"I guess I could just sing for him – I mean, Finn loves my performances, of course, but I kind of did that last year, even if he didn't really receive my gift and…" Rachel missed the line again. "I guess my above-average singing and acting talent somehow is flushed by my non-existent art abilities."
Sam smiled. "Well, you can't be perfect at everything" he said softly, helping her to mask her slip. Rachel looked as his dexterous fingers used brush the way hers would never be able to.
"You are really good at it." She admitted.
"I guess it has something to do with the fact that I play with my siblings a lot. You know they are at age when kids draw and stuff… Here you go." Sam showed her how he saved her painted star.
They were spending time at Rachel's house and it was a really nice afternoon; since it was December, it was already dark outside, it was snowing softly and everything seemed lighted in this magical way you can experience only during winter.
Few days ago Rachel and Sam casually talked about their boyfriends – and since these boyfriends were brothers and their friends, this topic was always easy. Conversation moved to coming Christmas and their gift ideas – Sam wanted to make something for Kurt, even if he wasn't sure if he celebrated Christmas at all. Rachel had a lot of ideas of what she could give to Finn, not none of them seemed really epic – and their last Christmas together should be really epic, especially since they broke up last year around this time. So Sam suggested that she could make something herself – it would make it more special and Finn would never forget this gift. He had planned to make gift on his own for Kurt too – but he wasn't worrying about epicness or being unforgettable, more about the amount of money he would have to spend on it.
Eventually they decided to spend one afternoon together preparing their presents.
The atmosphere was really nice, everything was fulfilled with Christmas spirit, they had hot chocolate and at one moment they even started to sing along with the carols that were played in the background – unconsciously at first, but they turned out to really enjoy this little duet, so they went on.
Right now they were finishing their gifts. All that atmosphere made Rachel a little emotional and she found himself telling Sam about how her fathers used to bring her water when she was sad and how her biological mother gave her a cup with gold stars on it. Surprisingly for Rachel, Sam turned out to be a great listener and suggested she make something similar for Finn, since it had meant so much for her. He helped her pick the right cup, the one which Finn would like, and now he was supporting her in her attempts to paint stars on it.
Sam wanted to make his gift something that Kurt could wear – he was aware how his boyfriend loved fashion and everything connected to it, including accessories. Rachel, on the other hand, knew that one of Kurt's favorite items were scarves – he had a lot of them and it was the right time of a year. She told Sam that making one wasn't really a hard thing to do and she offered to learn him how to knit.
The idea scared Sam a little bit at the beginning, instructions seemed terribly hard to him, but when he started, everything turned out to be pretty simple. Rachel told him his work was really good for the beginner and that she's sure Kurt would love the scarf.
"I actually don't know why we don't hang out" she confessed when they came back to their own projects. "I mean, you like Finn, you're on the team together, I like Kurt, we have similar plans for the future, Finn and Kurt are brothers so it's obvious that they spend time together… But you and I, not really. We stand out a little from all this Hevans-Finchel crowd."
Sam shrugged. "Maybe it's because you asked me out once and I said no."
"Because you were gay?" she smiled with understanding.
"No, because I had no money" Sam answered and then realized how awkward it sounded. "But I'm totally gay. Like, completely. I just was still in the closet and…"
"Well, I guess maybe it's even better that… It came out how it came out" she said, trying to clear the air. "I mean, there would be some bitterness between us if you used me as a beard."
Sam smiled softly and came back to his knitting. "Yes, Quinn was a little upset."
"A little" Rachel smirked.
After a moment of silence, Sam looked up at her again. A little grin appeared on his face. "You know" he put away the scarf. "Since you told me about your mom and everything… I guess that's pretty private…"
"The whole Glee club knows" she interrupted. "But I guess it's more the fact that everyone are terrible gossips, not that is not intimate" she assured him and touched his arm gently. "It was really lovely to share this story with you."
"…Okay" Sam laughed a little. "I'll tell you one of my secrets, since we're bonding now and everything, but you have to promise me you won't tell. It's a little embarrassing and I believe Kurt is the only one who knows."
"I swear, Sam. In the name of our newly started friendship. Your secret is safe with me."
Sam took a deep breath. "After I transferred… I had a huge crush on Finn."
Rachel looked surprised, but not half as much as Sam expected her to be. "Sometimes I wonder why the guy I like happens to be the guy who all the gays in town are into" she said finally and came back to her gold stars. "But I guess only Kurt's crush was a huge thing and look how that ended up."
Sam smiled as she continued. "By the way wasn't that awkward to talk about how you both were into Finn?"
"Not really" he answered. "We don't really do awkward. That's one of the things I like the most about us."
Rachel looked at him again and smiled back.
"Maybe our relationships are a little bit more similar than you think" she said sweetly and handed him another yarn. "I think this may be the beginning of beautiful friendship, Sam."
Finn really liked the cup. He drank from his for another ten years until it got shattered in microwave during cooking experiments.
Kurt used his scarf all winter, expect for the days when he really had to put on something more elegant than teenage boy's first knitting attempt.