Title: An Enduring Fate
Rating: PG-13
Pairings/Characters: Will/Rachel
Spoilers: Through A Very Glee Christmas
Disclaimer: All things Glee belong to Ryan Murphy and Fox. I'm just borrowing them.
Summary: Life is a series of starts and stops.
A/N: My first multi-chapter Glee story. Please let me know what you think and if it is worth continuing. :) And thank you to my beta Joleigh13!

This starts immediately after the Christmas episode and doesn't take into account the second half of this season.

Chapter 1

Will watched as his students and Sue walked down the hallway outside his apartment. He was happier than he had felt in a long time and so touched that his students would come out to his apartment on Christmas Eve. He sighed, content, as he closed the door and walked back to the living room where he knew she would be waiting.

Rachel had pulled him aside earlier, asking if she could stay after everyone else left to talk to him about something. He was hesitant at first, knowing it wouldn't look right, but the sadness in her eyes compelled him to agree to her request. She clearly needed to talk to someone.

When he rounded the corner, Rachel's back was turned towards him. She was struggling to hang an ornament near the top of the tree. He watched in amusement for a moment before he moved behind her, taking the ornament and placing it in the open spot she was aiming for.

"Maybe you should stick to the bottom half of the tree," he joked.

"Ha ha, Mr. Schuester." Rachel replied, clearly not amused.

They both hung the last few ornaments in silence until Rachel finally broke it. "Thanks for allowing me to stay behind. The truth is I just wasn't ready to be alone yet."

She didn't look at him as she spoke and Will didn't say anything at first. He continued fidgeting with the tree, while thinking about how much they had in common. He knew she was going through a rough time and things with Finn were not good. He remembered his words to Shelby several months earlier about how Rachel was fragile. It was still so true but he had become so wrapped up in the problems in his life that he hadn't seen just how much this thing with Finn affected her. He used to pay more attention to Rachel. He would watch for the teasing and the taunting and the boys that would inevitably hurt her. He used to be there for her, even if just to find a way to talk to her between classes or after rehearsals. But lately, he was just as much to blame for her sadness as Finn and Santana were.

He watched her rearrange some of the ornaments before he responded, "I'm sorry about what happened a couple of weeks ago."

"It's okay," she whispered with a shake of her head. He hadn't been specific but she knew what he was referring to.

Will placed a hand on her arm, willing her to look at him, to let him apologize.

"No, it's not," he insisted, "I never should have yelled at you like that and especially not in front of the group. I know you have been having a hard time lately."

"It's okay. I was being difficult. I realize that," she replied, focusing on an ornament in front of her.

"But still, I should not have taken my frustrations out on you like that."

She looked at him, finally. "It's okay Mr. Schue. Please, can we just forget it?" she smiled up at him, letting him see that she was truly willing to forgive and forget.

He looked at her for a moment before returning the smile. "Okay, we'll forget it."

"Thank you."

"Would you like anything to drink, Rachel?" Will asked, knowing she really did need to talk but not sure how to begin the conversation.

"Water would be good." She smiled.

"Okay. I'll be right back." Will went to the kitchen as Rachel placed the last ornament on the tree. She moved to sit on the couch, admiring their work. When Will returned with water for both of them, he sat next to her, keeping several inches between them.

"How is everything, Rachel?" he asked as he handed her the glass of water.

She hesitated, taking a sip, and trying to think of how to explain everything that was going on with her. "I don't know," she sighed. Will remained silent, waiting for her to continue.

After several moments, Rachel took a breath and finally put a voice to everything she had been keeping inside. "I messed up with Finn. I mean he lied to me, several times actually, and I don't think he really understood how much that hurt me, but what I did was worse. And there is really no way to fix it. And the more I think about it, the more I don't know if I want to fix it. I mean, I don't really think I deserve a list of reasons why someone wouldn't want to be with me when he says he loves me. And then there is Santana and Quinn. They are constantly tormenting me, especially Santana, and I just can't deal with it anymore. I never did anything to them. Well, I told Finn about Quinn's baby not being his, but most of the time I've tried to make them feel included in Glee. I mean Finn and I even threw the duets competition. And then there's Shelby but I don't know…"

Will was taken aback by everything Rachel was saying. He knew that she was going through a tough time. He knew that was why she had been lashing out. But he didn't realize everything she was going through. He had a vague idea of what had happened with Finn. And yes, he had heard Santana and Quinn's attitude towards her in Glee, but he didn't realize how much it bothered her. The only thing that didn't surprise him was the duets competition. Though no one else recognized it, he knew what she and Finn were doing, especially after they were the only ones in the class who didn't vote for themselves. And he knew that it was Rachel's idea.

However, there was one thing that stood out in her rambling, and Will found himself interrupting her to find out more. "Your mom? What happened?"

She looked up at him with shock. Out of everything she expected him to brush off the mention of her mother. "Well, nothing new really happened."

"But?" Will gently prod.

"But it's hard. One day she tells me that she doesn't want to be my mother and a couple weeks later she's adopting Quinn's daughter. I mean, I don't understand why she doesn't want me. Why I'm not good enough." Rachel had done her best keeping everything together until this point but now the tears were falling. She hadn't been able to talk to anyone about her mother. She felt guilty saying anything to her fathers. As much as she loved them both, the thought of having a mother too had made her happy and she didn't want them to feel like they didn't do enough. She didn't even realize she was crying until she felt the couch cushions shift and Will pulling her into his arms. He didn't say anything right away; he just let her cry.

Will suspected that she hadn't really cried about it before now and she probably hadn't ever talked to anyone. His heart was breaking for her. He knew that this would happen. He knew that Shelby was never as committed to the relationship as much as Rachel. It made him feel impotent knowing that he wasn't able to stop this heartbreak from happening.

After a few minutes, when Rachel's sobs began to subside, he pulled back so that she would see the truth in his eyes as he spoke. "Rachel, you are a talented, driven, kind, beautiful girl. There is nothing wrong with you. Nothing! And if Shelby couldn't see that, then she's the one that's not good enough. Rachel, you deserve everything. And I'm sorry I can't do more than tell you that."

Rachel stared at Will, stunned by the sincerity of his words, of the emotion she heard in his voice. She had never felt so loved before. She didn't know how to respond, so instead of saying anything she threw her arms around his neck, hugging him tightly.

Will wrapped his arms around Rachel. He wanted to tell her everything he was feeling and show her that he loved her; that if he could, he would tell her that every day. But he knew it was wrong. Rachel was his student and a minor, but he wasn't able to stop the feelings that had developed for her. All he could do was push those feelings away, to not let them show. But in this moment, Will allowed himself to hug her too tightly, his hands running up and down her back. Her head was tucked into the crook of his neck, and he kissed the top of her head before he rested his cheek there.

When Rachel felt him kiss her, she instantly knew that he felt more for her. She also knew that he wasn't allowed to. His mash up of "Don't Stand So Close To Me" and "Young Girl" was running through her mind. She knew she shouldn't do what she was about to do but she couldn't stop either. He was making her feel more loved than Finn ever did, and she wanted him to know that she had those feelings too. She untangled herself from his arms, looking up at him briefly before she leaned in to kiss him, her lips pressingly gently but insistently against his.

Will was stunned. He knew he needed to stop it but he couldn't. All he could think about were her soft lips, finally against his. He had dreamt of this moment and now that it was happening, he could think of nothing else. He kissed back, his tongue darting out, swiping against her bottom lip. He could taste the saltiness of her tears before Rachel opened her mouth to him. Will's hand tangled in Rachel's hair as he began to press against her, pushing her back so that she was lying on his couch with him on top of her. They continued for several minutes before Will summoned the strength to end it.

He ended the kiss and pulled away, Rachel whimpering slightly. He righted himself, feet on the floor, elbows on knees, head propped up by one of his hands, the other running through his hair.

Rachel didn't know what to do. She knew that a line was crossed, but she didn't want it to end. She sat up next him, wrapped her hands around his arm, and rested her head on his shoulder.

"This can't happen, Rachel." His voice was so soft that she almost didn't hear him.

She struggled to stop the tears from falling for a second time that night but some leaked from her eyes and onto his shoulder. "I know it can't." she told him. And she did know. She knew he wasn't allowed to do this, that it would destroy his career and he could end up in jail. But her feelings for him had never been stronger.

"It doesn't mean I don't want this." He told her honestly. It was suddenly important to him that she knew how he truly felt. That she didn't end up feeling used.

She smiled a little, "I know. Me too."

She lifted her head from his shoulder and he looked at her. His hand reached out to brush away the tears. She let him before pulling back. "I should go."

He nodded at the statement.

"Thank you, Mr. Schue for letting me stay behind and for … well, for everything." She got up, and moved towards the door. He followed behind her, not quite ready for her to leave, but knowing that he had to let her go.

She opened the door but he called out to her before she left his apartment. "Rachel, you know you can always come to me if you need to talk. I'll always be here for you."

She smiled at him, resisting the urge to reach out to him. "Thank you."

She turned and he watched her walk down the hall, wondering how he was ever going to be able to push away his feelings again.

Please review and let me know if I should continue. :) Thanks for reading.