The applause continued to fill the theater as the curtain rose and the music began to play for the curtain call. Group by group, the cast came out on stage to take their bows to the roar of the appreciative crowd – first the male ensemble, followed by the actors playing Chistery and the Witch's father, the female ensemble, Boq and Nessarose, Dillamond and Madame Morrible. When Will ran out from stage left, the applause was deafening as he took his bow with a big smile on his face. After him came the Wizard, and then Alli and Lindsay came out from the center door of the clock for their bows before the whole group followed. When the music stopped, Alli and Lindsay took a few steps forward as they had a few words to say.

"Thank you all so much," said Alli as the noise died down and the audience returned to their seats. "I hope you enjoyed the performance as much as we have, this is such a special show for all of us and it has been an honor to put it on every night." The audience applauded in agreement.

"But what has made tonight's performance extra special," Lindsay continued, "is that we all witnessed a dream come true for a very talented and extraordinary person among us. What took most of us months to learn, he learned an entire part in a week and he did it well. So without further ado, we'd like our Fiyero for the night to come join us and say a few words. Come on over, Will!" Loud applause and cheering encouraged Will forward to stand between the two leads at center stage.

"Wow," he said. "I promised myself I'd try not to get emotional if I had to come up and give a speech, so I'll do my best." The audience laughed and did their best to encourage him.

"This whole week has been a dream come true," he continued, "so I'd like to thank the cast and crew for not only welcoming me, but helping me every step of the way. I couldn't have done this without you guys." The audience applauded. "Alli, Lindsay and Derek, you three have been a huge help in getting me ready for this part and I never imagined I could learn it so quickly. It proves that even teachers can be taught sometimes." More applause followed.

"There's a group of people that I'd especially want to thank," he went on as he felt the tears starting to come on, "and they're sitting in the audience right now. They are the members and alumni of the glee club I run back home in Ohio, along with my friends Burt, Carole and Shannon. I have been proud and honored to teach my students over the last four years and it has been a joy to watch them grow into the people they've become. No matter what happens in the future, my bond with these special people will remain with me forever. Last, but not least, I'd like to thank my beautiful wife Emma, and my former student Finn Hudson, the latter of who is with me in spirit. I can't thank them enough for giving me the courage to do what I love – and that is to teach and inspire people. I love them both so much. Thank you." As tears began to slide down Will's face, the audience rose as one and applauded, cheering wildly while Derek presented him with a huge bouquet of flowers. Then the entire cast waved to the cheering crowd as the curtain came down.

Outside the stage door some time later, Will and other cast members were surrounded by audience members signing Playbills and having photos taken – Alli had told him before going out that it was Broadway tradition to meet the fans after the show. Hands stretched out with their programs and Sharpie markers as the cast diligently went through the traditional routine.

"Sign ours too!" exclaimed Marley's voice. The next group Will saw after a cluster of audience members walked away happy was that of New Directions, Emma and his friends. Smiling, he signed every single one of the Playbills of his students.

"Mr. Schue, you were incredible," said Kitty as she got her program back while watching Marley, Jake and Tina get theirs signed by other members of the cast as well. "You never cease to amaze us, you know?" Mike and Quinn both nodded in agreement.

"I'm so proud of you," Emma said as she came forward while he took a selfie with an audience member, "you were phenomenal. I knew you could do it." She then stretched her hand out extending her program to him, already covered in cast members' signatures with a large space left in the middle.

"You know Em," he said, "I wouldn't be surprised if the kids end up framing their programs. I'm sure this is something they're going to remember for a long time."

"That goes for all of us," added Rachel with a smile, holding her autograph-covered program close to her. "Now hurry up, we're all going to the Spotlight Diner afterwards – we managed to get the place for the night to celebrate your debut!" With a smile and a nod, Will acknowledged Rachel and signed a few more programs before going back inside.

The diner erupted in applause as Will entered with Emma, carrying several bouquets of flowers and bags filled with the gifts from the other cast members given to him before the show. The entire room was decorated in balloons, streamers, and a huge banner across the top of the stage that read "Congratulations!" and dotted with gold stars. There were plates of food on every table and drinks were serving up at the bar. Not since winning the 2012 national championship in Chicago and his wedding in the choir room to Emma had he felt so happy.

"So, how does it feel?" Rachel asked. "This was your dream, and it came true!"

"It feels amazing," Will replied, "and it's thanks to you that I was able to do this."

"You did all the hard work on your own," said Emma with a smile, "Rachel just helped you get your foot in the door by showing Rupert that video." Who knew that a video of him singing to the 2012 graduates would bring him such happiness?

"Yo, Mr. Schue," called Artie from nearby, "how about a speech?" The room filled with applause as Emma pushed him towards the stage. When he got there, he stood behind the microphone and stared back at all the people who came to support him.

"You guys," he said, "as I said at the theater tonight I can't thank you all enough for coming to support me. I know that you know I've done so much for all of you over the years, and for you to do this for me is just incredible. It proves that no dream is impossible, you've just got to work hard to achieve it. And it doesn't matter what Sue has done with the glee club, what's important is all of us and the magic we've created together. For that, I'm so proud." Applause filled the room again as he picked up a nearby guitar and pulled the strap over his head.

"This night has been so incredible," he went on, "that there's no other way to express how I feel about it than by singing about it. This is for all of you guys." He picked the correct key and began to sing.

Here we are shooting stars
Renting time in someone else's space
So unsure afraid to fall
I'm standing here a little scared
But I don't care

Cause this kind of moment
Is only on loan and
I wanna remember the look in your eyes
And when it's all over
I want you
To know that I was with you when I
Had the night of my life
The night of my life

So don't let go you never know
Maybe your whole life's about to change
So let's hold on until it's gone
Nothing's made to last forever
Who knows whether

This kind of moment
Is only on loan and
Sometimes you don't know till it passes you by
And when it's all over I want you to know
That I was with you when I had the night of my life

Maybe this whole thing comes right down to fate
And every choice that we think that we've made
Has put us right here together today, today, today

'Cause this kind of moment
Is only on loan and
It won't be too long till it leaves us behind
And when it's all over I want you to know
That I was with you when I had the night of my life

The night of my life
The night of my life
The night of my life...

When the song ended, the applause and cheering was deafening. Will looked over the crowd and smiled, blowing a kiss towards Emma and Rachel.

Dreams really do come true.

Thanks for bearing with me! With everything going on in real life right now, I'm just glad I could finally finish this story

The song Will sings in this chapter is called "Night Of My Life" by Damien Leith