Triple Date

**Triple Date** is the sixty-eighth chapter of Push to the Limit and the four hundred forty-third chapter of the series overall. It is 22,852 words long and told entirely in third person.

Julie and Caleb go on a double date with Alex and Haley, who have ulterior motives. After the date goes wrong, they go on a second date, this time adding Marley and Dean to the mix.

## Plot

A week after Alex's birthday, Jake goes back to Lima and wakes up in a great mood. He dances around his house while singing I Got You (I Feel Good). He then goes to Blackbird where Sebastian informs him that he was nominated for two EMAs, the same two that Rhythmix were nominated for. Sebastian thinks he'll win both, though.

Lyric arrives at John's house and wishes him a happy birthday, as he is now twenty-eight. He tells her that he was nominated for five EMAs and she congratulates him, after asking if he knew Haley was coming to Lima on Friday. She shares with him her concerns that Haley and Alex are scheming something stupid and John promises to find out. They then set out to spend the whole day together, since she is leaving again the next day.

At the Starmaker semi-final show, Julie sits with Jason backstage as they await the return from commercials, when they will find out who the audience has voted to make the final two. After the commercial break, the final four are announced and Jason is eliminated, much to Julie's disappointment. She thinks that due to her spending so much time on him, her other contestant Jorge has no chance of winning either.

Santana arrives back in Lima the next day upset with Sebastian. She and Amity have both been invited to the Latin Grammy's and Santana does not understand why Amity is going. Amity arrives, confused by the anger, and Sebastian informs them that he wants to book them a performance together for that night. Santana refuses, uncomfortable by the fact that despite having a Cuban father Amity has never claimed that part of her heritage until now. She says she will gladly sing with Julie and leaves, but Sebastian assures Amity that Santana will come around and he'll book the performance anyway.

Travis hangs out at John's house with Sam, Alex, Tyler, Charlie, Stefan and Dean, telling them about how happy he is that his song with Julie has debuted at number twelve. He is nervous that it won't succeed any more than that but the others assure him that it will be a hit. The guys debate whether to go watch the performance live on the *Starmaker* finale but John says Julie wouldn't want them there after the last one. Travis tells them he'll watch over her, while Dean is having a little too much fun killing people in the game. He promises he has never shot up a school and they tell him about the McKinley 2016 shooting. Meanwhile, John follows Alex to the kitchen and asks about Lyric's suspicions. Alex lies at first but eventually tells him that he and Haley broke up and he is going to fight for Julie's love. John calls him delusional, disapproving of the plan to make Julie jealous with Haley but promising he won't tell her about it.

On Friday, Rhythmix perform their new single Hair (Remix), determined to make it another hit. After the performance, Shana gets a call from Santana letting her know that they have a woman interested in giving them her unborn son for adoption and she will be traveling to interview next week.

Caleb and Julie arrive at her house. Neither of her contestants made it to the finals so she is upset about having to perform with Travis after such a loss. When she walks into the house, Haley and Alex are already there and all set up for the four of them to have dinner. They make casual conversation but it dies out, leaving an awkward silence until the food is ready and someone knocks at the door. Haley goes for the food and Julie goes to the door, where Santana is waiting to enter and rant about the Latin Grammy's. Sebastian has booked her a performance and insists on Amity performing with her, proving to her that he will never respect her or do as she wants him to. She thinks about the possible son she will adopt in the next year and does not want him to have a mother who gets stepped on by Sebastian like that. Realizing that Julie has company, Santana leaves. Julie returns to her dinner and uses the food as a transition to the next part of the evening.

Santana confronts Sebastian about the Latin Grammy's performance, telling him that she was just testing his commitment to doing as she said. She tells him that she is ending her time with his label and has been signed to Julie's, leaving Sebastian angry. While singing Betrayed, he vows to get revenge by making his artists more successful than Santana.

Julie and Caleb are acting like they're on a date alone, so Haley and Alex go into the kitchen to discuss their plan. Haley is not doing a good enough job distracting Caleb so that Alex can talk to Julie. When they return, they start to play *Taboo* so that Alex and Julie can play as a team. Julie gets very competitive, especially because she and Alex are much better at the game than their partners. After a few rounds, Julie and Alex talk in the kitchen. They begin to fight about watching each other but Alex stops the fight from growing out of hand and instead they start teasing each other. Caleb hears a joke Alex makes complementing Julie's breasts and the date ends. Alex is upset that Julie looked so torn after Caleb got jealous, telling Haley that his intention was never for her to end up the one that's hurt.

Caleb and Julie fight due to the comments he overheard. He no longer wants her to join him for the Emmy's that Sunday, as he feels disrespected by the way Julie and Alex flirted. Julie gets angry, feeling like she should be the one upset because Caleb must have noticed the way Haley's breasts looked in her blouse. They go to bed mad at each other.

Tuesday comes and Julie sits backstage at the Starmaker finale. She and Caleb have not been able to speak but Alex has invited them back for a second attempt at a civil double-date and she doesn't know whether or not she should accept. Travis enters asking Julie if she's ready and worries when he senses her hesitation. She assures him that she is ready to do well, however, and they go out to perform Airplanes for the audience. Travis is proud to have another hit song under his belt and the two begin to feel like perhaps life is getting back to normal after a rough year.

Carrie's contestants, Tricia and Adena win the competition. At an after-party, while everyone celebrates, Xavier takes some time to talk to Julie about the post-show plans, saying he plans on putting out new music soon. Julie asks Xavier again what it is that Sam did to make him so angry at him but Xavier just vaguely explains that Sam hurt someone he cares about, which Julie does not think is a helpful hint at all. They part on good terms, however, with Xavier assuring Julie that he will be seeing her again soon.

The next morning Dean works very hard to prepare a last minute song for Julie's return but comes up with nothing. When she arrives, he accepts that he will probably have to move out and be dropped from her label soon. He goes inside to talk to her and finds her talking to Santana, Kitty, Bree and Marley. After they discuss Julie's troubles with Caleb and her decision to go on another double date with Alex and Haley, Julie steps out of the room with Dean to discuss his song. She tells him that she has found him a great band to be his permanent band and is disappointed when Dean reveals that he has yet to write a single song. As punishment, Julie forces him to go on a triple date with her, Alex, Caleb and Haley. However, as he doesn't have a date, she also pressures Marley into accepting to go with them.

Friday night, as Julie prepares for the date Santana arrives to tell her about leaving Blackbird. She also tells Julie that she wants to be signed with her label again but Julie declines, telling her that she already has more artists than she can handle and she still has to sign Riley. Upset, Santana tells Julie that Riley is already signing with Blackbird. Marley arrives so Santana leaves, though she is hopeful about Julie accepting her into the label now. Julie compliments Marley's appearance and after a quick conversation returns to getting ready, too.

As Haley and Alex arrive at Julie's, the former asks what the plan is for the night but Alex says they are just going to be nice as they should have been from the start. Haley is upset, wanting to use the manipulation and flirtation tactics she had planned out to get Alex the girl. He, however, is not happy with that and never wants to see Julie as upset as she was back when Caleb got mad the last date. Haley does not like this but they get to the door and Alex is distracted by how great Julie looks. They set out for the date.

After all going in Alex's car, the group arrives at Julie's favorite french restaurant where they get a very expensive, very beautiful private room. Haley immediately engages Caleb in conversation and asks about his job so Caleb reveals that he plans on pitching a new TV show series based on Julie and her friends' time on the glee club. He asks them if it's ok and they all accept, so Haley immediately begins to brainstorm ideas with him. Julie and Alex eventually get pushed out of the conversation so it becomes tense. While Julie goes to the restroom and Caleb takes a call, Alex reprimands Haley for purposefully flirting with Caleb, which could end up hurting Julie. After Caleb returns, he suggests getting more drinks and while Alex says he'd rather go home already Haley accepts. Julie returns however and admits she is ready to go home so the date comes to an end.

The next morning Alex wakes up at Sam's place and explains that after dropping everyone off, he left Haley at John's and then left to sleep at Sam's. They discuss how difficult it's been to just stay out of Julie's life and be happy and Sam reveals that he wrote a song about this but never finished it. He plays it for Alex and the two sing The Other Guy, after which Alex sees that Julie is happy and it is time for him to move out of her house and get out of her way.

Riley goes to Julie's so the latter confronts her about what Santana told her, telling her she wishes Riley had come out and told her ahead of time that her plan was to sign with Blackbird. Riley immediately denies it, however, saying she was miserable when she was signed there before and would never do it again. Julie realizes that Santana lied to her and gets angry.

Shana and Santana have their schedule call with the woman who wants to anonymously give up her son for a closed adoption. She tells them that she wants to give her son his best shot because she already loves him too much to let him be raised in a bad environment and Santana is concerned that she will change her mind about the adoption. She assures him however that she won't and asks them to be the adopting parents.

Alex goes back to John's house, where he talks to Haley and apologizes for fighting with her at dinner, admitting he was jealous of the fact that Julie was more bothered by Haley being all over Caleb than by her being all over him. Haley thinks Julie was jealous of her from the moment they met and that he shouldn't lose hope but Alex says it's time to stop being an idiot and getting in the way like Sam always did. He says they should both back off but Haley admits that she has developed a bit of a crush on Caleb and she thinks he has a crush on her, too. Alex tells her that she is delusional and has to stay away from him because he does not want to see Julie get hurt. She says she is not delusional and knows what she felt but he says that no guy dating Julie would have eyes for anyone else, which offends her. The two leave off in a fight.

The next day Julie spends her time with Caleb until it's time to drop in on Dean's rehearsals at Adonis. There, she talks to Ryder who tells her that they are very good and he enjoyed hearing Dean's song. Julie reveals that Dean wrote the song about the triple date which makes Ryder concerned but he doesn't get to explain because Dean ropes Julie over to watch them play it. He then tells her that the song isn't about Marley but about her, Caleb, Alex and Haley. She is apprehensive as he and the band begin to play The Ol' Switcheroo, which Julie realizes is telling her that she should be with Alex and Caleb should be with Haley. She gets upset but tells the band that she liked it and they should all head home. Out in the parking lot, Dean catches up to Julie to get her real opinion on the song and she tells him that she thinks his opinion on her relationships to Caleb and Alex are wrong. He explains however that he has seen something between her and Alex since they met and that as the song suggests, she is the only one who has yet to see it. He also points out that Caleb spent the entire date talking to Haley and not her.

Julie goes home and struggles to get the song out of her head, wondering if there was perhaps some truth to it. As Caleb prepares to head out, he mentions that he is meeting Haley at the airport, as they are on the same flight, and Julie can't help asking him what he thinks of her. When he asks if she is pretty and he would date her, Caleb says that Haley is out of his league, which angers Julie. He explains that he thinks they are both out of his league and calls them both hot, making matters worse as Julie now thinks he has the hots for her. Caleb refuses to answer any more of her questions, as she is just using them to start a fight with him, but Julie tells him that she's saying these things because at dinner all he did was talk to her. Caleb tells her that they did just talk to each other because if they hadn't, she and Alex would've taken over the conversation and ignored them. He brings up the boob comment Alex made the previous week again and Julie accuses him of being more interested in Haley's boobs. Finding the conversation ridiculous, Caleb decides it's time for him to leave and Julie tells him to run off to New York with Haley and be together. He tells her that maybe they will and she and Alex can have the house all to themselves to also be together. Julie says maybe they will and he leaves with a fight. As Julie watches him go, Kitty emerges from the living room, having heard the entire fight.

### Billboard 200

* "Who I've Been" - Crystal Army
	+ Number 9
	+ Last Week: 7
	+ Peak Position: 1
	+ Weeks on Chart: 38

* "No Pressure" - Jake P.
	+ Number 10
	+ Last Week: 6
	+ Peak Position: 6
	+ Weeks on Chart: 2

* "Don't Look Back" - Travis Hilton
	+ Number 11
	+ Last Week: 9
	+ Peak Position: 1
	+ Weeks on Chart: 12
* "Black Roses" - Juliet Vasquez
	+ Number 16
	+ Last Week: 14
	+ Peak Position: 1
	+ Weeks on Chart: 27
* "Stand Down" - Rhythmix
	+ Number 73
	+ Last Week: 60
	+ Peak Position: 4
	+ Weeks on Chart: 25
* "Amity Hills" - Amity Hills
	+ Number 137
	+ Last Week: 127
	+ Peak Position: 3
	+ Weeks on Chart: 28

### Billboard Hot 100

* "Here" - Amity Hills
	+ Number 6
	+ Last Week: 9
	+ Peak Position: 6 (NEW)
	+ Weeks on Chart: 24

* "Ride" - Travis Hilton
	+ Number 7
	+ Last Week: 7
	+ Peak Position: 5
	+ Weeks on Chart: 26
* "Airplanes" - Travis Hilton featuring Juliet Vasquez
	+ Number 12
	+ Last Week: --
	+ Peak Position: 12 (DEBUT)
	+ Weeks on Chart: 1

* "Jet Black Heart" - Crystal Army
	+ Number 16
	+ Last Week: 12
	+ Peak Position: 12
	+ Weeks on Chart: 6

* "Me and My Broken Heart" - Jake P.
	+ Number 18
	+ Last Week: 14
	+ Peak Position: 14
	+ Weeks on Chart: 8

* "He Could Be The One" - Juliet Vasquez
	+ Number 21
	+ Last Week: 21
	+ Peak Position: 10
	+ Weeks on Chart: 10

* "Chains" - Nick Jonas
	+ Number 27
	+ Last Week: 20
	+ Peak Position: 16
	+ Weeks on Chart: 5
* "Don't Put Dirt On My Grave Just Yet" - Juliet Vasquez
	+ Number 40
	+ Last Week: 35
	+ Peak Position: 2
	+ Weeks on Chart: 24
* "Hide Away" - Lyric Heron
	+ Number 49
	+ Last Week: 41
	+ Peak Position: 30
	+ Weeks on Chart: 20
* "Photograph" - Crystal Army
	+ Number 50
	+ Last Week: 48
	+ Peak Position: 10
	+ Weeks on Chart: 28
* "I Got The Boy" - Sarah Linley
	+ Number 80
	+ Last Week: 90
	+ Peak Position: 80 (NEW)
	+ Weeks on Chart: 3
* "Hollow" - Lyric Heron featuring Travis Hilton
	+ Number 81
	+ Last Week: --
	+ Peak Position: 80
	+ Weeks on Chart: 6 (non-consecutive)
* "Competition" - Rhythmix
	+ Number 82
	+ Last Week: 71
	+ Peak Position: 22
	+ Weeks on Chart: 18
* "Love Me Like You Mean It" - Sarah Linley
	+ Number 87
	+ Last Week: 76
	+ Peak Position: 45
	+ Weeks on Chart: 18

Week of September 25, 2023

### Billboard 200

* "Who I've Been" - Crystal Army
	+ Number 8
	+ Last Week: 9
	+ Peak Position: 1
	+ Weeks on Chart: 39

* "Don't Look Back" - Travis Hilton
	+ Number 11
	+ Last Week: 11
	+ Peak Position: 1
	+ Weeks on Chart: 13
* "Black Roses" - Juliet Vasquez
	+ Number 13
	+ Last Week: 16
	+ Peak Position: 1
	+ Weeks on Chart: 28
* "No Pressure" - Jake P.
	+ Number 15
	+ Last Week: 10
	+ Peak Position: 6
	+ Weeks on Chart: 3
* "Amity Hills" - Amity Hills
	+ Number 66
	+ Last Week: 137
	+ Peak Position: 3
	+ Weeks on Chart: 29
* "Stand Down" - Rhythmix
	+ Number 96
	+ Last Week: 73
	+ Peak Position: 4
	+ Weeks on Chart: 26

### Billboard Hot 100

* "Here" - Amity Hills
	+ Number 5
	+ Last Week: 6
	+ Peak Position: 5 (NEW)
	+ Weeks on Chart: 25

* "Airplanes" - Travis Hilton featuring Juliet Vasquez
	+ Number 8
	+ Last Week: 12
	+ Peak Position: 8 (NEW)
	+ Weeks on Chart: 2
* "Jet Black Heart" - Crystal Army
	+ Number 9
	+ Last Week: 16
	+ Peak Position: 9 (NEW)
	+ Weeks on Chart: 7
* "Ride" - Travis Hilton
	+ Number 11
	+ Last Week: 7
	+ Peak Position: 5
	+ Weeks on Chart: 27

* "Chains" - Nick Jonas
	+ Number 17
	+ Last Week: 27
	+ Peak Position: 16
	+ Weeks on Chart: 6
* "Me and My Broken Heart" - Jake P.
	+ Number 21
	+ Last Week: 18
	+ Peak Position: 14
	+ Weeks on Chart: 9

* "He Could Be The One" - Juliet Vasquez
	+ Number 22
	+ Last Week: 21
	+ Peak Position: 10
	+ Weeks on Chart: 11
* "Heartbeat Song" - Santana Lopez
	+ Number 37
	+ Last Week: --
	+ Peak Position: 37 (DEBUT)
	+ Weeks on Chart: 1
* "Don't Put Dirt On My Grave Just Yet" - Juliet Vasquez
	+ Number 44
	+ Last Week: 40
	+ Peak Position: 2
	+ Weeks on Chart: 25
* "I Got The Boy" - Sarah Linley
	+ Number 78
	+ Last Week: 80
	+ Peak Position: 78 (NEW)
	+ Weeks on Chart: 4
* "Hollow" - Lyric Heron featuring Travis Hilton
	+ Number 84
	+ Last Week: 81
	+ Peak Position: 80
	+ Weeks on Chart: 7 (non-consecutive)
* "Competition" - Rhythmix
	+ Number 88
	+ Last Week: 82
	+ Peak Position: 22
	+ Weeks on Chart: 19