A/N: I haven't written Fanfiction on this site for awhile so bear with me here. I was really bored and when my darling Internet friend Rylee requested a Rachel/Carole one-shot I jumped on it.
Disclaimer: So, I still have to write these disclaimers right? Well, I don't own Glee. It sucks I know.
There's a rustle of organza, a clicking of beads, and Rachel gasps slightly at the woman looking back at her. She's beautiful – her dark hair pulled back, a veil framing her face, just a bit of makeup dusting her cheeks. Not even a big Jewish nose can take away from that, not today.
She runs a hand down the front of her dress, feeling the coolness of the beads and the softness of the fabric of the skirt against her fingers. She exhales, slowly letting out her breath, and tilts her head to the side, smiling at her reflection. The girl in the mirror smiles back, biting down on her lip slightly, eyelashes fluttering.
Not that far away, there's a man - not just any man but the man, that she loves more than anyone else in the world - waiting under a chuppah, for her. She imagines that also Kurt is probably throwing a last minute fit, ranting about flowers or bridesmaids dresses or seating arrangements, while Puck is probably ready to get to the party already, and maybe even already drunk, and Quinn, Tina, Brittany, Santana and Mercedes are probably fighting over the mirror while they reapply their lipstick or mascara, and Sam is probably performing some stupid yet loveable impression to ease Finn's butterflies, and Blaine is probably gelling his hair again and again until he deems it sufficient. Her fathers are probably sharing a package of Kleenex, telling Burt a story about when she was a little girl, and how it feels like just yesterday they were chauffeuring her to dance classes and voice lessons. And Carole…
"May I come in?"
…is right here.
Rachel turns around, seeing her future mother in law in the doorway. "Sure," She says. "Come in."
Carole smiles, and takes a few steps forward, looking Rachel up and down. "You look beautiful," She says finally.
Rachel smiles. "Thank you, Carole." She feels beautiful, gorgeous even. As she should – every woman deserves to feel beautiful on her wedding day.
"Are you nervous?" Carole asks. If Santana or Puck or Quinn or anyone else had asked her this, they probably would've said it teasingly, but not Carole. She poses the question all soft and gentle, obviously genuine when she asks. Just a mother asking her soon to be daughter in law if she's okay.
Rachel turns back to the mirror, and she sees Carole move to be right behind her, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. She squeezes and the fabric of Rachel's sleeve ripples under her touch. "A…a little," She admits. Rachel normally doesn't get stage fright, but today she's worried she might.
Carole nods. "I was too, the day I married Burt. And Christopher." She's silent for a moment at the mention of her long deceased husband, but then dismisses the thought with a miniscule shake of her head. "But, it's okay to be nervous."
"What about Finn?" Rachel asks. "Is Finn nervous?" She remembers Mr. and Mrs. Schue's wedding day – the first one – and prays that today no one makes a run for it.
"Yes," Carole laughs. "I'd say just a little bit."
For a moment, neither of them say anything. Then Carole speaks up. "Finn is terrified he's not good enough for you," She explains. "He's always been. But, I think we both know that's not true." For a half second, Rachel thinks she's being insulted, until Carole keeps speaking. "I raised Finn to be a good man, just like your fathers raised you to be a wonderful young woman. I raised him to treat women right, and I know he's done that with you. He's always wanted what's best for you. I'm so proud of Finn, and I do not doubt that he will be a loving husband. And Rachel, even though I didn't raise you, I'm so proud of you too. You are my daughter. You are exactly what I want for my son. You're…determined, caring, you stick up for what you believe in, and you have a great capacity to love. Most of all, I know you love Finn, and really, that's what every mother wants for her baby." She gets this look in her eye, like she's looking at a really nice mental image. "Someday, you'll understand."
Rachel smiles. The thought of her being a mother someday is exhilarating. She hopes someday she has a little boy that is just like Finn – not that a little girl with her talent and ambition would be unwelcome, obviously. "I love him so much," She admits. It almost comes out in a whisper because she doesn't want to cry. If she ruined her makeup, Kurt would kill her. "You have no idea."
She knows Carole has given her the best gift she possibly can. She gave birth to Finn, raised him, taught him, provided for him, and for a long time she was the only woman who loved him. And while Finn had another love now, the bond between mother and child – a good mother and child, a mother who was there for her child as they grew up – was unconditional and never ending. Carole was a good mother. Her approval meant everything.
In that moment, Rachel gets a thought, probably not unlike the one Carole had before she told Rachel someday she'd understand. She doesn't know if it's a glimpse into the future, or just something she's imagined up. Either way, she sees herself in a room like this one, but about twenty or thirty years older and not the one in the wedding dress this time. There's a girl dressed in white, staring at her reflection and trembling ever so slightly, and Rachel walks up to her, squeezes her shoulder and tells her that she couldn't imagine anyone better for her son. And, just like that, the thought is gone, but it leaves Rachel with a happy feeling even though it's brief.
She turns to address Carole, the corners of her lips turned up into a smile. "Thank you, Carole, for so many things."
"Mom," Carole corrects.
"Mom," Rachel repeats. Without another word, she hugs the older woman, who lets out a small sound of surprise, and then promptly hugs back. It feels like they embrace for a very long time, and yet not enough at the same time. Rachel thinks she owes the woman who brought the love of her life into the world a lot more than a hug.
But it's not just that either that makes Rachel want to hold on to Carole and never let go. Today, she's not getting just a husband. For the first time in a long time, Rachel Berry soon to be Hudson is going to have a mother.