Little Red and the Big Bad Wolf

Around six o’clock, I was back at Aileen’s, and I immediately called up Sam. “Hello?” he questioned groggily, his voice garbled slightly, as if he was stifling a yawn.

“Hi! Did I wake you up…?”

“Uh…no?”

Snickering slightly, I started up the stairs, switching my phone over to my other ear. “Anyway, pretending that you’re not a lazy ass that sleeps in the middle of the day, I think you should come over to rehearse your song because I haven’t even heard you sing it yet, and you’re definitely performing tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow?” It took me all my self-control not to laugh at his girly squeal. “I don’t know if I can perform tomorrow, Ells.”

“Well, it’s Friday and the last day of our assignment, so it’s then or never.”

There was a pause, only a soft static in my ear. “Then maybe this was a mistake, you know?”

“Gah!” I yelled at him, throwing my free hand into the air for emphasis, even though he couldn’t see me. “You’re not backing out now! Just get yourself over here, and we’ll see if you’re performance ready. Kapeesh?”

“Kapeesh…?”

“See ya!” As I pressed the END button, I grinned a little. Whether he wanted to perform or not, he was going to because…well, because I said so. Plus, I was in a good mood, thanks to my makeup with Puck, so I was ready to do some matchmaking!

Even if I was really the last person on Earth that should get involved in matchmaking, since I knew nothing about what I was doing.

Oh, well.

To wait for Sam, I settled down in a chair in the kitchen, plopping my head down on my hand. “So, let me guess: Sam’s coming over?”

“You heard me talking, didn’t you?”

“Nope, just figured.” Aileen shot me a small smile before going into the refrigerator and pulling out the cream, pouring a bit of it into the cup of steaming coffee sitting on the counter. “So…is he your boyfriend?”

I let out a snort. “No. He’s actually coming over so that I can help him learn a song to perform for Glee Club as a tryout. He wants to join to impress this girl that he likes.”

“And that girl’s not you?”

“Nooo,” I whined, putting my head on the table. “Since when did you turn into an annoying older sister?”

“Hey, I’m your sister. It’s in the job description. Want me to show you the handbook?”

Looking up, I found that her expression was totally serious as she raised the mug to her lips.

“No, I’m good, thanks.”

“Your loss.” Aileen shrugged and clicked her tongue as Sam’s headlights dragged through the kitchen as he pulled into the driveway. “But, just so you know, if you do ever change your mind…he is cute. Very cute. Even though his lips kind of remind me of a fish’s mouth…”

After letting out a loud laugh, I waved her away. “Oh, I’m sure he’s heard that one a thousand times. But there’s nothing going on between Sam and me. So shushie.”

“Well, I’m still rooting for a Sam and Ellie thing. He seems better for you than Puck ever did.”

And…she said something stupid. Not that she knew it was stupid, but still. It made my stomach drop a little bit.

Thankfully, Sam walked in the door right then, a huge grin plastered on his face. “Hi, Aileen. How are you?”

“I’m fine, thank you.”

They had a short conversation before Sam started toward my room. I went to follow him, but Aileen grabbed my arm before I could get too far.

“And he's polite!” she whispered into my ear.

Chuckling, I ripped my arm back and tried to calm down the blush that had filled my face at Aileen’s overall awkwardness as I hurried toward the stairs.

“Every time I walk into your room, I still get excited over how awesome it is,” Sam gawked, taking a closer look at the records that were hanging.

“Thanks. But stop trying to change the subject. Sit your butt on the bed.”

He did so with a dramatic eye roll. Then, he picked up the guitar that he must have placed there before, not that I’d noticed him come in with a guitar at all. Alright, so being observant wasn’t my strong suit.

Then, with his voice strong and smooth, he started to sing.

Who loves you, pretty baby?
Who’s gonna help you through the night?
Who loves you, pretty mama?
Who’s always there to make it right?

Though his version was a little unconventional, since his voice was a lot deeper, it definitely worked. The thought crossed my mind that it might be a little too serious-relationship invoking for a performance just to impress Quinn, but it would definitely impress her. So never mind about the super-specifics of the lyrics.

“So…I’m really awful, aren’t I?”

Without saying anything, I just walked over from the chair where I was sitting and slapped his arm. “You are not awful! You’re not even bad! Your voice…is kind of amazing.”

A little glow of pride beamed off his face. “Really? So you think that Quinn will like it? ‘Cause I mean, I’ve kind of been working to make sure that the tone was right and everything, and God, if she doesn’t like it then I’m totally ruining all my chances with her.”

“Alright, motor mouth,” I interrupted, slapping my hand over his mouth and giving him a little glare. “She’s going to love it, so stop your gum-flapping. Got me?”

Sam nodded, so I removed my hand from in front of his expansive mouth. “Tomorrow, huh? You really think I’m going to be ready? Maybe I should keep tweaking the chords…” He readjusted his fingers on the neck of the guitar and strummed a couple of notes before I slapped his hand away.

“You’re ready to perform right now, if you want me to be honest. So stop tweaking or changing anything about it because Quinn is going to be knocked right off her little Cheerio feet.”

“You think so?” Sam’s eyes were so hopeful and eager, just like an eager child being told that he was allowed to get that new toy that he just had to get. …That was kind of a strange analogy.

“I know so,” I assured him.

And more than anything, I hoped that the song thing worked. If it didn’t…then my credibility for these kinds of things was just as good as dead.

Not that it was really alive in the first place, but Sam didn’t have to know that.