Don't stop believing, hold on to that feeling… Rachel caught herself smiling as she drove away from McKinley after another day of Glee. Junior year had flown by in all the drama and the tears, the smiles and the songs; life really was her favorite musical.
It was Christmas time again, and though she was Jewish, her father's had insisted they still celebrate the holiday. To them, it wasn't about Jesus and religion, it was happiness and joy, it was that feeling you get at dinner on the night of the 25th of December surrounded by friends and family.
It was maybe the best thing she'd ever been taught.
Mr. Schue had asked them to think over the holidays about where they were this year, verses last year. Rachel's fingers tapped restlessly on the wheel of her Honda as she waited for the light to change.
This time last year had been the worst of her young dramatic life. And she smiled thinking back on her days with Finn, the stolen kisses between classes, holding hands under the table at lunch the secret signs during games and practice to let her know she was thinking of him.
Where had the time gone?
She forced away the guilty feeling she felt in her stomach as she thought about making out with Puck in revenge, still mentally kicking herself for choosing her fellow Glee club member to exact her revenge. Rachel had wanted to hurt Finn, she'd wanted to hurt him bad.
But she hadn't meant to hurt him like that.
The Quinn, Finn, Puck situation had been a year ago at that point, she'd had no reason to think that her choice of make-out partner would be the big issue. After she realized how crappy of an idea it was. As Rachel pressed down on the gas peddle she drove past the tree lot that had ended Finchel as they'd been deemed forever.
She remembered that night like it was yesterday as she coaxed her car into the parking lot and shut of the ignition. She'd been sobbing standing in a parking space; wondering if Finn even cared that he'd left her miles from home with no way home just to save his pride. After catching her breath she'd wiped her eyes, gathered her courage and had started the long walk home.
She'd made it to Fifth and Albany when the rumble of a familiar truck had her turning around and waving her arms like an idiot. Noah Puckerman was her Christmas savior. He'd stopped his truck, opened the door and driven her home softly mumbling words of comfort as she cried the whole way.
It was their beginning. And Rachel had spent the entire ride sobbing.
Now she was sitting in that very same lot, listening to that very same truck and a smile spread across her lips as she opened her car door and jumped out rushing over to the driver's side throwing open the door before Puck had time to cut the engine and was halfway inside the cab, her hello forever lost on his lips as her arms snaked around his neck.
With a chuckle and a signature smirk Noah had wrapped her up in his arms, hauling her the short distance into his lap returning the kiss with a fervor Rachel had come to expect from him. "I missed you."
It was all she had to say, but he knew what she meant. They'd learned to speak using the words between the words. Those precious lines that never made it to speech but were never left unsaid. "I missed you too, babe." It sounded pretty standard.
But what he heard, was "I'm so glad you found me." And Rachel smiled knowingly as he replied. "Sorry it took me so long."
Slipping out of his lap, she slid skillfully to the ground and turned holding her hand out to him.
Finn had laughed at her open willingness to wear her heart on her sleeve, to trust and to love so deeply that it was all consuming and left little room for argument.
Puck's mother, whom Rachel had taken to calling Mama much to the older woman's delight had explained that she was simple a passionate girl with a very big heart, and it would take an equally large one to fully understand and love her in return.
Rachel had found her equally passionate equal in cunning young male by the name of Noah Puckerman. And though it'd taken them forever to realize how much the had to offer the other, they had realized it, on cold snowing night in Lima, Ohio; when a boy who's heart just wasn't big enough left her out in the snow.
Noah's hand slid into hers, his fingers securely twined around the smaller more delicate one's in his grasp and he leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Come on, lets pick our tree Rach." And Rachel smiled and nodded fallowing at his side, rambling about Glee, and their new solo and how much she hated when Finn tried to sneak in on his solo's. And he smiled and rolled his eyes, secretly loving that she cared so much and truly didn't want to sing with anyone but him.
"Lets pick out our tree"…yeah. Rachel smiled shaking her head as she leaned into his side. "Lets find out tree, Noah."
"Welcome home Rachel."
"You too Noah."