A/N: Hello all! So this little plot bunny came to me and refused to leave me alone. It's just a quick Finchel oneshot with a dash of St. Berry. It's loosely based on Adele's "Someone Like You" (because I've had nothing but Adele on repeat for the entire day). Enjoy!
Disclaimer: I do not own Glee.
Rachel dragged her exhausted body out of the backstage door and into the bitter cold of the winter night. She shivered and pulled her coat tightly around her as she looked up into the blackened night sky. The barest hints of snowflakes were beginning to sprinkle down from the invisible clouds above. Rachel smiled as she felt a few of the flakes catch on her nose and eyelashes.
The brunette walked tiredly out of the alleyway and was greeted by the one sight of which she would never tire. Times Square during the winter was one of Rachel's favorite places to be. Luckily for her, she'd been there for the past five winters and each time she grew to love it even more. No matter how cold the nights were, the square was always packed with people from all over the world, coming to marvel at the wonder that is the heart of New York City.
Rachel continued the walk back to her apartment a few blocks from the center of Times Square. She knew she was lucky that she didn't have to live on her own. Otherwise, there was no way that she'd be able to afford her apartment on the meager salary of a struggling Broadway actress.
As she made her way along the wet sidewalk, Rachel thought back to how far she'd come since her high school days. She thought back to how much she'd given up in order to follow her dreams out of Lima and straight to the Big Apple. She sighed as she tried to force her mind to steer clear of memories best left forgotten.
So caught up in her own musings, Rachel failed to notice an equally unaware figure approacing her until they collided rather forcefully. Rachel grabbed the stranger's arm in an effort to steady herself and only succeeded in pulling both of them to the ground.
"Oh my gosh! I'm so sorry! Here, let me help you up. Are you okay?" Rachel scrambled to help the stranger from the wet ground while remaining as cautious as possible. Living in New York for five years had taught her that one couldn't always be so trusting around strangers, no matter the circumstance.
"Don't worry about it, I'm fine. Nothing a little laundry detergent won't fix. See it's not-" The stranger's voice sounded strangely familiar, though Rachel couldn't quite place it. He suddenly looked up and Rachel's heart stopped.
The man that she'd so carelessly collided with was none other than Finn Hudson.
X
Finn almost fell over again. Here she was, Rachel Berry, standing in front of him. The very reason for his sudden trip to New York was staring right back at Finn with slight shock. For a moment, Finn just stood there and felt as though he and Rachel were standing back in the hallway of their old high school.
"Finn?" Rachel asked, uncertainty clear in her voice. "What...what are you doing in New York?"
Finn broke out of his momentary daze in time to answer Rachel's question. He'd forgotten how beautiful she was...
"I, uh...I came for you, Rachel." Finn smiled sheepishly at Rachel.
Finn had actually been on his way to the twenty-four hour drug store a few blocks from his hotel because he needed batteries for the television remote. He'd only just gotten to New York earlier that evening. His plan for the next day was to search every theatre within the area until he found Rachel. But now that he'd, quite literally, run into her, he figured the batteries could wait.
Ever since their high school graduation, Finn hadn't stopped thinking about Rachel. She'd been true to her word and followed her dreams straight to New York, without a glance backwards.
And she took Finn's heart with her.
In the years since Rachel's departure, Finn had tried dating in earnest. But every time, no matter how good of a time Finn had, he was always left wanting more. One girl's hair wasn't the right shade of glossy brown. Another girl's eyes weren't as warm. Another girl's smile didn't quite light up the room the way Rachel's had. No, they were all wrong for him.
"I don't think that was such a good idea."
Finn's heart plummetted through the sidewalk and into the subway system below them.
X
Years ago, in a much simpler time, Rachel's heart might have soared at hearing such words. Finn, her first love, had come all the way to New York, just to be with her even though they'd been apart for five years.
But she was no longer the high school girl that pined for the out-of-her-league quarterback. Rachel shivered slightly and adjusted her scarf.
"What do you mean by that? Why wouldn't this be a good idea?" Finn looked as though his entire world had crumbled around him. "Look, Rachel, I know we don't have the most stable history." Rachel shifted uncomfortably, but Finn continued. "But even after all of these years, I'm still in love with you."
"Be that as it may, Finn, I'm afraid I'm no longer in love with you." Rachel glanced at Finn's broken expression and felt a little bad for her bluntness. "Look, Finn, I'm flattered that you've traveld several hundred miles to see me. But it wasn't necessary. A simple phonecall would have sufficed." Rachel didn't think she could bear to look at Finn once she finished speaking.
She knew she was being a little harsh, but she had no other choice. How else was she supposed to react when a former high school sweetheart just barges back into her life, claiming to still love her. Besides, even if Rachel was still the least bit inclined to reunite with Finn, she was in no position to do it now. At that moment, she was grateful for more than the warmth that her leather gloves provided.
X
Finn couldn't believe what he was hearing. Rachel had gotten over him? When did this happen? Sure, they hadn't seen each other in five years, but Rachel had always said that her love for him was undying, like the sun's brilliant rays.
Now, here she was, saying that she felt nothing for him. Finn was at a loss for words. However, before he could gather his wits, another voice called out to them.
"Rachel? Rachel is that you?" Finn turned to find the source of the voice and his nostrils flared with barely supressed anger.
Jesse St. James was briskly walking towards them wearing a long wool coat over what appeared to be pajamas and running sneakers.
He ignored Finn and made a beeline to Rachel, kissing her soundly before speaking again.
"I thought you would have been home by now and when you weren't, I got worried. Is everything alright?"
Rachel smiled up at Jesse and Finn felt a pang in his stomach as he immediately recognized that look. Rachel used to look up at him that way...
"Yes, Jesse, I'm fine. I just ran into an old friend here. You remember Finn, don't you?" Rachel gestured to Finn with her free arm, as her other one was wrapped around Jesse.
For the first time, Jesse acknowledged Finn's presence and he just looked at him for a moment. Surely he could see the resentment in Finn's eyes. Rachel might be forgiving, but Finn would always remember how he'd comforted the brunette for weeks on end after the egg incident.
"Ahh, yes. Finn...Hudson, is it?" Jesse held out his hand and Finn grasped it for the briefest space of time possible without appearing rude. He resisted the strong urge to either wipe his hand on his coat or thrust it in a nearby pile of snow. Either one would do the trick to get the feel of the man's hand off of his own.
"Yeah..." Finn stared expectantly between the two of them before forcefully holding back a sigh and asking the obvious question. "So...are you two together now?"
By the look of the smirk that suddenly appeared on Jesse's face, Finn had a deep sense of dread towards the answer.
X
Rachel had expected Finn to ask that question. After all, two people who were simply friends didn't go around kissing each other and holding each other the way she and Jesse had. She looked up at Jesse's face and saw him smirking with more than a little smugness.
Rachel took a deep breath and spoke up before Jesse could make things any more unpleasant.
"Yes, Finn, we are. Jesse and I are actually..." Rachel trailed off. The look on Finn's face couldn't have been any more heartbreaking.
"We're engaged." Jesse's voice was more smug than his smirk and Rachel had a suspicion that it was only due to the fact that they were delivering the news to Finn.
A glance back at Finn told Rachel that her earlier assumption was wrong. Finn looked about ready to throw himself off the top of the Empire State Building.
X
The air around Finn turned from barely freezing to absolute ice. He wasn't sure if he'd heard Jesse correctly. Engaged? Rachel? To Jesse? This couldn't be right.
Finn's eyes immediately darted to Rachel's left hand but he was met with disappointment as he saw that she was wearing gloves. Finn wasn't entirely sure that he even wanted to see Rachel wearing an engagement ring. No, he decided that he'd rather not. He silently thanked whatever entities ruled the heavens for sparing him the sight. He could always pretend that it wasn't actually there...
"Wow. That's great, Rachel. Congratulations." Finn wasn't completely aware of his automatic response. His brain was still trying to process that he'd all but groveled at Rachel's feet while she just stood there and let him do it. She was engaged and her high school sweetheart had come to try to win her back. Of course she wasn't going to jump right into Finn's arms. She already had a pair waitng for her at home.
"Thank you, Finn. That means a lot." Rachel smiled at him and Finn could barely hold her gaze before averting it again. It wouldn't do for Rachel and Jesse to see him tearing up all of a sudden.
"Yeah, Finn, we're so glad that you're happy for us." Jesse spoke again and Finn resisted the violent urge to punch the self-satisfied look off of the smug bastard's face. After all, this was his fault.
"Actually," Jesse continued, "the wedding isn't for another couple of months. Tell you what, you email Rachel your address and we'll send out an invitation for to come. We haven't finalized the guest list just yet, but you'll want to be there, right?" Jesse looked expectantly at Finn, daring him to say otherwise.
"Of course. Yeah, I'll get that to you." Finn really wanted to tell Jesse that, no, he did not want to be at their wedding. No, he did not want to sit idly by and watch the one true love of his life go off and marry someone who was completely unworthy of her.
But the look of pure joy on Rachel's face upoin his confirmation kept him from saying anything more.
X
Rachel couldn't be happier. To tell the truth, she wasn't quite sure whether she would even invite Finn to the wedding. After all, how do you invite someone to your wedding after you'd spend five years apart and the previous four years constantly professing your love for them? It would have been awkward, to say the least.
Though she didn't entirely approve of her fiancee's underhanded reasons for asking Finn to the wedding, she let it slide now that she knew he would be in attendance.
"Wonderful, so it's all settled, then." Rachel beamed at Finn and her smiled faltered a bit when he saw how strained his was.
"Well, Finn, we've got to get going. It's getting pretty cold out here and we all know how the cold weather affects my voice." Rachel readjusted her scarf for emphasis. "Besides, you look like you could use a bit of thawing-out yourself."
"Yeah, you're probably right." Finn wouldn't look her directly in the eye and Rachel honestly felt bad for him. But it couldn't be helped, Finn was simply too late.
Rachel disentangeled herself from Jesse and stepped forward to hug Finn.
"It was nice seeing you, Finn," Rachel said softly, as she released her hold. Resuming her place, tucked into Jesse's side, Rachel gave Finn one last brilliant smile before walking past him and into the night with her fiancee.
X
The hug had been brief but Finn stood, rooted to the spot, for a moment to burn it into his memory. That was the first time in years that he'd hugged Rachel and it was just as he remembered.
In high school, Finn had always thought that they'd been made for each other. Rachel's head fit perfectly under his chin and Finn would wrap Rachel in a warm embrace and just hold her for hours.
It brought back memories too painful to dwell on, yet they were too beautiful to be forgotten.
Finn watched the retreating backs of Rachel and Jesse and finally let the tears fall. He resumed his long-delayed trip to the drug store and relished the feel of his tears freezing against his tears in the bitter wind.
A/N: And there you have it folks! Good, bad or indifferent, let me know what you think of it!
- Jaz