizing. Feels like I am floating; leaves my body glowing. They say be afraid. You're not like the others. Futuristic lover. Different DNA. They don't understand you," Lei let her hand fall into Glen's as he led her to a secluded spot outside.
"You're from a whole other world...a different dimension. You open my eyes, and I'm ready to go: Lead me into the light," they sat down under a shady tree, Lei leaning against Glen.
"Kiss me. Ki-ki-kiss me. Infect me with your love, and fill me with your poison. Take me. Ta-ta-take me. I wanna be a victim, ready for abduction. Boy, you're an alien! You're touch so foreign! It's supernatural. Extraterrestrial," she looked into his eyes. Glen gave her a comforting smile, putting an arm around her.
"There's this transcendental on another level. Boy, you're my lucky star. I wanna walk on your wavelength, and be there when you vibrate. For you I'd risk it all. All! Kiss me. Ki-ki-kiss me. Infect me with your love, and fill me with your poison. Take me. Ta-ta-take me. I wanna be a victim, ready for abduction. Boy, you're an alien! Your touch so foreign! It's supernatural! Extraterrestrial! Extraterrestrial. Extraterrestrial! Boy, you're an alien! Your touch so foreign! It's supernatural! Extraterrestrial!"
Glen wrapped his arms around Lei. She leaned against him more comfortable and closed her eyes. He leaned down slowly, bumping his nose against hers. Lei giggled softly, moving her mouth closer to his. The couple eased into a kiss. They kissed for a good five seconds and pulled away, leaning on one another.
"Be quiet, children. Quiet now. First, an announcement. There have been several reports of students smuggling vagrants from the streets in school for food. There will be zero tolerance of that. That is all. Please give it up for the New Directions," Figgins said into the microphone to a gymnasium full of restless teenagers. He stepped away as a few hundred unimpressed eyes fell onto the stage that lay in the middle of the auditorium and the curtain surrounding it.
The lights turned to a pure black. The beginning of "The Final Countdown" began playing. Colorful lights flashed around the gymnasium to the beat of the music. A few excited people cheered. A few beats before the lyrics, the curtain suddenly opened. From backstage, the boys came running from the left and the girls the right. The boys were in black leather jackets and pants, platform boots, and had random chains dangling places. The girls had regular white t-shirts, casual black vests, ragged leather skirts with knee-long leggings underneath. The leggings were ripped in a variety of places. They also had bright red platform heels. Everyone's hair was a classy mess.
"We're leaving together," Alexandra sang, walking on stage in front of everyone. She was the different one. She had on a black, leather skirt, a black v-neck with a white jacket over, and bulky black boots. Her hair was also ruffled. She resembled a fem Joey Tempest.
"But still it's farewell. And maybe we'll come back to earth. Who can tell? I guess there is no one to blame. We're leaving ground"
"Leaving ground!" Amber and Shantel sang in the background.
"Will things ever be the same again? It's the final countdown!"
"The final countdown!" she sang, New Directions doing back-up.
"O-oh! We're heading for Venus! Venus! And still we stand tall. Cause maybe they've seen us and welcomed us all, yeah! With so many light-years to go and things to be found!"
"To be found!" Stella and Lei sang.
"I'm sure that we all miss her so! It's the final countdown! The final countdown! The final countdown!"
"Final countdown! Oh!" New Directions sang.
"It's the final countdown! We're leaving together!"
"The final countdown!" New Directions sang.
"We'll all miss her so! It's the final countdown!"
"Final countdown!" New Directions sang.
"It's the final countdown!" Alexandra finished. The music faded and the entire gymnasium was quiet. Alexandra started to feel low. I must not have done good enough for them, she thought. However, suddenly there was an uproar of applause. Alexandra almost cried tears of happiness.
She turned around to see her fellow glee members applauding her as well. She looked from right to left, soaking in the kudos. The only member not applauding her (other than the obvious Stella, who was more concerned about getting kudos for her miniscule part) was Shane. He had the same apathetic look that was always on his face. Alexandra brushed some hair out of her face, slightly disappointed. Did he hate her or something?
"That was so awesome!" Amber yelled, going back towards the choir room. Lei and Shantel followed closely behind her.
"I'm surprised you're not in a deep of bottomless depression still," Shantel stated. Amber rolled her eyes.
"Oh, please. The high of performing and eating real food again is worth not being a Cheerio. The only thing killing me is Stella replacing me...especially since I'm a virgin and she's an A-rank bitch of a skank," she explained. Lei and Shantel laughed. Amber looked ahead slightly, seeing Roderick walking alone.
"I'll be right back," she blurted, hurrying over to Roderick.
"Hey! I couldn't help but notice you're all alone. Did you have fun?"
"Get away from me," Roderick commanded, walking faster. Amber glared slightly.
"What?"
"Go away. I've given up on women, especially if they're anything like Stella," he coldly added, glaring.
"But I'm nothing like Stella!"
"Really? Because rumor has it you might as well be her twin. I don't need women right now, and I especially don't need sluts like you spraying your female juices all over me," he insulted. Amber stopped dead in her tracks, watching him walk away. Her jaw slightly dropped, and tears welled up in her eyes, threatening to fall.
"Hey Amber. I forgot to tell you. Roderick is great in bed. He totally rocked my world," Stella mockingly informed, pausing only to crush Amber. Amber watched Stella strut off like the little bitch she was. Her breathing deepened a little as she fought the urge to cry. Shantel and Lei quickly ran up to her.
"Are you okay?" Lei asked. Shantel put an arm around Amber, who shook her head.
"Well isn't that a shame. Little Glee loser looks like she's gonna cry," a football player announced in front of them, almost appearing from thin air.
"Go away, you asshole!" Shantel yelled, eyes narrowing.
"Those slushies are going to make you really fat one day!" Lei retorted. The football player snickered.
"Oh these slushies aren't for me. Welcome...to..." he raised the slushie a bit. The trio in front of him looked up at the slushie, eyes wide. Two more football players appeared beside him, also carrying slushies.
"Glee club!" they said together, giving Shantel, Lei, and Amber a slushie facial they would never forget. Amber finally gave up and allowed herself to cry as hard as she possibly could.
Author's Note: I hope this chapter was better than the last one! I made sure to add more than just three songs. In fact, here is the song list for this episode:
"Don't Stop Me Now" by Queen - Vocal Adrenaline
"Rocket" by Def Leppard - Antonio and Alexandra
"Planet Earth" by Duran Duran - Amber and Will
"Rocket Man" by Elton John - Glen
"E.T." by Katy Perry - Lei
"The Final Countdown" by Europe - Alexandra with New Directions
So, that's it for this episode. The next one is the New Directions Invitational! Also, there will be some Warbler stuff. The next episode is a tribute to a wonderful artist from the classic rock era!
Please review and follow if you enjoyed! It really helps! See you all next time!