Soldier (One-Shot)

Contains spoilers for the In 7 Days series by @camypoo.

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Melissa Wate walked into the choir room, a big grin on her face as she greeted everyone. She noticed two of the newer members, Sarah Tyler and Baker Goods, were holding hands, making her feel a bit queasy. Of all days, why couldn't he have at least tried to visit today? she thought to herself as she took her seat next to Angie, her best friend, in the middle row.

Her giant grin must have faltered when she sat down, because she heard Angie say, "Okay, either I'm crazy or you're the depressed one today."

"Well, I'm spending Valentine's Day alone. Again." Feeling uneasy after seeing Idony's arm over Angie's shoulder, Melissa took out her phone and checked to see if she got any new messages from Riley, frowning even more when no new notifications popped up. She then sighed and opened up Flappy Bird, trying to keep her mind off of the day. "He said he would at least call."

"Hey," Angie spoke up, wrapping her arms around her. "He's gonna come. I know he is."

She turned her head at her big-haired friend, asking, "Since when were you the comforting one?"

She shrugged in response. "I guess breaking things off with Jake made me more considerate and happy."

"And so has Idony," she noted, making the other brunette with a blonde ombre turn her head.

"What about me?"

Angie turned her head to face her girlfriend, taking her arms off of Melissa, and replied, "Nothing to worry about, babe," smiling.

They shared a quick peck, making Melissa even more depressed. She then continued her game, silently cursing at herself when the bird fell to its death. Again.

She only managed to look up when Finn, their choir director, came in the room with a bigger grin than hers. "Hello, New Directions!" She then noticed why he was so happy; she happened to barely see his wife, Rachel, trying to hide behind the doors. "So," he exclaimed, making everyone else pay attention, "first things first: anyone else want to sing something for today?"

Someone in the front row raised their hand, but Melissa turned her attention back to the game before she could see who it was. She saw a glimpse of bleach blonde; upon hearing their voices, she remembered that her friends (that just happen to be in the band R5) were still "mentoring" the group. She really only was tuned in to half of the song and realized Ross and Rydel were doing a duet version of Loud. Not bad, she thought before she had tuned out.

She rarely payed attention to the performances that day; the only full performance she watched was of Finn's, Say Something, which he sang with his wife. She cheered with the rest of the New Directions before noticing another familiar blonde at the door. She made eye contact with him, and he gestured for her to come to the door.

She quickly grabbed her bag and whispered to Angie, "I'll be right back," before getting up and going up to him. "What is it, Riker?" she asked.

"I need you to come with me," he replied, holding out his hand for her to grab.

"Why?"

"It's important."

Still a bit suspicious, she let curiousity take over her and grabbed his hand. She could've sworn she heard Finn say, "I think she's gone," as she let him take her to the auditorium. As they stepped in, she heard a guitar play the beginning of Soldier, making her gasp.

She was slightly disappointed when hearing a different voice sing the opening. "You got holes in your jeans, and a few in your heart..." Rocky then came out, playing the guitar. "You don't know what you mean to me to watch you fall apart."

Riker led her to the front row as a screen on the stage rolled out, playing a slideshow of some photos of her and Riley. She smiled as the slideshow went on and the two Lynch brothers sang the chorus. "Baby in a heartbeat, I'll take you with me. I just wanna get to know ya."

She then heard the auditorium doors open and close, along with another guitar joining the instrumental. She turned her head to see the New Directions, along with Finn, Rachel, Ross, and Rydel, walk inside, helping the two boys with some backing vocals. Ross was playing his guitar and both he and his sister walked a bit faster than the rest of them, going up the stairs as the second chorus started, this time with him on lead. She noticed Ratliff had also joined them when her head turned back to the stage.

The slideshow continued, and the lights were dimmed as the song went on. Melissa had no idea what was going on, but her heart felt like it was dropping every second the song played. She needed her Ri-bear with her. She missed him. She yearned for him.

Suddenly, the slideshow stopped, and she heard two different voices as the screen rolled up. "When you're feeling low, I can take you higher. When the world is cold, I can be your fire." A figure of three slowly walked to the front of the stage, their faces barely visible in the dimmed light. But Melissa instantly recognized them and gasped.

The third voice sang the next part as a solo, making her heart jump back in place as her hand went up to cover her mouth in shock. "I'll be there when you need a shoulder. We can win this war..."

I will be your soldier, she silently mouthed along as her hand, still over her mouth, covered her huge smile. She then dropped her hand, got up out of her seat, and started to run towards the stage as he ran down the stairs and towards her.

Everyone else sang in the background as the couple met in the middle and hugged, holding each other tight. Huge smiles were on their faces as they gave each other a long, passionate kiss.

Pulling away, he whispered to her, "Happy Valentine's Day, Meli," as the song ended.

She smiled, now reunited with her love, replied, "Happy Valentine's Day, Riley."

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Dedicated to Cammie (@camypoo) :)