Always and Forever - Book 2

Funeral

"New Directions, I'd like to introduce you to our new show choir consultant, Jesse St. James," Mr. Schue announced with a hint of enthusiasm.

As soon as Mr. Schue's words hung in the air, Hunter's mood soured. He frowned, rolling his eyes as Rachel clapped enthusiastically, only to be halted by Mercedes' skeptical glance.

"You've got to be kidding me!" Hunter exclaimed, unable to mask his frustration.

"I don't trust this guy," Finn said, his voice low and wary. "He's gonna trick us into doing something stupid so his alma mater wins"

"I don't need to do much tricking to get you to do something stupid, Finn," Jesse retorted smoothly, a smirk playing on his lips.

"Guys, Jesse is just a consultant. I still make all the calls," Mr. Schue interjected before the argument could escalate. "I have all the confidence in the world in you guys. I just think we could use all the help we can get because this is it."

He pointed at the whiteboard behind him where "Nationals" was written in bold letters. Hunter couldn't deny Mr. Schue had a point, and as much as she loathed Jesse, he was indeed part of one of Ohio's top show choirs.

"We've been working so hard for two years for this moment, and that moment is finally here." Mr. Schue continued, his tone earnest. Hunter begrudgingly agreed. "I was talking with Jesse, and he agreed we should continue with our successful trend of doing original songs for the competition. I was thinking of doing one group number and one duet."

"Rachel and I should sing a duet," Finn proposed almost immediately. Typical. "We killed it last year at Regionals with 'Faithfully.'"

"Yeah, killed us. We lost," Quinn and Hunter interjected simultaneously from beside Finn, rolling their eyes.

"May I?" Jesse asked, and Mr. Schue nodded.

"I agree that Rachel should sing lead, but Finn, I think it's best if you sit this one out. The fact is, most of the other guys here are better singers, and Mike Chang—who can't even sing—can at least dance. You kind of sing and dance like a zombie who has to poop."

"You see what I'm talking about?" Finn demanded, his face reddening as the rest of the Glee Club struggled to stifle their laughter. "This guy's a jerk!"

"Nah, as much as I hate to admit it, I kind of agree with him," Hunter said, crossing his arms.

"Maybe you could be a little gentler with your advice," Mr. Schue said quietly, his eyes meeting Jesse's.

"Gentle?" Jesse scoffed. "I'm sorry, I didn't realize we were training for the 'Good Try' ribbon at Nationals. I thought we were in it to win the whole thing, and there's only one way we can do that."

"Poison darts?" Brittany suggested with a straight face.

"The Vocal Adrenaline strategy is simple," Jesse continued, ignoring Brittany. "Identify your best performer and build the entire performance around them."

"So what does everyone else do?" Hunter asked, a hint of irritation in his voice.

"And who's our star performer?" Puck added, his tone skeptical.

"We're going to have auditions to find out," Mr. Schue said with a sigh. Hunter noticed that about half of the club perked up at the mention of auditions. "I'm gonna post a sign-up sheet later this afternoon."

"Don't you think this is kind of not our style?" Finn asked, looking uneasy.

"Normally I'd agree with you," Sam said suddenly, turning to Finn. "But this is the big time. I think we should listen to Jesse."