From the start [Prequel to That One Hummel]

Lifted

"Hey kiddo." I groan as my dad sits himself on the edge of my bed. "I got a call from the school, David admitted everything so they're lifting your suspension."
I sit up, rubbing the sleep from my eyes.
"When?"
"Tomorrow." He smiles as I stop rubbing my eyes.
I nod my head slowly, trying to gather my thoughts as I grab my phone to check the time. How can I be so sleepy at one in the afternoon? I unlock my phone, seeing that I've got a few missed calls from Quinn. I call her back just in case something is wrong.

"Hey sleepy head."
"I didn't mean to sleep so long." I clear my throat softly.
"It's okay, your morning voice is hot."
I laugh, shaking my head even if she can't see me she'll know I'm doing it.
"I come back tomorrow, apparently Dave admitted to everything..."
"Uh, yeah...thank Puck and Finn for that."
"What did they do?" I frown, standing up slowly.
"They had words with him, we weren't happy about losing our best dancer next to Mike."
"Best dancer huh?" I chuckle.
"That and guitar player, and I miss you."
"I miss you too..." I smile to myself.
"So, happy to be coming back?"
"Only for you, and the guys but I live with Finn so I see him all the time." I shrug, standing up from my bed.
"Well, I'm glad you're coming back."
"I uh...I think I might quit glee club." I open the balcony doors and step outside.
"What?" Quinn laughs a little. "You can't quit, we need you."
"I'm just a number to Mr Schue." I mumble, lighting up a cigarette.
"No, you're not. Tomorrow at glee club you're gonna prove you're not." Her voice is firm.
I blow the smoke from my lips slowly.
"Alright, give me the plan."

I stand in front of the glee club, looking at Quinn as she smiles at everyone.
"Welcome back, Max." Mr Schue smiles.
"Thanks."
"I'll let you guys talk." He gestures to us with his hands.
"Thank you, Mr Schue. So it may or may not be common knowledge, but Max and I are dating..." She takes me hand and squeezes lightly. "So I'm no longer available."
I look at Santana who shoots me a look. I gulp and shake my head.
"So, is that all?" Santana frowns.
"No, Max has been treated with little to no respect...she's not just someone in the background in this club. She has talent and I think she should be allowed to show it." She lets go of my hand and sits down.
I clear my throat and think of a song quickly.

"Wow." Mr Schue smiles. "That was...amazing."
"Thanks." I nod slowly. "I didn't really like being in the limelight much as a kid...Kurt was always shining and he got all the attention. Really, I only joined this club because my dad wanted me to find a way to express myself and get some of my anger out." I look around the room and sigh. "Truthfully, my anger comes from losing my mom. After we lost her, I kind of lost myself. I started drinking, and smoking, and just...rebelling."
"You know we're here for you." Mercedes stands up and hugs me tight.
"Yeah, you're one of us." Tina joins in.
"Group hug guys." Artie announces.
I hold back the tears as the group engulfs me in a group hug.

I finally found another family. This is where I belong.