AN: I know the beginning is slow, but it establishes the setting of the story. This chapter was born out of the its first three words, which I got from a prompt at writerworld. I really hope this works out: I had a lot of fun writing this and planning where I want this story to go. Reviews would be appreciated. I haven't done this in years.

AU from Hell-O onwards. In which Rachel and Finn are still together when she meets Jesse, and the convoluted drama with Shelby doesn't exist.

"Answer your phone," Rachel murmured to herself. She bit her lip. She shouldn't have been surprised, really. It was the beginning of football season, after all, and Finn must have been busy having lunch with the other members of the football team. She had just hoped that maybe they could have spent their first break together. Sectionals had just ended and she had looked forward to spending time with him in public. She was never the most popular girl in school and having Finn for a boyfriend would certainly make life easier for her.

After all, they were a couple. She smiled at the thought, and then ended the call. They'd see each other later. There was no need to rush.

Only, there was another thing for her to worry about now - having to figure out where to eat lunch.

It was a silly problem, but a problem she'd been having for as long as she could remember. Rachel Berry, always too enthusiastic, too pretentious, too weird -always too something - never really made any lasting friendships. Figuring out where to sit without getting stared at, avoided completely, or slushied was a challenge, but it was a challenge that she faced with her head held high. School had never been too easy for her, and the only thing that kept her from transferring was her own determination to beat everyone who tried to make life hard for her. She knew that things would look up, despite these little hiccups. She had a family now, and she had Finn. No one would bother her now, she just knew it.

She saw a familiar figure leave a nearby classroom.

"Mercedes!" she called, rushing to the other girl's side. It was a nice change, knowing people who weren't always annoyed by you.

"Hey, girl! You're looking good."

"I'm feeling good!" She smiled brightly, and held her head a little higher.

"Same here. I feel so much better now that we've won Sectionals."

"Me too! We've really turned things around in glee club. It feels so good knowing that we've finally achieved something."

"Especially after all that drama."

"I'm just so glad that's over."

"Speaking of which, how are things going with you and Finn? Are you still in the honeymoon period?" Mercedes nudged her a bit. Rachel giggled.

"Well, I suppose so," Rachel answered, a little shy. "He's - he's busy right now, but we're doing pretty well, I think."

"He didn't freak out about the calendars you made?" Kurt interjected, falling in step with them.

Rachel blushed. "I-I haven't actually given them to him yet."

Rachel was sixteen. Apart from a brief relationship she had at four years old, her relationship with Finn was her first, and it was a dream come true. She wanted everything to be perfect. She knew that if they would be in this for the long-term (which she knew they would), they would have to know each other's schedules and plan their dates accordingly. After all, she couldn't have her boyfriend interrupting her during rehearsals or forgetting their anniversary, no matter how handsome he was. She had priorities.

"Do you think he'll like them?" she asked. She hardly ever shied away from anything dramatic, but this was all so new. Mercedes and Kurt looked at each other.

"I'm sure he'll appreciate them," Kurt answered, smiling. She grinned in reply.

"You're right. He is the quarterback. I'm sure he has a busy schedule and having a calendar will only make things easier for us. I'm sure a guy as nice Finn will be able to appreciate the effort I put into them."

Sophomore year could be nothing less than perfect. She was going to make sure of it.

"So, what do you guys think our next assignment on Glee will be?" Rachel asked, trying to change the subject.

"Whatever it is, I hope it's more contemporary than what we've been doing lately," Mercedes answered. "Sectionals was great and all, but I'd love to sing something a bit more current for once."

"I know what you mean. But I, personally, would love to start with some more show tunes," Kurt said, putting a hand on his chest. "I'm partial to Grease. I'm sure you agree with me, Rachel."

"Of course! I really hope that we're able to stage a school play this year. Maybe our win at sectionals can convince Figgins that the performing arts at McKinley isn't restricted to cheerdancing."

"I feel you," Mercedes answered. "But I'm actually thinking about trying out for the Cheerios this year."

"Really?" Kurt replied, astonished. "Oh my God, you have to take me with you! Let's audition together!"

Just then, three guys in varsity jackets threw slushies on their faces.

"Welcome to loser town!"

"Population, you."

The jocks walked away snickering. Rachel seethed. If you're going to embarrass me, she thought, couldn't you at least be a little witty?

"Come on," Mercedes began. "Let's get cleaned up. We can grab a bite later. Do you have extra clothes?"

"Of course I do. I thought things would be better now, but I forgot to take out the spare clothes I have in my locker."

"I'll go ahead. I can't go to the ladies' room anyway. I'll see you girls later, just text me." Kurt strode away, looking grumpy.

"I can't believe that Karofsky and Azimio still have the nerve to do that to us," Rachel said with a frown.

"Really, Rachel? You're surprised? After the way they've been treating us forever?"

"I just thought that maybe now things would start looking up, with glee winning and Finn..."

"Things will start looking up for us when we graduate. You could get engaged to Finn and we could win a national title and things wouldn't change around here. Guys like Karofsy will always treat us like we're nothing!"

"I hope you're wrong."

Mercedes paused.

"I kind of do, too."

Rachel smiled softly. Something did change.

She had Finn, now.

Classes had just ended, but already Finn was feeling drained. Seeing Quinn and Puck together, chatting with his football teammates after saving the Glee Club from extinction, ignoring Rachel's repeated calls - it was all too much. Somehow, he knew that that afternoon's rehearsals wouldn't help.

It's not that Finn regretted how things panned out in the last few months. Breaking up with Quinn and punching Puck in the face were two things he most certaintly didn't regret. He didn't deserve to be made a fool out of and he knew that. But sometimes, he couldn't help but miss the way things were before, when Quinn was his girlfriend, Puck was his best friend, and joining Glee Club wasn't even a remote possibility.

Things just got so much more complicated after that. Before he joined glee and before the whole baby drama with Quinn, no one ever tried to make fun of him. Not that anyone had the guts to make fun of him to his face. He could just feel that people were looking at him, and it wasn't always because he was over six feet tall. It was tiring, always wondering what people were thinking when they looked at you. Were they thinking about the coming football season? Or about how Quinn and Puck strung him along for months? Or were they thinking about his membership in the Glee Club and his new girlfriend?

Lunch with his teammates did nothing to quell his fears. They only made them worse. They mostly talked about football, thank God, but the jokes about High School Musical and jazz hands were a bit much.

Having a girlfriend like Rachel Berry certainly wasn't helping him adjust to the changes in his life. Sometimes, he thought that she was braver than him. She was always willing to put herself out there for things she was passionate about. And right now, that included him. She put him on a pedestal and he knew that. It kind of made him wish that he could be as good a person as she and other people thought he was. He hated letting people down.

But maybe he should have waited a few months before making a move. He wasn't over Quinn yet, after all. Hell, he wasn't over any of the stuff that happened in the last few months. How do you get over feeling betrayed by two of the people you love most? He knew that he wasn't always the best boyfriend to Quinn, but at least he never really cheated on her. There was a time when he thought that no one could suit him better. He only started having doubts when he met Rachel, which is why he didn't think to wait before making a move.

It's too late to do anything about it now, he thought as Rachel came striding towards him, grinning at him expectantly. He shut his locker.

"Hi, Finn."

"Hey, Rach," he replied, smiling at her softly.

"I missed you at lunch today."

"I was with the guys." She didn't expect him to eat lunch with her everyday, did she? His smile faltered as he remembered her missed calls.

"That's okay," she answered, happily. "I just wanted to give you something."

"What is it?"

She giggled a bit and reached into her bag. She pulled out what looked like a scrapbook and handed it to him, still smiling brightly.

"What's this?" Finn asked, frowning. He flipped through the pages of what Rachel handed to him, his frown deepening. There were animal stickers all over it, and a few marked dates which had notes like "Hiram Berry's Birthday" and "Autistic Children's Center - Phantom of the Opera."

"It's one of my his and hers calendars. Look!" she said, holding up an identical one. "It matches mine. This way, we'll never miss a birthday, anniversary, or interrupt each other's practices or rehearsals. I even included our class schedules so that we can plan lunch dates, and the schedules of musicals and plays that are going to be staged in local theaters. Isn't this exciting?"

"Rachel, this is..." he trailed off, seeing her eagerness. He sighed. "Rachel, I'm sorry, but don't you think this is a bit much?"

Her smile disappeared. "A bit... much? What do you mean?"

"You've already made plans for our anniversary." He looked at the date and frowned. How the hell was he supposed to live up to whatever she expected him to do then? They've been together for only a week and already she built up an itinerary for them. She was wonderful, but sometimes he couldn't help but think that she was too much of a control-freak.

"Don't you think we're going to be together for a year?" She sounded pained.

"Of course I do!" he answered unthinkingly. She looked like a kicked puppy.

"Then, what's wrong planning ahead?"

"Rach, you even wrote your dads' birthdays on it."

"I just want them to like you," she answered, looking sadder and sadder. "Remembering their birthdays would certainly help."

"I get that. I'm sorry." He gently pulled her into a hug. "I just - this is a lot for me to take in."

"I suppose so," she said softly against his shirt. "We did just start dating..."

He pulled away and smiled. He handed her back the calendar and she put it inside her bag.

"Come on. Let's go to glee."

He offered her is hand and she took it, still looking a little sad. He was sure she'd be able to shake it off. She could never stay mad at him for too long.

So maybe the calendar thing was a bit much. Of course, she didn't think so, but she supposed that people not as theatrical as herself wouldn't be able to appreciate the gesture. This was just a tiny bump in their story together that they'd work on. Maybe she could try not to come on that strong, and maybe he could try to be a bit more attentive. They'd make it work. What matters is that they care for each other, and she knows how good he is at heart. That's what's important, not his and hers calendars and the ability to have impromptu duets to "All I Ask Of You."

(But, she couldn't help but hope that it would come with time. She always dreamed of having a boyfriend she could sing "All I Ask Of You" with.)

And so she decided to take a little time off from everyone, Finn included. Singing always, always, always made her feel better. Thus, her two-part itinerary (a) she wanted to look for a spectacular song that would showcase her awe-inspiring talent and emotional depth and (b) she wanted to go home, a where place loud, over-emotional, non-drunken singing is tolerated.

But right now, she appreciated the silence. And the copy of "The Very Best of Lionel Richie" she just found. "Hello" was an obvious choice, but she was confident that her voice would carry her through.

She'd never say it out loud, of course, but she thought that it would at least be a better choice than "Hello, I Love You." Finn had a good voice, but that song didn't do him justice at all.

Her train of thought was interrupted by someone gently pushing the songbook away from her.

She knew exactly who he was.

"Lionel Richie, huh? One of my favorites."

She gulped. Jesse St. James of Vocal Adrenaline was much cuter up close.