As promised! Enjoy!


Chapter Five

Mercedes followed her sister into her parent's room and hid slightly behind her before she moved aside and pushed her further into their room.

"Moma, daddy Tulip wants to ask you something and I think you should say yes." Maia said before nudging Mercedes.

Mercedes took a deep breath. "I was invited, umm… to the football game and, umm, a party afterward." She said softly and both of her parents looked amused yet shocked but waited for her to finish.

"Go on." Maia encouraged.

"Ah, I was wondering if it was okay if I went… to the game and party?" She asked and Lena had to hide her smirk.

"Who would you be going with and what time would you be back?" Marcus asked.

"I would be going with my new friend Tina and some of her friends… I'm not sure when I'd be home but I wouldn't stay late." Mercedes answered.

Lena and Marcus both nodded before sharing a look. "Is it something you want to do, sweetie?" Lena asked and Mercedes nodded.

"Well, I don't see why that would be an issue… you'll need to let us know the address and you will be home no later than twelve thirty. Understand?" Marcus asked and Mercedes smiled.

"I understand!" She replied happily.

'Okay then you can go." Lena said, smiling back at their daughter.

"Thank you." Mercedes said before she and Maia walked out of their room right as Mercedes' phone started to ring. "It's Tina, I'm going to take it in my room." She told Maia before going upstairs.

Maia just nodded before walking back into her parents room.

"Guys we need to talk." She said closing the door behind her then walking over to their bed and climbing on it.

She used to do this when she was younger and never stopped, she would climb in their bed and then wiggling in between them. Both of her parents waited for her to get comfortable before asking her what she wanted to talk about.

"I'm taking this semester off." She said.

"Okay, is there a reason?" Lena asked.

Maia sighed before burying her head into her father's shoulder and muttering something they couldn't understand.

"You're gonna need to speak up so we can hear you Mai." Marcus said, moving slightly so he could see her face.

"I'm pregnant." She said bluntly and each parent took a moment to process what their daughter just told them. "I'm four months along and no, I don't want to see the father or say who he is right now."

Lena nodded slowly before looking over at her husband, not entirely sure what they should say or do at this moment.

"Before either of you panic, I found a place with enough space for me and the baby, yes I plan on finishing school and yes I can afford to do this… I've been saving." Maia added before wiping the tears that fell.

"Oh sweetie, it's okay. We will help as much as we can and you only have one semester left so it's fine. You can work at your father's office until you're able to finish. Right Marcus?" Lena said, pulling Maia into a hug.

"I'm going to be a grandpa?" Marcus asked.

"In five more months, yes." Maia responded letting more tears fall. "I didn't mean for this to happen… especially not with him."

"Well you know we're going to want to meet this young man." Marcus said and Maia nodded knowing this was something unavoidable.

"You will when it's time to deliver and not a minute before." She replied.

"Sorry Maia but that's not going to fly, either for dinner or at the baby shower." Lena countered and Maia sighed before getting out of their bed.

"Fine, I'll talk to him tomorrow." She said then walked out in a huff.

Marcus shook his head before pulling out his phone and calling an old friend. "Hey man."

"Seems we're having a grandkid."

"She thinks we don't know about them and I think it's best we keep it that way until either of them let us know."

"Alright, send Roz my love."

"Did she really think we didn't know about her and Tyler?" Lena asked her husband once he hung up.

Marcus shook his head. "They've been playing this back and forth game since high school and now we're stuck with him." Marcus replied and Lena let out a soft laugh.

"That boy has been in love with her since they were six and she has been fighting it since they were eight… she's so damn stubborn, much like you." Lena teased earning a smile from her husband.

"And you still married me." He bounced back.

"I did, huh?"


Mercedes had just gotten off the phone with Tina when Sam started texting her, she was currently laughing at him telling her about his stint in synchronized swimming. She was laughing so hard that she dropped her phone and when she went to grab it she accidentally hit call.

Mercedes started to panic and before she could end it, he answered.

"Hey."

"Ah, hi… I'm sorry I didn't mean to call. I dropped my phone and hit the call somehow." She explained hoping she didn't sound too crazy.

"It's okay, besides I wasn't doing anything anyway. How are you?" He asked and for a split second she couldn't remember.

"I'm good actually, still sitting in my room…"

"Is your room colorful like you?" He asked and she let out a soft laugh.

"Kinda, I only have three colors on my walls because one is dedicated to my teddy bears…"

"You have a wall of teddy bears!"

"Sounds kinda childish huh?" She asked slightly embarrassed.

"Not at all, what kind of teddy bears?"

Mercedes let out a small sigh of relief. "My brothers have always given me stuffed animals as presents so it's so many different kinds."

"Which one is your favorite?"

"Definitely Ellie, my elephant." She answered.

"I'll have to remember that… Can I ask you something?"

"Ah sure." She replied, biting her lip in anticipation.

"Would you, assuming you're allowed to go but would you want to be my date for the party?" He asked hoping he wasn't too forward.

"You.. you want me to be your date?"

"Yeah… I like talking to you and we can ride over together, I'll make sure you have you home by your curfew.. again even if you can't go to the party we can still… go out."

Mercedes blushed because this was the first time a guy had ever asked her out. "Well I can go to the party. I asked my parents and they said it was fine as long as I'm home by twelve thirty." She answered.

"So, is that a yes?"

"Yes, it's a yes."

"Cool, it's gonna be fun!" He said and she could hear the smile in his voice.

She wasn't entirely sure when she realized she liked him but she suddenly had butterflies raging in her stomach and the longer they talked the more the butterflies fluttered. It wasn't until her mother knocked on her door that she noticed the time. They had been talking for hours and it was time to shower and go to bed.

"Hey, I have to go…" She said reluctantly.

"Yeah me too, I didn't realize I was talking your head off all this time." He joked.

"I didn't mind… I'll see you tomorrow."

"Most definitely, night Mercedes."

"Good night Sam." She hung up smiling before going to do her nightly routine and shower.


"Mercy!" Mercedes heard as she was coming from study hall and smiled when she saw Tina waving at her.

"Hey!" Mercedes said walking over to Tina who hugged her immediately.

"What are you doing after this?" She asked cheerily.

"I have a free period today, so my day is done." Mercedes replied.

"Cool, wanna go to the mall? I need to get some shoes for my outfit then we can watch the guys practice!"

"Ah, well… okay, yeah! Let me just put these in my locker." Mercedes said walking over to her locker and quickly putting her things into her locker.

"Where are you headed?" Quinn asked after seeing Mercedes heading towards the exit with another girl.

"Oh me and Tina are going to hang out since I have a free period." Mercedes explained and Quinn shot her a disapproving look."

"You're skipping?" Quinn asked.

"It's not skipping, I'm done with classes for today. I'll call you later." She replied with a small wave before starting to walk away but Quinn grabbed her arm.

"Did you talk to him? Did you ask why he said no?" Quinn whispered and Mercedes didn't feel like having a full blown argument.

"No, we didn't talk last night so I'll ask today." She lied and Quinn just nodded before waving her off.

"Don't forget, I've already started getting his goody bag together so he needs to be cool with it." Quinn reminded her and Mercedes just nodded before walking away with Tina.

"What was that about?" Tina asked once they got outside.

Mercedes wasn't sure she should say why Quinn acted that way but figured she could get another perspective. "She wants me to ask Sam why he shut her down to be his tag for the game."

Tina nodded slowly before stopping and looking at her directly. "Sam turned her down because he likes you duh and if she's your friend he wouldn't cross that line. Cheerios that do that usually intend to end up dating the person which is why Mike doesn't do it either."

Mercedes bit her lip nervously. "My sister said the same thing… I just… she's going to keep asking and I already said I would but after talking to my sister and now you I don't think I will."

"If she's really your friend she'd understand. Does she know that you like him?" Tina asked and Mercedes felt herself blushing. "Girl, it's okay to like him. He's a good guy."

Mercedes got into the older girl's car and sighed. "I do… I realized it last night but isn't it too soon?"

Tina started her car before thinking. "Well does it feel rushed?" She asked.

"I mean… not exactly, I like talking to him and he asked me out on a date."

"Maybe you two should hang out before your date? Take the seriousness out of it and then decide." Tina suggested and Mercedes nodded.

"Should… should I ask him?" Mercedes asked.

"You should and you look really pretty today so you don't have to worry about that." Tina said happily as she pulled out of the parking lot, turning some music on. They talked about their days and listened to the music as they made their way to the mall. Mercedes already could tell she and Tina were going to be really good friends because she had fun with her and didn't feel like she needed to be overly encouraging like she had with Quinn.

Anytime they'd go to the mall, it was like Quinn needed her to compliment her whenever she couldn't decide on what to get or when she self-loathed about her legs, butt, or hair. She felt easy around Tina like it wasn't a competition, she could just be and it not be an issue.

They arrived twenty minutes later and Tina let her know she only wanted to go into a few stores then they could grab some ice cream and hang out until it was time for them to head over to football practice.

"Does this dress look good?" Tina asked and Mercedes looked at the short black dress and nodded.

"I think it's pretty, is that for the party?" She asked.

Tina shook her head. "No, this is for me just because. I like to treat myself to pretty things every so often.' She replied with a laugh.

"My sister is the same way, she's always trying to get me to do the same."

"You should! Come on, let's find you something cute to try on!" Tina encouraged grabbing her hand and pulling her throughout the store until they found two dresses for her to try on.

The first dress was a simple black dress with a plunging neckline and puff sleeves. Tina loved how it looked on her but Mercedes knew she wasn't ready for anything that bold just yet. The second dress was a cute pink flowy dress that stopped mid-thigh, Mercedes immediately liked it and Tina could tell too.

"This is totally the one you should buy! It looks perfect on you and you can wear it on your date with Sam!" Tina encouraged her.

"I think so too…" She agreed, looking at the dress and smiling.

"We need shoes!" Tina said, pushing her back into the dressing room. "Hurry and get changed! I think we can get some jewelry to make the dress pop!"

Mercedes quickly changed back into her clothes and grabbed the dress she was getting then walked out as Tina looped her arm around hers.

"So, no pressure but every fall break me and my family go out to our lake house in Colorado for the week and it's a whole thing but I wanted to see if you wanted to come?"

Mercedes looked at her surprised. "Really? That seems kinda like family time and we…just kinda met."

Tina laughed and nodded her head. "Eh, I know when I like people and you're cool besides my parents will only be there for three days then they're flying out to see my brother and his wife."

Mercedes nodded. "Okay… if it's cool with my parents, sure!"

Tina squealed. "Yes! Plus Mike and Sam usually come up on the last leg of the trip so you'll get to see him." She said, nudging her playfully.

"Oh great, now I'm nervous and fall break isn't for another month." Mercedes joked, making Tina laugh.

"You're funny!" She said and Mercedes shot a look. "Sam said you were funny when you got comfortable so that must mean you're comfortable around me which now makes us friends."

Mercedes couldn't help blushing. "He talks about me?"

"Mhm, we hung out after their practice and he kept 'subtly' bringing you up."

Mercedes stopped walking and turned to face Tina fully. "Is this normal? I've… Well, this is new for me and I still don't know why he talks to me."

Tina smiled. "Of course it is, I mean that's basically how me and Mike started out before we were dating. It's like butterflies attack you then they calm down and it's normal after that. Just don't overthink it."

"Okay, no more overthinking…" Mercedes repeated, unsure if she could do that.

"Come on, let's get the jewelry and then some ice cream, we won't even talk about Sam." Tina said and Mercedes appreciated the subject change.


After spending thirty minutes picking out earrings and necklaces, the girls grabbed some ice cream and headed back to school so they could watch the guys practice.

"Shoot…" Mercedes said right as they reached the field.

"What's wrong?"

"Quinn, the cheerios practice while the team practices right?"

Tina made an o shape with her mouth before nodding. "Yeah, it's for morale or whatever. That and Sue is kinda crazy…"

Mercedes sighed. "She's gonna expect me to ask him when she sees me here."

Tina placed both her hands on her shoulder and looked at her sternly. "You gotta stop letting so-called friends pressure you into shit you don't want to do, now we're gonna go watch them practice and you're not gonna worry about Quinn."

Mercedes smirked. "Isn't this technically peer pressure?" Tina giggled.

"No, because it's something we both know you want to do." She replied, wrapping her arm around her shoulder and walking them towards the bleachers. "Besides look, he's happy you're here."

Mercedes looked over to the field and saw Sam looking at her and smiled. "I guess so." They sat on the bleachers in the middle and Tina pulled out her phone, showing Mercedes the outfit she was wearing to the game.

"Are you still getting ready with us?" Tina asked as two more girls came over and sat down. "Oh hey guys, this is Mercy, Mercy this is Sheila and Harmony."

"Hey!" They both said in unison and Mercedes just smiled.

"She's shy." Tina informed and they both nodded.

"So this is Sam's girl?" Shelia asked and Tina nodded.

Mercedes' eyes grew wide. "Well… I don't think I'm-" She stammered and they all looked at her amused.

"Based on how he keeps looking over here, I think it's safe to say that you are or will be." Harmony said and Mercedes looked at the field, meeting his eyes and blushed.

"Aww, look how cute they are! Ugh, if only Jake would act like that with me." Sheila said and Mercedes noticed the other two girls roll their eyes.

"Please, he's practically eye-fucking you as we speak." Tina said and Sheila smirked before shrugging.

"Eh, he could do better." She joked and they all laughed.

Harmony leaned over looking at Mercedes. "Are you coming to T's after school on Friday?"

"Oh, ah… yeah, she asked me to come get dressed with you guys." Mercedes replied.

"You can just bring a bag and ride over to her place with one of us! You're going to the party right?" Sheila asked excitedly.

"Mhm, my parents said it's cool as long as I'm home by twelve-thirty," Mercedes said and they all nodded before Tina gasped, causing them to look at her concerned.

"What?" Harmony asked.

"We could have a slumber party! We haven't done one in forever and that way our new friend here can get to know you two better because we're already besties so you two need to catch up." Tina replied and both Harmony and Sheila laughed.

"She forced us to be her friends too." Sheila whispered to Mercedes, making her giggle.

"Would your folks be okay with you staying?" Harmony asked her and she shrugged.

"I believe so, I'll ask tonight and then text Tina."

"Oo, give me your phone. I'll put our numbers in." Harmony said and Mercedes handed her phone over, seeing Quinn staring at her before quickly looking away.

Sheila noticed and tapped her on the shoulder. "You good? Is she bothering you?" She asked and Mercedes shook her head.

"No, she just wants me to do something I don't want to do."

"Is it something illegal?" Harmony asked, handing her phone back and Mercedes laughed.

"No, she wants me to see why Sam said no to her about being his tag." The three girls shared a look before nodding. "What?" She asked.

"Sam's never done tags. His sister was a cheerio and made him swear to never let one be his tag." Sheila explained and Mercedes nodded.

"Oh, I didn't know that but I can tell Quinn that." She said, feeling better now that she didn't have to ask Sam. The rest of practice the girls talked and planned the sleepover at Tina's. Every so often Mercedes would glance over to the field and see Sam playing or catch his eyes and smile when he would wink at her before practice was over and the guys were walking over to where they were sitting.

"Hey ladies!" One of the players said smiling at Sheila and Mercedes assumed it was the aforementioned Jake. Mike smiled at them all before moving up to sit next to Tina, who scrunched her nose up at him when he tried to kiss her.

"You smell like a lawn mower." She quipped playfully.

Mike picked her up and placed her on his nap, tickling her. "I don't smell that bad." He said.

Sam smiled at Mercedes but stayed standing where he was. "You came to watch us practice?" He asked.

Mercedes smiled back at him, nodding. "Yeah… it was Tina's idea." She replied, feeling eyes on her and saw Quinn standing across the field looking at her with her brows furrowed.

"Well, I'll have to thank Tina." He joked and everyone else rolled their eyes.

"We're gonna hit the showers but if you guys are down we can hit The Lima Bean after?" Jake said kissing Sheila on the cheek.

"Sounds good!" Everyone else said before walking away, Tina letting Mercedes know she'll be right back leaving her and Sam there alone.

"So…" Sam said moving closer to her. "How are you?"

She smiled shyly. "I'm good, had a lot of fun with Tina today and meeting her friends… Everyone is so nice."

"Yeah, they're cool. Are you coming with us after?" He asked, moving a hair out of her face.

"I…" She started right as her phone went off, she looked down and saw it was Quinn.

Did you ask him? Are you doing it now?

Mercedes sighed before choosing to ignore her text. "I want to but I promised my sister I'd hang out with her tonight." She replied looking at him and remembering what Tina said. "But maybe tomorrow we could hang out?"

Sam smiled brightly. "Yeah, sure. Have anything in mind?"

She shrugged. "That's as far as I got…" She admitted with a soft laugh making him chuckle.

"Well I usually perform at the Loft on Wednesdays… we can go there and then get something to eat."

Mercedes nodded. "Yeah, I'd love to see you perform."

"Cool, I can come by after practice and pick you up or meet you there."

Mercedes weighed her choices and knew if he picked her up he would have to face her brothers. "I'll meet you.." She replied.

He smiled before leaning over and kissing her on the cheek. "Sounds good. I gotta run but I'll text you later, okay?"

"Okay." She said softly, blushing before feeling her phone go off again. She watched him run to the locker room right as Tina came out, stopping to say something to him before heading her way.

Mercedes grabbed her things, looking down at her phone seeing it was another message from Quinn.

I know you put in a good word! Thanks Merce!

Mercedes looked up but didn't see Quinn and sighed before responding. He doesn't do tags because he promised his sister he'd never do it. So that's why…

"Hey are you coming with us?" Tina asked.

"No but I am hanging out with Sam tomorrow…" She replied and Tina smiled, pulling her into a hug.

"That's great! You should totally wear the dress!"

Mercedes smiled. "I think, I just might. He asked me to the Loft where he performs."

"See he does like you!" She said.

"Yeah…" Mercedes replied, hoping that was true.


Happy Holidays! See you in the new year! I love you all very much!