#but just like tana didnt mean for it to go wrong every party took a risk and when it failed everybody suffered

[algebraicant]

SO, since nobody asked,

I’m writing this just in case I want to source and have this information all in one place,

TANACON

just watched the series (1/31/2019) -- late, I know

comments I wanted to respond to but were posted 6+ months ago, so like, old news, who cares/ maybe they’ve since learned the answer and don't need my two cents,

Q: where did the money go???

A: Shane said: veep (the company which sold the tickets) told Good Times (Michael)  that if any problems occurred, they were keeping the ticket sales (MANY problems occurred) and that Good Times would be responsible for refunding ticket sales (325,000)

Q: (moreso a wrong assumption) Tana and Good Times knew the capacity was set to 1,200! they knew they were selling 4,000 extra tickets and that those people would never get inside!! scam scam scam!

A: Short answer? No.

Long answer? Buckle your seat belts:

No. The capacity was 1,200-- number one, that’s sort of a technicality. That number is for fire safety reasons, and buildings/rooms/etc have to have a capacity (that is determined by guidelines to which idc enough about the specifics to look up rn-- maybe there's a person per square foot ratio idfk it doesn’t matter) in case of a fire emergency,, it's a preventative measure to minimize the chance of a stampede resulting in injury/death. SO, that being said, you CAN fit more people into a room then the stated capacity of the room.

Now you might be thinking: even so, not 4,000 EXTRA PEOPLE. Yes, that is definitely true.

BUT, CONs are not like, say, a ballet/play theater, or movie theaters, etc, where there is a certain number of seats and there’s one person per seat, no more (and hopefully no less), you sit, you watch, you leave. Events like CONs account for foot traffic and the constant cycling of people. 

You come in, you walk around, you see X, Y, and Z, and you leave. If the event has expensive food/drink, you may leave to get cheaper options (if the event allows you to leave and re-enter, anyway). The point is, people are coming and going throughout the day, so that allows for others to replace them.

I assume the event creator(s) of TANACON believed there would be higher turn-around than there was.

Still, that being said, 4,000 people was WAY too many extra tickets sold. There was no possible way that there would be 1,000 people coming in for 40 minutes to an hour, and then leaving to allow for the next batch of people. Even accounting for the different arrival times-- some people coming at/before the CON started, people coming closer to noon after a late start-- it's utterly impossible.

In saying that, you might think: How could someone make such a careless mistake?

Keep in mind, THIS PROBLEM HAPPENED AT VIDCON IN 2014:

“VidCon 2014 was held at the Anaheim Convention Center, and 18,000 people showed up for the sold-out get-together for those who love online video.

But getting inside to see their favorite YouTubers has some people complaining about long lines.

One woman and her family say they waited two hours, only to have security cut them off in line before she could get an autograph with her favorite online creators.

On VidCon's Facebook page they do say they cannot guarantee that everyone will have one-on-one time with their favorite creators.

Hank Green, co-creator of VidCon, says they tried to make access as fair as possible, but the demand for signings was higher than expected, with fans camping out.

"We ended up in a situation this year which we should have anticipated, but didn't, that basically we had to queue people up before the queues," said Green.”

etc etc

https://abc7.com/news/fans-wait-in-long-lines-for-hours-at-vidcon/145838/

NOTE: wiki says 12,000 people bought tickets in 2013, and the attendance was increasing every year, but there is no official count on wiki for 2014-- probably because they FUCKED UP and oversold by way too many.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/VidCon

The Anaheim Convention Center, where VIDCON was held, has a capacity of 7,000-7,500 people inside. The outside area fits 5,500 people.

Together, the convention center fits 13,000 people inside and out.

VIDCON oversold by 5,000 (18,000-13,000).

ALSO

KEEP IN MIND, that means 10,500 people were outside of the actual convention center (18,000-7,500). These 10,500 people were, instead, either in the outside area (5,500) or in the parking lot waiting to get in (5000).

NOTE: I’m not taking into account the fact that, as I previously stated, the capacity number is just an approximate, and that more people might have actually been let inside, despite the capacity limit. That is because I simply can’t calculate the number extra people that security allowed in past the capacity number (as far as I can tell, that information isn’t public knowledge, IF they even kept count). But for our purposes, even if I speculate, and allow for, maybe 1,000 extra people, that’s still 9,500 people NOT in the venue.

SO THE SAME THING HAPPENED

So, what’s the difference (if any)?

1. VIDCON was already established. VIDCON had existed since 2010 (3 successful years prior to the 2014 VIDCON)

2. VIDCON had already been held at the Anaheim Convention Center the year prior.

Is that good for VIDCON?

yes?

Because VIDCON had been established for 3 years, with 1 year at that particular venue, people, presumably, knew they’d be waiting in line for at least 30 minutes, and maybe several hours. People knew to check the weather, bring sunscreen, water, snacks, a board game, pool noodles, WHATEVER they needed while waiting. (I’m sure some people didn’t plan, but you can’t account for every stupid person in the world, otherwise, you’d work/worry yourself to death. If they didn’t bring water, they could leave, or die of dehydration at that point. Sometimes Darwinism works itself out, what can I say-- I’M KIDDING. Sort of.)

no?

Since they went from 12,000 (which presumably worked) to 18,000 in one year’s time without changing venues/ adding venues, or changing visitor passes (limiting access/time spent at the venue) they royally fucked up. If 12,000 people works for you, you don’t just add 5,000 extra people to the list. Especially knowing only 7,500 people fit inside the center, and 13,000 people fit total. If you want to push it to 13,000... fine. Don’t go 4,000 over (COUGH COUGH, TANACON 2K18).

but, yes?

Because the Green Brother’s apologized (sort of-- they did the “i’m sorry you feel that way” non-apology, apology type shit) and took responsibility and came out with public statements explaining what the issues were and set a fixed limit of people the next year, 2015, (”Next year I think is going to be significantly different in how we handle [things]”)  they were able to calm some of the ruffled feathers.

Also, because they had 3 successful years under their belt, they already had a following/ people who trusted them. They also had 3 years of success as proof that their trust was earned, so it was easier for them to say “sorry! this was a blip! a mistake! we promise it will never happen again, just remember the good times, we'll be back to that level of success next year,” and have people believe them.

NOW, compare that to TANACON

1. TANACON was suggested, then created, over the course of a few months.

This doesn’t need further explanation, right? Like, a convention that’s supposed to have food/drink/security/merch/meet-and-greets etc. and FIVE THOUSAND PEOPLE can’t be planned in a few months.

2. Expectations were set too high.

VIDCON already existed, so there was a bar in place. If TANACON wasn’t as good as (or at least close to) VIDCON standards, people were going to bitch. But, instead, it just failed completely, so...

3. Tana wanted revenge on VIDCON. TANACON was a byproduct of that.

So, wrong motives-- already a bad start. She is young, unlike the Green brothers, inexperienced, naive, impulsive, and often, in the past, not held accountable for her mistakes, so she’s got a slight god-complex? possibly? or at the very least, she’s cocky and irresponsible. But, I mean, she was 19/20 at the time, right? Who isn’t a bit cocky and irresponsible at that age (maybe not Tana-level, but still).

I honestly partly blame the ticket buyers (and their parents) for, not one moment, pausing to think: I WATCH Tana’s videos-- part of her appeal (?) is that she’s a fucking mess. That’s what her “Story Time” videos ARE. HER CONSTANTLY GETTING INTO PRECARIOUS SITUATIONS. HAVE SOME FORSIGHT PEOPLE. Also, you saw the video where the TANACON idea was conceived right? You KNEW AHEAD OF TIME this was the result of revenge. When do revenge schemes ever go to plan? Again, HAVE SOME FORESIGHT PEOPLE.

4. Tana and Michael are both early 20′s. And I mean EARLY 20′s.

Tana was 20, so even if this wasn’t made out of revenge, and she wasn’t as much of a mess as she IS, you still should be considering the PROS and CONS of relying on a child.

(For reference, I’m 22. I would never trust myself, or another person my age-- Tana 20, Michael 21-- to be able to successfully plan and execute something of this size. A fan meet-and-greet at Starbucks? MAAAYBE.)

When people go into business with young people/ people who have no experience in the field because they “believe in them” or “trusted them,” is it partly their fault? If you ASSUME that because VIDCON is an established convention that, besides 2014 when they learned their lesson, has been extremely successful, that TANACON will be? That’s your oversight. If you’re pouring your faith and money into a business just because they seem trustful, with nothing to back it up? No past experience? No proof of responsibility in the past? I’m sorry, but that’s your bad. Or worse, you don’t even consider whether it should be trusted at all? You have just always dreamed of meeting youtubers X, Y, Z, and so you jumped without actually considering the consequences, the risk vs reward? Again, that’s your fault. 

While your ticket money might eventually get refunded, you still wasted the time (missing work/school/etc) standing in a hot parking lot or a mess of a venue, as well as travel costs you’ll never get back (unless someone pays you back out of guilt-provoked charity), and, I’m sure, a bunch of other shitty experiences. HAVE SOME FORESIGHT.

The only good thing to come out of TANACON is, maybe, you’ll know not to blindly trust some teenaged stranger from the internet (and hopefully be able to apply your new-found caution to other situations as well) in the future.

Tana could have easily found the same information as I did about the VIDCON fuck up of 2k14 and

1. Pointed fingers. “IT’S NOT JUST ME, NOBODY’S PERFECT.”

2. Learned from their mistakes and not repeat them.

I’m aware that: Shoulda, coulda, woulda.

Pointing fingers probably would’ve made the situation more polarized, aka, 1/2 her viewers (the vast majority being people who did not go to TANACON and live through the disappointment) would say “she’s right. VIDCON fucked up too in the past. Sure, she fucked up, but nobody’s perfect. Accidents happen” and 1/2 her viewers (the vast majority being people who did go to TANACON and lived through the disappointment) would say “Tana’s a cunt trying to divert the attention of her huge fuck up onto VIDCON again by making excuses!”

So, the situation really wouldn’t have gotten any better as a result.

and

There’s no point in going down that rabbit hole. She didn’t do the research. She was fueled by revenge and was naive enough to believe Michael, a boy one year older than her, could handle everything simply because he said he could (spoiler: he couldn’t).

It happened. It's over. Nobody died. Nobody got seriously injured.

I feel sorry for the people who wasted their money and time at TANACON (especially those who flew from overseas).

I feel sorry for Tana because she didn’t want TANACON to be a disaster. Now she has to live with the guilt for ruining a lot of people’s day and the repercussions.

I feel sorry for Michael because he bit off more than he could chew and has to live with the repercussions of his actions.

I feel sorry for all the youtube personalities that agreed to go and the guilt of having their fans be let down.

All you can hope for is that the people learn from this disaster and not repeat it again (although, like I said, this happened at VIDCON four years prior, so who knows-- fingers crossed that, because it was such a huge controversy and people love bringing up how controversial people fucked up in the past, people will actually remember, and it’ll take more than 4 years before something like this happens again??).

#boycottthemarriott #? #stillnotsurewheretheylandedinallthis #scapegoat #?

[artislifeevans]

Chat Para → Backyard Grammar


Tagging → Sam Evans, Mercedes Jones, Chris Murray, Brittany Pierces, Santana Lopez, and Charice Crawford

Time Frame → April 7th around 8:30pm 


Location →Santana’s Estate

General Notes →Every one joins together to celebrate Santana’s new house…

Charice: had always loved organizing parties. Granted, the last part she organized had culminated in the end of her marriage but it was still a love of hers to pull all of her friends together and spend time with them. She wanted tonight to be drama free and she honestly believed they could do it, especially since they were all adults and the typical drama starters werent going to be at the party. All she wanted was to be surrounded by her friends for one night, without the kids, and to celebrate Santana’s new place. Charice walked over to the bar and adjusted some of the bottles of champagne that they’d brought in for the party and looked around with a nod. The party was ready, she was dressed and people were already starting to filter in. She spotted Sam come into the party and breathed out heavily. Dont get her wrong, she loved her brother in law. But he was a fucking idiot. Him and her cousin. He had a wonderful girl at home that had no idea what he was doing behind her back and he was going to ruin things with Mila if he wasnt careful. Especially since Charice knew above all that he and Mercedes wouldnt last. It was a nice idea in theory but they were both so fucked up that they logically couldnt last and she just wanted them happy. Right now they were going to be miserable, no matter what they thought. Charice sighed and reached for a glass of champagne before downing it quickly. “Jesus, I dont pray to you often… ever. I dont pray to you ever but if you make this party go smoothly, I’ll go to church on Sunday,” she muttered before going to greet the guests.

Santana: was up stairs in her room, getting dressed for the party. She had been waiting for this from the moment she and Charice started planning this. This was more then just a house warming party, this was a new chapter in her life. She was finally where she wanted to be in her life and she just wanted to celebrate it with her best friends. Since it was just going to be a few of them, she knew there wasn’t going to be any drama at all. So she didn’t have to worry about cutting anyone with her razor blade. She finished up her last touches of her makeup, before grabbing her phone so she could face time Antonio before he had to go to bed.

Sam: walked into the house, trying to make sure that his clothes were fixed and that he his hair wasn’t so messy. He was one of the people to show up first. Well that was until he got attacked by Mercedes. He had pulled around the back of Santana’s house and was getting ready to get out only for Mercedes to corner him. At first he said they will meet up later since Mila was out of town, but as she started kissing him, he couldn’t do anything but give into her. She was pure evil and she knew this. They were just lucky that nobody had came around back and that where they parked was gated. After they were done Mercedes told him to go in first so nobody would expect anything or question why they came together. Sam took a deep breath feeling his heart slowing down, looking around the nice big house “Damn this is nice” he said admiring the staircase and the pictures Santana had hung up on her wall.

Chris: was honestly happy for Santana. He was happy that she was not only taking care of her mental health but also setting up a home for herself and their son. And of course, he wasnt shocked when he saw the house and how gorgeous it was, considering Santana always had good taste. “Wow,” he gasped, taking Brittany’s hand in his as they walked into the house party. “You’d think she’d get a small apartment in the city but I guess not.“

Mercedes: adjusted her shirt and jeans as she walked up the steps into Santana’s new home. She tried to hide the bright smile that was on her lips but she couldnt, especially after what she and Sam had just done. She didnt mean to pounce on him but the minute she saw him, it was like she was a kid in a candy store and she wanted it all. She hadnt meant for it to be much more than kissing but when it came to Sam, there was no such thing as just a quick kiss and go. So it was no surprise that ten minutes later she had effectively had three orgasms and wanted to nap the rest of the day away. But sadly, she couldnt. She had to support her friend and her new home. So after cleaning up and laughing at how red Sam looked, she forced him to go first and got out of the car a few minutes after. She made sure to fix her make up and hair in the mirror before getting out of the fogged car and took in the gorgeous house in front of her. It was a nice place but of course it was. Santana had nice taste and if she knew her best friend and cousin, she knew that this party was going to be great. She waited a few seconds before walking in, wincing when she saw Charice in the corner drinking champagne like it was the last drop left on earth and bounced over to her. “Hey Reesie! This is gorgeous. You two did a great job. I mean really,” she beamed, earning a look from her older cousin. “What?”

Brittany: wasn’t even in the house yet and she was already in love with it. She knew that the house would be insanely beautiful because Santana wouldn’t take anything less. But this house was just gorgeous and she couldn’t wait to see the inside of it. She grabbed Chris hand, still amazed “Yeah I know… But as loud as Santana can get at times, just from laughing. This is a good thing.” She joked walking into the house.

Charice: narrowed her eyes at her cousin as she walked towards her and sucked her teeth. “Nothing… You just look real happy,” she accused. “I bet it has something to do with Boy Wonder who just walked in about 3 minutes before you. From the back too… Hmph. You need to stop whatever you’re doing with him Cedes and I’m serious.”

Santana: giggled as Antonio made pouty faces when she said she had to go and he needed to be in bed “I love you and I promise I will see you tomorrow.” She assured him. She could see that he was getting sleepy just from the way he laid on the bed and blew her kisses “Mommy loves you” she said blowing kisses back. “Thanks again for watching him Mel.” She smiled waving goodbye to the woman before hanging up. She placed her phone on the table, walking out of the room, heading toward the stairs. She stepped down the stairs seeing Sam admiring the pictures “I see you’re admiring the artwork already” she chuckled walking toward him. “Where’s Merissa?” She asked.

Sam: looked up to see Santana walking down and smiled. “Well it’s not the best painting in the world because it’s not by me.. but it’s okay” he winked at her. He playfully rolled his eyes when Santana purposely said Mila’s wrong “Her name is Mila. And she is out of town with her parents” he said with a sigh “and I really wish you would learn her name okay?” He said softly before pulling her into a hug “Congratulations on the new house San. I’m very happy for you” he whispered kissing her head.

Chris: chuckled and nodded. “You got that right. I used to wonder if she was deaf sometimes because she was so loud,” he said looking around more. “Open bar, praise god. And look there’s Cedes and Charice.” he practically skipped over to his cousins and grinned, seeing them. “Ladies. I see we have champagne behind you and it would be ever so kind of you to hand me a glass for m'lady and a glass for myself.”

Mercedes: shrugged at her cousin’s accusatory tone. “I am happy Charice. Is that such a crime?” Her smile fell when Charice mentioned Sam and cleared her throat. “Would you drop it please?” she asked through clenched teeth. “It’s none of your business and you need to just leave it and us alone about it, okay? I dont try to control your life all the time so stop trying to control mine.” She looked up as Chris and Brittany walked over and smiled as brightly as she could, hugging her best friend and rolling her eyes at Chris. “Okay Shakespeare, relax,” she snorted, handing them both a glass of champagne and getting one for herself. “Where is the party host anyways?” She spotted Santana and Sam talking by the stairs and walked over to them. “Tana! This house is beyond fantastic! I mean you make me wanna buy a house in the ‘burbs. Almost,” she joked, giving her friend a hug before turning to Sam. “Hey Sam, how’s it going?” She could see Charice rolling her eyes out of the corner of her eye but ignored her. “I’ve been meaning to come to the new gallery lately but I’ve been so swamped.

Brittany: giggled softly as they walked toward Charice and Mercedes. She reached over to hug Mercedes “Hey you!” She smiled, chuckling at Chris dramatics, excepting the glass. She took a sip of her drink, glancing around the kitchen “wow when this kitchen is insane” she said admiring the well designed kitchen.

Santana: returned the hug, running her hand up and down Sam’s back “Thank you Sam” she smiled softly, gently pulling away to see Mercedes walking toward them. “Hey! Thank you! It took me forever to decide if I wanted this house or not” she said honestly, returning Mercedes hug. She looked between Sam and Mercedes and smiled “Well you should come with me next week. Antonio wants to go get his face painted again with Ari and Alley” she pointed out, seeing that Chris and Brittany were here “I’ll be back!” She said skipping toward the group “Hey Britt” she said excitedly wrapping her arm around her “I’m glad you could make it!” She beamed looking over at Chris as if she didn’t want him here “oh yeah and you too Murray” she joked. She glanced over at Charice seeing that she was somewhere else “oh and Troubles I invited Alyssa over.. hope that’s okay!” She said trying to get her best friend’s attention.

Charice: scoffed loudly. “Ha! You always try to control my life Cedes! ‘Charice do this, Charice do that. Charice dont forget how much you must love Dylan, take a chance on the crazy white boy that ruined your life again!” she laughed. “I’m simply returning the favor.” She looked over as Chris and Brittany came over to them and sighed “Hey yall,” she smiled, as they walked over to Santana and Sam. She damn near lost her eyes behind her eyelids with how hard she was rolling them at the little game Sam and Mercedes were playing. “I’m sorry, I’m sorry I cant, are yall foreal right now?” she asked, the two of them. “Yall deadass about to act like yall are JUST now seeing each other for the first time today? Really?! You two think we’re that dumb because if you think that, I’m gonna need more alcohol.” She cut her eyes to Santana and grimaced. “Not funny.”

Sam: smiled softly at Santana as she spoke. He loved seeing his friend so happy. He looked over to see Mercedes and smiled, trying to act as if they didn’t fuck ten minutes okay. “Oh he Cedes.. it’s good to see you” he said nodding at her words “Yeah I understand.. I have been busy with work myself but yeah San’s right you should come by soon. I give you a private tour of my collections” he smirked. He waited until Santana left before he got closer to Mercedes “Can I stay with you tonight?” Asked, leaning against the stair rails, noticing the group walking toward them “Hey guys” he said with a smile. He went to say something only for Charice to interrupt, frowning a bit “Charice what are you talking about?” He asked not knowing that she already knew about what was going on with them. Santana

Chris: dryly laughed at Santana. “Ha, ha. You keep pretending like I’m not your favorite person and I’ll begin to believe it,” he smiled, patting Sam on the back. “Hey man.” He went to say more to his friend but Charice had interrupted him, snapping at both Sam and Mercedes. “Uh, you sure you arent already drunk?” he joked, looking around their friend group. “What’s going on?”

Mercedes: smiled. “Sure. I want my face painted and I wouldnt mind a private tour,” she said brightly, trying to keep her composure as Sam got closer once Santana stepped away. “Okay… although my boyfriend might be there tonight. He’s kinda protective, pretty manly. He might attack if he sees you in my apartment.” She snorted, seeing the look on Sam’s face. “He’s also furry and walks on four legs so I think you’ll be safe,” she teased, groaning slightly when Charice began to speak. She really didnt want her cousin blabbing anything right now, especially when everything was going to well for her. She inhaled deeply and turned to look at Charice. “Why dont we talk,” she said tensely, pulling her cousin away from the group so no one could hear. “Look okay I get it! I get that you arent okay with what Sam and I are doing and I get that you’ve been the cake or whatever dumb analogy you made up but I need you to understand as my family, that I am not Stephanie and Sam is not Dylan. So stop comparing our situations and if you wouldnt mind… Butt. Out.” She plastered on a fake smile and rejoined the group with a huff. “I think she’s a little tipsy,” she shook her head. “Must be her first weekend without the kids.”

Brittany: smiled softly “Hey Charice” she said getting ready to ask her about the kids but stopped the minute she felt Santana wrapped her arms around her “Hey! Thanks for Inviting me.. I’m so in love with this house” she said as she followed Charice and Chris toward Sam and Mercedes “Hey Sammy!” She said squeezing his cheeks, letting out a giggle, before frowning a bit at Charice. She looked between, Sam,Mercedes and Charice feeling some tension between them “ummm okay.. is everything okay?” She asked watching Mercedes drag Charice away from them. She walked closer to Sam raising her eyebrow, turning to see Mercedes return “yeah.. I guess so.. but hey let her be tipsy if she wants. I think she deserves it after having twins” she smiled.

Charice: followed behind her cousin as she dragged her from the group and crossed her arms. She didnt necessarily want to spill the beans to their friends but at the same time, she wanted Mercedes to understand that what she was doing, wasnt okay and that she was actually hurting herself. “Do you Cedes. Just know, karma is a mean, vindictive bitch,” she said, clenching her teeth as Mercedes walked off. Fine, if this was the life her cousin wanted to live then so be it. But it was only going to end badly. “Sanny, where’s your liquor cabinet. I need something stronger,” she announced, turning around into the kitchen.

Santana: chuckled lightly,reaching over to smack his cheeks “aww you know you will Always be my favorite person” she smiled innocently at him. She took a sip of her own drink, “thanks Brittany! I’m glad you like the house” she said frowning at Charices words. She could tell something was up just from the way Charice was looking at Sam and at Mercedes. “Look if they have seen each this week it’s fine. We all know Sam and Mercedes favors each other over the rest of us” she joked. She thought maybe her joking around would help with the obvious tenstion but it didn’t. “Wowww well.. I’m guessing nobody is gonna tell us what’s going on and you know what honestly I don’t want to know. I want to enjoy this part drama free” she said turning toward her best friend “It’s in the living room. Speaking of, I gotta get a lock for it. Antonio was trying to play in it.” She said getting a look from Chris “I will get a lock before he comes back. I promise..” she assured him “well do you guys want to see the pool. It’s literally Antonio’s favorite.” She chuckled “Troubles are you coming?”

Sam: gave Mercedes a quickly wink. “Hey Murray” he greeted his friend. He could feel Charice’s eyes burning through his skin and it wasn’t a good feeling. He honestly wanted to know what her deal was and he was going to ask just thought. But from the way Mercedes dragged Charice away from them, he had a feeling that he already knew the answer. He chuckles nervously at Santana’s comment, he knew that drinking was out of the question but it really did sound good right now. Especially for his nerves “ummm I have no idea” he lied nodded his head “yeah let’s not bring up any drama.” He said calmly. “Oh no don’t mention Pool to Alley unless you want her here everyday.”

Chris: was still at a loss as far as what was going on with his cousins but he knew it was better not to ask, especially when it came to Charice and Mercedes. They were probably fighting over something petty that could be resolved with a simple conversation. He frowned at Charice’s question and frowned even more when Santana said Antonio had been caught playing in the liquor cabinet. He shrugged a shoulder, trying to play his concern off. “I didnt even say anything but just so you know, I have a bunch of locks at my house that I can give. You can lock up alllll the liquor,” he grinned, following his friends out to the pool. “Oh my god, now I wanna live here. Bee, can we have one, pleeeaaassseeeeee.” Mercedes

Mercedes: clapped her hands when a pool was mentioned. “Ugh, I miss having a pool in my back yard,” she sighed, trying to bring the mood back from the tension from earlier. “I miss being a kid sometimes, ya know. Nothing to worry about but school, prom and crushes. Now I gotta worry about bills, student loans and… well still crushes. That hasnt changed much actually. I’ve started to regress.”

Brittany: nodded her head in agreement with Santana. She wanted to have fun and not focus on drama at least not tonight when they are suppose to be celebrating Santana’s new house. She looked between Chris and Santana as they talked about locks to keep Antonio out of things “Yeah I think we have locks on pretty much everything in the house” she chuckled. She gasped when Santana mentioned the pool, and quickly followed her. “Wowww this is big pool” she said stepping down the stairs. She admired how beautiful the water looked in the bright light. She chuckled at Chris’ question “if we get a house like this Ari would never wanna go to school” she said walking beside Mercedes “ugh I know. I guess that how thing you’re gonna wish your life away is true huh?” She said wrapping her arm around Mercedes shoulder “But hey at least you’re happy right? I mean you look happy.”

Charice: waved a hand at Santana. “I’m coming!” First, she needed a drink. After getting it, she walked into the backyard, her cold drink in her hand and sighed at the large pool. It was great and she definitely planned on being out here a lot when it finally got warm again. She scoffed loudly at Mercedes’ words and took a sip of her drink. “Who do you have a crush on Cedes? Hm? Inquiring minds wanna know. Do we know them? Or is it someone from your work… oh wait I forgot, you arent working yet. So who are you seeing so much that your able to develop a crush?” she asked, sweetly, looking directly at Sam. She walked over to Brittany and Mercedes and nodded. “Doesnt she? She looks so happy. Kinda like the happy you experience when you’re doing something you shouldnt be doing.”

Santana: gave Chris a knowingly look “I know you Murray and I can see that look in your eye where you want to lecture but you’re trying not to” she chuckled “Well I might grab some from you guys then. He is so nosy… I don’t know here he got that from” she said mindlessly. She smiled softly as they all went outside, if she was honest this was the biggest reason why she got this house. “Well you guys know you’re more then welcome to come here anytime. I already gave my security team your names. So they will let you in if I’m not here.”she she said listening to Mercedes speak. “Yeah I have to say Cedes.. your kind of glowing” she chuckled but quickly sighed when Charice came out side “Troubles come on so what if she is doing something she has no business. She never does anything bad. Let her live” she said with a shrug “besides I kind of wish I was in that kind of trouble.”she joked

Sam: sighed thinking that the drama was finally gone and they could breath and finally have a good time. He smiled gently at Mercedes words and if he was honest he felt the same. Yes what they were doing was wrong, but it just felt right at this moment and it wasn’t anyone business but theirs. He went to say something but stopped at Charice words. He locked eyes with her, getting confirmation that she knew and she wasn’t happy about it. Which Sam understood but he didn’t understand why she was so dead set on telling everyone what was going on. It didn’t involve her or any of them for that matter. At this point he felt uncomfortable and thought maybe it would be best if he just left. “Hey guys I have to run. Presley is coming back and I told him I would pick him up at the airport.”he said giving Mercedes a look. It wasn’t a total lie he did have to pick Presley up, but that was in five or six hours. He figured maybe if he left Charice would back off.

Chris: raised his hands in defense. “I have no idea what you mean,” he smirked before letting out a chuckle. “You dont know where he got it from? Look in the mirror dear.” He frowned when Charice came out, guns blazing and shook his head. “Okay you guys need to tell us what’s going on because you two rarely fight and when you do, it’s bad so come on. We’re all friends here.” He glanced over at Sam and shook his head. “Dude you just got here. Come on stay for a minute. Presley will be fine.”

Mercedes: clenched her teeth as Charice came into the backyard, ready to cause more drama. She was trying her hardest to ignore the little digs her cousin was giving but she had finally had enough. “Shut up Charice!” she finally snapped, glaring at her older cousin. “You are so annoying God! Maybe, I dont know, dig around your own personal life instead of trying to tell the entire world about mine! Had I known you’d just blab it, I wouldnt’ve told you. I thought we were family and we were supposed to have some kinda trust but I guess I was wrong! God, to think I felt guilty about telling Dylan about the twins! The fact that you hid them from him for the first few months of their like some kinda trophy you can hang over his head!” She really didnt mean to tell her that she was the one that told Dylan but it was like word vomit and it wouldnt stop. “I mean you try to act like you have your entire life together but really you’re just so bored you dont know how to keep your big nose out of my business!”

Brittany: shook her head at Santana and Chris “Well technically he got it from both of you” she rushed out “I mean… I didn’t say anything” she said trying to cover her tracks. She smiled softly at Charice thinking that she was sincere but realized she was wrong, especially when Mercedes snapped on her “Yeah seriously what’s going on!” She said looking between the cousins. She didn’t know how bad things were until now and she had a feeling it’s only going to get worst. She sadly looked at Sam when he said he was leaving “Why can’t Pres just get your driver to get him?l she innocently suggested. Her eyes widen at Mercedes words “um Maybe Charice is just concerned Cedes” she pointed out hoping to defuse the situation.

Charice: wasnt expecting Mercedes to snap and she honestly wasnt trying to start drama but she wanted her cousin to see that what she was doing was wrong and it needed to end. She was going to give her a pass and allow her to rant and rave all she wanted but just as she was about to speak, she heard Mercedes say that she was the one that told Dylan about the twins. It all made sense. Why Dylan knew they were his, why Mercedes was suddenly team Dylan…. and all Charice saw was red. She’d never want to fight Mercedes but she was considering it for a split second. “You told Dylan about the twins?” she shook her head. “How could you do that to me? I trusted you not to tell him. I trusted you to let me tell him in my own time and you went and told him?!” Charice nodded her head and took a large drink from her glass. “Okay. You wanna tell secrets Cedes, let’s tell secrets. I love sharing secrets with all my friends, dont you ‘cousin’!” she spat. “See I wasnt gonna say shit but since apparently family doesnt mean anything anymore, let’s all tell our little secrets! So friends, did you know Cedes and Sam have been fucking on the DL since New Years? Yeah… see you had us all fooled. You two are best friends and all that bullshit. Turns out she’s been fucking and sucking him while he’s engaged to someone else.” She turned to Sam and glared at him. “I thought you were better than that Sam. I thought you were a good man but surprise, surprise, I was wrong. It must run in the family right? You dont deserve Mila at all. She’s a good person and she doesnt deserve you sleeping with someone else behind her back.” Charice turned her attention back to Mercedes and shook her head. She was hurt and angry and she felt betrayed. Sure, she could have handled this affair better but she was going for shock to be what turned Cedes around only to be shocked herself. “You might be right. I might be a bored single mother who has too much time on her hands. But I’m a bored single mother who gives a damn about you. And I’d rather be a bored single mother than be a pathetic shadow of the woman I used to be waiting for some man to leave his fiancee for me when it isnt gonna happen.” Charice took another sip of her drink, finishing it off, placed it on the table and walked into the house to leave the party.

Santana: was having fun picking on Chris and giggling with Brittany. Well until all hell broke loose. She had a feeling something big was going on and honestly she did want to know but not right now. But from the looks of it everything was exploding and she was gonna find out about everything whether she wanted to know about it or not. She looked at Mercedes in shock as she finally explode “okay can we all just calm down and just talk this through… like adults..damn” she begged both of her best friends who ignored her wishes. She went to say something but before she could, she heard Sam was sleeping with Mercedes. In that moment she just became speechless in the first time in history.

Sam: hated to lie to his friends, but he just didn’t want the drama, not tonight of all nights. “I know but I’ll make it up to you” he said wincing when Mercedes snapped on Charice. He felt so guilty about all of this because honestly if he was just honest with himself and with Mercedes none of this would happened. But he was selfish he couldn’t let her go, not yet. When Charice let it be known what he and Mercedes had been doing he wasn’t shocked. Especially when Mercedes was hitting below the belt. He locked eyes with his sister, hating the look that she was giving him. He could handle anyone else judging them or being mad at them, but Charice, he couldn’t deal with it. “si-” he whispered trying to find some way to explain himself, but he knew he couldn’t. He looked between his friends, not knowing what to say at this point. Charice was right, Mila didn’t deserve this and neither did Mercedes. He shouldn’t have never started this in the first place. Mercedes deserved so much better then him and it was becoming more clearer now. “I gotta go” he whispered, attempting to walk around the back toward his car.

Chris: winced as Mercedes snapped. He didnt know what provoked this but what he did know was that this couldnt be good. “Hey guys maybe we need to take a breather, okay?” he suggested, his eyes growing wide when Mercedes confessed to telling Dylan about the twins. He’d always felt guilty about hiding them from Dylan even if he wasnt his friend anymore but he had convinced himself that it wasnt his place. He dropped his head in shame but then picked it back up when Charice let everyone know that Sam and Mercedes were sleeping together. “What?!” he shouted, looking between his cousin and best friend. He stepped closer to Charice, wanting to calm her down, especially since she was saying some pretty heated things but stopped when she left on her own. He turned back to Sam, seeing him trying to make a quick exit but stopped him. “What the hell man? You’re gonna take the cowards way out?” he asked, genuinely in shock.

Mercedes: knew that she was in for it the minute Charice started to shout. She shook her head, silently begging her cousin not to say anything but before she could, Charice had told all her friends. She looked around at her friend group and tried to fight her tears. What Charice was saying was hurtful, yes but she still didnt understand where Mercedes was coming from. She loved Sam. She honestly truly loved him and if giving him up was the only way that she could do the right thing, then she didnt wanna do the right thing ever again. She looked down as Charice left and sniffled when Sam mentioned needing to leave. “Let him go,” she whispered, looking up. “Chris let him go…”

Brittany: was trying to wrap her head around everything that was going on. And before she could ask again what was going on and why they were so mad at each other. Charice let it out that Sam and Mercedes was sleeping together “SERIOUSLY?” She said looking between them. Brittany loved both of her friends but she didn’t agree with this, not one bit. She glared at Sam, shaking her head at him. She thought about the conversation that they had together, when Sam admitted that he still loved Mercedes but still going to marry Mila. “I told you this would happen Sam” she scoffed, crossing her arms. She wasn’t trying to judge them but she couldn’t help but be mad at them, especially Sam.

Santana: was still taking everything in as her friends talked among themselves. She had a feeling that Sam and Mercedes still had feelings for each other. But this was so unlike them, they were never the cheating type. She looked between Sam and Mercedes as Chris and Brittany was freaking out. She could see the guilt between them. “Guys back off” she said looking at Chris and Brittany “Besides none of us has a right to lecture. Especially me”she said that tuning to Mercedes “Don’t cry okay?” She said thumbing away her best friend’s tears. “I’m in your corner.. remember that.” She sadly smiled.

Sam: stopped on his foot steps at Chris words “No but I’m not gonna stand here and listen as you guys go off and Mercedes and I” he said sadly “I know what a jerk you guys think I am and that Mercedes and Mila deserve better and you know what??? I agree with you Chris.” He chuckled sadly. He looked at Brittany and shook his head “Don’t!” He pointed out at her. He knew that she was talking about the conversation that they had, and the last thing he wanted out was that he still loved Mercedes. Letting her go was hard enough, he didn’t want his true feeling exposed because it was going to make it that much harder. He winced at the tears that were running down Mercedes face, he didn’t want to hurt her and he didn’t want to make her cry, yet the situation he created for them both was doing just that. He smiled sadly at Santana as she Comfort Mercedes. He was grateful that she wasn’t badgering them too. He walked talked Mercedes running his hand down her back “I’m sorry… I-I didn’t want this to happen” he sighed cupping her face, before pulling her into a hug.

Chris: shook his head. “I’m not lecturing anyone. I havent even had the chance to say shit since this giant bomb has been dropped on us. We’re your friends and yeah we all make mistakes but this isnt okay. I mean we’re not gonna sit around and act like this is okay right?” he asked his friends. “What the hell is going on with you two. This isnt like you.”

Mercedes: felt like dirt. She felt lower than dirt, she felt like the worst person alive. She hated that her friends now knew their secret and she hated that she was being shamed for it. She shook her head as Santana wiped her tears away. “Maybe this is me Chris. Maybe this is who I am and I’m sorry it doesnt fit the perfect mold you so badly wanna put me in.” She winced when Sam walked over to her, soothingly rubbing her back. She suddenly didnt want him touching her or consoling her and gently pushed him away when he tried to hug her. “Go home Sam,” she whispered, meeting his eyes. “We should all just… go home.” She wiped at her face and looked up at Santana. “Thank you for showing me your home. It’s beautiful,” she muttered, kissing her friend’s cheek quickly. She had nothing left to say to Chris or Brittany. They made their opinion obvious and as far as Sam went, she would talk to him later. Eventually. For right now, she needed to leave.

Brittany: didn’t mean to make Sam and Mercedes feel bad. But at the same time she couldn’t just act as if what they were doing was okay. “I’m sorry okay… I just don’t understand why you guys think this is okay?” She said shaking her head at Santana “I’m not trying to lectu-” she trailed off shaking her head. She honestly wasn’t mad at Mercedes, she was concerned for her because she had to know that she deserve better then. She hated the look that Mercedes was giving her and for the first time in their friendship she felt as if she didn’t know Mercedes right now. “Yeah I think we should leave.. it’s not like they are going to confide in us anyways…” she said looking at Mercedes. “I love you… I really do.. and I’m not trying to judge you. I could never do that. But I do think you deserve a hell of a lot better then what he is giving you right now! Call me when you realize you deserve better” She said sadly. She turned to face Santana giving her a weak smile “Sorry San… I’ll call you later” she said glancing over at Sam and Chris “Chris I’ll meet you in the car” she said turning to walk into the house to leave.

Santana: sighed softly “Hey! I never said what they are doing is okay! But look at them” she pointed between Sam and Mercedes “It’s pretty obvious that they are doing enough kicking themselves in the ass for all of you.” She shrugged. Don’t get Santana wrong it wasn’t okay to have any kind of affair, but at the same time, she didn’t want to come down on them hard especially when Brittany and Chris was doing a pretty good job of it on their own. She sighed softly as Mercedes kissed her cheek “Cedes please don’t leave yet” she begged her friend. She looked between Brittany and Mercedes hating to see two of her best friend at a crossroads right now. But she knew that once things settled they would be okay. She smiled sadly at Brittany’s words “Okay” she whispered watching Brittany leave. She crossed her arms as Mercedes dismissed Sam, seeing that it bugged him.

Sam: shook his head “I get this isn’t right okay! But.. I guess we didn’t expect to get this much judgement from you guys.” He said softly. He just wanted to be able to talk to his friends and tell people how he felt about all of this. But from the looks of it, he couldn’t do that or at least he felt like he couldn’t right now. He was taken back when Mercedes pushed him away, nodding her head at his words “okay..” he whispered, trying not to act hurt. He hated that Mercedes felt so bad or feeling like this was here fault because it wasn’t. He took a step back, seeing Brittany’s look before she walked away. Sam face Santana a small smile “Thank you for inviting me.. I hope I’m not losing your friendship too” he said leaning over to kiss her cheek “Good night San.. Chris” he said walking toward the back, to get to his car. Chris

Chris: rubbed his chin. “I wasnt judging you guys. I’m worried. You see what affairs did to me. You saw what it did to Bee hell you saw what it did to Charice and you think you two will be the exception?” he scoffed. “Because you wont be. Affairs always come out and they always hurt people.” He watched Sam walk away and glanced over at Santana. “Look I get that you think we’re all overreacting to this but you’ve never been cheated on. You dont know what that feels like. And while I love Evans and Cedes, I’m not gonna pretend like I understand why they’re doing what they’re doing because no matter what, they’re hurting someone innocent. And that’s the worst feeling in the world.” He gave Santana a quick hug and smiled sadly as he walked into the house to finally get into his car and go home.