"This night can't get any more perfect," Rachel says as her and Finn walk arm in arm through the streets of New York City. It's chilly out but she makes sure that both her and Finn dressed as warmly as possible before they leave their apartment. If there is one thing they both love to do, it's to take walks in this city together. This city had changed both of their lives in so many ways, and they wouldn't let the weather stop them from experiencing it's beauty on the night of Christmas Eve. Finn smiles at her as she says this, and his hand seems to clench something in his left side pocket, the one farthest from Rachel.
"I'm glad you're happy", Finn replies, squeezing her hand.
"Are you crazy? Of course I'm happy. I'm more than happy," she says, as she snuggles closer to him. "I'm in the middle of rehearsals for a play on Broadway, and I'm living in New York City, where I've dreamed of being ever since I was a little girl." Finn is so proud as she says this. Ever since he met her he knew she was a star, and he never once doubted that she would make it out of Lima. She was the brightest star in their home town. Here in New York City, and on that Broadway stage, she shined brighter than everyone else here too. "Out of everything, you know what makes me the happiest?" she asks as she tugs on his jacket sleeve.
"What?" he asks gently as he looks over at her.
"The fact that I'm here with you. I know we've been together for a while, and we've been living in this city for over five years now, but sometimes I still look at you when I wake up in the morning and have to remind myself that it's real. That you're with me. That we're together." At this point, Finn cuts her off from her speech to kiss her. Occasionally, Rachel says things like this to him, about how she can't believe he chose her, that it seems unreal that he wants to be with her and no one else. It's the same way he's always felt about her, and it stuns him every time she says that she's surprised too.
As he stands on the corner of this New York City street, kissing the love of his life, he glances upwards and realizes he recognizes the street sign. It takes him a few seconds, but he finally remembers this is where they took a walk together years ago, when the Glee club was here for Nationals. New York City had brought him and Rachel back together, and he was more sure than ever of what he was about to do. It felt like a sign that they had ended up on this street. He pulls away from Rachel, and he can tell from the frown on her face that she is disappointed that their kiss has to end. But he has something to say, and he can't wait any longer to say it. He knows that now is the right moment. He takes her hand once again and urges them to keep on walking. He stares at her as they continue on, and he feels his heart start to race.
"New York is a really special city," he starts. For a while, I never saw myself here. I had rarely stepped foot outside of Ohio, let alone gone to a big city like this. But after I joined Glee, my life was changed. You changed my life." He looks at Rachel, and again, she looks surprised. He can tell, by the way her eyes go wide. He notices that they are also full of tears, and she looks like she wants to say something.
"Just let me say this, please," he says as he stops her, and takes both of her small hands in his. She holds on tightly, and continues to stare up at him.
"I never saw myself in New York, but then the club traveled here for Nationals junior year, and I know we were supposed to be focusing on the songs and stuff...but the truth was I just really wanted you back. I remember meeting you on the bridge. I remember when you were walking towards me, and it was like a revelation. Then we went on that "work date..." - Rachel laughs as he says this, and unhooks her hands from his to wipe the tears from her face. He brings his hand to her face and wipes the rest of them for her. For a second he just stares at her, and then he reminds himself to keep on talking. He was at risk of losing himself in Rachel's big brown eyes, and he needed to get this speech right. He smiles and keeps on talking, hoping his words don't fail him.
"Being with you in New York changed my life. I remember walking with you through these same streets, and I could barely form words, because I just kept trying to imagine a future with you. I didn't feel good enough for you or New York, but I wanted it so bad. I knew you had this dream of New York, and while I was with you here, it felt right. This city felt right for me, being here with you felt right, but I just didn't know if I deserved it, or if I was good enough to make it here."
"Finn..." Rachel says, finally breaking through and interrupting him.
"I'm sorry Rachel, I just need to finish saying this. I know I'm rambling, but I just need to get it out, okay?"
"Okay" she whispers, nodding, and strengthening the hold she has on his hands.
"You've changed my life in so many ways." Finn suddenly feels his nerves peak. He starts to get a tingling sensation in his body; it's almost electric. He had planned this speech for so long and he didn't want to screw it up. He keeps on going, hoping that he can make sense with what he is about to say. It's never been so important for him to get something right, and he's never been the best with words.
"You got me to believe in myself, when I didn't for so long. Senior year of high school, you showed me that I could make a path for myself, that I could do anything I wanted to. I remember how I was a mess that year because I didn't know what I wanted to do as a career, or even where I wanted to go to college. The one thing though, that I knew then, was that I wanted to be with you. I couldn't see a life for myself without you in it, and that hurt, because I didn't feel good enough to have you. I didn't feel like I deserved you. Somehow though, you chose me, time and time again. And somehow, I made it to New York with you. We've been here for years, and I don't know why it's taken me so long to ask you this, because I've known you're the only one for me since we went to New York for Nationals, since I saw you walking towards me on Bow Bridge and I had a vision of you as my wife. I'll never be good enough to have you, but I need to know anyways." He takes a deep breath as he gets down on one knee, and he hears Rachel gasp as he pulls the velvet box out of his jacket pocket. She puts her hand to her mouth as she stares down at him.
"Rach...there's no one else for me. I chose you a long time ago. My heart chose you the second I laid eyes on you, and it took me too long to realize that. I'm yours, and right now, I'm asking you to choose me again. I'm asking you to be mine, cause I swear with everything I have, that I'm yours. Forever. Faithfully," he says as he ends his speech, opening up the box to show her the diamond ring he had picked out weeks ago with the help of Kurt.
"Finn, please," Rachel says as she stares at the box, her voice breaking while she cries. She walks towards him as he stands up, and he has never been so scared in his life. He suddenly feels light headed, like she might tell him no. He starts shaking, but it's not from the cold.
"Do you remember Christmas, junior year of high school, when I tried to get you back, in my desperate attempt to get you to forgive me for messing up what we had? And you told me to ask for you again the next year?" Finn nods, his heart constricting remembering that break up, and how hurt both of them were. "Well I did. I asked for you every single day. Every single time I saw you. For a while I had hope, but then I thought it was really over, I thought I had messed us up for good. And then New York brought us back together." She was letting him down easy, Finn thought, as he wipes away at his own tears this time.
"This city became even more special in my mind then. Because of you. Because it's you and me. You talked about trying to imagine a future with me when we took a walk here the night before Nationals? Well, I was doing the same. I remember walking arm in arm with you, with my head resting against your shoulder, and feeling like I had everything I ever wanted, not just because I was in New York, but because I was with you." This was it. She was going to tell him right here on Christmas Eve that even though she had at one point envisioned a future with him, that now that he was asking for it, she knew it wasn't what she wanted.
"If you're asking me to choose you, you have to know that the answer has always been yes Finn." Finn wasn't sure he had heard her correctly.
"What did you just say?" he says as he steps closer to her.
"You're the one that I want, forever. There's no one else for me." Immediately, and for the second time that night, he closes the space between them, kissing her on that New York city street, bright with lights, but brighter still because of Rachel.
"Wait, wait," he says as he pulls away, and her face falls.
"Finn, why do you keep pulling away when I try to kiss you?"
"I'm sorry, I just need to ask you this" he says, as he pulls the box out of his pocket again. "I realized I never asked you properly, and I can't mess this up." Finn tries to get down on one knee again, but Rachel doesn't let him, keeping him close to her instead. He smiles, and then speaks again. "Rachel Barbra Berry...will you marry me?"
"I don't know why you were so worried. Of course my answer is yes." Finn is speechless then, and he needs Rachel's help to remind him that the next step is to put the engagement ring on her finger.
"Finn...the ring' Rachel says, laughing as he continues to stare at her. This time he really had lost himself in her eyes.
"Right, duh". He slips the ring on her finger, and Rachel stares, mesmerized by it's beauty, and by the fact that it fits her finger perfectly.
"Wait, now I have to say something" she says right as he leans in to kiss her again. "I have to say that I was wrong. I said before that this night couldn't be more perfect, but you just made it the most perfect night I could have ever imagined." At this moment there was nothing else to say, nothing that could stop him from kissing his fiance on the streets of New York City on Christmas Eve.
The city that brought them back together. The city where they would start the next stage in their life, starting right now.