You Drive Me Crazy || Sam Evans

65. Thanksgiving

"Is it weird that it's the week of Sectionals and we still don't know what songs we're doing yet?" Ryder asked, looking up at the group as they lounged in the choir room, flipping through the scattered sheet music on the piano.

"Nope." Melanie popped the "p" for emphasis.

"Yeah, no, that's pretty standard here," Sam added with a shrug.

Tina smirked as she lazily turned a page. "Sectionals our freshman year? Our entire setlist got stolen, and we had to come up with new songs and choreography thirty minutes before going on."

"And we still took first place, baby," Artie added cockily, throwing up a fist.

"Whoo!" Brittany cheered, giving him a high five.

Joe leaned against a chair, arms crossed. "What do you think Finn's gonna pick?"

"We need at least one dance-focused number," Blaine pointed out. "That's always been the Warblers' weakness."

"I think we can all agree the best way to win is by giving me a solo," Unique declared, flipping her hair dramatically. "And Unique wants My Heart Will Go On."

"Melanie wants Como La Flor," Melanie chimed in, raising a hand with a playful grin.

"You guys can sing whatever solos you want, but if the group number is in a different language, I think I'll actually crap my pants," Ryder joked, earning a few chuckles.

"I'm hoping we do something Coldplay," Tina suggested, sitting up straighter. "Something anthemic, uplifting."

"Yesss," Sam agreed excitedly.

As they chatted, the door creaked open, and Marley stepped inside. She moved quietly toward Jake, who immediately noticed the tension in her shoulders. He smiled at her, but she only offered a weak one in return. His brows furrowed.

"Hey, you okay?" he asked softly.

Marley nodded hastily. "Yeah, I'm just nervous about Sectionals," she murmured.

Melanie turned toward her with an easy smile. "Well, don't be. We've never lost Sectionals before, and we're not gonna start now."

Marley nodded again, forcing a smile in return, but it didn't quite reach her eyes. The reassurance, while well-intended, did little to ease the weight pressing on her chest.

˗ˏˋ ꒰ ♡ ꒱ ˎˊ˗

"All right, do you realize that standing before you are legends?" Finn announced as all the alumni—except for Rachel and Kurt—stood in front of them. "Any single one of these guys could be President of the United States one day."

"I don't know about that," Artie muttered with a smile, shaking his head.

"And lucky for us, they've agreed to help us." Finn gestured toward the alumni.

"Hang with the new chumps and see if some of our sheer awesomeness doesn't rub off on you," Puck added confidently, wiping his shoulder. Mike echoed the movement with a smirk.

Melanie chuckled, shaking her head at the two of them.

"It will," Puck said, pointing at the group.

Finn clapped his hands together. "When you hear your name, pair up."

"Puck, you're with your brother." Finn announced, Puck grinned, walking over to Jake, and the two bumped fists.

"Mike, you're with Ryder." He called out, Mike pointed at Ryder, who pointed back in response.