A/n: Hey, guys, I know it has been a looong time since there was an update for this. I read all your messages over the years, and have seen all the reviews and I'm still in awe that even now years later I get messages about completing my fics. Well those requests have finally been answered. My muse came and went and so did my time to write, but I'm hoping that it's back for good and that this time it's long lasting.

Disclaimer: I don't own Glee or any of the characters within this story.

Chapter 24: New York

Sam's POV

Skyscrapers towered over us, making the world seem that much bigger, problems seem so miniscule and us so much smaller. Bright lights flashed from billboards and posters of Broadway musicals surrounded us as we ate lunch. All the while I sat there, mulling over just what my father had said to me weeks earlier. None of it was comforting, and it sent my stomach into knots and an ache coursing through my heart.

I was just lounging on the couch, the Jones family was out and that left us with the house to ourselves. Flipping through the abundance of channels, I looked up as my dad approached. He sat down beside me, heaving a heavy sigh, running his fingers through his sandy locks. The older man studied me for a long moment, so long that it confused me and as much as I wanted to inquire, the look in his eyes, one of sadness reflected back at me. "You know that this arrangement was just temporary, right, Sammy?" he asked finally. Slowly I nodded my head, but said nothing, curious as to where this talk was going. "And that we don't like bein burdens and imposin'. Now Pattie wouldn't dare say that we were and she'd probably let us stay here forever so that we could get on our feet, but I've been lookin elsewhere for work, you know somewhere I found on my own. So that our pride won't keep takin hits."

Raising a brow, I said, "Yeah…so? What's up? You found something?" I just couldn't understand why this man was talking slower, drawing out his words. His southern drawl growing deeper with each sentence. It was as if he didn't want to say whatever it was that was on his mind.

"Yeah, son. I've got a job. A sweet deal too. It's in Kentucky, and your mom has been looking for places. You know that the little bit that we've been bringing in has been going to the cookie jar. Pattie wouldn't take a single cent from us. We've got a little bit saved up, and the job doesn't start til the end of summer, so we've got time to save even more. Your mom is looking for work out that way as well. I think you might wanna do the same," he advised.

"Wait. Wait…so…we're leavin? Never to return to Lima again? Ever?" The words came out in a disbelieving tone. I really wanted this to be a joke – a really cruel and sick joke.

"Maybe for a visit or two once we're stable. Do you honestly think that Pattie or Mike would let us go without visiting? Imagine what Mercedes would think," Chris shook his head thinking of the angry faces that would meet his in Kentucky if they never came down to Lima for a visit.

"Dad! This isn't good news. I mean yes, financially, but it's not. It's not good news for my heart! It's not good news for Mercedes! We're back together. We're happy for once. We are in love in a hopeless place and now you've just made it even more hopeless. I'm not so stupid to think that this is the end of the world. I've provided for us when you guys couldn't so I know how it kills you not to be able to provide for your kids. I've heard you and mom crying at night…motel rooms don't exactly lead to privacy. I just…for once…just once, Dad, I was a high school kid again. The money from the pizza place was mine, and I was savin' up. To…take Mercy out while we're in New York for Nationals. Dad, I can go to Nationals! I can be a kid, and you're telling me that at the end of this summer, my world is going to be turned on its axis?" My eyes stung with unshed tears as the searing ache that permeated my chest seemed to make itself ever present.

"I'm sorry, son. If there was something closer…I would have taken it. We would have stayed, but Lima's just not somewhere that jobs seems to be in abundance."

"No, Dad, don't apologize. In the long run, this is good for the family as a whole. It's alright. I'll deal. Could we not…tell her for a while? I want to be the one and it has to be at the right time. If you tell her parents, just could you ask them not to say anything yet? Stevie and Stacy too?" There was no way that I wanted anyone telling her. Not a single peep. Not when we'd just gotten back together. I wanted to treat her like a queen, make up for all of the shitty non dates that we had, and then I would tell her.

My dad placed a hand on my shoulder, and said, "I'll hold off for a bit, and hold off the troops. Figure out the right words, and tell her when you can, son. I know this can't be easy."

Living with the knowledge that me and Mercy were on borrowed time truly unnerved me. It ate at me with each passing minute. I wasn't one to waste food, especially seeing as me and my family didn't have money to waste much, so I simply wrapped my sandwich up and put it back in the bag. "You're not hungry, Sammy?" Mercedes asked, noticing my lack of appetite.

"No, not really. I'm just thinking about how I'm going to steal you away. I have an awesome date planned for us…if I can get you away from the group without Mr. Schue noticing that we're gone," I told a half truth. That was only half of what my mind seemed to mulling over at the other portion was sending my heart and brain into warfare over what was right and what was wrong. I just simply tried to be practical, saving my heart from the sadness it would have to endure, and in turn saving Mercy's until the time was right to tell her.

"Sam, you know you don't have to do that, and besides aren't we supposed to be writing songs for Nationals? Why we're never prepared with songs ahead of time I'll never know, but still…" Mercedes chewed on her plump bottom lip as if she were thinking over their situation. The singer was silent for a beat before shaking her head no. "Too risky. Mr. Schue isn't going to leave us alone for a second and you know it. He's probably going to watch us like hawks."

I sighed, trying to think of how we'd make this work. I wanted to do something to make her smile. Most of us had never been outside of Lima, me being a transfer, I had seen Kentucky but that was about it. New York was something new, something exciting. Most importantly it was something that I wholeheartedly planned on showing Mercedes before we lost the opportunity to see it again. Little did I know, our Glee Club teacher had his own agendas after we were all checked into our rooms. He deemed us in lockdown until we wrote the songs, and he claimed that he had to do some Glee Club business.

For about two whole minutes I was down for this. I sat there, beside Mercy on the bed, and we all brainstormed, but my first and last straw was Artie and Brittany's song about a cup. I felt like the guy from Malibu's Most Wanted 'sing one more line and I'm going to smoke myself'. Brittany couldn't have been serious about that song and putting it on for Nationals, but then again it was Britt, and she did have a special way of thinking. I turned to Mercedes, but didn't have to say a word, she mouthed the words 'let's go', and I was up and out off the bed before anyone else could register what was happening.

"Where are you guys going?" Rachel inquired and I shrugged. It wasn't like it was anyone's business where we were going even though a few of our friends knew that I was planning to take Mercedes on a date. I made sure though, not to tell any of the folks that couldn't hold water where exactly I was going to take her. Truth be told, I'd changed my mind a few times. What I had planned, it was foolish and it was reckless. It was rash, but I was Sam Evans afterall and I tended to fall headfirst into things. Taking Mercedes's smaller hand in my own, giving hers a squeeze before twining our fingers. I first led her to my shared room with the other guys, grabbing my guitar. Sure, I would have loved to take her out to dinner at a fancy restaurant, woo her in the biggest and most grand of ways, but truth be told no matter how much money I saved, it wouldn't be enough for that and to keep food in my stomach as long as we stayed here, but what I had spent a good chunk of my money on was something especially for her. A ring.

Mercedes POV

Sam and I found our way easily slipping from the hotel, without question we got past the rooms where our friends were, and even out of the lobby without running into Mr. Schue. It'd seem that he didn't give a single care about us staying to do what he requested, and quite frankly, with songs like "My Cup" being the best idea those minds could come up with, I was happy to leave. I had no clue where we were going or what we were doing, but I was just happy to be with Sam. I'd have followed him over a cliff if it meant we'd be together. We'd spent so much time being stupid. So much time with misunderstandings, pain and hurt that we'd lost time, and in some ways we lost us - the way we used to be. As much as things had gone back to normal when we got back together, things also hadn't. There were times as of late where he was withdrawn or he'd seem off his game, and it was worrisome because I remember the last time this happened. The last time he was off his game it was due to the fact that his family had lost their home, their jobs and they were living in a one bedroom hotel room. He hadn't trusted me with his problems, nor trusted me not to act superficially about it. That had been the cause of all of our problems. Trust. Often times when he was distant as of late, my heart was in my throat as I waited for the big reveal. The problem that would surface out of nowhere that had in reality been there all along. Now here I was, waiting for the other shoe to drop as I walk hand in hand with the man that I love.

He'd led me through the busy city, and idly we talked about the most random of things, like the prospect of an Avatar 2, which as much as I liked the movie, I wasn't so sure there would be. The prospect of what would happen if the Doctor regenerated into a Ginger this time. I honestly could care less what we talked about, just being carefree and with him was all that mattered. We walked until we were at the Shakespeare Gardens. It was a beautiful place, and Sam had chosen a bench where we found ourselves surrounded by many different flowers. Most of them described in the author's work. Smiling up at him as he still stood, gazing down at me, I asked, "What? You've been weird all day and I'm wondering what's going on in that beautiful mind of yours."

Before I could say anything else he'd blurted out, "Marry me." Sam hadn't even gotten down on bended knee yet, nor pulled out a ring, if he even had one. I was speechless, I had no clue what to say. My mouth flew open but Sam was speaking once more. "Before you say anything, let me say this. Mercedes, I know that we're young, I know that we have our obstacles and I know that we'd be up against every stumbling block there is for this, but when you know, you know. When we were apart all I wanted was to be with you. I couldn't imagine my life without you in it. I want to spend the rest of my life with you. Would you do me the honor, Mercedes Jones, of being my wife?" he asked once he was down on one knee with the ring in hand. Married? We were only sixteen. How on earth could we get married? It was sweet and part of me wanted to say yes, but the sensible part wanted to say no. How could we get married?

"Sam," I said slowly, dragging out the word. He was looking up at me so hopefully, and my heart ached with the words that were on the tip of my tongue. "Get up," I directed. "Get up." There was a frown creasing his brows then, his eyes forming a gaze filled with pain and betrayal. It was as if he knew what was going to happen, what I was going to say before I said it. "We can't." It was as if I'd forgotten how to speak in complete sentences. One to two words were all I seemed to have. Sam's mouth opened and closed but no words came out, so I supplied a more sufficient reason for the no. "I love you, baby, I really do, but we're teenagers. There's no way our parents would agree to this."

The next words that left him suddenly put everything into perspective. He stood, his watery gaze locked with my own. "We're moving." There it was, the other shoe had dropped, and just like that, my world began to crumble. All it took were those two words for tears to spill from my eyes and travel down my cheeks and for my heart to break. Even if I had said yes, he would still be leaving me. This whole proposal seemed like a rush to hold onto something that was slipping from Sam's grasp. The Evans family was leaving, and along with it so would my heart.

End Notes: As always, thank you guys for reading! I really do appreciate it! There are a few things coming from me so definitely be on the lookout. I have a collab fic in the works, and I also plan as my time becomes my own again to complete all the stories that I have here. This however is going to be the last chapter of Our Little Secret, but there is going to be a sequel to the story. I'll post a preview of the chapter when it's written as the next chapter of this one.

I'd love to hear from you guys and know what you all think about the ending. Thanks really for reading, and some of you for continuing to come back to it with hope that I'd complete it.