Ok, well, this story is going to be pretty much completely AU. In this story, Shelby never agreed to be a surrogate, she just got pregnant at eighteen, so Hiram and Leroy aren't part of this story. Shelby is a single mom in this story, and Rachel is six. Also, Will teaches elementary school choir, and they all live in New York City.
"Come on, mommy, Mr. Schue is waiting for us!" Rachel exclaimed, pulling her mom down the hallway, towards the choir room.
Shelby walked faster,"Slow down, Rach. We are fifteen minutes early, anyway," she said. Rachel ignored her, walking as fast as her little six year old legs could carry her. Shelby chuckled as she stopped, causing Rachel to stop as well.
Rachel groaned,"Come on, mommy!" she said, struggling to pull her mother forward again.
Shelby scooped Rachel into her arms, beginning to walk again, this time at a slower pace,"Why are you so excited to get there? What is he going to tell me?" she asked, turning down the art hallway.
Rachel shrugged, wrapping her legs around her mother's waist,"I don't know," she said simply.
Shelby rolled her eyes as she walked into the choir room,"Mr. Schue!" Rachel yelled, alerting the man of their presence.
"Hey Rachel!" Will said happily, getting up out of his chair, walking towards the mother-daughter duo.
Rachel wiggled out of Shelby's arms and gave Will a hug,"Can I go play piano? I learned a new song last night!" she informed him excitedly.
Will chuckled,"Sure, Rach," he said, watching the young girl run over to the piano and slide onto the bench in front of it. He turned his eyes back towards the woman in front of him as Rachel began playing,"Ms. Corcoran, I'm Will Schuester. I'm the choir teacher," he said politely, offering a hand to Shelby.
Shelby shook it, smiling brightly,"Please, call me Shelby. Rachel says you're her favorite teacher," she said.
Will smiled,"Well, Shelby, Rachel is a very, very talented little girl," he said.
Shelby beamed with pride as she looked over at her daughter, concentrating on the song she was playing on the piano,"Yes she is," she said, turning her gaze back to Will, still not quite sure why he asked them to come in.
"Does she take voice lessons?" Will asked curiously.
Shelby nodded,"Voice, piano, and dance," she replied.
Will nodded,"Well, I just, I have a friend that does casting for Broadway, and he is looking for a little girl to be in a new show that is supposed to open next year," he started.
"And?" Shelby asked, hoping she was right about where this was going.
"And, I said that I had to talk to her parents about it first, but I suggested Rachel," Will said, smiling.
Shelby's eyes widened, and she threw her arms around Will, hugging him tightly,"Oh my God!" she squealed, gathering herself, and pulling away from the man that she barely knew, but keeping the bright smile on her face,"Thank you! Thank you so much!" she exclaimed.
Will smiled at her,"It's no problem," he said, clearing his throat,"So, uh, what will her dad say about it?" he asked.
Shelby's smile faded,"Well, uh, I'm actually a single mother. Her dad, well, he left when he found out I was pregnant," she said, shocked at how open she was with him. She didn't open up to anyone, let alone people she had just met.
Will cleared his throat again,"Well, I'll call him back, and tell him that you said it's ok," he said, smiling at her,"What's your phone number?" he asked, quickly adding,"You know, so I can give it to him, and he can call you with her audition times and everything," he said nervously.
Shelby chuckled at his nervousness,"Here," she said, grabbing a piece of paper and a pen off of his desk, and writing two phone numbers on it,"There is my home phone and cell phone number, to give to him," she said, handing him the paper. "Can I see you're phone?" she asked.
Will gave her a curious look, but handed her his iPhone,"Here," he said.
Shelby took it from him, putting her number into his contact list,"And there's my cellphone number, for you," she said, winking at him, before turning to Rachel,"Come on, sweetie, do you wanna' get some Chinese food for dinner?" she asked.
Rachel hopped off the piano bench, running into her mother's arms,"Yeah!" she exclaimed, once again wrapping her legs around Shelby's waist,"Mr. Schue, do you want to come with us?" she asked excitedly.
Will chuckled,"Sweetie, I don't think that-" he started.
Shelby interrupted him,"I think that's a great idea. Will, would you like to come to dinner with us?" she asked, smiling at him.
Will smiled back at her,"I'd love to," he said simply.
"Yay!" Rachel exclaimed.
Shelby smiled, keeping her gaze on Will,"Do you just want to follow us?" she asked.
Will nodded,"Sure," he said, following them out of the room, closing and locking his door behind him, excited to get to spend some more time with Shelby. He wanted, no, needed to learn more her.
"So," Will started, as he took his seat in the booth, across from Shelby and Rachel,"What do you do for a living?" he asked, sipping his water.
Shelby sipped her own water,"Well, actually, I am a teacher at NYADA," she said.
"Really?" Will asked curiously.
Shelby smiled at him,"Yeah, I teach one of the vocal classes," she informed him as the waitress approached. The waitress took their orders, and they all made casual conversation as they ate. They were there for two hours, not really even realizing how long they had been there, until Shelby got a text message, and noticed the time,"Oh, my God, it's already seven o'clock. We've got to get home, Rachel still has to practice her piano, and take a shower before she goes to sleep," she said, standing up and grabbing the bill of the table.
Will took it from her hands,"I've got it," he said, leading the way towards the front desk.
Shelby took Rachel's hand, pulling her daughter after Will,"At least let me pay half," she bargained.
Will shook his head,"No way, I've got it," he said simply. Will paid the bill, and the three walked out of the restaurant together. "Thanks for letting me come with you guys," Will said, standing in between his car and Shelby's, as Rachel climbed into the backseat, closing the car door behind her.
Shelby smiled at him,"Thank you for getting Rachel this audition," she countered.
Will waved his hand dismissively,"Don't mention it, I didn't really do anything," he said simply.
"And thank you for coming out with us. I had a really good time, and Rachel really likes you," Shelby said, still smiling, realizing that she had smiled more that evening than she had in a very long time.
Will nodded,"I had a really good time, too. Maybe, uh, if we go out again, you could get a baby sitter for Rachel," he suggested,"I mean, if we go out again. I'm not saying that we definitely will, not that I wouldn't love to go out with you again, because I would," he rambled, causing Shelby to chuckle,"I know, I'm, uh, not very smooth. It's been a while since I went on a date, not to say that this was a date," he continued, still obviously nervous. What could he say, she made him a nervous wreck. He didn't understand why, though. he had never been nervous around women. Something about Shelby was different, though. She didn't seem to be like most women.
Shelby continued to chuckle, but put a hand on Will's shoulder, stopping him from talking,"Relax, Will. I would love to go out with you again, without Rachel. You don't need to be so nervous around me," she said.
Will chuckled,"Sorry," he said simply.
Shelby rolled her eyes,"No need to apologize. Look, I'll call Rachel's babysitter when we get home. Are you free tomorrow?" she asked.
Will nodded,"Yeah, I don't have anything to do tomorrow," he replied.
Shelby smiled,"Ok, I'll talk to Rachel's babysitter, but I'm sure it'll be fine. I'll call you at three. You'll be out of classes by then, right?" she asked.
Will nodded,"Yep," he said simply.
Shelby leaned forward, kissing his cheek softly,"I'll talk to you tomorrow," she said, hopping into the driver's seat of her car, and pulling out of the parking spot, waving to him as she drove away, already looking forward to seeing him again.
Well, do you guys want me to continue?