Hi, Julia! This is the gift you requested and I hope you're happy with it! Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays! I hope 2012 will be a good year for you, love your secret santa.
i.
It's his first day in this school. He's heard a lot about it. It's the only thing his friends in St. James talked about. The famous glee club that won Nationals three years in a row. His train of though was interrupted by the sound of a voice behind him.
"Hi. I'm Sam Evans. You must be new." he says.
"Finn Hudson. I just transferred from Saint James." he tells him and holds out his hand for him to shake.
"Oh yeah, we kicked your ass last year at sectionals." he says with a grin on his face.
"Dude, that was two years ago. We didn't even compete last year." he tells him.
"Oh" Sam says. "Well, do you mind a tour around the school?"
"Not at all. This place is huge."
ii.
"And this is the last step on our tour. The cafeteria."
"Cool, so anyone I should know about?" he asks.
"Over there are the cheerleaders. Santana is captain. You don't want to mess with her." he says and points to a big table with 15 girls wearing a red uniform.
"At least she's hot." he says and Sam laughs.
"If I had a penny for all the times I heard that." he tells him.
"You'd be a billionaire. I know." Finn says "Who's that?" he says pointing to a table with two boys and a girl sitting.
"Oh those are the geniuses behind our Nationals wins. Rachel Berry, Kurt Hummel and Blaine Anderson. Seniors." he tells him and Finn is sure he's never seen someone as pretty as Rachel.
"Does she have a boyfriend?" he asks Sam.
"No, she doesn't. But I advise you to not try to get her to go out with you. She doesn't do relationships. Not after happened with Jesse at least." he tells him and Finn's confused.
"Who's Jesse?" he asks
"Jesse St. James. Lead vocalists in Vocal Adrenaline and heartbreaker." a girl with blonde hair says.
"And you are?" he says smirking.
"Finn, this is my girlfriend Quinn." Sam tells him with a territorial edge in his voice.
"Nice to meet you Quinn."
They talk for a while until the bell rings and as he makes his way to his next class Finn can't help but think that this year is finally going to be good.
iii.
"Hi, you're Amy right?" Finn asks the next day at free period
"Yes that's me. Amy Parkinson. What can I do for you?"
"I was wondering if you could arrange an audition for Glee Club for me."
"Glee Club? You're new, right?" she asks
"Yeah, I am." he says confused
"Good, listen carefully then. Joining glee club is social suicide. Are you up for a slushy facial every day?" she asks and he shakes his head no "If you wanna finish this year in peace, don't join."
He watches her as she picks up her bag and leaves the room and even though he likes Sam and Quinn, being popular is just more important to him right now. He wants to think it's the right decision.
iv.
Two weeks pass and he's gotten used to the new school. He occasionally hangs out with Sam who tries to get him to audition for New Directions.
"Just audition, please. Do it for me. We need some male voices anyway." Sam tells him one day at lunch
"I thought there more guys." he says confused
"There are but Rachel and Santana's voices overpower ours most of the time." Sam explains to him. He nods.
"But I don't have a strong voice. I'd only be back-up." he tells Sam and hopes that he drops the subject.
"I'm just saying. Try out." Sam says and changes the subject to football. Finn smiles relieved.
v.
He finishes football practice early that day. He really wants to go home but he remembers he has to take some notes from his locker and groans inwardly. His locker is on the other hand of the school so he has to walk through the whole school. Finn's five feet away from his locker when he hears the sound of instruments playing. He recognizes Paramore's tune and walks closer to the room. He notices Sam playing the guitar and a girl with brown hair that looks a lot like that Rachel girl. He knows he should take his notes and go home but he really wants to hear this song so he stays.
When I was younger I saw my daddy cry and curse at the wind / he broke his own heart and I watched as he tried to reassemble it/
Finn's sure he has never heard something as beautiful and angelic as her voice. He has a sudden urge to barge in there and sing the rest of the song with her but he controls himself and listens as Rachel sings the last verse
And I'm on my way to believing / oh, and I'm on my way to believing.
Rachel does a little bow down and takes her seat next to Kurt and Blaine.
"Looks like the competition for the sectionals solo is heating up. Santana you're up next." Mr. Shuester says. The cheerleader Sam warned him about gets up from her seat next to Quinn and the first notes of the song start playing when he just knocks tentatively and enters. Sam looks at him surprised and happy at the same time.
"Hi, I'm Finn Hudson. I want to join your glee club." he says and tries to make him look more confident.
"Santana, looks like you have to wait." Will says to the Latina. "Finn, hit it."
Jessie is a friend. / Yeah I know he's been a good friend of mine. / But lately something's changed ain't that hard to define. / Jessie's got a girl and I want to make her mine.
Rachel watches him intently as he sings the song. His voice is good, not as artistically broad as Blaine's but still the boy can sing. She catches Santana looking at him and rolls her eyes. Of course Santana would like the new guy; it was the same with Sam after all and it's not like Finn is unattractive. He is hot male lead material; she needs to get there before Santana though. She'd been so caught up in her thoughts that she didn't notice the music stopping.
"Guys, looks like we have one more member!" Will says and shakes Finn's hand in sign of welcome. "Take a seat, Finn. We're doing a competition in order to see who is more deserving of a featured solo at sectionals in two weeks."
"But can't you do like a duet of your two best singers? I guess it would be fairer so everyone gets their moment to shine." Finn suggests.
"Because Franketeen, we're tired of Rachel getting the spotlight all the time." Santana tells him and he nods unsure.
"And that's because I'm simply more talented than you." Rachel says.
"Are you for real sister? Santana and I killed it last year with our mash-up. We won, the crowd freaking loved us." Mercedes says behind him.
"Okay, girls, cut it out. That's why we're having this competition." Mr. Shue tells them. Santana shrugs and goes up and signs her song without a single mistake. Mercedes, Kurt and Blaine follow singing their songs without a hitch.
"Now vote." Mr. Shue tells them after Blaine finishes performing his song. He writes Rachel in his messy handwriting and folds the paper before handing it to Will.
"Let's see. We are 16 members, Mercedes you got 2 votes, Blaine you got 3, and Kurt you also got 3 votes." Mr. Shue says and Mercedes, Kurt and Blaine's expression fall. "Rachel and Santana are the winners with 4 votes respectively." Mr. Shue tells them and Rachel smiles triumphantly before realization hits in.
"Does that mean that we'll perform together?" Rachel asks
"Yes, Rachel. This means you and Santana will perform a duet at sectionals. You can go now."
Finn grabs his bag when he feels a hand on his shoulder.
"I'm so glad you decided to join man. I knew you had it in you." Sam tells him and he's kind of proud that they like him. Maybe, just maybe, it'll be fun.
vi.
He's looking for something in his locker the next week. He likes being in Glee Club, surprisingly. He's become friends with Puck and Rory now. Santana seems to actually like him and he's also grown closer to Rachel. He slams his locker shut after he becomes frustrated and comes face to face with Rachel.
"Hey, how are you?" she asks smiling.
"Alright, how about you? Is it going well with Santana?" he asks her and she groans.
"Don't remind me. She's such a bitch all the time, I mean I thought her coming out helped with her anger issues but she still snaps at everyone. Still, Rachel Berry is focused on her prize." she tells him and he nods.
"Maybe you could try talking to her. I mean I've heard stories about her in the past, she seems nice. She's a bitch sometimes bu-"he tries to say before she cuts him off.
"Sometimes?" she asks incredulously. "Just yesterday she snapped at our band members. And Merced two days ago, and don't forget me!
"Look, just try talking to her. I mean, do you really want her to win? She's probably doing this in order to get the solo." Finn tells her and she smiles confidently.
"You're right. I'll see you around then." She says and kisses him on the cheek. Finn watches her leave stunned.
vii.
It's the middle of the night when he hears the bell ring. He groans and gets up to open the door. He's surprised when he sees Rachel with teary eyes. He tells her to come in and they sit on the couch where he hands her a tissue.
"Rachel, what's wrong?" he asks her worried.
"I…I was at Santana's practicing our song. And after we took a break I decided to address her issue. So I start telling her that it's wrong of her to insult us in every possible way and then she just cuts me off and starts hitting on every one of my insecurities. And I just slap her right across the face and god, Finn. I feel so terrible." Rachel tells him and he's shocked that she actually slapped Santana.
"Did she say anything after you slapped her?" he asks her.
"No, she just quietly told me to get out before she did something she regretted. But, Finn that's not the point. The point is that I slapped her because she hurt me. I mean it hurt but that's not any reason to physically hurt someone." She says and he can see the fear in her eyes. Fear of Santana taking revenge on her. God knows what would happen after that.
"Look, don't worry. I'll talk to her tomorrow at school. Okay?" he tells her and she smiles.
"I'm sorry for waking you up this late but I had nowhere to go." Rachel says.
"It's okay." he tells her and hugs her.
She pulls away, smiling. "Thank you, I really needed that."
"Come, you can sleep in the guest bedroom." He says and grabs her hand leading her to the room. "Goodnight, Rach."
"Goodnight, Finn."
viii.
"Hi, Franketeen." Santana says the next day while he's taking his books from the locker.
"Hey, Santana. You're just the one I was looking for. Listen…Rachel told me about what happened last night." he tells her
"Oh you mean her slapping me after I didn't do anything?" she asks smirking.
"She told me about you hitting on every one of her insecurities. Do you know how much that hurts? It's not something to say to somebody just because they're trying to help you with a problem." he tells her.
"Are you listening to yourself? You're actually defending her." she says.
"And what if am? I like her." he tells her.
"But how could you like that girl? She talks all the time, like legit 24/7. She's got an opinion on everything. Why do you even like her?"
"It's true. She talks a lot and sometimes I just want to stuff her mouth with a sock but she makes me laugh and she's honest about herself, she accepts me for who I am and she doesn't try to change. She makes me want to be a better person. She's beautiful and her voice is just… I don't how to explain it. It just touches something in me, you know?" he tells her and notices her eyes softening with every word he says.
"Finn, you don't like her. You love her." Santana tells him and he smiles to himself.
"I guess I am." He says and he can notice Santana's smile falter. "What's wrong?"
"There's something you should know about Rachel." She says and he feels something like dread at the pit of his stomach.
"Two days ago, I and Brittany were on a date and we saw Rachel with Jesse. It looked like a date." she tells him and he nods before it dawns on him.
"You mean Jesse as in Jesse St. James? The one who broke her heart two years ago? She went on a date with him?" he asks her angrily.
"Yes, she did. I'm so sorry Finn." she says and he can see it in her eyes how bad she feels for him.
"I have to go." He says and walks away.
ix.
"Hey, Rachel. I need to talk to you." He says later that day after glee practice.
"Me first. I talked to Amy today and she said that you didn't want to originally audition for Glee club. Is that true?" she asks him. He sighs.
"Yes, it is. I didn't want to audition at first because I though being popular was more important." he tells her.
"But what changed your mind? You couldn't have just woken up one day and decided that joining the Glee club was a good idea. What happened?" she says.
"I finished football practice early one day and walked past the choir room. I saw you and Sam, and I kind of wanted to hear you sing. Your voice touched me, Rachel. I wanted to be up there with you. It was just kind of a moment thing." He tells her and she seems surprised.
"Oh." She says stunned at the sudden confession. "I don't know what to say."
"Just don't say anything. But there's something I need to ask you" he tell her and after she nods, he continues. "Are you dating Jesse St. James?"
"I'm…who told you in the first place?" she asks.
"Santana did but why does that even matter?"
"Because she's manipulating you and you're just too stupid to realize it." She says and the moment the words leave her lips she regrets it.
"You're right. Stupid Finn who doesn't know anything but at least I'm not dating the jerk who broke my heart!" he says angrily.
"Finn, you don't even know him!" Rachel yells at him. "Just leave me alone."
x.
Next day in the choir room, the tension between Finn and Rachel was quite obvious.
"Okay guys, sectionals are in one week. We have to get our set list ready. Santana and Rachel, I suppose your duet is ready." Mr. Shue tells them
"All prepared." Santana says smirking.
"Great, now let's get started. I'm pairing you up for the big group number. Here we go, we have Sam and Quinn, Brittany and Santana, Kurt and Blaine, Tina and Mike, Mercedes and Puck, Finn and Rachel, Rory and Harmony and Sugar and Lauren." he says and Rachel opens her mouth to protest. "No discussion. Now let's get started. Every paired team will have a verse of the song that they'll perform while the others dance in the background. I want to showcase all of our talents."
xi.
After rehearsing for three hours, they finally took a break. Finn smiles relieved when Mr. Shue finally tells them to have a break.
"Rachel, hey. I've been thinking a lot about what you said and I wanted to apologize to you." Finn tells her and she smiles.
"I accept your apology and to be honest Finn, I wanted to apologize to you too. I shouldn't have called your stupid. You're not, but I was just so angry and I let it out on you. I'm sorry." she says and he nods.
"I forgive you. But you still haven't told me about Jesse."
"I'm not dating him; he's just been helping get in touch with my mother. She was his coach in Vocal Adrenaline so he knows where she lives and her phone number. We went to Breadstix to meet her there." She says and he wants to slap himself for accusing her of dating him.
"Rachel, that's great." he replies smiling.
"Let's start over, ok?" she says.
"Okay, I'm Finn Hudson and want to take you out on a date tonight." He tells and she smiles before kissing him. He grins into the kiss and out his arms around deepening it.
"About time you two." Sam says and they break apart. Rachel ducks her head embarrassed.
"Now, don't be shy. We've been betting on you two since Finn joined Glee club. I said before sectionals, Puck bet after sectionals. It looks like he owes me some money." Sam says laughing.
Finn smiles, hugging her next to him. He kisses the top of her head. "Let's go. We've got a show to prepare."
The last thing Rachel thinks of before they return to the auditorium is that all her dreams are going to come true, with Finn by her side and her talent, everything's possible.