Chapter 1
Summer went by in a sea of trips to the lake with the boys, late night cuddle sessions at the drive inn with Finn, and Halo marathons at Noah's house. To say that my summer was epic would be like saying that I thought "Funny Girl" was the best movie ever made. After all the ups and downs of last year, it feels like things are starting to work out for me. I finally belong. I finally got things right. Sure I still don't get along with Quinn and every now and then someone makes a comment about how annoying it is that I call Glee club meetings during our summer vacation. But the fact that no one misses a single one tells me that everyone is just as determined as I am to repeat at Nationals this year. Nationals are in Las Angeles this year and considering that the farthest west any of us has gone is Kalamazoo, Michigan, everyone is beyond excited. We have a week left before school starts and I really want to meet one more time before we are back in school mode.
"But Noah, I don't understand what is so important that you can't attend the final summer meeting." "Babe, seriously, we have had a freaking meeting every week this summer, don't you think we know enough. We haven't even started school yet." I can hear Sam yelling in the background and I can tell that he is celebrating. "FUCK! Are you happy now Berry! I just got killed after 12 levels of kicking his ass!" "Language, Noah. But now that your game is over, you have time to come to the meeting." I can hear him groan on the other end of the line, "Fine, but you owe me. I want like two dozen cookies this time shorty. And not those damn raisin ones that you bake for Finn. I want the chocolate chip ones. You ain't putting me on no health food shit." I groan. Sometimes he can be so difficult. "Fine. But you have to bring Sam too." "Oh trust me, if I have to sit through this damn thing, he's suffer….I mean he's coming too." I roll my eyes and tell him to come over in an hour and hang up the phone.
I hear the knock on my door and my dads greeting Finn. I yell out, "I'm up here Finn." I pick up the phone and dial Tina's number. "Hey, Rachel, let me guess, we are meeting today." "Oh hi Tina, how did you know?" I ask surprised. "Well I saw your name come up on caller ID and Mike is on the phone with Puck and they sound so so excited, so I just put two and two together." "Oh, um, well yes, we are meeting in an hour at my place. I can count on you both being there?" "Oh of course. I'll just collect Mike and be over in a bit." "Bye Tina." I'm quite proud of myself. Two phone calls and already I have notified four members of the team. I see Finn walk in the room and I jump up to give him a hug. "Hey babe. I was thinking we could head to the lake." He picks me up and I feel his lips smash onto mine. I pull back quickly and he's smirking at me. "Finn, today is the last Glee club meeting." He frowns and starts pouting. "But babe, the lake, bikini, water." I laugh at how ridiculous he sounds when he pouts and smack him on the arm. "Finn, we can go after the meeting, but we need to focus." He puts me down and starts laughing.
"Good luck convincing the rest of the team. This is their last weekend of freedom and you are being a kill glad." I look at him confused. Sometimes being with Finn requires your brain to constantly be thinking. Kill glad. Oh. "Kill joy?" I look at him smiling. "Yeah, that. They aren't gonna like it Rach." "Well, I already convinced Noah, Sam, Mike, and Tina." "Oh." He frowns again. "Sorry to disappoint you Finn, but we need to do this if we are going to make it to LA this year." "I know babe, I just really wanted you to myself this last week." Things with Finn and I had been perfect this summer. We had already added five pages of memories to his scrapbook he gave me in New York. Spending time just laying around at the lake with Noah and Sam had been a wonderful way to spend our summer. I didn't want summer to end either. I wanted it to stay this way forever. With our senior year looming over us, it was a reminder that life was going to go on whether we wanted it to or not.
"Ok, who do you want me to call?" He asked pulling out his cell phone. I jump up on my tip toes and kiss him quickly and I feel his snake his arms around my waist and pull me closer to him. "Finn," I whisper against his lips, "the meeting is in less than an hour." He pulls away frowning again. "Ok ok." "You call Kurt and tell him to get Mercedes on his way over and I'll call San and Lauren." I grab my cell phone and quickly dial Santana's cell. Of all the friendships I have made over the summer, hers was the most surprising. Sure she loved to tease me, but I was definitely closer to her than any of the other girls in Glee. "Berry, you have got to be freaking kidding me." I hear her shout into the phone as she picks up. "It's the last week. Don't you and Finn have better things to be doing then meeting with all of us. Would you just sleep with him already so that you can leave the rest of us in peace." I laugh because a year ago I would have gotten angry with her but I finally realized that this is just the way that Santana makes friends and her teasing me is actually affectionate and not insulting.
"San, my sex life aside, it's the last meeting. It's an hour of your day. Just collect Brit and Quinn and be over here at 3." "So bossy Berry. But fine, I'll see you and Finnessa at 3." I hear the phone click and I look up to see Finn on the phone talking to Kurt. "No you don't have to bring anything Kurt. No you don't have to come early. Do you really have to be this excited? It's just a damn meeting. Ok ok, see you and Mercedes at 3." He hangs up and smiles at me. "You and Kurt scare me sometimes with how excited you get over these meetings." I laugh. "Well he is my better half." "Hey, I thought that was me babe?" He sits down next to me and kisses my neck as I dial Laura's number. "Hey, no distractions Finn. I just have one more phone call and I'm all yours."
"Lauren, 3pm, my house, don't be late." I say into her voicemail. She never answers her phone, something about how she only takes messages and if they are important she answers them. She must find Glee important because she always comes to the meetings. "Ok Finn, all done. I'm yours." He grins and pulls me down on the bed. "I thought you were already mine babe." I smile at him while I push my fingers through his hair. "Always and forever, Finn. Always and forever."