A/N: Another one of my favorites! Say what you will, but the prom episodes in glee were always great! Anyway, enjoy! <3
"I've been to Ann Taylor Loft, Filene's Basement, and, like, six Forever 21s and I can not find a dress that fits." Lauren said as she, Brittany and Santana entered the room. "I'm gonna be forced to make my own dress for prom."
"Don't. You'll seem poor." Brittany said as the three of them took a seat.
"You're up for Queen, you can't make your own prom dress." Santana agreed with her best friend. "Prom is like our Oscars. It's seriously, like, the most important night of our lives."
"What about getting married?" Lauren asked.
"Oh, you can get married as many times as you want." Quinn said, leaning over from her seat beside Emily so she could join the conversation. "You only have one shot at your Junior Prom."
"What are you guys talking about?" Mercedes asked as she walked into the room.
"Prom dresses." Lauren answered.
"Thank God I don't have to worry about that." The girl scoffed, sitting down and crossing her arms in front of her chest. "I'm not going."
"Why not?" Kurt asked.
"Cause nobody's asked me." She shrugged.
As soon as she said it, Mr. Schue walked into the classroom and straight to the whiteboard as he wrote PROM in it, before finally turning to his students and smiling.
"Alright, guys – prom." He said.
"Please tell me we're not doing songs about prom." Sam pleaded.
"Nope. We are the prom." Mr. Schue corrected. "Figgins has asked us to perform."
"Let's do Run Joey Run." Rachel gasped as everyone turned to her with skeptical looks on their faces.
"Is she for real?" Emily mumbled her breath to which Quinn laughed.
"Now, I know this isn't ideal with Nationals coming up, but we really don't have a choice. And, we could really use the money." Mr. Schue continued, choosing — wisely — to ignore Rachel's comment. "But I know that prom is a special rite of passage. I want to make sure that all of you guys get a chance to enjoy the dance, too. So we're gonna stag at the performances so that each and every one of you has a lot of time to dance with your dates."
"Excuse me." Mercedes sighed heavily as she got up from her seat and walked out of the choir room.
Mr. Schue frowned, confused.
"Is she okay?" He asked, as Quinn shrugged a bit.
"Mercedes doesn't have a date for prom." She said.
"So? I don't have a date." Brittany said. "I'm just going to dance. And then all of your dates are gonna ignore you and come dance with me, so... Your dates are really my dates."
Emily chuckled a bit at her. She couldn't really deny it. Brittany was right. That was most likely what was going to happen anyway.
"I'm gonna go talk to Mercedes." Kurt offered, but before he could, Rachel stood up as Emily raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"No, let me." She said, getting up to leave and go after Mercedes as the rest of the glee club stuck around to decide which songs they were going to perform and at which hour so that everyone could have a chance to enjoy their night.
***
"Thanks for helping me." Quinn said as she walked with Emily down the hallways, pinning up some new posters for Quinn's prom queen campaign. "You'd think people would grow tired of drawing mustaches on Finn's and mine faces."
"You know who is doing it, though, right?" The younger girl smiled a bit when Quinn stopped by a wall and got ready to tape another poster there.
Quinn nodded, smiling at Emily as she passed her some tape.
"Santana." The two of them said together before giggling.
"That's fine, though. I trashed some of her own posters too." Quinn shrugged.
"Very mature." Emily rolled her eyes with a smile as Quinn giggled.
"Whatever." She said, finishing up with that poster and walking away to the end of the hallway to pin the last of her posters. "So... Did he invite you, already?"
"Who? Invite me to what?"
"Sam, silly." Quinn rolled her eyes with a fond smile. "Did Sam invite you to prom already or not?"
"Sam's not going to prom." Emily answered quietly. "With everything going on with his family, he said he doesn't want to burden them with the costs so he just decided not to go."
"Wait, Sam's not going at all?" Quinn asked, pinning the poster to the wall as Emily passed her the tape.
"No. He told me he turned down Rachel."
"Rachel asked Sam to prom?" Quinn frowned.
"Don't ask. I have no idea why she would either." She said. "But now that you're done with the posters, I gotta run, okay? I have to meet a friend for a geometry assignment."
"Sure." Quinn nodded. "Thanks again for the help."
"Anytime."
And just like that, Emily was rushing down the hallway. Quinn watched her go and as soon as she made a turn and was out of sight, Quinn smirked, turning in her heels to make her way to the football field.
She stood on the bleachers a little bit, waving at Finn when he saw her but motioning Sam over when he looked at her. She watched as Sam talked to coach Beiste — probably asking her for a break — and walked over to her. Quinn smiled as he approached, standing by the field and offering him a bottle of water. He smiled at her before taking it.
"Wanted to talk to me?" He asked, after taking a long gulp of his water.
"Yeah. I just heard you were planning on not going to prom." She said, as Sam sighed.
"Emily told you, didn't she?"
"She tells me everything." Quinn shrugged. "But, hey, listen..."
"Look, the truth is... I would love to go, okay? I'd love to take Emily with me. But I can't, because if I take her, I won't be able to pick her up or buy her a pretty corsage or match my tie to her dress because I'll have to borrow something from my dad and, most important, I won't be able to take her on a fancy date before the party. So it's just... I would love nothing more than to go to prom with Emily, but I want to do it properly. And this year, that ain't happening."
At that, Quinn's eyes softened. Sure she knew he was a good guy, but hearing him talking about how much he wanted to treat Emily right just made her want to melt.
"Sam... I have a proposition for you." She said and before he could even open his mouth to protest, she shut him up with a raise of her hand. "And no, it's not charity. What I'm offering you is a prom in a budget, okay? I will lend — and I said lend — you money for a corsage. You both can ride with Finn and I to Breadstix and we can have dinner together. After that, we'll have to walk around and ask for votes so that means you're free to stay with Emily by yourself then. And as for the tie, she doesn't care. She even said she thinks it's cheesy, so just borrow something from your dad and it'll be fine."
"Quinn, I... I don't know..." Sam frowned a bit, unsure of what to say.
"It'll be fun, Sam, really. And Emily is dying to go to prom with you, I swear." She insisted, as the boy sighed. "She won't care about anything else, Sam. You could take her to prom on a bike and she'd be happy just to be spending time with you."
"I..."
"Evans! Get your ass back on the field!" Coach Beiste yelled as Sam and Quinn exchanged a glance. "Now!"
"Sam, just say yes." Quinn all but pleaded as Sam sighed.
He couldn't help a smile to form on his lips, though, as he imagined going to prom with Emily — even if he'd be on a budget and carpooling with some friends. With a nod, he chuckled as Quinn squealed.
"Let me know the color of her dress. I want to pick a good corsage." He told her as Quinn laughed.
"What makes you think I know the color of her dress?" She teased, as Sam laughed, putting his helmet back on.
"Please... As if I don't know you two are going to buy your dresses together."
And as she watched Sam running back into the field, she smiled to herself. Now all she needed to do was find Emily a perfect prom dress and the two of them would finally admit their feelings and maybe end their night with a goodnight kiss.
***
"Just crack the egg." The teacher said, clearly annoyed after having debated with Brittany for the last ten minutes and getting absolutely nowhere.
"I just don't understand the difference between an egg with a baby chicken inside of it and an egg with an egg in it." Brittany argued, as Emily sighed, sitting beside her.
"They're the same thing on the outside, hunny." She tried to explain. "But not on the inside. But I can assure you this one doesn't have a baby chicken in it."
"How do you know?"
"I just do." Emily sighed, deciding against explaining to Brittany properly how she knew that egg didn't have a baby chicken inside. "Trust me, Brit."
"Okay, that's really confusing, because this is a baby chicken's house." Brittany insisted and as Emily opened her mouth to try again, Kurt raised his hand to speak.
"Ms. Hagberg?" He called, as the teacher turned to look at him instead of at the two girls. "I understand that cupcakes are really trendy right now and I know that the making of a foie gras might be a little morose, but I would like to at least graduate high school knowing how to make some kind of pate."
Before Ms. Hagberg could say anything else, though, Artie strolled into the classroom, wheeling himself straight over at Brittany.
"Excuse me, Ms. Hagberg? I need to say something." He said, stopping in front of Brittany as the girl looked down at him, even though she was clearly not happy with the attention. "Brittany, I was a jerk to you. And I want to make it up to you with a song, so maybe you would consider going to prom with me."
"A prom proposal!" Kurt clapped excitedly, a few seats behind them just as Artie started to sing Isn't she lovely.
Brittany rolled her eyes, getting up to take her bowl toward the sink and avoid having to look at Artie all at the same time. As soon as she did, though, the rest of the New Direction boys came in, playing guitars as Finn used his drumsticks on any surface he could find. Brittany laughed then, coming back to sit beside Emily as she hid her face in her friend's neck in embarrassment. Emily laughed, blushing a bit when Sam came over to her with his guitar and sent her a wink.
When the song was over, everyone clapped, even Brittany, although Emily could tell she was still unconvinced.
"So?" Artie asked, smiling up at Brittany in expectation.
"Artie, that was lovely. But I'm not gonna go to prom with you." Brittany said, as Artie's face fell almost instantly. "You called me stupid and I really didn't like that. So, I'm sorry, but I'm gonna go to prom by myself, and really work on me, and dance with other people's dates."
"I understand." Artie sighed, clearly hurt, but trying not to show it. "I...I hope you know how sorry I am."
"Yeah." She said, quietly, as everyone watched Artie and the rest of the New Direction boys leave the classroom in silence as Emily turned her attention back to Brittany, gently trying to convince her to crack the egg so they could all continue with their cupcakes recipe.
***
After his football practice and a shower, Sam walked out of the locker room and toward the dancing class McKinley had, knowing that now that she didn't have the Cheerios anymore, Emily would always use this time to practice.
And he was right. There she was, spinning and dancing away in the middle of the room to whatever song she had in her headphones at the moment so entranced she didn't even notice the world around her. Which meant, she didn't notice Sam standing there by the door for a good two minutes until he decided that was enough and knocked on the open door to let her know he was there.
Emily jumped, surprised, spinning around as she placed a hand over her heart and heaved a sigh of relief when she saw Sam.
"Nearly gave me a heart attack." She mumbled, pausing the music in her cellphone and taking the headphones from her ear. "How long have you been there?"
"Long enough." He shrugged, not really answering her question. "What were you working on?"
"Nothing specific." She said, watching as Sam walked toward her. "Why?"
"I've been thinking... Could you help me with my dancing?" He asked, boldly closing the space between the two of them as he pulled Emily against him, with a hand around her waist and his other holding her right on out, in a typical slow dancing position. "I mean, I don't want to embarrass myself in front of the whole school if you decide to go to prom with me."
At that, Emily gasped, the air being knocked out of her lungs in her surprise as she looked up at Sam, wide eyes and all. He chuckled at her, nodding his head as if to confirm his words and Emily shook her head to pull herself out of her trance.
"W-what do you mean?" She asked, as Sam smiled fondly at her, his feet moving a bit so the two of them were slow dancing in the silence of the empty room.
"It means... Would you like to go to prom with me, Emily?"
"I mean, I would love to." She said, but before he could even react, she continued talking. "But do you want to go? I thought you didn't want to."
"I did want to." Sam explained. "I just... Didn't think I could make it."
"What changed your mind?" Emily asked, a soft smile on her face when Sam spun her out only to tug her toward him again.
"Not what. Who." He said, smiling when Emily giggled as she stumbled back into his chest.
"Look, if Quinn made you do it, just tell me, alright? I'll talk to her so she can leave you alone and..."
"Listen." Sam interrupted her, turning her in his arms so she was looking at him again, her chest pressed against his again. "Quinn didn't make me do anything. She's just helping me out. So, if you do go prom with me, we're riding with her and Finn and having dinner at Breadstix with them too, before the party. It's not ideal, I know, but I think we can still have some fun, right?"
Emily smiled at that, nodding her head gently as she allowed Sam to sway her around the room a bit longer.
"Of course we can." She said. "We always have fun together, don't we?"
"We definitely do." Sam smiled. "So... Is that a yes? Will you go to prom with me, Em?"
"Yes." She nodded. "Of course I will."
Emily laughed when Sam tipped her back, holding her up with a hand on her back as she lifted one of her feet from the floor. She shook her head at him when he pulled her back up and untangled herself from his grasp as she moved to go grab her bag from one of the chairs by the side of the room.
"And about the dancing lessons..." She trailed off, looking at him over her shoulder with a smirk. "I think you'll be fine with the knowledge that you have now."
***
"Emmy, sweetie! Sam's here!"
At that, Emily took a deep breath, taking one last look at herself in the mirror as she fixed her hair one last time and made sure her makeup looked flawless before picking up her clutch and walking out of her room. Picking up the ends of her dress, she walked down the stairs and as soon as she appeared, Sam turned from her mom to look at her instead and he felt his jaw dropping open. Emily smiled a bit as she too looked him up and down and as she stood in the last two steps of the staircase, she kept her eyes on Sam's as he took a step closer to her.
"You are the most beautiful girl I've ever seen." He told her, as she blushed, looking down.
"You look great too." She complimented, running a hand over his shoulders and smoothing out his tux. "This looks good on you."
Sam simply nodded, too entranced by the sight of her to even form a coherent phrase. He kept looking at her, how the metallic blush pink complimented her skin to perfection, how her makeup accentuated her beautiful brown eyes, how her hair fell down her shoulders in perfect waves while part of it was kept pinned to the back of her head allowing him to see her whole face. She looked incredible and Sam would have to thank Quinn later for that one, but hoping he hadn't spent too long staring at her, Sam reached for the inside pocket of his tux and pulled out a box to give to her.
"I got you a corsage." Sam told her, almost shyly as he pulled the lid open and offered the corsage to Emily. He smiled when she gasped.
"Sam, you didn't need to." She said, softly, her fingers hovering over the box as she touched the petals delicately.
"I wanted to." He shrugged with a smile. "Do you like it?"
"I love it." She squealed. "It matches my dress."
"I know." He nodded, proudly. "Can I put it on?"
"Yes, please." She nodded, offering her wrist to him.
Offering her another smile, Sam placed the corsage in her wrist, posing with the girl for a few pictures that Natalie Marshall insisted on taking before walking her out of the house and toward Finn's car.
As her and Quinn chatted away in the backseat, complimenting each other and admiring each other's corsages, Finn and Sam let them be, helping them out of the car when they arrived at Breadstix and getting a table for the four of them. Dinner with Quinn and Finn was a lot more fun and a lot less awkward than everyone involved was expecting, but the four of them easily found themselves into conversation, laughing and enjoying the company as they ate.
As soon as everyone was done eating and the restaurant was a bit more full, Finn and Quinn got up to start walking around and ask for votes, leaving Sam and Emily alone.
"Are you having fun?" She asked him as soon as their friends were gone.
"A lot." He nodded at her with a smile. "And you?"
"Yeah, I am." She agreed. "Thank you for inviting me, Sam."
"Thank you for agreeing to come with me."
At that, Emily scoffed, taking a sip of her juice.
"As if I'd ever say no." She blurted out, and before Sam could even respond, they got interrupted.
"Please save me." Mercedes said, as she approached their table.
She looked absolutely stunning in her purple dress and with her hair pulled up and as much as she wanted to comment on it, the girl seemed far too agitated in that moment, so she probably had some more pressing matters.
"What happened?" Emily asked, a bit worried.
"I was supposed to come to prom with Rachel." She said as she sat down beside Emily, forcing her to scoot a bit to the side and very, very close to Sam. She tried to wriggle a bit so she would fit herself better in between them, but instead, Sam just moved a tiny bit to the side as well, while keeping a hand around her waist as he dragged her with him so she could sit more comfortably but her leg was still completely touching his. "But she somehow got Jesse to come with her and I just couldn't be with them alone so I just saw you two and decided to come sit with you instead. You don't mind, do you?"
"Wait... Berry and Jesse St. Jackass?" Emily asked, almost groaning as she saw the two of them approaching. "Mercedes..."
"Please, don't let me handle them alone all through dinner." She pleaded.
Sighing heavily, Emily glanced at Sam, only to see him shrug at her. She rolled her eyes, but nodded anyway.
"Fine." She relented. "But you owe me, Jones. Big time."
Mercedes squealed, hugging her friend tight just as Rachel and Jesse got to their table, asking if they could join them as well, only to have Sam nod at them.
"Emily, can I just say that you look fierce in your dress?" Rachel said, as she took a seat in the booth in front of Emily, Sam and Mercedes with Jesse beside her.
"Totally, Emily." Jesse agreed with a laugh. "All three of you look smoking."
"You're damn straight, we do." Mercedes laughed a bit as she high-fived Emily.
"Seriously though, Jesse, what do you think of the bolo tie? Pretty cool, right?" Sam asked, pretty proud of his outfit considering it was a suit that his dad had let him borrow from his own prom. "It's all Springsteen-on-the-cover-of-Tunnel-Of-Love-album wearing it."
"Dude, that was like, 20 years ago." Jesse laughed, as Emily rolled her eyes, placing a hand over Sam's leg to offer him some comfort. "I'm really sorry to hear about what happened with your family, Sam."
At that, Emily snapped her head in Rachel's direction as the girl grimaced a bit.
"Um, I hope it's okay." She said, as Emily tried very hard not to yell at her. "I sort of filled Jesse in on what was going on."
"Of course it's okay. Sam has nothing to be ashamed of." Jesse said, as Sam tried not to show how much this whole situation bothered him. Emily reached for his hand underneath the table and he turned to her with a small grateful smile. "I know how tough it is out there. I couldn't even get a job as one of those singing waiters at Johnny Rocket's. But I've got an idea. They say that the best time to start any business is during a recession. I don't know why, or even what a recession is, but it's my understanding that we're in one."
"He's so smart. I can't believe he flunked out of college." Rachel sighed, dreamly as both Mercedes and Emily frowned at the scene.
As Jesse started to talk about his idea of consulting for show choirs, or whatever it was, Emily tuned him out for a second, using her free hand to tug a bit at Sam's bolo tie.
"I think it looks cute." She whispered up at him as he beamed at the compliment.
"You're cute." He responded as she let out a giggle — which, to him, only confirmed his theory.
"Do you think there are enough show choirs to keep you in business?" Mercedes asked, bringing Emily and Sam back to the conversation.
"Of course there are. That's a brilliant idea. You could be like the Show Choir Whisperer." Rachel laughed. "I'm sure we could get Mr. Schue to hire him in a second and that's how we could beat Vocal Adrenaline!"
Before anyone could say anything else, Finn and Quinn approached their table. Quinn had the brightest smile on her face and Emily couldn't help but giggle. She was really living her best life as prom queen nominated and with Finn on her arm.
"Hey guys, you look amazing!" She smiled at them. "And don't forget to vote for Hudson-Fabray tonight."
"Hey, Jesse! Whatcha ordering, scrambled eggs?" Finn provoked. "I mean, I know you usually like them served on peoples' heads."
Everyone shifted a bit, uncomfortable with the situation, but Jesse apparently decided to ignore the jab, turning to talk to Quinn instead.
"Quinn, you look stunning." He told her as she beamed. "The ghost of Grace Kelly. Let me know if you get tired of your boyfriend stomping on your pretty little feet all night, I'd be more than happy to cut in."
"Okay, hush, you guys. You're totally ruining the vibe." Mercedes cut in before things could get too out of control. "Quinn, you look hot. Finn, you look handsome. Love you guys. But get lost. We'll see you there!"
Emily smiled, watching as the couple left. As soon as they were out of earshot, Mercedes turned back to the table with a smile.
"Alright, this is gonna be off the hook." She said, as Emily nodded enthusiastically and Sam slapped a hand over the table.
"Who's ready for prom?" He called, raising his cup as everyone clicked their drinks together and cheered.
"I'm ready for prom!"
***
As soon as Rachel, Jesse, Mercedes, Sam and Emily made their way into the decorated gym, Rachel and Jesse walked off toward the drinks. Emily noticed Mercedes trying to slip away, but before she could, the girl clutched to her arm and smiled at her and Sam.
"Let's dance!" She called out and, chuckling, Sam pushed his way in between the two girls as he walked with them toward the dance floor.
They spent some time together, dancing and laughing and, soon enough, Mike and Tina joined them, causing their circle of stupidly bad dancing to grow in size. Just as Mercedes gave them a taste of her nearly impeccable robot dance, Puck walked past them with Artie as the two of them pulled Sam along with them so they could perform.
"I'll be right back." He leaned closer to Emily so she could hear him and she nodded.
Tina and Mercedes exchanged a glance, but chose to say nothing as they watched her nod at him, smiling as he walked away. Mercedes then walked toward her and pushed the girl closer to the stage.
"Let's go watch your boyfriend sing!" She called over the music as Emily blushed.
"He's not my boyfriend!" She yelled back as Mercedes scoffed.
"Whatever you say!"
The two of them stopped right in front of the stage, dancing and singing along as Puck, Artie and Sam sang Friday. They cheered loudly when they were done and Emily smiled when Sam walked straight back at her as soon as he was off the stage.
"You were great!" She told him as he walked her back to the dance floor. "But I hate the song!"
"Me too!" Sam laughed, spinning her around as she giggled. "Artie insisted, though."
"For some reason..." Emily squealed when Sam spun her again and pulled her into his chest. "I'm not really surprised."
***
Sam and Emily danced along as Blaine, Brittany and Tina performed their song. At one point, Sam spun Emily around as she messily stumbled into his arms, laughing as Sam trapped her to his chest and swayed the two of them to the beat of the song, chuckling in her ear, absolutely thrilled that, not only was he having a chance to spend the prom night with Emily, but he was also getting her to enjoy her night. He'd really have to thank Quinn for this one, he thought.
Emily and Sam weren't the only ones enjoying themselves, however, because, just a few feet away from them, Jesse was dancing with Rachel as he pressed kisses to her neck and she laughed loudly. So much so that she ended up drawing Finn's attention to her. Leaving Quinn behind, he marched up to the pair.
"Hey. Hey." Finn warned, as he pulled Jesse away from Rachel. "Dude, keep it PG."
"Dude, it's none of Y.B. Your Business." Jesse responded.
"Well, this is my school, so it's my business."
"This isn't your girlfriend, so beat it, MJ." Jesse spat, turning around to leave, but being pulled back by Finn. "Don't push me."
And just like that, the two of them ended up just pushing each other as Rachel and Quinn tried to pull them away from each other. Suddenly aware of the comotion, Emily looked in the group's direction and groaned when she recognized the four students involved. Of course they would end up causing trouble.
"Oh, no..." She whined a bit, gasping when Finn tried to properly punch Jesse.
"Prom is over for you, Sugar Ray!" Coach Sylvester yelled at Finn, as she got in between the two boys and pushed them away. "You two, Marvelous Marvin! You're out, let's go."
Grabbing both kids and dragging him out, she could hear the commotion around as Rachel and Quinn tried to argue.
"You're kicking me out?" Finn asked, incredulously.
"Wait, but he and I are nominated for prom king..."
"Sucks for you, sister!" Coach Sylvester said, dragging Finn and Jesse away.
From her spot, Emily could see Quinn was about to burst into tears, so picking up the ends of her dress, she ran over to her best friend as she turned to glare at Rachel.
"This is your fault!" She yelled, as Rachel stared at her, wide eyed. "This is all your fault!"
"Q, stop!" Emily said, as she grabbed Quinn by the arm and dragged her away from Rachel. "Stop, it's not worth it. Come on."
"It's over, Em... It's all over..." Quinn whined, as she pulled her best friend in for a hug.
"No, it's not..." Emily hushed her, rubbing a hand up and down her back. "Look, Principal Figgins is going to announce the winners. Come on, Q... Wipe those tears and get up on that stage to get your crown."
"I won't get it." She sniffled as Emily wiped her tears away and smiled at her.
"Yes, you will." She said, as Quinn frowned.
"How do you know?"
"Because I've voted for you."
At that, Quinn smiled, hugging Emily again and fixing her hair and dress as Principal Figgins walked up to the microphone.
"Will the candidates for king and queen gather on the stage?" He called.
"Go on." Emily urged, squeezing Quinn's hand one last time before letting her go so she could go up on the stage.
Approaching the stage as well, Emily felt a presence beside her and smiled as she noticed Sam standing there. Reaching over to his hand, she grabbed it in hers as she kept her eyes glued on the candidates on stage.
"Please, let her win." She found herself muttering as she closed her eyes for a second when she saw Quinn standing there beside Santana and Lauren. "Please, please, let her win..."
"The votes are in." Principal Figgins announced. "This is the moment you've all been waiting for, where we announce our Junior Prom King and also Prom Queen. Roll the drum, please. This year's Junior Prom King is... David Karofsky!"
The crowd cheered as the boy went over to the front to receive his crown and scepter. Santana cheered loudly for him, turning to Quinn to jab at her as the girl tried to ignore her and just continue smiling.
"And now, your 2011 McKinley High Prom Queen..." Figgins announced after Karofsky took his place on the throne by the side of the stage. Figgings pulled out a name from the envelope and frowned just barely. "With an overwhelming number of write-in votes is... Kurt Hummel."
Emily felt her breath being knocked out of her chest when she heard it. Turning around to look at him, she wasn't surprised to see he was absolutely shocked. After a few moments of awful silence, Kurt ran off the gym and as much as she wanted to go after him, he noticed Blaine had already gone. So instead, she turned back toward the stage just in time to see Quinn running off as well, with her hands over her face as she cried. Emily sighed, turning to look at Sam with an apologetic look on her face.
"I'm so sorry I keep running off on you." She told him, honestly as he just chuckled and shook his head. "I just have to..."
"Go." He told her, placing a loose lock of her hair behind her ear. "She needs you more than I do. I'll be here when you come back."
Emily smiled at him again and squeezed his hand before turning around to run off after Quinn. Finding her in a dark corner of the gym, sitting on the bleachers alone, Emily sighed as she moved to sit down beside her. Quinn didn't waste a minute then, moving to lean against Emily as she cried on her shoulder, marking her exposed skin with ruined mascara.
"This is all wrong." She cried out as Emily silently nodded and rubbed her back again. "I can't believe this all went to hell like this, I..."
"I know, Q... I know, I'm so sorry..." She whispered as her best friend sobbed away.
"I hate today. I hate it, I hate it, I hate it..."
"Shh, I know, Q... It'll be okay... It's alright... I got you."
"I know you think it's stupid..." Quinn whispered, as Emily caressed her hair a bit, mindful of the updo she still had on. "But I just... I feel like I have nothing. I don't have the Cheerios anymore and I don't have the guy. No matter how hard I try, I'll never be who he wants. I am nothing. I'm just... I'm just pretty."
"That's not true, Quinn, you know it."
"It is though!" She sobbed. "I'm nothing. If I'm not prom queen, I'm nothing!"
"You are Quinn Fabray." Emily told her, sternly, pulling back from her best friend just enough so she could look at her. "You are freaking Quinn Fabray. You're smart, you're fun to be around, you're pretty and you're my best friend. Isn't that enough?"
Quinn smiled gently through her tears, wiping them away before pulling Emily in for a hug.
"I love you." She whispered as Emily smiled.
"I love you too." She said right back, before getting up from her place and extending a hand to Quinn. "Now, let's go wash that face and go back to the party, huh?"
Quinn chuckled, taking Emily's hand and allowing her to pull her up. So maybe she didn't win this year, but she'd be damned if that would prevent her from enjoying her night.
***
As soon as Emily and Quinn got out of the bathroom, they walked toward Sam. Smiling at them both, he threw an arm over each of their shoulders before looking at Quinn.
"You okay?" He asked, as she nodded at him with a smile. "You look beautiful."
"Thanks, Sam." She said, before stepping out of his grasp, smiling when she noticed Emily didn't, allowing Sam to keep his arm around her and even grasping his hand in hers when the gym doors opened and Kurt walked inside.
"Oh my god, I feel so bad for him." Tina whispered to no one in particular as Kurt very bravely made his way up on the stage where Principal Figgins was waiting for him with his crown in hands.
"Ladies and gentlemen, your 2011 prom queen, Kurt Hummel."
All the kids from glee club watched as Kurt stood in front of the microphone for a second, looking slightly afraid. He searched for Blaine, though and smiled when his boyfriend did too.
"Eat your heart out, Kate Middleton." He said, as the glee kids cheered for him.
"And now, behold the tradition of our 2011 prom king and queen here in their first dance." Principal Figgins announced and, just like that, the atmosphere turned tense again as Karofsky and Kurt slowly started to make their way off the stage and toward the dance floor.
Emily didn't have much time to dwell on it, though, because as he walked, Kurt gave her a nod, prompting her to take her place on stage with Santana so they could sing for the prom royalty dance.
The two of them started to sing, but they looked a bit unsure, even more so when Karofsky walked out on Kurt, leaving him alone in the middle of the floor. They smiled, though, when Blaine stepped up and offered himself for a dance with the prom queen and as Santana and Emily sang Dancing Queen for them, the whole school watched as Kurt and Blaine shared their dance at prom as the real prom royalty of McKinley.