A shorter chapter:)

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"Alright, big week, guys." Mr. Schue said, causing everyone to stop playing around on the instruments, and focus on him instead. "Come on. Gather round. I have here in my hand... Drumroll, please... A secret list of the show choirs that we will be in competition with at nations in six weeks."

"Yes!" Kitty said as everyone clapped and cheered excitedly.

"Okay, let's see what we've got." Mr. Schue said as he opened the envelope. "We got the Rust-Belters from Pttsburgh, the Thunder Showcats from Gainesville and finally, from Fort Wayne, Throat Explosion."

"No!" Tina yelled, alarming everyone. "Why, God?!"

"Hum what? Throat Explosion? That's a joke right?" Jake asked.

"Anything but." Blaine said. "They're the new supergroup the Show Choir Underground's been buzzing about. Their budgets for costume, makeup, hair alone are astronomical. You guys have read that Malcolm Gladwell book Outliers, right? So, Gladwell says you can't possibly master anything unless you've spent 10,000 hours practicing it. So students can't even join Throat Explosion without proving they've logged in 10,000 hours of show choir rehearsals. They don't even go to class. They just perform, every minute of every day. They live their art. They know no boundaries. They're constantly pushing the envelope, living and performing on the edge. They're like mini Lady Gagas."

"We're so screwed... They're not like Vocal Adrenaline, who were unfeeling Borg robots. They're total outsiders and misfits, which used to be our niche. We can't compete with Throat Explosion anymore at that level because we lost our biggest Gaga when Kurt graduated last year. Look around, we're a room full of, like, Katy Perrys now." Tina exclaimed.

"Oh my god." Haley scoffed, at Tina as she turned to the piano.

"Oh, you best check your spectrum, T, because Orange is the new Black, and Unique is the new Gaga." Unique defended herself.

"Well, not Marley... She's a Katy Perry. So is Sam, so is Blaine." Tina said.

"I'm a Katy Perry and I'm proud of it." Blaine said.

"Hum, the truth is, Tina, we're a potent mix of Katy Perrys and Lady Gagas in here. But it's not a liability... It's the way we're gonna beat Throat Explosion." Mr. Schue said.

"Some of us in here are, you know, ambi-edge." Haley pointed out, as Artie laughed at her.

"Ambi-edge? You just made that up."

"Hum, some of us are more, you know, wholesome, innocent, romantic, all-American-girl and boy-next-door types. Who in here would describe themselves as a Gaga?"

Haley, Kitty, Tina, Unique and Jake raised their hands as Mr. Schue nodded at them.

"Okay, great. And the rest of you are Katys?"

"Is there a third option?" Ryder asked.

"We're gonna mix it up a little bit. We're turning our weaknesses into our strengths. This week, the Katy's get their Gaga on and the Gagas will bring the Katy. Throat Explosion does their one thing very, very well, but we need to be able to do both, impeccably, or else we're not gonna have a chance in hell of winning Nationals this year."

----

"Shortstacks, my office. Now!" Coach Sylvester called, as Haley was talking to Sam and Blaine at her locker.

"Coming, coach." Haley answered. "I'll be back guys." She told Sam and Blaine before walking to Sue's office.

"What's up coach?" She asked, cautiously.

"You're kicked off the team." Sue said, making Haley frown.

"Um...I think I might've misheard that, coach. I'm captain of the Cheerios, and I was doing fine, and my GPA is still at 4.0 even above."

"Sorry, Shortstacks. But Bree is my captain."

"But you promised me a spot on the team for the rest of the semester, once I returned from healing my eating disorder." Haley pointed out.

"Well, even though I admit, you make good points, you're still off. There's no time for explanation. You'll return your Cheerios uniform immediately, and wear your hair, in a lower ponytail till after you graduate."

"Yes, coach. I'm sorry if I did anything. Please do know, it wasn't unintentional. None of my actions are intended to be hurtful." Haley said, keeping a rough exterior on, as she walked out of Sue's office.

"Believe me, Shortstacks, I know." Coach Sylvester said, watching the shorter girl leave.

As Haley walked back to Blaine and Sam, they noticed her weaker exterior.

"Hay what's wrong?" Sam asked.

"Are you okay?" Blaine asked, just as concerned.

"I'm fine guys, really." Haley smiled, trying to reassure them, as they walked to their next class.

Inside, Haley was in rage, she was upset, and she was going to hold it together for the rest of the week. Finn's death was already enough, and Bree as Cheerios captain was a nightmare come to life.

-----

Haley, watched the Gaga's performance of Applause alongside the other Katy's and Mr. Schue. Sure, Sam had gone a bit overboard with the set. There's no doubt it cost a great deal of money, but Haley admitted that it was really incredible.

Everyone's facial expressions when Marley skipped onto stage in a Katy Perry costume, as she danced around all of the boys. Despite utter confusion, everyone clapped before they all turned their attention to Marley.

"What happened to the seashell bikini?" Sam demanded. Haley frowned. Sam wasn't usually aggressive, he was always laid back.

"I wasn't comfortable." Marley argued.

"Well, get over yourself. You think I'm just comfortable up here with no shirt on?" Sam continued, annoyed.

"Yeah, you probably are."

"Well, I'm not exactly loving this giant white thing that keeps getting caught in my wheels." Artie added.

"Yeah, and I look like Siegfried and Roy, and I still did it." Blaine commented.

"It was the assignment." Ryder nodded.

"Okay, I'm sorry, you guys, but I am who I am, and I'm not gonna change that for any number or any guy." Marley protested.

"Marley, we're all trying to win a championship here, as a team, but you put your personal agenda above that. I'm sorry but... You're suspended for the rest of the week." Mr. Schue said.

Haley laughed surprised, before getting up. "Wait, hold the hell up." She said raising her hand. "You're suspending Marley because she wasn't comfortable wearing the required revealing clothes?"

"I'm suspending her for not being a part of the team this week." Mr. Schue said.

"That's no excuse. Marley just got over a fucking eating disorder. None of you have struggled with one, or are just getting over one. Have you? Huh?...Yeah! You don't know how insecure it feels, how bare it is, especially to have to follow a requirement for revealing clothes. You can't rush the recovery. You boys hold such idealistic high standards and expectations. You too Mr. Schue. Not all of us can live up to that, we do our best. Marley should be allowed, we all should be allowed to enter every song or dance number on our own comfort level, we shouldn't have to wear things or do things we aren't comfortable with, to benefit or impress. I get it, yes, she could've made her statement a little differently, but that doesn't mean she wasn't being a part of the team. She was joining this week, showing up how she felt fit. You guys seriously need an education on eating disorders, and teamwork." Haley ranted, shocking everyone at her outburst.

"Hay..." Sam said, as Haley rolled her eyes before looking at him.

"And you. Don't you ever say. Get over yourself again. I'm not impressed. That was rude and unkind, and even arrogant. "

"Haley...Calm down now." Mr. Schue demanded.

"No. I expected way more compassion and sympathy from you, Mr. Schue." Haley said grabbing her bag, and walking over to Marley. "I could go on and on about how problematic you've been in the past about teamwork, but I'll save it. However, I will mention this. Before you ever say being a team, you must understand the meaning. That goes for every topic you'll teach in the feature. Do your freaking research."

"If you walk out the door, you're suspended."

Haley stopped, contemplating what her teacher just said. She turned around. "You know what? I don't give a fucking damn. I already got kicked off the Cheerios, no explicit reason why...so I don't care if I don't have Glee Club. I give no bull crap." She said before marching out, with Marley.

Everyone watched in awkward silence as she marched out. Sam only sighed, before going to change and find Haley, so they could properly talk.

"I didn't know she got kicked off the Cheerios." Tina muttered.

"Did you have something to do with it?" Kitty asked, sending her a pointed look.

"What no.." Tina laughed awkwardly.

"Really...well have you thought how you humiliated her on prom night a few weeks ago?" Kitty asked, as Tina shrugged.

"No, she didn't matter, only I did.

"Next time, consider the other person. How would you feel if you just got kicked off the Cheerios, humiliated at prom, and suspended from Glee plus lost a best friend?" Kitty said. "And make amends sooner or later." She added before walking out of the auditorium.

----

Haley had stormed home in rage, ignoring Carol, and Kurt-who happened to be visiting, and marched to her bedroom, slamming the door.

"Oh my god..." She sighed, as she leaned against her door.

She then began to pace around her room angrily, letting her emotions out, and holding back her tears.

Looking over at her Cheerios trophies, pictures, medals, and everything that she had obtained while she was on the team. She grabbed her uniform, wrapped it in its box and threw it by the door. She grabbed her medals, dumping them in the garbage, and she grabbed some pictures and threw them on the ground. She went to her books, and aggressively began sorting them, just needing to do something to get her rage out.

Sam came into her room, after being let in. After seeing the mess she had made in her bedroom, and seeing his fiance very upset, clearly holding back tears, he knew he had to do something.

"Hay." He called softly, slowly approaching her. He stopped her, putting his hand over hers to stop her before she ripped any books on her shelf.

"Why are you here? Are you here to make my life more horrible this week too?" She asked, as he shook his head.

"No, baby...I'm not. I'm not going to yell at you." He sighed as he engulfed her in a hug, as she let a shaky breath out. "I did apologize to Marley, after taking your words into consideration." Haley nodded, weakly as she let herself cry into his chest, as he rocked them back and forth.

"Will you tell me what's going on?" He asked, after they had pulled away. He kept an arm around her waist, moving on to wipe her tears, and stray hair from her face, as she took three deep breaths.

"I guess...I'm just upset." She started, her voice cracking. "I mean, I lost my best friend who was like a brother to me over a month ago...I was humiliated at prom in front of the entire school...I got kicked off the Cheerios for good, even though I didn't do anything wrong. I think that's why I had that outburst today. I was using my upset mood and rage onto a matter I cared about. That I had been through. I was also just triggered when Mr. Schue suspended Marley for her eating disorder." Haley finished, as Sam nodded.

"Well even without Cheerios, you'll still be worthy. It's not about labels. It's Tina's fault she humiliated you, and Bree's as well. Not yours. Don't blame yourself, Hay. Both your teacher and your coach probably weren't thinking straight. Finn's still looking down at you, at all of us. He's proud nonetheless." Sam explained, pressing a kiss to her forehead as she sniffled.

"I know... It's just been a long week... and I think what I want to do right now...is sleep." Haley decided as she snuggled into him, once they had laid down. "I want to wash away what just happened." She muttered as she fell asleep.

Sam watched her sleep, with fond eyes. He slowly began to feel sleepy as well, and gradually fell asleep, with his arms around her.

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