OK, so I should totally not be starting a new story, but I had a massive writer's block with my other stories and the flash drive with all of my other stories is MIA, so I will be tearing everything apart this weekend to find it so I can finally finish it. Until then, I had to write something after watching season 1 on DVD and yesterday's episode, I feel so bad for Rachel, she always gets tossed the short end of the stick. This is total off the cuff story, not entirely sure where it's going, other than a not depressing life for Rachel, so if you have any ideas or something you really want to see throw it at me and I'll try to put it in.
She held her breath as she heard the classroom door shut behind her. She glanced around at the ten pairs of eyes staring at her, although glaring would be a more apt description for nine of them, the other filled with disappointment. Granted her motives were totally and completely selfish and in the end everything came back to bite her in the ass, but damn it she has given so much of herself to this glee club and they never recognize any of that, only when she screws up.
She waits for one of them to speak up- Quinn or Santana with an uber-bitchy comment, Mercedes or Kurt with some sort of diva fit, actually Finn is about the only one that she doesn't expect to tear her down in front of everyone.
"If we want to have any chance of winning anything this year, you need to ditch your selfish little attitude and actually be a team player." Rachel amended her previous conception, because she would have also put Mike Chang in the not ripping Rachel to shreds in front of the rest of the team group too. Apparently this is her week for being wrong-really, really wrong. "And a crack house? Rachel, she's like pocket sized, something serious could have happened to her. Are you that worried about your precious solos that you would put someone else's life in danger?"
She was so shocked she didn't know whether to fight or flight. The flight instinct was starting to win, but just as she was about to turn and leave Mr. Schue walked in blocking her exit. She walked over to the empty seat next to Finn and quietly sat down.
"Alright guys, we still need more people, but we need to get started practicing with what we have. I want to keep things fresh, so let's try Puck and Mercedes as leads on this one." He passed out the sheet music to If It's Love around, and Rachel was honestly relieved to not get this solo. She didn't miss the sly grin Mercedes and Kurt send her way as everyone stood up to run through it. Rachel breathed a sigh of relief when Mr. Schue let them out early. She picked up her blue messenger bag (Finn convinced her to get it instead of using her pink trolley bag this year, even convinced her to ditch the animal sweaters-she kinda missed those) and quickly made her way out to her car, silently sending a prayer up that she was a junior and didn't need to wait for one of her dad's to pick her up or attempt to get a ride home from someone else.
She blasts Season's of Love on the way home, and not even that Broadway classic does anything to lessen the tension that's starting to overpower her. By the time she pulls into her driveway she's come to a decision-one way or another she's getting out of here. Not in two years after she graduates, but now. She has high grades (in advanced classes to boot) and an exemplary voice-she should have no problem transferring somewhere. Besides, her fathers had been speaking of moving after she graduates, now she just needs to convince them to bump those plans up a couple of years.
Turns out that convincing them wasn't nearly as difficult as she had thought (she's starting to think that she's getting very good at manipulating people if she needs to , can anyone say Sandy Ryerson's departure from McKinley High School last year). She simply explains how with only eleven members, New Directions will not be able to compete-thus not giving Rachel the exposure she needs to become the star they have been grooming her to be since she was born. She then reminds them of the housing slump and what an amazing deal they would be able to get on a new house (they still have all that money Grandma Berry left them when she died last year, what better way to invest than in a little real estate and her future as a star).
She typed a formal letter of resignation that she left at the front office for Mr. Schuester, she really didn't feel the need to be under his disapproving gaze anymore than she needs to be. Explaining to Finn about the move and subsequent break-up wasn't nearly as difficult as she thought it was going to be, they had been slowly drifting apart during the first week of school-their apparent need to be popular was starting to trump their need to be together.
It only took five and a half days for everything to be packed up and on its way to Malibu, California-about as far as you can get from Lima, Ohio. Tomorrow starts a new week, with Rachel Berry now an official student of Washington High School, home of the Sharks and the birthplace of the Maverick-the Glee club that placed second at Nationals last year, beating out Vocal Adrenaline who only placed third. Things really are brighter in California.
Well, there's the prologue-what do ya think? More to come Friday or Saturday.
And forget Tinkerbell, I don't need applause to live, I need reviews! :)