In the morning, Sam felt every bit of the headache he deserved. As soon as he woke up, memories of the previous night crashed over him, and he mentally kicked himself over and over again. What he did was completely out of line, and it scared Mercedes away.

She must think he was a drunken, hormonal idiot.

But he couldn't help but replay what led up to that moment. She had looked incredible that night—too damn sexy for his own good. Mercedes was always beautiful, but with that dress, her perfect curves, her warm brown wavy hair, her scent, her eyes, her smile…everything about her was intoxicating. Damn it all, of course, it wasn't hard to fall into that moment.

And it wasn't just him. He was sure she moved closer to him on purpose. One minute, he was staring at her from a few feet away, barely paying attention to the girl from his English class who was talking to him, and the next, Mercedes was right there, right in front of him. If he was barely able to keep his cool from a distance, there was no way he could resist when she was that close. Everything just happened naturally, and before he knew it, he was completely lost in her.

His mind went blank the moment he felt her move against him. It was familiar and yet completely new. All those moments they shared in high school, making out and letting their hands roam, came rushing back to him, but this was different—more intimate, more intense. Her body, so close to his, intoxicated him in a way he hadn't felt before.

It all felt unreal—being there with her like that after so many years. He thought his feelings for her had faded like they had for the other girls, but the moment he laid eyes on her again, those feelings came roaring back, stronger than ever.

Sam snapped out of his thoughts when her hand reached for his neck and slowly moved down. The warmth of her small hand, her nails lightly dragging against his skin, short-circuited his brain. He lost it. He wanted nothing more than to feel more of her skin against his. He bent over her shoulder, breathing in her scent, familiar and intoxicating. The feeling of her skin under his lips was glorious. He never wanted to stop.

But then Mercedes grabbed his hand and led him off the dance floor. He was still reeling from the moment, but he couldn't help but wonder what she was doing. Was she taking him somewhere to talk to him about how he was being out of line? No. Mercedes turned around, and the look in her eyes said otherwise. Her beautiful brown eyes were slightly glassed over with want, making him burn even more. He let that fire take over once they reached the end of the hallway.

But then, everything changed in an instant. Her phone vibrated in her skirt pocket, and she completely froze. It was a strange whirlwind when she suddenly shoved him away, muttered a weak apology, and ran.

"Sammy... I'm so sorry. I can't do this."

The way she used his nickname with those words cut him to his core. Maybe he had read her wrong. Maybe that small moment when he thought they were on the same page was just an illusion, a mirage fueled by alcohol. She had snapped back to reality, a reality where Sam was nothing more than a friend. He had overstepped, violated her trust, and now, he feared he had destroyed their friendship. He wouldn't be surprised if she never wanted to talk to him again. But he couldn't let that happen. He had to fix this.

Sam sat up quickly in his bed, only to be met with a wave of dizziness. He held his head until the room stopped spinning.

Shit.

He lay back down, staring at the ceiling. Why did their relationship have to get destroyed like this?

Over the past few months, they had been rebuilding their friendship, making it strong again. She was the only person he could talk to about his fears, his dreams, and his aspirations without feeling insecure. Even when he doubted himself, she was there to encourage him, to give him strength. It was only natural that those feelings he once had for her would resurface, building on the foundation of their renewed connection.

It was the same way when they were in high school. Mercedes had been his rock, helping him through the toughest times. She had pulled him out of the darkness when no one else could, giving him a new perspective on life. She made him forget the weight of his problems. She was beautiful in every sense of the word, inside and out.

Her spirit was beautiful.

By the time Nationals came around, Sam couldn't deny his feelings for her any longer. He had a suspicion she felt the same way—the way she smiled at him, the way she swatted his arm when he flirted with her, the gleam in her eye, the way she bit her lip. Something had to be there.

He had to go for it. It was now or never. There was no more time for doubt. Forget what he said to Finn about not making a move because he was homeless. Not having a home wasn't an excuse. Mercedes had taught him that. There was nothing holding him back.

The day before Nationals, everyone was planning on going out for dinner. Sam was ready, so he decided to stop by Mercedes' room to check on her. When he got to her hotel room, two doors down from his, he noticed it was already cracked open. He took it as an invitation to enter. Quietly, he opened the door and looked around. He almost thought no one was there until he noticed someone hunched over some luggage, rummaging through clothes.

There she was.

Sam let go of the door, which quietly closed shut on its own. He smirked as he tiptoed over to her, crouched right behind her, and suddenly grabbed her sides. She let out a shriek and nearly toppled over if it wasn't for Sam catching her. He had to fight the blush creeping up his cheeks as he felt her back against his chest.

Mercedes clutched her chest as she stabilized herself and stepped out of his arms. "Sam! You scared the hell out of me!"

"Well, that's good. Means you're that much more heavenly." Sam smirked at his own joke.

She rolled her eyes. "Just shut up, will you? I'm in the middle of figuring out what I should wear out. It's a tedious process." She went back to picking up and throwing clothes out of her luggage.

Sam sat down on the bed behind him and tilted his head. "Why?"

"Why what?" Mercedes sat back up.

"Why change clothes? You look great in what you're wearing already." Sam nodded at her red blouse and dark jeans.

Mercedes quirked an eyebrow. "You think so?"

"I think right." Sam nodded. Mercedes chuckled at him and went to the dresser to brush out her hair and touch up her makeup.

Sam leaned back on the bed, propping himself up with his elbows, and watched Mercedes in the mirror's reflection.

God, she was gorgeous no matter what she did. Whether dressed in pajamas with no makeup or clad in a full-length prom dress... she looked amazing.

Mercedes got his full attention again when she spoke up while applying her lip gloss. "Do you really think we're ready?"

Sam sat there for a moment before shrugging. "As ready as we'll ever be at this point." After all the struggles they had gone through to write a song in such little time, it had wiped them all out. He was just ready to get it out there and perform.

Mercedes sat down beside him and fiddled with her fingers in her lap. "I'm just really worried

. We've come so far, and to prepare like this... I just don't want to blow it." She lay down on the bed.

Sam lay down as well, staring up at the popcorn ceiling. "It'll be fine. I'm sure we'll make it. I mean, we've got some amazing voices on our team."

"You mean Rachel." Mercedes said flatly.

"No, I mean Mercedes."

They sat in silence for a moment until Mercedes said in a soft voice, "I... don't really think I have what it takes. I'm always put in the background. I'm always turned down for the big solos. There must be a reason for it. Maybe I'm not as good as I think I am, and nobody bothered to tell me."

It tore at Sam's heart to hear her say that. She was always so full of confidence, the one who gave him confidence in himself. There was just no way he was hearing this right.

"Cedes... that's not true at all. Your talent is seriously off the charts. Do you realize how much you move people when you sing? You make people cry; heck, you made them pay for this whole trip for us... You make people forget that their lives are a mess in those few minutes. You make worthless people want to be something better. You make them remember what's important in their lives. You... make their hearts race, their palms sweat, make it hard to breathe, their stomachs feel like they're filled with those fluttery butterflies...

Sam swallowed. "You make them fall in love with you..."

"Sammy..." He could hear her voice crack and finally turned his head to face her. She was lying there facing him, her hair splayed out in flowing waves, her warm brown eyes brimming with tears. "Do you really think that happens when I sing?"

Sam realized that tears were threatening to leave his eyes as well. Without realizing it, he just poured his whole heart out to Mercedes. It was always filled with love for her; it was just a matter of time before it would tip over. Now was the moment.

It was now or never.

He propped himself back up on one elbow, turned, and leaned over her, resting his other elbow on her other side. He leaned down so that his face was inches above hers. Her breath hitched. The sight made his heart stop for a moment. He had never been this close to her face before. Now he could see the beautiful curve of her eyes, the cute little nose, every groove on her lips that was hidden behind her lip gloss.

Now or never.

"Cedes, you're always doing things like that... at least to me." His words left him in a whisper. With her eyes trained on him in a deep connection with his, there was nothing left to do but close the gap between their lips.

Years after that moment, it never failed to make his heart skip. Lying on his own bed alone, his head pounding, Sam bit his lip as he recalled the feeling of her lips. So soft... so full... as if they were made to fit against his.

And last night the feeling of those lips were once again seared into his memory... but he ruined it.

Completely destroyed it.

But he had to do something. If he couldn't fix at least he would try do salvage whatever he could.

Sam threw himself out of bed, grabbed at his drawer for some aspirin, and went to get dressed. About thirty minutes later, he stepped out of his dorm into the cold air and headed in the direction of Mercedes' dorm. He had no idea what he would say, but he had to make some attempt at patching this up by telling her that it wasn't his intention to cross the line, that their friendship meant too much for him to treat it like a worthless fling. What he did was wrong. Completely wrong.

He walked, staring at the cobblestones as they passed with each step, and tried to come up with some cohesive thoughts that would persuade Mercedes to forgive and forget. But he immediately froze when he heard the voice of the very girl that he wanted to see.

"Jeffery... why are you here?" Sam slowly peered around the tall bush. He could see Mercedes' back clad in a purple sweater. Sam leaned to the side slightly to see the guy she was talking to—a tall, dark-skinned guy with a short cropped haircut standing in front of her. The guy was intimidating with his stature that slightly towered over Sam's. He made Mercedes look pretty small.

"Baby, I've been looking all over for you." This guy said with a soft smile. So this guy is her boyfriend? Sam felt his heart drop.

"Well, I haven't been looking for you." Mercedes said coldly. Well, on second thought, it doesn't seem like he was. An ex, more likely.

Jeffery stepped closer. "Why have you been ignoring my calls and texts?"

"I don't see any reason for us to talk." Mercedes crossed her arms.

Jeffery sighed. "Can't we just forget all of that stuff in the past and just focus on the present? I graduated with that extra summer semester, and so I moved... near here. Isn't that great? I can come see you... maybe you can come move in with me." He stepped closer and touched her arm.

Mercedes threw his arm off. "Now why the HELL would I want that? Huh? Why would I want you to have anything to do with my life?" The look on her face was of pure disgust.

The smile on Jeffery's face dropped, leaving an almost stern look. "Mercy..."

"Don't call me that. You're not allowed to call me that after all you've done to me." Mercedes stepped back.

"I didn't mean to-"

"Yeah, you did."

Jeffery took a deep breath. "You're testing my patience..." He grabbed her arm again.

"Is this what you wanted? To come to me to test your patience? Test your anger? For me to be your punching bag again?" Mercedes tried to throw his arm off again, but his grip was tight.

"I came back to get what we had again."

"Well, I don't want it!" Mercedes nearly screamed and thrashed more.

"Mercedes, listen to me!" His voice getting more aggravated.

"NO!" She tried to push against him.

"STOP!"

Sam couldn't take anymore of this. From the beginning, he was already pissed at the guy. Now this was too much. He rushed out from behind the bush, grabbed Jeffery's hand, pried it open, and pushed at his chest. The taller boy stumbled a few feet.

"Get off her, she doesn't want you touching her!" Sam was shocked by his own scream. He could feel that his face was red with anger.

Jeffery's face showed a similar expression. "And why do you have a say in this? Who are YOU?" He looked at Mercedes, who simply opened and closed her mouth. "YOU HER NEW BOYFRIEND?"

Sam spoke up. "I don't need to be her boyfriend to see that you were invading her personal space." He couldn't help but feel a pang of guilt. It wasn't like he was innocent of this offense. "She doesn't want you here. She clearly never wanted to talk to you." He could recall the multiple times within the past few weeks when she ignored calls.

"She doesn't know what she wants right now." Jeffery shook his head.

"Yes, I do. I do know what I want. And what I want is for you to leave and never let me see your face here ever again." Mercedes said dangerously. Sam gave Jeffery a glare and stepped forward to make sure he did just that.

Jeffery's lip twitched in almost a snarl. "Girl, you will want me back. Trust me. And I will come back for you." He turned on his heel and walked away.

Sam took deep breaths to calm himself. He could tell from the corner of his eye that Mercedes was doing the same. He turned to her, and his heart broke when he realized he could see fear in her tear-brimmed eyes.

"Cedes..." Sam began, but he honestly didn't know what to say.

"He was my boyfriend back at Byrnes." Mercedes started coldly. "I started dating him freshman year, second semester. I didn't really like the school, and I'll be honest, he was one of the reasons I stayed even though I told people it was because of my scholarships there." She wrapped her sweater tightly around herself. "Sophomore year, it was like he changed... or maybe he decided to show his real side. But he would get angry easily. If I talked back at him, even if it was just a little comment, he would lash out at me. I got sick of it. I yelled and ranted back at him. Told him exactly what was on my mind... He hit me. Really hard. I fell and got this." She rolled up her sleeve to show a faint scar on the inside of her upper arm. "Even after that, he didn't let up. He never hit me again, but you could just tell that he wanted to. I had to leave that place... to do what I should have done even before I met him and leave. I was distracted and I got my punishment for it."

Sam felt himself get cold. Why would anyone treat such a beautiful, amazing woman like that? There was no way she deserved it. He never wanted Mercedes to experience pain again... any kind of pain. He wanted to protect her from a whole world of pain. He cautiously stepped toward her, wanting to wrap her in a hug, but he wasn't sure if that would be allowed.

"Last night..." Mercedes blurted out. Sam froze in shock. "Last night... I don't know if you felt anything from it... but I did." His heart skipped. "I guess those feelings I had for you in high school never went away. And I found them again when I started getting close to you here. You're the same Sammy that I cared about back then."

Sam opened his mouth to respond. She interrupted, "But there's no way I can act on those feelings."

"Cedes, I feel the same wa-" He started.

"Did you see that, Sam? What he was like? I CAN'T DO IT. Sam, I know you're not like him. You're nothing like him. But what he did to me... I may not have broken bones, but he left me broken." Mercedes' voice cracked. "Yeah, the strong diva, Mercedes Patrice Jones is broken. I am so much better than I was before... but there are still parts of me that hurt. I can't look back on that past. I have to focus on my future and my future only. Absolutely no distractions..."

Mercedes stepped closer to Sam, held his face, and softly brushed his cheek with her thumb. She was so close that he could feel her warm breath.

"And you're my biggest distraction." She let go and walked away.

It wasn't until she was out of sight that he released a breath that he was holding. Mercedes had every reason to push him away. Her trust in a significant other was completely broken. He couldn't argue with her about it. It wasn't just a matter of him proving his love to her again. He could give her love, but there was no guarantee she was ready to receive it.

Sam sniffed and looked up at the hazy gray sky. He wasn't allowed to love her... at least not now. But he sure as hell was going to protect her.

Mercedes was going to heal completely. Sam was going to make sure of it.