SEASON 5 EP: 11

CITY OF ANGELS

•

Grab your tissues or get emotional-either option is valid. There wasn't a dry eye, writing or watching this episode.

••••

"Hey, you wanted to see me?" Sam asked, as he and Haley stood in the doorway.

"Yeah have a seat." Mr. Schue said.

"I'll see you after okay?" Haley told Sam. He nodded, as she walked off with Kitty.

"Hum I just want to let you know that even though I've kind of, checked out of school since I'm not going to college, I'm totally committed to Glee Club, you know?" Sam began, as he sat down. "I've had Arite and Blaine drilling me, like, nonstop on the rights and lefts of the choreography, and Haley helped me recruit two Cheerios to get us to 12..."

"You don't have to prove yourself Sam. Finn transformed this club when he joined up. He wasn't just a male lead, he was the captain of the football team. He was the coolest kid in school. I mean, a real dude, you know? He was our secret weapon at those competitions. Other schools might have had their version of a Rachel or a Kurt, but no one had Finn."

"Yeah, he... He made it pretty cool." Sam chuckled, as memories of Finn played through his head.

"When he recruited you, he wasn't just looking for another voice in here. He was looking for someone to take his place after he graduated. Someone to help lead all of these wonderful misfits."

"I'm not Finn, Mr. Schue. Finn was, like, a real leader, you know? Before he left, he talked to Haley and I, asking us to take care of the glee club for him, seeing we're like parents to the group...but I... I'm not a leader." Sam rambled.

"Yes, you are. And I'm gonna need you to be that guy when we get to L.A. The kids want you to be that guy. They're all waiting for you to see yourself the way they see you. The new kids love you, and so do the older ones, especially Haley. I'm sure that everything is gonna be fine once we get there. But if the time comes, and you need to step up, I'm gonna be counting on you to get it done."

Before either Mr. Schue or Sam could say anything, Haley appeared in the door.

"They're here." She said as the two men stood up and followed her into the choir room, where the rest of the group, and Burt and Carol were.

"Hey, guys." Carol smiled.

"Good morning." Burt smiled at the group as well.

"We just wanted to come in and say that, uh, Finn really cared about you guys." Carol said, as Haley sniffled, leaning into Sam who wrapped his arm around her. "More than you know. Finn always said that winning Nationals was the greatest accomplishment of his life. But I honestly believe that coaching you guys to winning would have meant even more to him."

"Now, now, we're not saying go out there and win it for Finn, that wasn't his style." Burt added. "Hum, what Finn would have said was this is the time of your lives right now. You're never gonna forget it, and in a moment, it's all going to be over."

"So no sad faces. No regrets. Just go out there and have a blast, and, you know, it'll be okay if you won the damn thing." she laughed, as everyone laughed.

"And the best part is that Burt and Carol have agreed to come with us as chaperones. But I think before we go, we need a little mood music to send us off." Mr. Schue said, looking at Brad.

{I Love L.A.}

----

"Oh my god, that's them." Haley muttered as the New Directions looked towards the door.

"Who?" Tina asked.

"Do you seriously have no idea who that is?" Blaine asked, as everyone except Haley shrugged. "Do none of you read the show choir blogs?"

"No, Blaine, we don't." Kitty said, rolling her eyes. "None of us read the show choir blogs. Just you."

"That's Throat Explosion. And that's their leader, Jean-Baptiste. Jean-Baptiste was born in Quebec to acrobatic parents. He trained with Cirque du Soleil before migrating to Ft. Wayne where he used his French-Canadian circus stylings to turn the entire show choir world upside down."

"Bonjour!" Jean-Baptiste said walking towards the group. "You must be the new Directions. And you... Must be Blaine."

"How did you know my name?" Blaine asked, shocked.

"Show choir blogs." Jean answered.

Sam walked in front of Haley to stand in front of the group. "I'm, you know, I'm Sam Evans, and I'm the leader of New Directions. And you know, I know you guys are all really good and stuff, but that's just gonna get us out of our comfort zones and send us over the top." Sam said, as Jean nodded, clearly unimpressed.

"Well it was really great to meet you, Sam." He said, putting on a fake smile. "Beast of luck, New Directions. We really can't wait to see your set. And crush you like a bug. Bye!"

Haley and Kitty scoffed as Throat Explosion walked right through them instead of around them. The New Directions glared as they walked past. "Those turtlenecks are so old fashioned." Haley muttered.

"Apparently they think they're timeless." Sam chuckled, as Haley smiled.

----

"Are you sure we should be doing this?" Unique asked, as the New Directions snuck into the poorly lit stage during the early morning.

"Oh, just go!" Tina said.

"Trust me, when I was in the Warblers, sneaking onto the stage the night before a show was tradition. We had other traditions, but I can't really speak of them." Blaine explained.

"We're not doing anything wrong." Sam said, holding Haley's hand with his free hand. He held a briefcase in another. "We're just, you know, getting a feel for the layout of the stage... Our stage."

"So should we sing a song or hold hands or say a prayer or something? Because if I'm being honest, this ghost light's kind of freaking me out." Artie said.

"Alright, everybody, circle up. I have a surprise." Sam spoke up, as everyone gathered in a circle. "Finn Hudson made us a promise at the beginning of the year: that we were all going back to nationals together. Even when we lost sectionals, which was totally not Marley's fault, Finn told us that it wasn't over. He said that we'd be right here, together. Now, maybe you're thinking, Finn isn't here. Well, he is. I made sure of it."

Sam pulled Finn's plaque out of the case as everyone's facial expressions softened. Before any of them could say or do anything, Jean-Baptiste walked into the auditorium.

"Well, well! Les Directions Nouveau! Hum, apparently, we had the same plan for an illegal midnight rehearsal."

"We? You're alone." Blaine pointed out.

"Am I?" As the rest of Throat Explosion came into the auditorium, the lights turned on. "Existentially, yes, Blaine. Perhaps. We are all alone. But tonight, tonight, this stage belongs to us from midnight until dawn. You see, I called in a few show choir favors. So, we'll just give you three minutes to gather your feelings and leave."

"Who is that? Your spirit guide?" A kid on the other team pointed at Finn's plaque in Sam's hand.

"Oh you....Son of a bitchhhhh." Haley said as Kitty and Blaine held her back.

"Dolph, enough. Have some respect. Look, everyone knows yo're that show choir. And everyone knows it's been a very rough year for you. And now everyone is just waiting and watching.... You. Tonight, you have our condolences, New Directions. But let's just be very, very clear. Tomorrow, you will not have our mercy, pity or restraint. We are Throat Explosion. Expect us!" Jean said.

----

Haley frowned, when she stepped on the bus, Blaine behind her.

"What's wrong, Sam?" Haley asked, as he was desperately searching for something.

"Finn's plaque... It's missing." Sam answered, distressed.

"Don't panic. I'm sure it's here somewhere." Blaine tried to assure him.

"It's not in here. I put it right here. It's gone. It's probably just..." Sam stopped when he heard voices outside. The voices he recognized very well.

"Sam, wait!" Haley called trying to grab onto him, but he ran out of the bus.

"Give it back!" Sam demanded, approaching Jean-Baptiste. Haley sighed, she'd never seen him that angry before, not even during their arguments.

"Give what back? Your talent? Because you obviously left that in Ohio." Jean laughed.

"Alright, just give us the plaque back." Sam said a little calmer.

"Gentlemen, let's get serious. You've got ZERO chance of winning. You lost your Sectionals. So you're only here on a technicality. And everyone knows all your decent singers graduated. And a little piece of wood with a a picture of a guy on it isn't gonna change..."

Sam pushed him harshly, causing him to stop talking. Haley ran over and her and Blaine held Sam back.

"You're a tool, man! Come on!"

"Okay, break a leg." Jean said, as Haley quickly had an angry urge and slapped him right across the face, leaving him shocked. Haley then marched her way back onto the bus.

"Sam, it's okay. Just let it go." Haley said, wrapping his hands in hers. "They're just trying to freak us out, and they're being complete psychotic idiots." She said.

"Haley's right. We got to get on game faces and win this thing, okay?"

Nodding at the two, Sam, sighed before he stood up in front of the group on the bus.

"Okay, guys look. The plaque doesn't matter. You know why? Because I believe with all my heart that tFinn is here. He's right here with us, right now. And he's holding all our hands, and he's telling us, the show must go all over the place. And when we're up there onstage, he's gonna be sitting right next to Mr. Schue cheering us on. And when we win our section nationals trophy, he's gonna be cheering us on even louder. All right? So let's do this! Let's go!" Sam finished, as everyone cheered and clapped.

Haley smiled, through her tears as Sam sat down next to her, wrapping his arms around her, letting her snuggle into him for comfort. She knew wherever Finn was, he was proud of the group. They were going to make him proud either way.

----

Haley stood by Sam, holding his hand, as he peeked into the audience looking for Burt and Carol. "They aren't here." He sighed.

"Well, if they were coming, they'd be here by now, so..."

"I can't believe I said all that stuff in front of her." Tina muttered, as Blaine shook his head.

"Oh, it's cool, Tina. You can't help it." Blaine said.

"They're with us in spirit. Just like Finn. Let's bring it in. Okay. We're not like the other teams here. We don't have the big budget or the... The giant pool of students to choose from. We're also different from these teams because we didn't come here to win. We came here to sing and dance our hearts out..."

"Oh, that's horse poop, Schuester." Carol interrupted. "We were halfway down to Laguna before Burt convinced me to turn around."

"I never said a word." Burt argued.

"Oh, you didn't have to. None of you did. I could hear Finn's voice in my head. This is nationals, mom. I coached those kids. You leave them and you're leaving me. You guys are his legacy. Which means I don't want to hear any garbage about doing your best or giving it the old college try. Go out there and wipe the floor with the other teams!"

"Wipe it! You guys are the reigning national champions. Okay? Get out there and show them how it's done!" Burt agreed.

"Perfectly said." Agree Mr. Schue. "Hands in, everyone. A...Mazing!"

"And now, raise the roof for last year's national champions, from Lima, Ohio, The New Directions!"

----

Everyone was hyped after their performance, excluding Haley and Sam, who were both feeling emotional.

Haley slipped backstage and sat down, to have some time alone. Sam came shortly after, letting her lean her head on his shoulder, as she cried.

Mr. Schue stopped celebrating when he noticed two were missing, from the headcount. "Uh, wait. Where are Sam and Haley?" He asked, as Blaine pointed to the couple sitting next to each other.

"Hey, guys. You okay?" Mr. Schue asked, as Sam got up, letting go of Haley, to hug his teacher. " I did my best, Mr. Schue." he whispered, as his voice broke, while Haley wiped her tears.

"Hey, you did great." Mr. Schue sighed, as the two guys let Haley join the hug.

"I did my best."

----

"So Jean-Baptiste mailed it here?" Blaine asked, as Sam hung Finn's plaque on their wall, after receiving it back from Throat Explosion.

"Yeah, he said that when he found out one of the people on his team stole it, he was furious. Then he apologized and said that he made sure that the thief was kicked off the team." Sam explained.

"Huh. A bully with a moral code." Haley added.

"Alright, guys, time to put our new trophy in its case." Mr. Schue announced as everyone reunited around their second place prize.

"I've always found that second place trophies are just a lasting reminder that you didn't win." Artie said.

"Hey, there were 16 teams in that competition. We beat 14 of the best show choirs in the country."

As Burt and Carol walked into the room, Sam walked to give Carol a hug. "I'm sorry we let him down."

"Let who down? Finn?"

"We just really wanted to win this one for him." Haley said, playing with her fingers. " And for you."

"We had a plan that we were gonna call you up on stage and give you the trophy to keep." Ryder added.

"That's not right." Kitty said.

"This is not how the story was supposed to end." Jake sighed.

"You're right." Carol said, as everyone turned to look at her. "Oh, it would have burned Finn to have lost to those guys. All we would have heard for months was how the judges had robbed you or how you were so much better than them."

"But then he would have stood up and he would have told you that even though most of you had never been in a show choir before this year, you still stood tall against the best of the best." Burt continued. And you know what? Even though Finn didn't have the best voice or the best rhythm or the best throwing arm, he always brought out the best in himself and in others, and the geat thing about him is he always manged to find a way to feel like he'd won."

"I was really proud of you guys up there. Hearing those songs was so healing for me. And... I don't know... I saw how much he meant to you. So, win or lose, he lives in you guys." Carol said.

"Okay, guys. Let's put this trophy where it belongs." Mr. Schue said.

"A second place showing is superior to when Finn decided to make out with Rachel onstage and we ended up in 12th." Artie pointed out.

"It was traumatizing if you ask me...I genuinely feel scarred." Haley muttered as everyone laughed, and Sam wrapped her in his arms, pressing a kiss on her forehead.

••••

A favorite of mine. Not just the chapter but the episode. I cry every time.