Hey guys. Thanks for reading my story. This is my first time at writing fan fiction. I welcome all comments, good or bad (hopefully good ). Hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: Glee belongs to Fox Broadcast Company and Ryan Murphy including copyrights and characters. I'm just a person who loves watching your show.

Prologue: Shine On

It was her time to shine, yet she felt nervous with each passing moment. Rachel Berry, a girl of seventeen, stood behind the curtains with her Glee fellow members. Rachel was anticipating the moment of showtime…her moment. She knew that a Broadway director who is doing a production of Wicked was sitting somewhere in the audience. She was determined to play the leading role of Elphaba, yet in the back of her mind, there was something that caused her to be worried. True, in Glee class, she wouldn't mind belting out a solo here and there and having the occasional duets with her boyfriend Finn in front of class, but this time, it was different. Perhaps it is the fact that this was the Nationals and she was in one of the largest cities in the world, a city where she hopes to one day sing "On My Own" to a sell-out crowd of her adoring fans. Just the thought of her future made her close her eyes and smile. The thought made Rachel forget about her anxiousness for Nationals.

"What are you smiling about?" a voice asked her.

Rachel suddenly snapped out of her daydream and opened her eyes to see the figure of Will Schuester. Mr. Schuester, Schue for short, was only a typical Spanish teacher at William McKinley High, but he was also the director of the Glee Club. He was the one who inspired Rachel to be the best she could be when it comes to singing. Rachel let her eyes wander on the clothes Mr. Schue was wearing. He was wearing a light brown jacket and a blue polo shirt with jeans. It was typical of Mr. Schue, Rachel thought to herself. Even at Nationals, he would still wear the same kind of clothes he would wear at school. It forced her to grin because she thought about the clothes she wears almost everyday at school: patterns. Rachel Berry just loves mixing and matching her clothes, especially with her socks and her purse. But now at Nationals, she gets to step out her norm a bit. Rachel Berry was wearing a stunning black dress with tiny white flowers and matching white shoes. Rachel took great pride sometimes in her taste in clothes.

"Um, hello," Will said while waving his hands in front of her.

"Oh, hi Mr. Schue. Oh it's nothing. I'm just super excited about this performance. I know we worked really hard for this day," Rachel said with a smile.

"Well, I am sure everyone is excited. Make sure you go out there and have some fun while you're at it. I know you've been eyeing that Broadway director out there"

Rachel looked down at her shoes and suddenly that anxiousness returned again.

"What wrong?" Mr. Schue asked.

Rachel replied, "What if he doesn't like my singing? What if I spend the rest of my life in Lima, working at the local shoe store on minimum wage? Or worse, become a chorus teacher? My students will probably think I failed at life for not making it to Broadway and start making fun of me when I sing. Then I'll have to move to another city and change my name, but what if they find out about my real name and then they decide to look me up and find out I didn't make it to Broadway? Then I'll have..." Rachel started to hyperventilate.

Will couldn't stop grinning and he reached out and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Rachel, listen to me". Her piercing brown eyes looked up and gazed into Will's eyes.

Suddenly, Will lost his train of thought. He couldn't help but gasp a little when he saw her eyes. It was like she was reading his every thought at that moment.

"Snap out of it Will," Will thought to himself.

"R-Rachel," Will stammered, "Calm down. You know you're going to be fantastic. If you give it your all, I guarantee you. Everyone out there will fall in love with your voice, including that Broadway director"

Will could see some tears developing in her eyes, yet she gave that broken smile to him. "Thanks Mr. Schue", Rachel whispered. Will let his hands slip off her shoulders and into his pockets. Then he suddenly remembered what he was going to do.

"Rachel, I have something for you. Hold still and close your eyes," Will told Rachel. He pulled a sticker out of his pocket. Though it was a small gift, he knew it would mean a lot to Rachel. He placed the sticker onto her soft cheeks. He could feel the smoothness of it as he pressed his thumb. Then, Rachel opened her eyes with a surprise look. She walked up to a mirror and looked at herself. She found herself looking at a tiny, yet noticeable (at least to her eyes) gold star.

"Someone once told me that they liked gold stars. Said it was her thing. You said I will make you a star one day, but to tell you the truth Rachel. I didn't have to do anything except to guide you to find yourself. You are already a star and you should know it. Don't ever forget that," Will said to Rachel. Rachel turned to look at Will, but he was already walking away.

"Don't forget about me when you become a Broadway star," Will said while walking towards the exit door to sit with the audience. Rachel couldn't help but give the biggest smile she ever had as she saw Will's retreating figure disappear into the shadows.

"Hey baby", a voice from behind said. It was her boyfriend Finn. "It's showtime!"

As Rachel began to walk towards the stage with her other Glee members, Finn told her, "Hey remember. We're going to head to the city after this. It is your birthday after all. Everyone in our group is going to throw the best birthday you will ever have" Finn kissed her after he said that.

Rachel gave a broken smile and allowed Finn walk ahead of her to talk to Puck. Rachel thought to herself that it was her 18th birthday after all, but why doesn't she feel excited about it? She knew that after getting off that stage, nothing would ever be the same again. As she got into her position on the stage in front of thousands of people, she couldn't help but imagine Will's warm smile he gave her. It was the smile that made her feel that everything was going to be all right and that it was finally her time to shine.

"Thanks, Mr. Schue," Rachel said to herself as she began to sing with her Glee members.

Thanks for reading. Hope it was a wonderful read for you guys. I wrote more, but do you think I should publish it? Do you like where this story is headed? Please comment!