How This Sh*t First Got Started

Mercedes awoke and blinked a few times in the bright sunlight of the room that she slept in the previous night. She pulled something from being wrapped around her chest and it snaked around her waist, instead. She froze. Sam... She jumped up and turned to look at the blond man sleeping next to her, his hand, now tightly gripping her waist, like he didn't want her to get away (even though he was clearly still out cold). She wiped her hand down her face and forcefully removed the hand to rush herself into the bathroom that they were sharing (the only one without a working lock in the entire house!)

She was not stupid or blind – all of this mess had been a setup. God, was she really that pitiful? Did her friends think so little of her current life that they felt the need to try to orchestrate her having some male company? She sat on the toilet, finished up, flushed, and splashed her face with some water before looking into the mirror. She gasped at the sight! Damn it, Sam! She pulled her nightie aside and saw a trail of hickies, along the side of her neck, shoulders, chest and clavicle. Wth? She groaned and shook her head, starting the shower up. Was her bathrobe around? She peeked into the bedroom and saw Sam, sitting up in the bed, with his head rested on his knees.

Quietly, she entered the room to grab her bathrobe, and when he looked up at her and offered a tired, lazy smile, she tried to force one back (but failed and ended up just kind of squinting at him in confusion). He tilted his head and softly asked, "Is everything alright?"

"Sure," she told him and disappeared back into the bathroom. Sam let out a deep, frustrated sigh and climbed out of the bed. He left the room, clad in only his pajama bottoms and a tousled head of hair. He went into the kitchen, where a few of their friends were already awake and making or eating breakfast.

Noah Puckerman saw the huge red blemish on his friend's pale chest and leaned forward, "Evans! Did our little boy become a young man, last night?" He asked.

"Don't be a dick, Puck," Sam replied, turning red in the face as he went to help himself to a bowl of cereal. No, he hadn't lost his virginity last night, but he was afraid that maybe he did lose something else. Things were not supposed to have gone the way that they had with Mercedes Jones.

Mercedes and Sam were both adult virgins... both with NOSY ASS meddling friends! Sam was unsure whose side had the idea, but when a mutual friend – Sugar Motta announced that she would be hosting an event which she called "The Game On Weekend," Sam somehow allowed his friends to convince him to attend. He barely knew Sugar. They hadn't gone to school together and the only reason that he knew of her was because her father was loaded and always buying one thing or another.

But, the way that Puck and Mike described how the event was going to be sounded like a damned good time and Sam was pretty excited about having a relaxation period for fun and games. "Oh, but you can't go stag, because single people depress Sugar," Mike had said.

Then, seeing Sam's disappointed face, Puck offered, "But, cheer up – the ladies have a single friend that they're going to bring along for you to meet. She's lonely and in need of some good male company, preferably the affectionate kind, as opposed to the friendly kind. They give her all kinds of praises, and get this – she's carrying around her V card, as well!"

Sam lifted an eyebrow at Puck and said, "If this is your way of setting me up on a blind date with a vampire, I'll have you know that I've written three vampire survival encyclopedias – graphic novel style. You won't make a vampire outta me!" Puck chuckled and shook his head.

"And she's actually into silly, corny nerd shit, like that," Mike told him.

"Remember how you said that at this point, you'd lose your virginity to just about anybody?" Puck asked him, "Quinn has the perfect person! Or, at least she says that she does." Sam stared at Puck, incredulously. He hardly liked being set up on regular dates, much less a "get laid" date. But, Puck kept talking, "This girl is supposedly pretty hot and she's just trying to get it out of her system, just like you."

"I'm not..." Sam started.

"But, why not do it at a time when you have someone ready and willing and hot to do it for you. She's not a hoe, either. She's a virgin too and has a great reputation and a good head on her shoulders... That's what Tina said, right?" Puck asked Mike, who in turn nodded his head.

Sam sighed and shook his head, now it didn't seem like such a good idea. He knew what this was about – his friends wanted to help him lose his virginity. They had tried this before, on several occasions and it was always a terrible ending. Sam had given up on trying to lose it, himself. Hell, if it happened, it happened, and when it happened, it wouldn't be because his friends set him up with some lonely virgin.

"We'll see," Sam said. They already knew that he would come, whether he really wanted to or not. He would come for even the chance to possibly have somebody to spend a little time with. Sam was a bit of a hopeless romantic and that characteristic did not fit well with his prolonged solitude. Maybe a romantic/fun weekend with a stranger wouldn't be so bad, if she was down for a quick picker upper, he wouldn't feel so bad when things didn't go the way that he usually hoped they would when he sort of hooked up with random women. Sexless flings had become a sporadic thing for him; however, he had to admit, he was unsure if he was ready for a sex inclusive fling... But, he would never know unless he went for it. "Sure, if she's interested. Why not?"

Mercedes sighed as she signed off of her online account, not quite ready to have to face another day in the real world, but understanding the need for it; for example, she was hungry and fanfiction, while wholeheartedly fulfilling at times didn't stop the rumbling in her belly. She still had to get ready for this Game On Weekend that some of her friends from high school were putting together, as a "midway reunion." One of her old Glee club members, Sugar Motta would be hosting a weekend of fun and games for a group of friends that were close in school, as well as others that she knew from other schools.

"We'll have games and liquor, and I'm sure that much sex will occur... what could be more fun?" Santana Lopez, another good friend asked Mercedes when she said that she wasn't going to go. "Besides, we may have found a nerdy knight in shining armor to pop the young maiden's cherry, once and for all." Mercedes' face heated up with embarrassment as she grabbed Santana's arm and pulled her away from the few customers in the comic book store that Mercedes had gotten a part time job in. Santana laughed and asked, "Did I use the wrong terminology? That was some fairy tale stuff, huh? Sorry, I don't really know how the nerd thing works."

"Santana – first off... I don't need my cherry popped and second – this is not the place to be talking about some stuff like that. I work here!" Mercedes fussed. "I didn't want to go to this thing before, but that was the nail in the coffin, if you think that I'm gonna spend a weekend with a group of drunk crazy people who I didn't even get along with in school just so I can try to hookup with some random guy!"

"He isn't! Remember when we were in the Troubletones and we would square off against New Directions at competitions? This guy was in that group."

"Yeah, a few of Sugar's friends are," Mercedes answered.

"He was like some kind of body roll magician. You have to remember him, it was only five years ago."

"Sam Evans?" Mercedes said, more excited than she intended to sound.

"Aha! So I wasn't the only one whose lady parts were affected by that magic sex dance," Santana mused.

Mercedes rolled her eyes and shook her head, "That has nothing to do with it. I know Sam. He's a regular here and he's working on his own amazing comic book that the owner allows him to sell here, because he believes in the potential."

"Oh, even better! You already know him, so the sex can happen sooner."

"Well... I don't actually know him. It's more like I see him a lot and sometimes I answer questions for him, like I tell him where Jacob is if he's looking for him or I ask him if he wants me to grab him a drink when I go to the break room while he's setting up his comics display..."

"You have a crush on him," Santana said.

"I think he's very attractive and nice. He seems cool as hell, and all of these are reasons that I know that there is no way that I am hooking up with this man, any time soon."

"See there, Cedes? This is exactly why we want you to come have a good time. I don't know what happened to you, but every since graduation, you've become this person that nobody goddamned even knows. You have virtually no self esteem. I can't remember the last time that I heard you sing, and you are becoming more of a recluse than Susie Pepper!"

"What's wrong with Susie? She was a sweetheart," Mercedes said. Santana ignored it.

"You don't have to marry the guy or even change your life around, but maybe getting your groove back will help you want to be a complete person again. You haven't been with a guy since you and Shane broke up in high school. That's been years."

"I tried the whole dating thing. Most of the time when a guy is interested in me, it's because he's curious about having sex with a big girl and I'm not here for that. I don't need a man to validate my life, Santana."

"No, you don't, but let's be real. We feel a little bit better about ourselves when some hot thing gives us a double take. You haven't felt that good about yourself in a while. Maybe you need a longer take. From what the guys say, this guy hasn't been involved with anyone in years, himself. The two of you are in the same boat, so you don't have to worry about feelings or issues or anything. Just meet up with him, so you can have a date for the weekend, enjoy yourself and you never have to deal with him again."

"And you all will leave me alone when it turns out to have been a huge burden and disaster for me, him and everyone else involved with the damned set up?" Mercedes asked.

"We'll leave you alone, even if it goes smoothly and we have to say 'I told you so.' This ain't rocket science, Weezy. You got a shot to get you a little something-something, see old friends, have some drinks and be merry. Just come along for the Troubletones, if nobody else."

"Gah! Alright, if it means that after that weekend, you all will leave me alone about finding a man, going on a date and losing my virginity, I will be there, with a big fake ass smile on my face, pretending that there is something of interest around me." When the door to the store opened, Mercedes saw the blond head of hair enter and she ducked behind the rack that she was at.

"Uh.. aren't you supposed to address the customer?"

"That's him!" Mercedes said and began to try to sneak away. Santana looked at the dorky but incredibly hot blond at the counter, looking around, wondering where the staff was and she nodded her head, once at him. He gave her a smile, but then something beyond her caught his attention and he hurriedly went towards it. Santana turned in just enough time to see him peek around the corner of a rack and catch Mercedes trying to scurry away.

"Mercedes?" He called, curiously. She gasped and tripped and toppled to the floor. "Oh my God!" Sam said, and rushed to help her up. When Santana saw him helping her to stand and checking her scraped elbow, she quickly moved in to try to help her girl out. "What happened? You looked like you were running from someone..." He said, checking the store out to see if he saw any suspicious characters that he might need to school on not intimidating a lady.

Santana stormed up to them and said, "There you are! I saw you trying to dart away! Like I really was gonna miss dat ass flying by, no matter how low you got. Did you... did you fall? Damn, girl – you need to get some," Santana said. She smiled at Sam, who turned bright red at her comment, then said to Mercedes, "So, Cedes – I've caught you, so you don't get to duck out of the Game On Weekend. I hear that the guys even have a single friend that they want you to meet. It'll be fun and I'm not taking no for an answer!"

Sam blinked and looked at Mercedes, "Wait... you're going to that?" He asked.

"I guess I have to..." Mercedes said through her teeth, glaring at Santana with dagger eyes.

Sam laughed and said, "You're gonna think I'm pulling your leg, but... I'm the single friend. Some of my buddies from high school have me tagging along to this thing that their friend is throwing and I was told that I have no excuse not to be there, because apparently the hostess' friends were setting me up with one of their homegirls..." Mercedes' knees gave away and she stumbled, trying to catch herself before she looked like an even bigger fool.

"You don't say," she said as he helped to steady her.

Santana collected her from his hold and told him, "That is great to hear! God, Wheezy, he's cute and everything! And you know him, so that means that there shouldn't be any holdups in you know, progress."

Mercedes shoulders sank. This entire situation was awkward as hell. "Sam, did you need help with anything. I didn't know that you had business here today."

"Oh, I just came by to drop something off to Jacob," he said. "But... have you had lunch, yet?"

"I don't get a lunch. I'm only working a partial day," she quickly said. He looked sad about that. "But, I get off at 3, if you'd like to do something.."

"I'd love to and it'd help break the ice for the inevitable awkward weekend that we'll have coming up," he said with a wink and handed her the envelope. "If you could, make sure that Jacob gets this, please?" When he left, Mercedes turned to glare at Santana.

"He seemed happy about being your date. Yay!" Santana cheered, clapping her hands. "And from the looks of things, he's more than willing to knock them boots. Get ready for one wanky weekend, Lady."

"I should punch you in the mouth for putting us on the spot like that!" Mercedes snapped, but she was extremely glad that she and Sam were going to get together later.

Sam forced himself into his sneakers and grabbed his phone to check the time. He wanted to make sure that he got some errands out of the way before the weekend. If the weekend went well, he would be exhausted by Monday morning. If it went really well, he would be exhausted the next few days after Monday. Noah Puckerman and Mike Chang had convinced him that he should come with them to a party outside of town. They called it Game On Weekend. Supposedly, it was kinda like a game night, but for an entire weekend and with a bunch of hormonal young adults, as opposed to family. He wasn't really down for it, until of course, he realized that she would be his date.

Sam smiled to himself at the thought of Miss Jones meeting him at the music store. He wanted to talk to her for a long time, but she always seemed so uninterested, not just in him, but in anyone. Her face lit up when she began to talk about the things that she enjoyed... and he always felt honored to witness it.

Mercedes came into the kitchen and pretty much everyone there noticed that Sam's face brightened, while she avoided glancing his way as she settled herself between Tina and Puck, "Morning, Folks!" She cheered and studied the different bowls and plates. "What are y'all eating?"

"Want me to fix you something?" Sam asked, with his tone a little bit weird. She couldn't place her finger on what was there and she couldn't help but to look up at him when he asked. His eyes were gazing at her, intently. She forced a smile and looked away, awkwardly, shaking her head. Tina studied her friend and her boyfriend's friend, then tried not to laugh as she found her pancakes hella interesting.

Santana came into the kitchen, next – dressed in an oversized tshirt and strutting, pleasantly. "What's the breakfast of champions for a badass bitch that made her little lady cum five times last night?"

"Perfect breakfast discussion!" Mercedes commented, breaking a few eggs to scramble. She glanced at Sam and he shyly looked away from her. She felt bad. What the hell was going on? They hadn't had sex, but they had fooled around and now, he was being all strange and she didn't know if she was ready for that kind of sh*t.

"And Britt and I are actually roomed up next to you and Lips McGee, so guess what kind of stuff I had to be exposed to after the two of you went to bed?" Santana asked, causing Sam to redden and Mercedes' nostrils to flare. "Fix me some of them eggs, Homegirl," Santana punctuated her statement and sat next to Sam, giving him a pat on the shoulder. He frowned and got up to put his empty bowl away.

He was sort of aware of the number of eyes pretending to not be on him as he made his way to Mercedes at the stove, scrambling eggs and he whispered something to her, that they couldn't hear, "Did I do something wrong?" he wondered. He thought that things went exceptionally well last night and that they might only get better.

"No. I just don't really like all of the meddling," she said, softly. She dared to make eye contact with him and almost melted all over the kitchen floor at the intense stare that he offered her. "You did everything right and you were perfect company last night..." Sam smiled gently and leaned down to kiss her on the lips, which killed her train of thought. Damn it... everyone was staring. No one was even trying to hide it. Mercedes pulled out of the kiss and turned her attention back to her breakfast. "You want yours scrambled, Santana?" She asked.

"Sure," her friend said with a smirk as Sam left the kitchen to get ready for the day.