CHAPTER 2: Try it together

A month had passed and many things had changed, many in the souls of each of them. The day of the show would be in two days and they hadn't stopped rehearsing: they still had many difficulties and despite having improved individually, they still couldn't be a united group. In the singing room the situation began to degenerate: there were those who argued, those who pushed themselves, accused themselves and no one who was able to put an end to a discussion that was born for nothing. In a moment of pure chaos, a voice was heard that shouted more than the others: Tommy stood up and got on a chair demanding everyone's attention, attention that he received almost immediately.

"What did it take us this month if we keep fighting again? Professor Schuester, the guys from the old Glee Club have taught us so much and have given us real pearls of life that we should listen to. The show is in two days and we continue to attack each other instead of being united and helping each other. Haven't you figured it out yet? We are losers and we are all wrong, but it is up to us to change or make our difficulties become our strengths. Together we can do it but we have to believe in it».

Tommy gave everyone a shock, those words echoed in the air leaving each of them speechless, reflecting on the importance of what he had said. The silence continued to spread in the air when Jess, a little girl no more than six years old, with glasses and braids, went to the piano and began to play.

" Dashing through the snow

On a one-horse open sleigh.

Trough the fields we go

Laughing all the way

Bells on bob-tail ring

Making spirit bright

What fun it is to ride and sing

A sleighing son tonight".

That melody was enough to give them the necessary push to believe in themselves as much as in others: this was the real secret to being, or rather, to becoming a group of close friends, just like New Directions were. Now, for the first time, a harmony of joy, happiness and complicity was perceived; they were succeeding in what Professor Schuester believed for them. Danny and John in the right side of the classroom had put their quarrel aside and grouped the boys to improve their coordination while, to the left in the other corner, were Elena and Jodi giving dance lessons to the girls and finally, in the center of the room was Lily giving singing lessons. Professor Schuester watched the whole scene behind the glass door, proud of what had just happened.

" A day or two ago

I thought I'd take a ride

And soon Miss Fanny Bright

Was seated by my side;

The horse was learn and lank

Misfortune seemed his lot,

He got into a drifted bank,

And we, we got upsot."

They were singing another piece of the song when, as in a chain reaction, everything started going wrong and so within a few minutes they were back and forth. Tommy with an awkward gesture in making a turn on himself, did not close his arms in time and was pushed by the companion who had at his side and fell to the ground. Elena was showing the girls how to do a little dance step and by mistake, in a completely random way, she hit Jodi in the nose and she was furious. Everyone in Lily's group had reached the right pitch at least until Jess missed the notes on the piano causing an imbalance in the group. The situation had heated up again and the usual bickering was about to begin, but in reality the only thing that was heard was just a big laugh that paralyzed those who had made the mistake. The expression of embarrassment, pain and sadness on the faces of Tommy, Elena and Jess was visible, their heads down showed how guilty they felt and they were just waiting for others to lash out at them: this actually did not happen, quite the contrary. it was quite the opposite. Danny gave Tommy a hand and helped him to stand up by tapping shoulder to shoulder as a sign of friendship and encouragement, Elena apologized to Jodi who was immediately hugged and Lily with a big smile sat down next to Jess and together they started to play the song on the piano.

"A day or two ago

The story i must tell

I went out on the snow

And on my back i fell;

A gent was riding by

In a one-horse open sleigh

He laughed at me as

I there sprawling laid,

But quickly drove away."

And after the boys had sung another verse, this time in tune and coordinated in song as in dance, a figure was seen walking away from the singing room smiling, with his hands in his pockets, his back straight and his head held high. No, he was certainly not a ghost but only their guardian angel.

Finally the day of the show had arrived: the children were anxious but in their eyes you could see a light that shone so much that any perceptible concern was canceled. The boys wore shiny black trousers, a white shirt and a red tie; the girls had a little black and white dress with a big red bow that was tied at the waist and fell on the back. It was truly a wonder to see them there, on that big stage that only apparently made them even smaller.

The auditorium was full: there were the parents and relatives of the children, the whole faculty, the other pupils of the school, the members of the old Glee Club and not far from the stage the vice president of the United States, Sue Sylvester, who she snorted a little bored as she used to. She had always hated those performances and those choir competitions just as she hated Schuester.

"Oh God! Look how many people there are! " Jess exclaimed fearfully, starting to tremble for fear of missing the chords of the plan and thus causing a great disaster.

"No, no, I can't do it," she announced immediately after pulling back the curtains Tommy, pale and feeling like he was starting to sweat.

"Don't be pappamolla, how many people can there ever be ?!" Danny said boasting, but once the curtain was opened and peeked, he became silent and stopped making fun of the others.

"We can do it guys, we've been preparing for a month, let's stick together and we'll do it!" Lily cheered everyone up with a big smile that she would have warmed everyone if they weren't so panicked.

The situation was starting to take a bad turn, the balance they had created with great difficulty was starting to falter and they were again losing hope and self-confidence.

"You guys all come here. Once an old lady, Lillian Adler, told us: I want you to remember that at the Glee Club the competition is not important, what matters is something deeper: the Glee Club opens the heart of those who participate in happiness "the professor Schuester related to each of them the same words that his mentor had said to him. Over the years, he had treasured those words, based many of his principles on them, words dictated by the heart with a meaning as deep as it is intense. Despite his words they had always managed to heal every wound, this time it seemed different; it was their first show and they were terrified of doing a bad performance, of not being able to: they were afraid of making mistakes and failing.

"I want to tell you another thing ... but don't tell anyone. You remind me so much of my old students, the first Glee Club I taught at and the first competition they had to face. They were a bit older than you, but they were a group of guys who barely knew each other, who still had to find their way to be united; we had a lot of work to do and they were so terrified that they didn't realize they were there to have fun and sing. That day they sang, gave the best of themselves but did not win and yet they returned home as winners because for the first time they had learned to trust each other ".

Their eyes expressed more than they could have said, no words were needed because he knew perfectly well what was going through their minds: they were afraid, they were so afraid of making mistakes just because they had so much to lose.

«They have faced many competitions, they have compared themselves with the best singing groups, sometimes they have won others they have lost, but in all this if you ask them what they remember, they will tell you the most important thing, which is to be there all together. Tonight you don't have to compete with any group, you just have to remember your strengths both individually and as a group, go out on stage, sing, give the best of yourself and have fun ».

While Professor Schuester was trying to cheer up the spirits, Tommy had detached himself from the rest of the group: he did not want to hear more words of encouragement while he was too nervous he could not even breathe and so he sat in the dark; shortly after he stood up and stood looking at a placard with a smiling young man and a strange phrase.

"The show must go on ... everywhere ... or something like that" the more he reread the sentence the more he couldn't understand its meaning, he was hypnotized, he couldn't detach himself as if something was holding him back.

Rachel had gone backstage to say hello to the professor and compliment him, but she almost stopped short when she saw a kid with straight, black hair swinging on his feet and looking at Finn's nameplate. It was hard for her to be in McKinley High in that auditorium and she couldn't have failed to pass by at least once, but seeing that someone had somehow violated her seat hurt her. Rachel approached the child with a cautious step so as not to scare him: she was so concentrated that she did not notice her arrival and as soon as she put a hand on his shoulder, Tommy jumped; when he saw her, however, his eyes lit up and she could almost bet she saw a tear fall from her face.

"I - I - I don't want to" he began to stammer, gesticulating and passing his weight from one leg to the other, nervous and embarrassed.

"Don't worry, you haven't done anything wrong. Why aren't you with your mates? " .

"I ... I couldn't be with them, I will always be on stage but there are two important moments I care about and I don't want to disappoint anyone, but ... I've been trying to dance and sing at the same time for a month and I haven't had great results . I… I'm a mess, "Tommy finally admitted with downcast eyes.

"You know, you remind me a lot of him," Rachel said, pointing to her photo with her finger and turning it first towards the photo and then towards her.

"He was our leader, but like everyone else he also had some weaknesses and among these was the dance. At first he had great difficulty dancing and singing at the same time, but then one day he stopped worrying about it and gave the best of himself and without even realizing it he succeeded. He was very special, we were lucky to share his incredible talent, to see his smile and his magnificent heart. So whether you have known him personally or through anecdotes, stories, he has become a part of us and he will always be part of it ».

"And ... how do you know that he ..."

"Because he was like that, he would never have abandoned one of his companions, one of his friends: he was always there for everyone".

"Can I ask you a question?" Tommy asked blushing and squeezing his hands together; Rachel just gave him a nod accompanied by a big smile.

"What does that phrase mean?" Did he really say it? "

"Yes, she said so. He was intelligent, just not in a conventional way, "Rachel answered laughing, placing a hand on her shoulder and accompanying him to her friends who as soon as they saw him ran to hug him, especially Lily.

Professor Schuester had stood still as he saw Rachel and Tommy talking in front of Finn's plaque and as she approached the rest of the group he gave him a look full of tenderness and sweetness. Rachel approached him and embraced her, seizing the opportunity to be held in her arms, the same ones in which she had found comfort several times; she very quickly she wiped the tears streaming down her face, giving a shy smile to all those kids. A glance was enough and she understood what he had in mind; she knew there was a time when everyone would be united, no matter how the show went: this was their moment.

"Everyone come here. Hands in the center. And on my three we shout: together, "Professor Schuester announced to everyone, reaching out to the center and looking at the shocked expression on their faces.

"Where are you going? You're part of us too, "Tommy said, looking at the plaque once more and taking his hand to place it in the center with theirs.

There was a moment of silence, then a big scream that was also heard in the room, frightening the others but making Sue and the old Glee Club laugh: they knew that that was their "battle" cry before each performance.

"New the ground is white

Go it while you're young,

Take the girl tonight

And sing this sleighing song;

Just bet a bob-tailed bay

Two-forty as this speed

Hitch him to an open sleigh

And crack! You'll take the lead."

And so they were singing the song they had been working on for a whole month, managing for the first time not to be wrong. Everything was perfect, everything fit together: the movements, the gestures, the words, had become a united group and Professor Schuester was there to admire with emotion another small miracle that he had performed. Once again he had managed to get a group of kids to believe in their dreams, in their abilities and to learn to trust others as well as themselves. All the fears that the boys had disappeared as soon as they got on stage, fear became a force and the difficulties turned into achievements. Danny that evening had managed not to forget the words, Charlie had used the right tone making his friend smile, Tommy had looked at Rachel in the audience and remembering her words had closed his eyes certain that the music would guide him, finally Lily to once he put aside his desire for greatness and worked as a team. The rest of the boys shone just like them, there were no mistakes or any kind of lack; Jess turned a look at Lily once she finished her song smiling at her: it was only thanks to her that she had managed to cope with her, had been beside her and had trusted her. The magic of Christmas had materialized in the smiles of those young people, in the love they had put in to be able to make a dream come true, in the humility and strength they had shown with each other.

"Jingle bells, jingle bells

Jingle all the way

Oh! What gun it is to ride

In a one-horse open sleigh.

Jingle bells, jingle bells

Jingle all the way

Oh! What gun it is to ride

In a one-horse open sleigh"

Their last line had been the refrain: that part that had previously discouraged and alienated them, now seemed to have crowned an unforgettable Christmas. Only in that moment did they realize that everything had been useful, that nothing had happened by chance and that everything had been indispensable. It certainly could not be said that it was the end because that day and that moment on stage, for each of those boys, represented a new beginning: their choices would allow them to do great things, just as it had happened to those boys who they called New Directions.