Chapter 1
"See you punks at regionals." Rachel giggled a little to herself at the fact that Noah always had to get the last word in on anything. If it was any other time, Rachel would probably be scolding Noah about bragging too much, about how they were supposed to let their singing do the talking. This time, however, she was ok with letting McKinley High's resident bad-ass throw in one last jab. In fact, if she was honest with herself, she wished Mr. Shue hadn't caught the boys as they were leaving the choir room a few days ago. She wished that Noah and the rest of the boys could have gotten in a few more jabs then the ones that they had just delivered via their performance. She did have to admit though, seeing Jesse's worried face after they were finished did give her a little satisfaction…but it wasn't enough. It wasn't enough after how much pain he had caused her…was still causing her. She was still having nightmares about baby chickens crying out for their mommas. Rachel knew what those little chicks felt like, wanting their mommas so bad in their time of need. Difference is, Rachel knew that her mom wouldn't come running when she called. She had the chance to for the past 15 years. Heck, she had the chance to for the past few weeks, and nothing had changed. Like everything else in her life, thinking Finn might love her enough to fight for her, thinking that Jesse was honest with her…everything was a fantasy in her mind. All these dreams that she had for herself, were nothing more than that…dreams…and everything coming crashing down around her was a simple reminder that nothing would change. She would continue to be the same girl that wasn't worth fighting for, the same girl that wasn't worth a second chance. No matter how much she wanted people to see the real Rachel, no matter how much she tried to get them to see, it was all just a fantasy. A fantasy…as she sits down on the stage and cries, she can't help but remember the last time those words left her mouth…and the tears fall faster as she realizes that she was right.