A/N: I don't own anything related to spring awakening or glee. I just like to take the characters given and put my own spin on things.
In the three months of rehearsals and month since their opening night on Broadway, not once had Rachel Berry ever taken a sick day. She'd never been late and she'd never left early from anything either. So, when twenty minutes until call came and their director came running down the halls declaring that Rachel's understudy would be covering the show for the night Jesse was taken more than a bit off guard. He'd only worked with Claire a few times and while she was talented, she wasn't Rachel. Though he was an utmost professional, a show like Spring Awakening was based deeply on trust, a trust that he'd built firmly with his brunette co-star but that was far weaker with the blonde that he would be taking the stage with tonight.
By intermission, Jesse was mentally drained and determined to tell Rachel that she was never going to take a night off without him doing the same. Plopping into his dressing room chair he found himself reaching for his phone half set on giving her a piece of his mind while also needing to be sure that she was okay. Eight shows a week was exhausting and if she had gotten sick it was in his best interest to make sure that she did everything to get her back on stage as soon as possible because he did not want a repeat of tonight.
When the phone rang repeatedly with no answer Jesse figured that she must be asleep. Instead of leaving a voicemail, he instead sent a quick text informing her of his intentions to stop by her apartment with soup after the show. Again, getting her well served his best interests and as much as he tried to convince himself that that was the only reason, deep down he knew that it was really because he cared about her, possibly more than anyone else in his life.
Stepping outside of the stage door after the show finished, Jesse could only send a word of thanks up to the heavens that the night hadn't been a complete and utter disaster. It had been one of their worst performances and certainly wouldn't be receiving acclaim in tomorrow's newspaper but they had survived. Though he wanted to bypass the crowd surrounding the door, Jesse forced himself to pause to sign a dozen or so autographs and to take a few photos with those that had come to see the show. After all, he wouldn't be able to perform every night if there weren't people paying for tickets and filling the seats. A few fans asked where Rachel was in response he simply stating that she was feeling under the weather and would hopefully be back in time for their next show seeing as they had tomorrow off.
Hailing a cab to a little restaurant near Rachel's apartment, Jesse picked up a container of vegetable soup and then walked the two blocks to her apartment where he greeted the doorman before heading toward the elevator. Knocking on her door he again received no response until his phone buzzed in his pocket.
It's open.
Trying the door as her message had implied, Jesse indeed did find the door unlocked, something that he would have to lecture her over once she was feeling better. She may live in a safe building but being who they were it still wasn't safe to just leave your door wide open. To prove his point and out of habit as well, Jesse flipped the lock behind him and toed his shoes off before placing the container on the kitchen counter and calling out for Rachel. It wasn't words that reached his ears in response but instead the sound of retching coming from the bathroom.
The sight that met him when he reached the room was not at all what he expected. The Rachel he knew was always composed and had it all together but this Rachel, this Rachel had him scared that she was sicker than anyone had let on. Her hair was a ratty mess, her clothes were wrinkled and seemed about four sizes too large for her petite frame, and her cheeks were splotched, her eyes sunken into her skull. For the moment her head was just resting against the edge of the toilet bowl but before he could find the words to comment on her appearance she was once again puking her guts up to the porcelain gods.
Taking in her appearance, Jesse noticed the tears that had spilled from her eyes and dried on her cheeks and unable to help himself, he squatted beside her, his hand resting against the base of her spine while his thumb rubbed circles along her skin.
"Have you been like this all day?" He murmured and the look he received told him her response without her saying a word. When she finally finished puking for the moment Jesse urged her up from the toilet, filling a small cup with mouthwash for her from her medicine cabinet. "Come on. I brought some soup and I'll make you some tea. We need to keep you hydrated." His co-star didn't put up much of an argument as Jesse led her toward her kitchen, his hand never leaving the small of her back until she was seated on a bar stool. "Now….point me in the direction of bowls, spoons, and your tea supplies and I'll take care of it all."
As Jesse worked to serve the soup and prepare the tea, his concern for the woman across from him deepened. Rachel Berry was nothing if not talkative and opinionated and she hadn't said a word since he entered her apartment. Instead, she picked at her nails and her body shook slightly urging him to grab a blanket from her living room to drape over her shoulders. He wasn't sure what was going on with her; maybe this was how she acted when she was sick, but his gut was screaming at him that something deeper was wrong and if that was the case he wasn't leaving until he figured it out.