This World Inverted in... Ohio?

Friendship.

Alec.

After a week only, Mr. Schuester announced the arrival of two new members at the Glee club, "Please welcome Meliorn and Simon, who have bravely passed the auditions. Congrats, guys!" Meliorn got cheered, especially by Isabelle, and Simon got to sit near Alec, who gave him a vague and polite smile. "Now I'd like to introduce the next theme we're gonna tackle in order to practice before Selectionals, which is... duets!"

"Great!" Rachel exclaimed. She looked at Finn with a grin and whispered, "Do you think we should opt for a ballad?"

But the reactions were not all that enthusiastic. Both Santana and Isabelle turned to Puck, who smiled a little. Alec rolled his eyes. They didn't understand what he had told them the day before. But surprisingly, there was no fight, because Isabelle finally turned toward Meliorn who had hailed her, saying, "Hey, Isabelle, hum, would you accept to do it with me? I mean, I don't know anyone else here...", and she immediately said yes, looking at Noah Puckerman who was perplexed. Santana, barely moved, took his hand, mechanically. It looked like there was no violent fight for passion between the girls, and that it disturbed–or frustrated–Puck. Maybe that was what the girls were looking for.

Next to Alec, Simon was smiling to him, waiting. "Oh no, that's out of question."

"Please!" he implored. "I've got no one else!"

"Well, you'll make nice encounters."

"But we're four men remaining! Unless you desperately want to be with Kurt or Mike, you'd better choose me."

Alec was about to answer nastily, when he was cut, "Hey, Alexander! Would like to do it with me?"

Both he and Simon turned toward Mike, who had called him. Alec was shocked, and bewildered. "Uh–I–Well...," he stuttered. He glanced at Simon, then at Kurt, and shrugged, "Okay."

"Amazing," Mike whispered in a wink, and he sat back straight.

Simon was confused. "So you won't go with me, but you're okay with Mike? You don't know him!"

"Hey, you and I are not friends, okay? I owe you nothing. Nor do you."

The other student was on the verge of answering but he felt a presence next to him, and turned a little. Kurt was standing in front of him, arms crossed, and looking exasperated. "I don't like it either, believe me," he warned, then sighed. He reached out his hand. "Will you?"

Simon successively opened and closed his mouth, glanced at Alec, at the whole Glee club, then at Kurt again, and said with a shy smile, "With pleasure." He took his hand and they went to sit together, making Alec laugh softly. Nonetheless, he lost his smile when Mike appeared on the seat next to his. He felt rather shaky and stressed out, so he tried to hide–in vain–behind his glasses.

***